“Let’s go down south.”
It’s been Perth’s default setting for thirty years. And fair enough. Margaret River and Yallingup are genuinely world class, all coastline and vineyards and forest. But there’s always been a catch, and everyone who’s done it knows the catch by heart. It’s three and a half hours away. It’s booked out every long weekend from now until forever. And the accommodation prices have reached the point where “let’s go down south” is something you say twice a year, if that.
So it stays in the calendar as an occasion. A production. Something you plan around school holidays and hope the weather cooperates.
But what if the equation has quietly changed?
Mitchell Freeway extension reduces travel time
For decades, Perth’s north coast was a nice idea with a logistics problem. Not anymore. The Mitchell Freeway now runs to Alkimos, and the train line runs all the way to Yanchep. What used to be a committed expedition up Wanneroo Road is now 40 minutes on the freeway to Alkimos, an hour to Yanchep. The infrastructure caught up. Most of Perth just hasn’t noticed yet.
And what’s waiting at the end of that 40 minutes has changed too. This is the newest coastline in the metro area, and it shows — in a good way. The Amberton sits perched on top of 15-metre dunes with the kind of ocean outlook that down south charges resort prices for. Beach House at Alkimos Beach opens onto wide, uncrowded water. Shorehaven’s foreshore and Oceans 27 give you a bar and restaurant strip that simply didn’t exist a few years ago. And at the northern end, Yanchep Lagoon offers protected-water swimming and snorkelling — a genuine natural lagoon, 60 minutes from the CBD, with Yanchep National Park’s trails, koalas and kangaroos ten minutes inland from it.
Now, let’s be honest. Nobody is claiming the north coast beats down south on every metric. There are no vineyards. There are no karri forests. If you want a cellar door, keep driving south.
A new framework
What we are saying is that it’s time for Perth people to adjust their framework. “Coastal day trip” has meant one direction for so long that the alternative never gets a look in, even though the alternative is a fraction of the drive, never booked out, and costs you nothing but fuel money.
There’s one more reason to look north, and it’s the one nobody talks about. This coastline is where you go to see what 2020s coastal design actually looks like. Down south’s charm is weathered and established. The north coast’s is brand new, foreshores, parks and venues designed this decade, built with ocean views as the starting point rather than an afterthought. It’s a different kind of coastal experience, and it’s sitting in Perth’s backyard.
If you’ve got visitors from the east coast or overseas, or you’ve simply run out of enthusiasm for the Forrest Highway, perhaps it’s time to look north.
Highlights
- The drive: 40 minutes from the CBD to Alkimos on the Mitchell Freeway; about an hour to Yanchep
- Mindarie Marina: the established anchor of the coast, and the gateway to the quieter dunes south of it
- Shorehaven Foreshore & Oceans 27: bar and restaurant right on the beachfront
- The Amberton: cafe and bar perched on top of 15-metre dunes at Eglinton
- Beach House, Alkimos Beach: wide ocean views, easy afternoon
- Yanchep Beach Club: Capricorn Beach comes to life
- Yanchep Lagoon: protected-water swimming and snorkelling
- Yanchep National Park: walking trails, koalas, kangaroos, camping
- Two Rocks Marina: the end of the road, and worth the extra ten minutes