6 days in Perth with an 18-mo (Singaporean edition)
Our recommendations, our accommodations, and things we would do differently
I didn’t think I would ever write a travel blog post but this is something I would absolutely love to have read before we booked our flights and hopped onto the plane.
So, if you have a little one and are thinking of going on a vacation nearby, here’s our itinerary and recommendations.
Overall
I highly recommend going to Perth for a short family vacation.
The 5-hour flight is short enough for an 18-month-old to sleep throughout. There is also no time difference between Singapore and Perth, so no sleep adjustments are needed. And 6 days feels just right.
Our only mistake was traveling in March, when the temperature in Perth City was as hot or hotter than Singapore during the day. Sometime closer to June might have been better. But Margaret River was nice and chilly, the perfect aircon temperature.
My in-laws came with us. They helped with cooking several meals and things here and there, which was helpful. But my son was in his papa-mama phase and didn’t want them to carry him at all. So, I believe it is feasible to travel in Perth as a family of three, without additional help.
I was underwhelmed by the food in Perth, compared to, say, the food we had in Japan during our last trip. But I will mention a few that we liked below.
We aren’t too particular about our son’s diet even in Singapore. In Perth, he ate bread, egg, pizza, noodles, and rice. His favorite was grandma’s ABC soup with rice. He had that for three nights.
The subheadings below are formatted as “Main activity for the day (Accommodation)”.
Day 0: Pre-trip preparations
Apply for visa asap.
My wife bought two sets of stickers to keep our son entertained on the flight, in case he couldn’t sleep.
Bringing milk bottles filled with water and small packets of milk onto the plane is fine. The security didn’t even stop us because they saw our son.
We brought a tin of milk powder in our luggage, which needed to be declared at the customs but we had no issues bringing it into Perth. The major supermarkets also sell milk powder from most major brands (though the formula might be different from the same product in Singapore). We also brought an entire pack of diapers just in case we ran out before we find a supermarket.
Businesses charge an additional 1+% for card payments, and some even gave us discounts for using cash. While I like the convenience of my card, we brought some Australian dollars too.
Day 1: Perth City (Pan Pacific)
We flew red eye because we wanted our son to sleep throughout the flight, and thankfully he did.
The only issue was our flight was delayed by four hours. We landed at about 10 a.m. and were drained. We took the day easy and slept at 7 p.m. to recharge. We would still fly red eye, though, because I don’t think my son can sit on my lap awake throughout a flight, especially when we need to wear seatbelts.
We first took the No Bird airport shuttle to get our rental car. Note that you have to call them to let them know you have arrived, even though the website says its shuttle comes every 20 minutes. I bought eSIM cards from ICC on Lazada, which should have included calls but somehow I couldn’t call in Australia. Luckily, I managed to flag one of No Bird’s shuttles as the guy was driving past. I believe they are the cheapest option, hence their office and cars are not in the airport, unlike the major car rental companies.
You can use your Singaporean driving license and do not need an international driving permit. They drive on the same side of the road as us.
The Toyota RAV4 fit the five of us and our three luggages nicely. A smaller car might not fit all our luggages. I would recommend getting a big car, even if a small car can fit a family of three, because driving the long distances to and back from Margaret River is easier with a more powerful car. Most of the route has a speed limit of 110km/h.
The buses in the city are free, which my Singaporean mind cannot comprehend. Yes, you can just board the bus, walk past the driver, and take a seat—without paying. We could have driven but the hotel parking is ridiculously expensive ($10/hour and $40 for 4-24 hours), so we didn’t want to drive in and out of its carpark.
We had lunch at the hotel’s restaurant and dinner at China Panda Bar & Kitchen (meh). We bought groceries at Woolworths. Langley Park is a giant field beside our hotel, which was lovely and windy in the evening (recommend).
The hotel provided a fairly standard baby cot.
Day 2: Swan Valley Animal Farm (Margaret River Holiday Cottages)
We had breakfast at Miller + Baker (recommend). It was good enough that we went twice during the trip. It is a short walk from Hyde Park, which is nice too.
Most roadside parking is free for a few hours, which again I cannot comprehend but I didn’t complain. If you are stressed about parallel parking while other drivers wait behind you, Hyde Park has quite a number of normal perpendicular parking. 99% of the drivers there are nicer and kinder than Singaporean drivers. Because I was not familiar with the roads and made a few turns where I wasn’t supposed to, no drivers honked at me and they even gave way to me.
Our main activity for the day was Swan Valley Animal Farm in the morning (recommend). It is a small farm where you can get close to goats, sheep, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, and other small animals. Do check their feeding times and take the tractor train ride!
Then, we drove about four hours to Margaret River, with stops at Miami Bakehouse (meh) and Bunbury Farmers Market (recommend).
We settled into Margaret River Holiday Cottages, cooked dinner, and turned in early. The cottage was well equipped with kitchenwares, utensils, and basic necessities. There were also board games and toys for children in the cottage. They also provided a portacot with a soft mattress (our Airbnb afterwards didn’t; more below).
Day 3: Animal feeding (Margaret River Holiday Cottages)
Our stay at Margaret River Holiday Cottages was the best part of the trip. We were there for two nights while other families were there longer. Two nights felt good enough for us.
We woke up to kangaroos just outside the perimeter of the cottages, which was amazing. The team feeds the animals at 8 in the morning and guests are welcome to join. There is also a joyride on the tractor, which our son took twice.
During the day, we drove to Hamelin Bay (meh), had a simple lunch at Dumpling House Margaret River (meh), and drank coffee at Margaret River Bakery (so so).
While our son napped in the cottage, my wife and I explored the short discovery trail and played basketball, which was right beside our cottage. After he woke up, he played at the playground, which was right in front of our cottage. The weather was cold enough for us to wear jackets.
We cooked dinner again, got our son to sleep, and had wine.
Day 4: Busselton Jetty (Airbnb at Mounts Bay Road)
We left the cottage early because we wanted to pop by Margaret River Chocolate Company before our train ride at Busselton Jetty at 11 a.m.
Margaret River Chocolate Company has great hot chocolate and is a good place for buying gifts for family and friends. But the hot weather meant we couldn’t keep the chocolates in the car and I realized there is one near Perth City.
Busselton Jetty has an electric train ride every hour but the tickets sell out (hat tip to the French dad at Margaret River Holiday Cottages who gave me a heads up). Our son loves trains, so I didn’t take any chances. It was quite a fun ride, and we saw dolphins!
We went to Shelter Brewing Co. for lunch (recommend). It has coloring pencils, which kept our son entertained. He enjoyed the pizza there too.
The beach there looked amazing, and I was so tempted to go for a swim. We saw a lady swimming along the jetty while we were on the train. But it was too hot for our son. If you like beaches, I suggest bringing your swimming costume and a change of clothes.
We finished the remaining two-hour drive to our Airbnb at Mounts Bay Road, had dinner at Good Fortune Roast Duck House (ok if you crave Asian food), and bought more groceries at Woolworths.
The Airbnb at Mounts Bay Road was easy to get to from the freeway. But we had to go through the freeway to go into the city and vice versa. The roads were confusing enough that I accidentally went the wrong way multiple times. We also often had to cut through the central business district area, which was stressful to drive in.
In the Airbnb, there was a portacot with a thin mat, not mattress. This design is apparently following the safety regulations but our son is old enough to sleep on a mattress. That portacot has terrible reviews online. Fortunately, my wife brought our son’s bedsheet and created a makeshift mattress with it and some blankets.
Day 5: Caversham Wildlife Park (Airbnb at Mounts Bay Road)
Because we got up early, we climbed 200+ steps up Jacob’s ladder, which was right beside our Airbnb, to King’s Park. It was a good workout and King’s Park is beautiful in the morning (when it’s cooling).
We went to Yahava KoffeeWorks Swan Valley for breakfast. It has a nice lake with outdoor benches but the food and coffee were ok.
Then, we went to Caversham Wildlife Park, which was a short drive from the breakfast place. Besides the kangaroos and koalas, I think the zoo and River Wonders in Singapore are much better. The weather was too hot for exploring the park for long too.
When our son napped in the Airbnb and my in-laws were looking after him (bring your baby monitor!), my wife and I sneaked out to Chu Bakery (meh; I won’t queue for it) and took away lunch from Chilliz Xprezz Nedlands (ok if you are craving Asian food).
In the afternoon, we went to Westfield Carousel. My son loved the kiddie rides there and bought a few toys from Kmart. But because we don’t really shop, we didn’t hang out for long. We drove back to cook dinner.
Day 6: Fremantle Markets (Economy class seat in the air)
On our final day, my wife and I were very ready to go home. Our flight was 1 a.m. that night, so I even asked Singapore Airlines for an earlier flight but the available seats were all far apart.
We went back to Miller + Baker for breakfast again and played at the playground at Hyde Park (recommend). It was still chilly in the morning, which was perfect.
Another parent at Margaret River Holiday Cottages recommended the water park at Elizabeth Quay but our Airbnb has a private pool, which was more convenient for us.
After my son’s nap, we went to Fremantle Markets. The place was much smaller than I had expected, so we “completed” it in less than an hour. There is a coffee stall at the end, with a wide selection of coffee beans (recommend). The lady there was kind enough to give my son a free cup of milk too. The other stalls were rather disappointing; they were like Bangkok stalls but 10 times the price.
There is a playground nearby, and my son loved the giant slide. He went up and down it at least 20 times.
We had dinner at a food court-like area (meh) in the FOMO building, which is also a carpark. I didn’t see it initially, so I parked at the Wilson carpark, right beside Fremantle Markets. You do need to pay for this parking upfront; the car beside ours had a $65 fine on its wiper!
We had planned to visit Rottnest Island but the sun and heat dissuaded us. We also wanted an easy day before our late flight.
After chilling in our Airbnb in the evening, I drove the rest to the airport, topped up the petrol, and took an Uber back to the airport.
As a Krisflyer Elite Gold member, I could bring my son and my wife to the lounge (recommend; duh). We had champagne to celebrate the end of the tiring but memorable trip!
If you have any questions about our trip, comment below and I’ll share as much as I can. I wrote this on the red-eye flight home, so please pardon any mistakes.
