There has never been a better time to drive Western Australia's south coast. From clear beaches and tall forest to good wineries and farm-gate produce, the stretch of road linking Denmark, Albany and Esperance is worth the fuel. Denmark and Albany sit in the Great Southern; Esperance is further east again, on the edge of Australia's Golden Outback. Whether you are planning a long weekend or a full road trip, this guide will help you map out the best stops along the way.
# Denmark
Starting off strong, Denmark combines a small-town pace with a dramatic coastline, good coffee and landmarks like the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk. Often described as a quieter alternative to Margaret River, it has plenty to fill two or three days.
Things to do and see in Denmark
Wineries
Denmark's cool climate suits premium wine, and there are enough cellar doors here to fill a day. Three sit close together on the Scotsdale side of town: Harewood Estate on Scotsdale Road, Rockcliffe in the Scotsdale Valley among the karri, and Singlefile Wines on Walter Road, roughly 7km from the town centre.
Moombaki is worth the separate trip rather than the same loop — it is at Kentdale, about halfway between Denmark and Walpole, down a gravel road on a property bordering the Kent River. Its cellar door is open Friday to Tuesday, 11am to 5pm, and closing days can change, so ring ahead.
Beaches
About 15km west of town — a 15 to 20 minute drive — you will reach William Bay National Park. The highlight is Greens Pool, sheltered by a line of granite boulders for most of the year and about as calm as open coast gets in the Great Southern. Elephant Rocks share the same car park and are a 10 minute walk away, where a cluster of huge rounded boulders sits in the water and, from the right angle, reads as a herd of elephants wading in.
Further west again, Peaceful Bay is around 45km from Denmark. The swimming beach there is protected from the southern swell, which makes it a better bet if you have young kids in the group.
Valley of the Giants
A 45 to 50 minute drive west along the South Coast Highway, roughly 52km, takes you to the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk. The walkway climbs to 40 metres and runs 600 metres through the canopy of the tingle forest. It was built in 1996 as six lightweight spans carried on guyed steel pylons rather than on the trees, and the whole structure touches only about three square metres of forest floor.
Tickets are $21 for adults, $15.50 concession, $10.50 for children aged 6 to 15 and $52.50 for two adults and two children, with under-fives free. It is open daily 9am to 5pm — last tickets at 4pm — every day of the year except Christmas Day, though it can close in lightning or high wind. Your ticket lets you go round the loop as many times as you like on the day, so some people walk it, break for lunch, then do it again in the opposite direction. Take note of the posted limits on each platform. At ground level, the Ancient Empire walk is a separate 650 metre loop through the veteran tingles and costs nothing.
Denmark Animal Farm & Pentland Alpaca Stud
Animal lovers should make time for Denmark Animal Farm & Pentland Alpaca Stud on Scotsdale Road, where you can hand-feed alpacas and meet the rest of the farm. It opens 10am to 4pm Wednesday to Monday, closed Tuesdays outside school holidays. Koalas are fed at 10am and the farm's youngest animals are bottle-fed at 3pm, so time your visit around whichever you would rather see.
# Albany
Once you have covered Denmark, the next stop is Albany, 53km east and about 45 minutes on the road. Albany brings scenic hikes, rugged coastline, deep history and good local food.
Things to do and see in Albany
Bluff Knoll
If you are here to hike, Bluff Knoll is the one to plan around. It is in Stirling Range National Park rather than Albany itself, roughly 85 to 100km north-east of town, so allow an hour to an hour and a half each way on top of the walk.
At 1,098 metres it is the highest peak in the southern half of the state. The summit trail is 6.8km return and graded 4 — a steep path with a lot of steps — and most people take three to four hours. Standard national park entry fees apply. This is not a stroll: the Stirling Range makes its own weather, and rain, hail and a sharp temperature drop can arrive within the hour. Come prepared for all of it, carry more water than you think you need, and consider a personal locator beacon and a trip intentions form left with someone reliable. In return you get wildflowers, wildlife and a view across the whole range. Sunrise walks are popular here in the cooler months.
Whale Watching
Albany sits on the migration path, and the season runs roughly May to October. Humpbacks are the ones you are most likely to see between June and August as they pass Michaelmas and Breaksea Islands at the mouth of King George Sound. Southern right whales come later, from August to October, and tend to shelter in the calmer bays — King George Sound off Middleton Beach among them — which is where cows with new calves settle. Several operators run day trips out of Albany, and there are plenty of vantage points to spot them from land. Outside whale season the same coastline is still worth the drive for the cliffs and the ocean views.
National ANZAC Centre
The National ANZAC Centre is not on the main street — it sits above town on Forts Road at Mount Clarence, inside the heritage-listed Princess Royal Fortress, looking out over King George Sound — where the first Anzac convoy assembled before sailing on 1 November 1914. On arrival you are given the identity of one of 32 real Anzacs, soldiers and nurses among them, and you follow that person's war through the exhibition to whatever end it came to. Artefacts, film and interactive displays fill in the rest. It is open seven days, 9am to 5pm, with last entry at 4pm.
Albany Farmers Market
If you can time your run right, the Albany Farmers Market runs every Saturday morning from 8am to midday on Collie Street. It has been going since 2002 and is a good start to a weekend — coffee, artisan stalls, food trucks and a lot of produce that was in the ground earlier that week. It is run by growers, so it is also the easiest place in town to get a straight answer about what the region is actually like to live in.
# Esperance
From Albany, Esperance is around 481km east along the South Coast Highway through Ravensthorpe — about four and a half hours without stopping, and realistically longer once you do.
Bremer Bay is a good place to break the drive, but plan for it rather than treating it as a quick pit stop: the turn-off is near Boxwood Hill and the town is another 60km south of the highway, so the detour adds about 120km and an hour and a half. It is worth it for the coastline, but it is not five minutes off the road.
Things to do and see in Esperance
Cape Le Grand National Park & Lucky Bay
Lucky Bay sits in the middle of Cape Le Grand National Park, about 60km east of Esperance and a 45 minute drive. Testing in 2017 found it has the whitest sand in Australia, and standing on it in full sun you can believe it. The bay is framed by weathered granite headlands, and a resident population of western grey kangaroos works the beach — they are most active early morning and late afternoon, which is also when the light is best. Park entry is $17 per standard vehicle. Lucky Bay and Le Grand Beach both have barbecues and toilets.
Hellfire Bay
A little further along the same coast, Hellfire Bay is another stretch of white sand and granite, and it has barbecues and toilets, which makes it a good lunch stop. There is something properly rugged about this one. Our hot tip is to watch the wind — it adds to the feeling of the place right up until it does not. Feral bees are known in the area, so keep clear of any active hive, and the park is remote enough that a personal locator beacon is a sensible thing to carry.
Frenchman Peak
Frenchman Peak is only 262 metres, but do not let the number fool you. The trail is 3km return, graded 5, and takes most people about two hours. Much of the climb is over bare, smooth granite at a steep angle, and it is not recommended in wet or windy weather because that rock becomes genuinely slippery. If conditions are with you, the reward is a 360-degree view over the park, back to Lucky Bay and out to the islands of the Recherche Archipelago, plus a cave near the summit that was carved by the sea when the water sat far higher than it does now.
Great Ocean Drive
The Esperance Great Ocean Drive is a 38km loop starting from town, and it is the easiest way to see the coast without walking a step. Driving time alone is about an hour, though you will spend longer than that with the stops — the Rotary Lookout, the wind farm, Twilight Beach and Observatory Point are all on it. Pink Lake is on the route too, but set your expectations: it stopped turning pink around 2007 after changes to the salt levels in the lake, and it has not come back. There is also a walking and cycling trail from the Rotary Lookout down to Salmon Beach if you would rather stretch your legs.
If you are looking for other road trips around the state, including the far north, have a look at our guide to 8 unmissable road trips in WA.
That is a wrap. Use this guide to plan your next run through Denmark, Albany and Esperance. If you are travelling with a larger group and need transport along the way, our team can help organise a customised itinerary and comfortable group transport — call (08) 9351 8980.
