A weekend getaway in Perth: Where to eat, what to see & where to stay

There are any number of reasons to visit Perth. Its pleasant, sunny Mediterranean climate is a definite plus making it an ideal year-long destination, though frequent travellers will applaud the buzzy food scene, scenic river views, and general easy laid-back vibe.

Rottnest Island remains a favourite getaway for stunning beaches, fresh sea-tinged air, and cute quokkas; whilst Fremantle is a winner for its bookshops (Elizabeth’s, and New Edition), bars (Gimlet), and dining (Vin Populi, for its daily-changing Italian menu, and Emily Taylor, for smart Asian fusion) in town.

Should the city’s charms ever wane, the first-rate wines on offer in the Swan Valley and Margaret River are a leisurely drive away. For Singaporeans, the icing on the cake, may be the ease of getting there with any number of airlines making numerous daily flights – whilst those further afield will be thrilled by recently launched non-stop flights from Paris and Guangzhou. 

In short, Perth takes home our trophy for one of the best weekend getaways around.

DAY 1

Revive with lunch at Post in Singaporean hotelier Christina Ong’s COMO The Treasury hotel just across the road. Here, in a small, high-ceilinged dining room – once the franking room of the General Post Office – chef Kim Brennan serves up a modern Italian menu of beef carpaccio sprinkled with capers, orecchiette with pork and fennel ragu, and golden globes of eggplant and tomato arancini.

Drop by local artist Waldemar Kolbusz’s bijou gallery (by appointment) to pick up one of his bold, expressive – and very much in-demand – oil abstracts and landscapes. Conveniently, the gallery also stages regular shows by other promising or established artists.

Revive with a nap back at your hotel, before heading out to Coogee Common. Pair a pre-dinner cocktail with a tour of the restaurant’s extensive, leafy vegetable and herb garden which stocks the kitchen with the produce for its seasonal menu laced with saltbush dukka, nettle consommé, kombucha dressing, and house-churned butter.

DAY 2

Perth’s cultural scene may not be as in-depth as, say, Melbourne’s, but there are plenty of quality shows on offer, especially in the Northbridge precinct. Just across the piazza from The Art Gallery of Western Australia – if nothing else, tour its first-rate collection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art – is the WA Museum Boola Bardip. A mammoth addition designed by power duo Hassell and OMA architects in 2020 breathed new life into the museum’s ongoing exploration of the state’s cultural heritage, diversity, and history. If you’re travelling with children, don’t miss the skeleton of Otto, the blue whale, in the old Hackett Hall wing.  

Hop into an Uber and head up picturesque Mounts Bay Road for lunch at West, a cosy spot just across the road from the University of Western Australia. The best seats in the house are on the shaded patio overlooking the bay, Kings Park and Perth’s skyscrapers – the better to enjoy the Western Australian-centric menu of Rottnest king fish, Gingin duck, and local oysters.

Tip: If you’re in town in summer, work up an appetite before lunch with a dip in the river. The main diving pier is just next to the Bayside Kitchen, which is within easy walking distance of West restaurant – seconds if you’re in a rented car.

For dinner, it’s difficult to go wrong with Shadow Wine Bar, a Northbridge favourite, for its imaginative Italian/European menu – think mushroom arancini dipped in smoked leek mayonnaise, tagliatelle with capretto ragu, and an addictive spaghettini tangled with crab, tomato and chilli) paired with crisp-noted Australian wines.

End the evening with drinks on the terrace at Songbird at The Ritz-Carlton, Perth where the night view literally glitters with the shimmering lights of distant South Perth and, closer in, the corporate ambitions of the Fortune 500 skyscraper HQs strung out along St George’s Terrace.

WHERE TO STAY

For years, the COMO Treasury was the only international 5-star hotel in town. The debut of the 205-room Ritz-Carlton a block away in late 2019 was a game changer, the Marriott Bonvoy property wowing one and all with its grand set pieces clad in Kimberley sandstone and pink coral glass, original artwork by local and indigenous artists, and a sprawling spa featuring the best sauna in town – that panoramic view of Perth is difficult to better. If you can, book room 1602 for its Manhattan-like panorama of the river and St George’s Terrace. 

From A$420 (S$381).

GETTING AROUND

In our books, the best way to get a sense of a city is to hop on a bus. Like Melbourne, Perth is blessed with a comprehensive, modern bus and train network that links most of the major neighbourhoods and beaches. In central Perth itself, the buses are free, making a quick hop-on/hop-off tour of the city a breeze. For everything else, grab an Uber.