I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t know very much about Margaret River before visiting Western Australia, other than it produces excellent wines. In addition, I mistakenly thought about Margaret River as a town rather than the expansive beautiful region that it is, so Margaret River. It was a wonderful surprise on our road trip from Perth, Western Australia, but we hadn’t given ourselves long enough to immerse ourselves in everything on offer…
Feb 2026 – We did fall in love with Margaret River and so returned 2 years later. I have therefore updated this blog with a few extra things to see and do.
Table of Contents
Where Is Margaret River?
Margaret River is a region in South West WA, stretching from Cape Naturaliste near Dunsborough in the north, to Cape Leeuwin 100kms further south, and about 30 kms inland, incorporating Busselton.
The town of Margaret River lies 277 kms (172 miles) south of the State Capital Perth – roughly a three hour drive, with no stops.
Why include a visit to Margaret River on your road trip?
Margaret River is one of the main areas to visit in the South West region of Western Australia. It is a very beautiful area with world class surfing beaches, wineries, a network of caves to explore, and forests of beautiful Karri trees.
The town of Margaret River has a boutique feel to it with cool accommodation options, farm to table style restaurants, and a thriving art scene – it appeals to wine lovers, creatives and backpackers (who come to work in the vineyards) like.
Make sure you get with the lingo when you visit and get used to referring to Margaret River affectionately as ‘Margs‘.
Spend time on Margaret River's Main Street
The Bussell Highway is the town of Margaret River’s main street. Whilst ‘highway’ sounds like a big road, in reality, it’s just one lane each way making its way between two tree-lined long strips of galleries, boutique shops, cafes and restaurants.
There’s a Margaret River Visitor Centre at the northern end of the strip so you can pick up some maps and find out what events are on in town during your stay.
At dusk you’ll find the noise levels increase, not just with people coming out for dinner, but also with the birds squawking in the trees!
Boutique shopping in Margaret River
The town of Margaret River offers the perfect place for a slow mooch around the shops (if that’s your thing). To be honest, it’s quite a high-end shopping destination offering gourmet and local food produce, boutique clothes, and artisan gifts – great for souvenir shopping, or just window shopping!
There are also a number of Surf shops for cool beach or resort wear. Our kids got lost in Ghanda and emerged with several bags of clothes they can’t get back in the UK.
There’s a Coles Supermarket for buying provisions if you’re self-catering.
Follow the Margaret River Street Art Trail
There is thriving creative community in the Margaret River region, so naturally Margs has its own street art trail, details of which you can find on the website: http://www.margaretriverarttrails.com.au
Some of the pieces are easy to spot, and some are hidden away around town. If you use the website for guidance on locations, you can enjoy a fun hour exploring the town and trying to find the murals.
Visit the Margaret River Farmers Market
If you’re in the town of Margaret River on a Saturday morning then it’s nice to visit the weekly Farmers Market to explore stalls of local and seasonal produce – fruit, vegetables, meat, chocolate and wine!
It’s located just south of the main strip of town on the Bussell Highway (walkable), and is open every Saturday morning between 7.30am and 11.30am. My tip is to go early before the best produce sells out.
You can also pick up coffee and hot snacks, and sit in the middle of the market under an awning to watch the world go by. The Margaret River Farmers Market is a key event in the community diary.
Visit a winery and enjoy some wine tourism
Margaret River is a relatively new wine region, with vines which were only planted in the 1960s, or more recently. As the climate in Margaret River is similar to Bordeaux, it produces similar grape varieties, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and great Chardonnays.
Pop into a winery for a tasting session or lunch
Today, there are more than 200 producers in the Margaret River region and a lot of wineries, so you will need to do your research to find one which suits what you’re looking for – the oldest in the region (Vasse Felix), modern cellar (Howard Park) or boutique (most options in the region). We found Xanadu Wines in the UK and so popped into their winery when in Margaret River for a look.
We booked a tasting lunch on Easter Sunday at the Voyageur Estate Winery (just for the adults!) and enjoyed beautiful food at a table with views over the vineyards which was special.
A note on taxis – we struggled to secure a taxi from the winery at the end of our meal, perhaps because it was a public holiday when we visited the winery. We had 3 failed attempts to pick us up, so we had to enlist the help of the winery in the end. So, make sure you have a plan for getting home if you don’t want to allocate a designated driver!
Book an organised tour of the wineries
To avoid the issue of how to get home after a boozy winery lunch, consider booking an organised winery tour. There are several companies running tours and these often visit more than one winery on your tour.
Two recommended companies are Wine for Dudes (I didn’t make the name up!) and Harvest Tours. Both offer a range of options to suit your budget and time constraints. Some of the tours include gourmet food producers and micro-breweries as well as wineries.
Wine for Dudes also offer a transport option for winery visits – great idea – wish we’d known that before our Voyageur Estate lunch!
Alternatively, check out the wine tours available on Get Your Guide for some good options:
Spend time at Gnarabup Beach
Gnarabup Beach is the closest beach to the town of Margaret River – 8km southwest of town, about 10 minutes’ drive.
Gnarabup is a popular sheltered beach safe for children and swimmers, with toilets and changing facilities in the car park if needed. When we visited, the water was full of youngsters with their surf and body boards.
Grab brunch at the White Elephant Cafe
Start your day with coffee and brunch at the White Elephant Cafe overlooking Gnarabup Beach. It does get extremely busy so go early to make sure you get a table outside on the terrace and can fully enjoy the ocean view whilst you eat – blissful!
The White Elephant Cafe is open daily from 7.30am to 3.00pm and offers healthy, locally sourced breakfast, brunch, and lunch options. Grab your table and a menu, then order at the counter. It can feel a bit chaotic when its busy, but it’s popular for a reason!
Walk from the White Elephant Cafe to Surfers Point
After your brunch at the White Elephant Cafe, walk from Gnarabup Beach along the coastal pathway to Surfers Point (1.5km, 40 minutes each way) to the north. This pathway is part of the multi-day Cape to Cape walking trail which offers beautiful ocean views, colours and shrubs.
Each April, the world’s best surfers come to compete in Margaret River Pro, a World Surfing Championship (WSC) event at Surfers Point. Even if the competition is not on, you’re likely to see experienced surfers in action around Surfers Point which is fun to watch.
Check out the information displays at Surfers Point about surfing and the Surfing competition. Then find a bench at enjoy watching the rollers from the safety of the shore.
Get out on a surf board at Redgate Beach
The Margaret River region apparently has 135 km of coastline offering a range of surfing opportunities, from legendary surf spots with powerful breaks, and beaches suitable for beginners.
If you’re inspired to catch some waves, or learn to surf, then the Margaret River Surf School operates out of Redgate Beach, just south of Gnarabup.
Explore a cave on Caves Road
If you head south from the town of Margaret River on Caves Road, you’ll find yourself countryside roads with vineyards on either side and fields hosting kangaroos and emus. Then the fields give way to Karri forests and beautiful tree-lined roads.
There are around 105 caves in the Margaret River Region, and Caves Road helps you access the 7 caves which are currently open to the public. Pick one of the caves to visit – each has its own unique features.
Lake Cave for wonderful reflections
On our first visit to Margaret River we chose to visit Lake Cave which is accessed by walking down 300 steps on a wooden staircase, past giant Karri trees. We felt like we were descending into the unknown…
Eventually, Lake Cave reveals itself as a stunning cave with stalactites hanging over an indoor lake. At the time of visiting, the water was at its highest point in decades and so the reflections in the water were impressive.
Lake Cave has thousands of straws hanging from the roof and a suspended table of calcite which appears to defy gravity by hovering over the water but not touching it – the gap between the table and the water shows where the previous cave floor once stood.
Before ending the tour, our guide started a light show so we could see the cave illuminated in different colours which was pretty, but not as pretty as ‘Nature’s Window’, the circular view of the sky above you as you ascend from the cave and into the trees above!
Jewel Cave for the Tasmanian Tiger
On our second trip to Margaret River we picked Jewel Cave to visit. We chose this cave as bones of a Tasmanian Tiger (the ‘Thylacine’) were found there, which made us curious. The Tasmanian Tiger resembled a dog or a wolf but was an Australian marsupial. The last Thylacine died in captivity in a zoo in 1939.
Jewel Cave is made up of a series of large chambers. When you leave the Information Centre, a set of stairs bring you into the first huge chamber which can be crossed on an elevated gangway to a large viewing platform.
Then more stairs descend to the base of the cave and allow you to access the other chambers. You will see stalactites, stalagmites, thousands of straws and a huge frozen waterfall. There is also a huge 23-ton crystal formation known as, The King.
Where to eat in Margaret River?
One thing is certain, there is plenty of choice in Margaret River depending on wha you are looking for. Here are some places that we tried when visiting with our teenagers.
Breakfast or Lunch
In the mornings however the ‘place to be’ is the Margaret River Bakery which regularly has queues even before opening time. We braved the queue and picked up take-away coffees, yoghurt/granola and pastries for breakfast which were worth the wait. The bakery has fun red and pink branding, and great names for its sandwiches, like the Miss Piggy.
Margaret River Bakery has some casual seating inside (if you’re lucky enough to bag this) or an outdoor patio. There are a couple of murals, including the impressive Prince mural, on the outdoor walls.
Italian options on the Main Street
Pizzica – On our first visit we ordered woodfired pizzas from Pizzica which were very good tasty. (Pizzica needs a special mention as I absentmindedly left my backpack in the restaurant with all the passports inside, but the staff made sure to locate it and keep it safe until I could return to collect it – thank you Pizzica!)
Swings and Roundabouts – on our second visit, we ordered take away pizzas from Swings and Roundabouts to have at the AirBnB. We collected them from the restaurant which was doing good business.
These are just two of the many Italian restaurants in town.
Nut Free Restaurant and allergy aware
As we were travelling with our son who has a severe nut allergy, I was delighted to find Miss Chow’s which is a nut free restaurant.
Miss Chow’s Margaret River – Miss Chow’s is an Asian inspired restaurant and dumpling house. It is located on the premises of the Edwards Wines about 9 km (10 minutes drive) from the Main Street of Margaret River. It is a modern building with large windows overlooking the vineyards.
The food at Miss Chow’s was absolutely delicious and every course we ordered was a hit. There are small or large plate options, and a dedicated dumpling menu.
However, a special mention goes to the staff who reassuring about the nut free environment, and very attentive to my son’s secondary allergies. I cannot thank them enough. Normally he avoids Asian food due to the risk of nut and soy contamination, but at Miss Chow’s he was able to really enjoy an Asian meal without anxiety.
Where to stay in Margaret River?
There is a good range of accommodation in Margaret River available on Booking.com – from luxury beach side accommodation to small budget hotels, or chalets in the woods. My only advice would be to book early to get the type of accommodation that you want as rooms book up quickly.
Because of the numbers in our party, we booked an AirBnB on a quiet tree-lined street behind the main street through town which worked very well.
Final thoughts...
As there is a lot to do in the Margaret River area, my advice would be to allow a decent amount of time for your visit. However, if you’re on a road trip from Perth, you might need to keep moving, but at least you can get a good overview of Margaret River as an introduction.
It’s just too beautiful to rush, and feels like a therapeutic break due to its natural setting and emphasis on seasonal, good quality food.
Margaret River reminded me of Carmel-on-Sea in California – a town set in the trees on the edge of the ocean. Somewhere to disappear to if you want time-out.
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