Best of Broome, Western Australia: 5 Day Getaway
Exploring the sun-kissed lands of north west Australia.
Travel doesn’t mean far flung places.
You can discover new experiences and sights just travelling within your city or state. Maybe it's somewhere you've always been interested in felt "you can do that any time" and instead opted for an overseas trip.
Broome in Western Australia was one of those places for me.
It’s a stunning coastal and beach side town.
People from other parts of Australia and even the world dream of travelling to Broome to explore the sun-kissed and rugged lands in the north-west of Australia.
Yet I when I was a west Aussie local, I hardly gave Broome a thought.
Until we decided to head up the Broome in July to celebrate a couple of birthdays with friends a couple of years ago.
When to visit
The dry season is generally the best time to visit Broome.
This is typically between May until October. During this time you get to experience warm days, balmy nights and perfect blue skies. We were fortunate enough to escape the cold and wet Perth winter.
We traded it for the perfect weather in Broome for 5 days.
November to April is the wet season. Not a great time to visit with it’s high humidity, heavy rains and potential cyclones! While the landscape will look stunning from all the wet weather, there will also be road closures and flooding.
Know before you go
Currency: Australian Dollar
Language: English
Religion: Australia is largely secular with religious freedoms and rights.
Visas: U.S. passport holders need to apply for an ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) or eVisitor visa before arrival. Both allow stays of up to 3 months per visit within a 12-month period. Applications are online, quick, and inexpensive. You may be asked to show proof of onward travel and sufficient funds.
Getting here
Broome is a popular, seasonal and tourist town.
But it’s in a remote part of Australia. If you’re travelling from within Australia or from overseas, the easiest way to get to Broome is via a major Australia city—Perth, Sydney or Melbourne.
Because of how far Broome is, expect flights to be on the pricey end.
At the time we visited Broome, Qantas was having some excellent flight sales. We only paid AUD$403 per person return.
Stay
There are three broad areas you can stay when visiting Broome
Central Broome
Cable Beach
Outside of Broome
As a first timer, it’s best to stay in Central Broome or Cable Beach.
If you stay in Central Broome, you’ll have closer access to restaurants and shops.
We opted to stay in the Cable Beach area, specifically Oaks Cable Beach Resort, since we had had hired a 4-wheeldrive to get around Broome and beyond for the 5 days.
See and Do
The best way to get around is to hire a car, especially if you plan to drive outside of the main township of Broome.
Gantheaume Point.
It's a 10 minute easy drive from Broome's town centre.
It's known for dinosaur foot prints, stunning cliffs and crystal clear turquoise waters. The ancient dinosaur tracks can only be seen during very low tides.
Of all the places I got to witness the famous Broome sunset during my trip, this was definitely one of my favourite spots.
Cable Beach.
Cable beach is one of Australia's most iconic beaches, famous for it's amazing sunsets.
People often drive their 4WD down onto the beach to enjoy the sunset while having some drinks and nibbles.
Another popular activity on the beach is the sunset camel ride tours.
Either way, you're bound to be impressed by the sunset and pristine beaches that seem to stretch forever.
Matso's Brewery.
Most people don't realise that Matso's Brewery started off as a micro-brewery.
It's also probably the most remote brewery in Australia.
It's most famous for its Ginger Beer and Mango Beer, however they have since expanded their range to include unusual flavours such as the chilli beer.
We had a great time learning about the brewing process and trying pretty much every flavour of Matso's beer there is with the head brewer.
The brewery food was one of our favourite places to eat while we were there.
Cape Leveque & Pearl Farm Tour
If you have a 4WD (I recommend hiring a 4WD if you're visiting Broome), Cape Leveque is worth the drive.
If you can, stay a night or two in the area. We only had enough time for a day trip, but there's definitely enough to do and see to stay for a couple of nights if you wish to.
Located in the Dampier peninsula, Cape Leveque is one of the most unique places I've been to.
It's known for it's beautiful beaches, clear water, red rocks & cliffs, wildlife and a generally peaceful place to visit. It's probably one of the most remote places I've travelled to as well with few tourist relatively speaking.
You’ll also get to learn about the traditional Aboriginal culture by paying Kooljaman at Cape Leveque a visit.
It's over 200km north of Broome and significant parts of the road are unsealed, sandy and corrugated.
So a 4WD is a must.
Give yourself several hours to make the drive as well, especially if you're not a particularly experienced 4WD driver.
Chinatown.
Chinatown in Broome sprung up in the 1880s during the hey-day of pearling.
Like many Chinatowns across the world, Broome has a dark history. But in the 21st century, the area has been revitalised and turned into a cultural and history district containing heritage buildings, shops and restaurants.
Whale watching & sunset cruise
If you had to pick just one tour or activity.
This is it. It’s quite a sight to witness humpback whales jumping in and out of the water from a boat.
If you can, pick the afternoon sunset cruise. You might pay a bit extra, but trust me the West Australian sunsets out in the sea are absolutely worth it.
Dining
Places we ate and drank at that we enjoyed.
Zanders.
Zookeeper.
Drangonfly Cafe.
Good Cartel, for breakfast.
Matso Brewery. Other than beer tasting, you can sit down for lunch.
Sunset Bar & Grill. Great for dinner and drinks, with a view of the beach.
Magrove Hotel. Great for lunch, with views of the Broome mangrove area.
Wrap Up
Australia is known for it’s rugged environment and stunning coastlines and beaches.
Broome epitomises that.
It’s not the easiest or cheapest place to get to.
But if you make it to Australia, it’s definitely a must-see. You get some of the best of what the great Australian outdoors has to offer in one small place. And you’ll get some very unique experiences—from pearling, whale watching and understanding traditional Aboriginal land & culture.
That’s it!
Is Australia on your bucket list for travel?
Happy travelling!
(P.s. Are you interested to see more destination guides like this?—would love to hear your thoughts!)
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Cape Leveque looks incredible. So cool you can only get to it via 4WD.