The winners of Australia’s Top Tourism Town Awards mark a first for one Aussie state.
The winners of Australia’s Top Tourism Town Awards may just give credence to the old adage that ‘West is Best’. The coastal town of Mandurah took home the gold this year, marking the first time a Western Australian town has reigned victorious.
“Competition has been fierce this year," says Shaun de Bruyn, chairman of Australia’s Top Tourism Town Awards. However, de Bruyn cites Mandurah’s natural beauty and abundance of holiday activities as reasons for its lead over other destinations.
Mandurah took home gold in Australia’s Top Tourism Town Awards. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)
“Mandurah is known for its stunning waterways and coastline, internationally significant wetlands, and The Estuary and Peel Inlet are some of Australia’s most spectacular playgrounds for boating, fishing and wildlife watching. [Mandurah] offers a relaxed atmosphere, making it the perfect holiday destination," he said.
The serene waterways of Mandurah. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)
In addition, the Western Australian town of Dwellingup, which is just a 40-minute drive inland from Mandurah, won gold in the Tiny Tourism category. Set among timber and fruit-growing areas, Dwellingup is a picturesque country escape characterised by meandering rivers and beautiful walking trails. “Dwellingup is a nature playground where mountain bike and hiking trails gently wind through the Darling Scarp," de Bruyn commented on the town’s win.
Dwellingup has an abundance of hiking and biking trails. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)
However, WA missed out on taking home a prize for Small Tourism Town, with Queenstown in Tasmania nabbing the top spot. Airlie Beach in Queensland and Sorrento in Victoria followed in second and third place, respectively.
Other top contenders in the competition included Ballarat in Victoria and Caloundra in Queensland, which followed Mandurah in second and third spots for Top Tourism Town. Victoria’s Aireys Inlet and the NSW South Coast town of Huskisson followed Dwellingup with silver and bronze in the Tiny Tourism Town category.
The 2023 awards were presented by the Australian Tourism Industry Council and sponsored by Tourism Australia and Qantas. Winners were chosen by a combination of people’s choice votes and an industry judging panel.
The Giants of Mandurah by artist Thomas Dambo are icons of the town.
A double-gold win for Western Australia is a promising sign that the wildflower state is very much on the rise. With the mystical Giants of Mandurah exhibition taking over Insta-feeds and scenes of cerulean blue waters beckoning beachgoers across the country, these award-winning towns are just two more reasons to visit WA.
Elizabeth Whitehead is a writer obsessed with all things culture; doesn't matter if it's pop culture or cultures of the world. She graduated with a degree in History from the University of Sydney (after dropping out from Maths). Her bylines span AFAR, Lonely Planet, ELLE, Harper's BAZAAR and Refinery 29. Her work for Australian Traveller was shortlisted for single article of the year at the Mumbrella Publishing Awards 2024. She is very lucky in thrifting, very unlucky in UNO.
Discover the perfect road trip stopover between Perth and wine country.
Western Australia punches above its weight when it comes to coastal hot spots, but no other town or city has seen a tourism boom quite like Mandurah. Named Australia’s Top Tourism Town in 2023, it’s the relaxed, beachside break you’ve been searching for. And it’s perfectly placed, sitting between Margaret River and Perth, as it’s just a 55-minute drive from Perth’s CBD. Which is why we’ve put together your ultimate Mandurah guide.
Plan your perfect coastal escape to Australia’s Top Tourism Town of 2023.
The best things to do in Mandurah
Wetlands and rivers, ocean and inlet; Mandurah’s laid-back lifestyle centres around the aquatic. Its waterways cover twice the ground of Sydney Harbour – measuring some 134 square kilometres in total – and form a unique environment for oceanic and estuarine flora and fauna to thrive.
In the city’s estuary lives perhaps the region’s most famed inhabitants – a resident pod of 100 bottlenose dolphins – and the inlet’s silty bottom is home to the prized blue manna crab. Spot the former breaching and playing on an hour-long dolphin cruise through the channels, or try your hand at catching the latter by wading through the estuary’s shallows with a scoop net in hand.
While swimming at the circular Kwillena Gabi Pool, chance encounters with the local wildlife aren’t uncommon. The sheltered estuarine pool takes its name from the traditional custodians of the land, the Bindjareb people, and directly translates to ‘dolphin waters’. Jutting out of the eastern foreshore, it’s enclosed by a ring of net-free floating pontoons, which allow the dolphins to swim freely through the attraction.
If that’s a little too close for comfort, book a kayak tour withDown Under Discoveries. The dolphins have been known to cruise beside the paddle-powered crafts, which are a fun, family-friendly way to explore the city’s inner waterways.
Watch dolphins glide by as you explore Mandurah.
You don’t have to be on the water to appreciate the coastal city’s aquatic beauty, with 600 kilometres of cycleways and scenic walking trails traversing Mandurah’s estuary, inlet and coast.
Follow the 30-kilometre coastal trail and you’ll come face to face with one of Thomas Dambo’s headline-making ‘Giants of Mandurah sculptures, Santi Ikto, along the way. There are five sculptures around Mandurah in total, hidden among gum-filled reserves or sitting sentry over the water.
Head to the Mandurah Visitor Centre to pick up a map to pinpoint their exact location and download the traveller’s companion to learn more about the sights along the way. Or join a three-hour e-bike tour from The Bike Kiosk and you’ll stop by two of the giants – Santi Ikto and Yaburgurt Winjan Cirkelstone – as you sightsee central Mandurah.
Meet Santi Ikto, one of the legendary Giants of Mandurah.
Where to eat in Mandurah
Mandurah’s culinary scene reflects its laid-back lifestyle, with large, honest meals and locally brewed beer. After visiting Lake Clifton’s 2000-year-old thrombolites, head to the peppermint and gum-shaded beer garden at Thorny Devil Brewery. Tuck into a platter of house-smoked meats and an ale pulled fresh from the tanks. Closer to town and right on the waterfront is Boundary Island Brewery; here, woodfired pizza, pub-style seafood dishes and easy-drinking brews are centre stage.
On a Murray River Lunch Cruise, the focus is as much on the environment around you as the food you’re filling up on. Help yourself to the colourful salads and freshly cooked meats on the buffet as you meander up the winding, jarrah tree-lined waterway, stopping at the heritage Cooper’s Mill for a quick walking tour along the way.
Keep your eyes trained on the Creery Wetlands as you pass – you’ll spot much of the region’s migratory birdlife, and, as always, might see the playful bottlenose dolphins in the inlet.
The most memorable meals aren’t necessarily always the fanciest, and lunch aboard a self-skippered Mandurah BBQ Boat is a testament to that. All food and beverage prep is left up to you as you cruise through the canals, sausages and steaks sizzling away on the central hot plate.
If seafood is more your kind of fare, board the Wild Seafood Experience, where dolphin cruise meets long table lunch. Eight courses of crab, crayfish and scallops await.
Dine on the water with eight courses of ocean-fresh fare.
Where to stay in Mandurah
With so many waterways comes abundant waterside stays. Like the self-contained Seashells Mandurah on the shores of Comet Bay. The calm, oceanic outlook from the one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and villas is as close to Maldivian as Mandurah gets. Families especially enjoy the property, bouncing between the protected cove and the beachfront pool for endless hours of fun.
Stay right by the sea.
The Sebel Mandurah , just a hop, skip and jump from the Mandurah Ocean Marina, has a different outlook entirely, overlooking the estuary and lively foreshore on the other side. It’s also within walking distance of the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre, cinema and a swathe of waterfront bars and eateries.
But you can’t get any closer to the water than on a vessel from Mandurah Houseboats. You don’t need a skipper’s ticket to hire one, nor do you need comprehensive boating experience; just a full driver’s license and your undivided attention during the pre-departure tuition will do. Then you’re free to take to the estuaries and tributaries for a few nights of peaceful rest, surrounded by the very element that makes Mandurah so special.
Captain a houseboat to explore Mandurah at your own pace.
