During our Western Australia adventure, we spent a bit of time in Jurien Bay. It’s a teensy tiny town with a stunning big white beach, that through expansion of tourism has a lot of holiday houses built there. Most visitors are Australians. The foreshore is getting expanded with free BBQ’s and sitting spots, so it’s great to hang out at night! If you’re going down (or up) Australia’s West Coast, this is one place to stop!
Let us tell you what we loved!
Table of Contents
Things to do
We absolutely loved spending time in Jurien Bay, there is plenty to do. Here are our favourite things
1. Go snorkeling
Every morning, when the tides were at it’s best, we would go out to the ocean for a little snorkel. A good spot is the Old Jetty, where they also made a snorkel trail out of reef balls. It’s located about 25m out from the beach, at the end of the Jetty and it’s about 2.5 to 6 metres deep. A bit further up, close to the harbour, there’s a beach protected from the waves by a breakwater that makes a nice place for snorkelling as well.
The remnants of the old pier at Jurien Bay, perfect start for the snorkel trail!
Laura’s mask broke, and she didn’t bring any fins, so we hired some gear from Jurien Bay Adventure Tours. Their trailer is usually parked right next to the beach, so if you need anything from a snorkel to a paddleboard, they’re your go-to!
Laura, all ready to go snorkelling! Our equipment came from Jurien Bay Adventures who are camping on the left-hand side.
2. Swim with the Sea Lions
One of our FAVOURITE experiences! Not just of WA, but of the whole of Australia. They’re basically underwater dogs, love playing and are super curious. The boat that took us there departs from Green Head, half an hour North. We did a tour with Brendan from Sea Lion Charters and had the best time.
Oh hello, cutie! Look at his snout! They don’t only act like underwater dogs but also look like them!
Since the sea lion colony is protected, we went into the water far enough from it. Curious as they are, the animals then came to have a look at us! It’s all a lot of fun, but please remember these are still wild animals and you’re in THEIR territory! Don’t feed, touch or chase them. There are enough ways to interact without coming to close!
This guy was done playing and went for a little nap in the seaweed.
3. Stroll around Sandy Cape
Sandy Cape is located just fifteen minutes north of Jurien Bay. It’s a less known little paradise. The sand dunes are great for a stroll or even sandboarding and the rocks hide secluded beach. Imagine having your private little beach?! There are tiny boats with fishermen collecting the crayfish nets every so many days though, so don’t get too crazy! The water holds a lot of marine life in the vast patches of seaweed and there’s a ray living there as well! Try to spot him, we did!
This can be actually your own little private beach where nobody can see you!
4. Visit the famous Pinnacles
The pinnacles are millions (nope not exaggerating) of limestone formations spread out in the Nambung Desert. Even though they’re closer to Cervantes, a town just half an hour south, we decided to visit them from Jurien Bay. The reason is simple, we didn’t have a car and there’s an awesome tour that leaves from there. The people operating these tours are amazing by the way! That coming from two backpackers who rather explore themselves should say enough.
Not only are these rocks impressive but they also provide great photo opportunities!
Try to catch a sunset tour. The way the light changes on these incredible giants in breathtaking. It’s a must when you visit WA. After seeing so many sunsets over the ocean, this will be a welcome change.
A truly amazing sunset! The only thing we missed was a nice beer. When we told her, she let us know that they were planning to do that for next tours!
Other things you can do
- Skydive – it’s a great place for your first skydive if you’ve always wanted to try it!
- Paddleboard along the shore
- Sandboarding – Sandy Cape is one of the many places to go sandboarding! Jurien Bay Adventure Tours do daily tours as well.
- Relax, sunbathe and recharge
Where to stay
Jurien Bay has plenty of holiday houses and apartments for rent. There are also a couple of holiday/tourist parks with cottages, powered and unpowered sites. We opted for an unpowered site (at Jurien Bay Tourist Park) and slept in our tent. This was by far the cheapest option. If you have your own car or campervan, the powered sites aren’t that much more expensive though.
Another option for backpackers is the APEX Camp, that recently opened their dorm rooms again. Have a look on their website though, because when we were there it was still under construction!
Jurien Bay, Stop, what are you doing? Trying to look like Brighton Beach?
Things to know
Like most WA coastal towns it’s tiny. There’s not a lot of places to eat dine out or entertainment. You go for nature.
If you take the integrity bus – last we checked, it stops at Jurien Bay at 3.30 in the morning, We couldn’t access our campsite until 8. The bakery opens at five though, so we just spend some time there!
For really good wifi, go to the little breakfast/lunch cafe, called Family Affairs, at the “shopping mall”. They have great internet and great coffee! Don’t abuse their internet though because otherwise, they might take it down like everyone else has done in town.
A lot of backpackers skip this spot, so we hope we convinced you to take a couple of days to discover all it has to offer!
Share it with friends who are travelling the West Coast!
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Laura is the lead writer at BackpackBeliefs.com, where she specializes in travel guides, cultural exploration, and sustainable tourism. With over 10 years of travel experience and a Master’s degree in Cultural Anthropology, Laura brings valuable insights to her readers.
For the latest travel tips and updates, connect with Laura on Facebook at @backpackbeliefs and Instagram at @backpackbeliefs. where she has 4,622 followers.
