Only a short drive south of Perth lies Mandurah. What started as a small holiday region with the quintessential corner deli has grown into a well-developed coastal city with a long list of restaurants, a generous foreshore and enough on offer to fill a weekend. Mandurah took gold as WA's Top Tourism Town in both 2022 and 2023, and in 2023 went on to be named Australia's Top Tourism Town at the national awards. This list is to give you a hand when planning your next trip south.
Giants of Mandurah
Starting the list strong is the open-air exhibition of giant human-like wooden sculptures scattered across the region. Built by Danish artist Thomas Dambo, each one celebrates the natural world and is handcrafted from recycled and locally sourced materials, so the giants settle into the landscape rather than sit on top of it. There are six in total: five around Mandurah, at locations including Halls Head, Coodanup, Lakelands and Wannanup, and a secret sixth. The team at Visit Mandurah publishes a Traveller's Companion to follow, and every site carries its own symbol. Collect all five, then enter them into the online Code Breaker page to reveal where the last giant is hiding. That treasure-hunt element is what makes it work with kids in the car.
Hire an E-Bike or E-Scooter – Mandurah Foreshore
The Mandurah foreshore is a genuinely impressive space, with wide open walkways, plenty of places to eat and the inlet running alongside. The Bike Kiosk sits beside the Mandurah Visitor Centre on the eastern foreshore and is the city's only e-bike and e-scooter hire operator. You can take out e-bikes, e-scooters, e-trikes, cargo bikes or standard pushbikes, all speed-limited, and the staff will point you at the right route from Mandurah's 600-plus kilometres of shared pathway. There is no share-scheme app to download here — hire is over the counter.
Mandurah Instagram Trail
Carrying on with the photo opportunities, Visit Mandurah has mapped an Instagram Trail of 13 spots around the foreshore and city, with the map published on that page. It takes in murals, sculptures and public art — the Floral Swing mural, the Pelican 3D illusion artwork, The Heart, The Frame, Stingray Point and the Venetian canals among them. The spots sit close enough together to link up on foot, so you get the foreshore walk and the photos in the one trip.
Peel Produce Market
Held every Saturday from 8am to noon at the Dawesville Foreshore Reserve on Estuary Road, the Peel Produce Market brings together local growers, bakers and producers. Expect fresh fruit and veg, freshly baked bread, handcrafted cheeses, homemade jams and preserves, and locally made soaps and specialty foods. It is one of the better reasons to be in Mandurah on a weekend. Come early rather than late — the good stock goes first, and the closer to the midday pack-up you arrive, the harder the parking gets.
Dolphin Cruise
Mandurah's estuary and canal system are home to a resident dolphin population, and they are a large part of why people make the trip down. Mandurah Cruises runs a one-hour dolphin and scenic cruise daily, taking in the canals and the Ocean Marina, and every ticket carries a dolphin guarantee — no sighting and you cruise again for free. The advantage of going with an operator is that they know where the pods have been each day, which counts for a lot if your time is tight.
Falcon Bay
A short drive south along the coast is Falcon, a small community of shacks and holiday homes that still reads as old Mandurah. Falcon Bay Foreshore Reserve has a children's playground, barbecues, picnic areas, toilets and easy beach access, and the Falcon Bay Beach Café sits right on the foreshore doing fish and chips and coffee. It is a good spot to bring something back from the Peel Produce Market and sit out a sunset, with plenty of room for the kids to run.
Play Golf at The Cut
For golfers, The Cut is a public course at 69 Country Club Drive, Dawesville, laid out through the ocean-front dunes and a short run south from Falcon. The clubhouse has both a bar and a restaurant, so you can finish the round with a cold drink and something to eat rather than driving straight home. Ring the golf shop ahead if you need to sort hire gear.
Scenic Flight With the Royal Aero Club of WA
For those with a little extra to spend, the Royal Aero Club of WA runs scenic flights over the Mandurah coastline and Peel region from Murrayfield Airfield, in 30, 45 and 60-minute options. You get the Dawesville Cut, the Peel Inlet, the estuaries, the city itself and the coast running north towards Rockingham, with the pilot calling out what you are looking at. The aircraft carry up to three passengers, flights run Tuesday to Sunday, there is a safety briefing before you board, and the whole thing is weather dependent — ring on the day to check.
Kwillena Gabi Pool
This one is for younger kids, or for adults who are still kids about swimming. Kwillena Gabi Pool sits in the protected water off Mandurah Terrace on the eastern foreshore, enclosed by floating pontoons arranged in a circle, with paved surrounds, shade and a wheelchair-accessible ramp. There are no nets or barriers beneath the pontoons, so the estuary's marine life moves freely in and out. The name comes from the Bindjareb Boodja traditional owners and means dolphin waters, which tells you what you might share it with.
Wild Seafood Experience
Finishing the list is the Wild Seafood Experience, a three-and-a-half-hour cruise aboard a twin-deck boat taking up to 24 guests from Stingray Point Jetty. You haul the cray pots yourself for western rock lobster and hear how the fishery is managed, then a private chef cooks a seven-course seafood lunch on deck — amberjack ceviche, Abrolhos scallops, a WA seafood platter, and the lobster served both as sashimi and seared in garlic butter. Wines from Howard Park's Margaret River range, WA craft beer and non-alcoholic options are all included. It books out, so reserve well ahead.
Bonus: Christmas Lights Cruise
From late November to early January, Mandurah's canals light up with what Mandurah Cruises bills as WA's biggest Christmas lights display — more than 200 decorated homes along the water. The Christmas Lights Cruise runs nightly through the season, departing from the Mandurah Cruises jetty at Mandjar Square or from Stingray Point depending on the boat, with cruises from one hour up to two and a half.
Mandurah has gone from a sleepy holiday region to an award-winning tourism town, and there is a genuine list of things to do behind the reputation. Dolphins one morning, a Saturday market the next — it is our pick for a break from Perth. If you are organising a larger group and need transport, we can help you out. We have bus sizes to suit all parties. Chat with our sales team today.
