Feature by Anna Christensen

A bustling port and popular beachside getaway, Bunbury is best known for its dolphins and surf breaks. But it’s also a rich source of history, with a great selection of museums, gold rush-era architecture and heritage hotspots. Here are 12 historically significant places to stay, dine and discover in Bunbury.

Stay

Originally built in 1865 and reconstructed in 1895, the Rose Hotel is easily recognisable by the decorative iron lace verandahs adorning its three stately storeys. A major refurbishment in 2016 brought modern updates such as flat-screen TVs, while revealing even more heritage features including original timber floorboards and a soaring archway. The Rose was described as ‘one of the favourite watering places in Western Australia’ in 1901, and remains so today: the hotel’s ground floor functions as a lively pub, with creative fusion fare and a kids’ play area. Motel accommodation is available separate from the main hotel building.

The Parade Hotel, perched right on the gleaming Leschenault Inlet, has been a Bunbury institution since 1897. But not without a few setbacks. In 1978, a cyclone wiped out the dancefloor and flooded the main bar – barmaids continued to pour beers while knee-deep in water. In 2018, a fire gutted the kitchen and damaged upstairs accommodation. The slick rooms are now open for bookings and punters flock for lively waterfront Sunday sessions, and an extensive selection of craft beer on tap.

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Dine

George Calombaris protégé Brenton Pyke opened the Middle Eastern and Turkish-inspired Market Eating House in 2015, with a custom-made charcoal grill and wood-fired oven sitting centre stage. Instead of ordering from the menu, opt for ‘Feed Me’ to feast on surprise share-style plates.

A 20-minute drive from Bunbury, St Aidan Wines, with its pitched roof and arched windows, is modelled on the 1950s red-brick church next door. Enjoy comforting gourmet fare and award-winning drops from the rammed-earth cellar door while you take in lush views of the Ferguson Valley’s rolling hills. In summer, catch an outdoor film under the stars on the manicured lawns. Don’t leave without bringing home a bottle of Zena Liqueur Muscat or a jar of ‘sparkling apricot jam’.

_{St Aidan Wines, Ferguson}

Discover

Start your heritage adventure with a trip to one of Bunbury’s visitor centres - located at the Dolphin Discovery Centre or the Bunbury Museum and Heritage Centre. Once there, you’ll be able to pick up a brochure or two. You’ll also find maps showing off-the-beaten-track attractions – such as East Bunbury’s St Mark’s Church, the second-oldest church in WA. Conjured up by the down-and-out Reverend John Ramsden Wollaston, using wattle and daub construction with cloth soaked in linseed oil for the windows, it’s a feat of resilience and imagination.

It’s hard to miss the Bunbury Regional Art Gallery, housed in a late 19th-century nunnery – it’s painted a distinctive pink. As well as hosting regularly rotating art exhibitions, the gallery functions as a cultural hub, with workshops, dance, formal dinners and even yoga.

Nearby is Centenary Gardens, a whisper-quiet refuge from the Bunbury bustle. Created in 1936 to commemorate the town’s centenary, the gardens are home to pretty floral displays, a striking granite water feature and the town’s first public well.

King Cottage Museum is housed in an 1880s country home built by the owner Henry King, who handmade the bricks. The museum offers a peek into pioneer life. Each room stands as if in a time warp, from the butter churn in the kitchen, to the bedroom filled with antique clothes and cosmetics, to the Victorian-style sitting room featuring a portrait of Lieutenant Bunbury (the town’s namesake).

The South West Rail and Heritage Centre is in Boyanup, a 20-minute drive south of Bunbury. It has a sizeable collection of vintage machinery, including the vintage steam train Leschenault Lady, and an operational blacksmith’s forge.

The Bunbury Museum and Heritage Centre is also well worth a visit for a deep dive into Bunbury’s lively history, with insights into convict life, struggling early settlers, and calamitous shipwrecks – did you know Bunbury is the only town in Australia with a town-planning scheme based on a shipwreck?

_{Bunbury Museum and Heritage Centre, Bunbury}

_{Bunbury Regional Art Gallery}

Looking for more inspiration?

Explore The South West Nature and Wine Drive.

Published January 2020.