Things to do in Esperance
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Esperance
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best for swimming and camping, warmest water and longest days, peak prices.
Spring wildflowers, warming days, whale season tail and thinner crowds.
Calm autumn days, good for fishing and hiking, cooler swims.
Wildflower peak and festival month, windy with bracing swims.
Worst for a beach holiday, cold and wet, best only for whales and empty beaches.
What's on
- Djilba Wildflower Festival second half of September
More than 700 local species at the Civic Centre with ranger walks and art awards.
- Grounded Esperance mid September
Guided hiking festival running alongside the wildflower festival, including Frenchman Peak.
- Esperance Agricultural Show mid October
Farming town show weekend with livestock, machinery and local produce.
Best things to do in Esperance
Lucky Bay
Whitest sand in Australia on a long arc with kangaroos at dawn and dusk and clear turquoise water.
Twilight Beach
Patrolled town swim with granite islands, clear calm water inside the rocks and an easy sunset.
Hellfire Bay
Sheltered cove with picnic shelters and good shore snorkelling, far quieter than Lucky Bay.
Great Ocean Drive
Forty kilometre loop linking lookouts, lagoons and a dozen beaches west of town in one drive.
Fly Esperance
Scenic flight over Lucky Bay and inland pink and rainbow lakes that cannot be seen from the road.
Woody Island Nature Reserve
Only public island in the archipelago, with a wildlife cruise, guided walk and snorkel trail.
Esperance Stonehenge
Full size pink granite Stonehenge replica you can walk among, on the road to Cape Le Grand.
Esperance Museum
Small museum built around Skylab debris that fell near Esperance, plus rail and maritime history.
Where to stay in Esperance
The Esplanade and town foreshore
first trip, all-round base
Walk to the jetty, cafes, pub and supermarkets, and swim at the enclosure.
Bandy Creek and Castletown
quiet retreat, park-first trips
Peaceful and closer to Cape Le Grand, with a drive into town for dinner.
RAC park foreshore east
families
Pool, playground and campers kitchen with the beach across the road.
In town inland streets
value base
Lower prices a short walk from the water, quiet and safe at night.
Think twice about
- Norseman Road and Harbour Road highway strip
Truck traffic and nothing to walk to. Every evening starts with a drive.
- Duke of Orleans Bay and Condingup as a first-trip base
An hour from town, expensive fuel, no supplies after hours and kangaroo dense roads after dark.
Best restaurants in Esperance
Bistro Louis
Small French leaning restaurant treating the local catch with care, the town special occasion table.
Taylor St Quarters
All day foreshore dining on a verandah over the bay, strong on prawn linguine and fish tacos.
Fish Face Takeaway and Restaurant
Boutique fish and chips with a daily catch board, grilled groper, scallops and fish curry.
Seasons Restaurant
Hotel restaurant doing modern Australian dinners daily, the reliable upscale arrival night choice.
Lucky Bay Brewing
Award winning local barley brewery with wood fired pizzas, live music and a big grassed yard.
Yirri Grove Restaurant & Farm Shop
Olive grove lunch with tastings, farm shop and a short fresh menu in garden surroundings.
The Pier Hotel
Town pub with bistro, beer garden and the only late night venue, strong on garlic prawns.
Coffee Cat
Jetty headland kiosk cafe with excellent coffee and the best breakfast view in town.
Outdoor things to do in Esperance
Frenchman Peak
Steep granite summit hike with the classic panorama over Lucky Bay, Thistle Cove and the islands.
Le Grand Coastal Trail
Coastal trail linking the park bays through headlands, quiet coves and spring wildflowers.
Pink Lake Golf
Volunteer run 18 hole links with grass greens, cheap green fees and visitors welcome at competitions.
West Beach
Town surf beach with reef breaks, lagoons for a dip after and board hire a short drive away.
Wharton Beach
Vast shallow arc east of town with squeaky sand, dolphins in the surf and almost no commerce.
Cape Arid National Park
Wilder eastern park of empty beaches and rough 4WD tracks, for a planned full day or camp.
Tour Esperance 4x4 Adventures
Guided beach drive to Cape Le Grand that handles tides and sand so hire car drivers do not bog.
Esperance Ocean Safaris
Archipelago wildlife cruise for seals, sea lions, dolphins, sea eagles and whales in season.
Best hotels in Esperance
Esperance Chalet Village
Private chalets and log cabins in bush at Bandy Creek, with bikes, kayaks and fire pits included.
Esperance Island View Apartments
Spacious two storey apartments on the Esplanade with water views, full kitchens and laundries.
Hospitality Esperance, SureStay Collection by Best Western
Beachfront motel with pool, guest laundry and a good on site restaurant for arrival night.
Esperance Clearwater Motel Apartments
Self contained one and two bedroom apartments in the centre, built for longer stays and cooking.
RAC Esperance Holiday Park
Modern holiday park with villas, cabins, sites, pool and campers kitchen across from the beach.
Bayview Motel Esperance
Clean affordable motel rooms a short walk from the beach, shops and restaurants.
Esperance Bay Holiday Park
Budget cabins, units and grassed sites with camp kitchen, about a kilometre from the centre.
Is Esperance expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | A$110 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | A$230 a person |
| Splurge | A$480 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Fly Esperance: weeks ahead
- Woody Island Nature Reserve: weeks ahead
- Tour Esperance 4x4 Adventures: weeks ahead
- Esperance Ocean Safaris: weeks ahead
- HeliSpirit: weeks ahead
- Esperance Diving and Fishing: weeks ahead
- Esperance Chalet Village: months ahead
- Esperance Island View Apartments: months ahead
- Summer accommodation and Lucky Bay campground sites go months ahead for Christmas and Easter.
- Book flights, Woody Island and cruises early in your stay so weather can reshuffle them.
- Reserve Bistro Louis and Taylor St Quarters for Friday and Saturday dinners.
Is Esperance safe?
- Most beaches are unpatrolled. Swim at patrolled Twilight or inside the James Street enclosure if unsure.
- Check the SharkSmart app each morning and heed warning towers and closures. Emergency number 000.
- Wet granite is treacherously slippery. Stay off wet black rock and never turn your back on the swell.
Esperance travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Pink Lake near town is no longer pink. See real pink lakes on a scenic flight instead.
- Lucky Bay kangaroos are a dawn and dusk sight, not a midday performance.
- Driving onto Lucky Bay sand in a soft roader on a rising tide gets visitors bogged.
Getting around Esperance: public transport and more
- You need a car. Hire cars at Esperance Airport book out in summer and exclude beach driving.
- Fly Perth to Esperance in about 90 minutes or drive 720 km in seven to eight hours, split at Albany or Hopetoun.
- Slow down at dawn and dusk for kangaroos and emus, and avoid night driving east of town.
Who Esperance suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Esperance your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App Store