Esperance

Ships anchor in the bay off Esperance and use tenders. The trip to the Taylor Street pier takes about 15-20 minutes, where a free shuttle bus runs into town.

Esperance, Western Australia’s most popular tourist town, sits on the Southern Ocean about halfway between Albany and the South Australian border.

Esperance is a pleasant place to explore on foot at an unhurried pace.

This attractive seaside town is 720km southeast of Perth and regularly exceeds expectations. It has some of the country’s most striking coastline and has been voted among the best places for beaches and surfing, with excellent fishing too for keen anglers.

The area has beaches edged by Norfolk pines, remarkable houses and Australia’s first wind farm at Salmon Beach. Cycling and walking tracks are plentiful, while surrounding national parks make it a dream destination for nature lovers.

Cape Le Grand National Park, 20 minutes away, and the 105 granite islands of the Recherche Archipelago are particular highlights. The area was a favoured haunt of Australia’s only recorded pirate, Black Jack Anderson, during the 1830s.

For car hire, the Avis depot on the Espanade is a 5 to 10 minute walk away.

Australian Dollars are used here.

The spoken language is English.

Standard opening times for shops and services are Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, with Saturday trading generally ending at lunchtime. Many city and larger-town shops stay open late, usually until 9pm, on Thursday or Friday evening and trade all day on Saturday; shopping malls are commonly open on Sundays.

Roadhouses in remote country areas cover essential traveler needs and, along major highways, usually operate 24 hours a day. Tourist offices may be open every day, or during the week and on weekend mornings, even in places well off the beaten track; urban information centers are more likely to keep ordinary shopping hours.

Many museums, galleries and staffed historic monuments welcome visitors daily, but those in rural communities can keep uneven hours.