Visit Perth’s favorite local getaway destination on a day trip to Rottnest Island, located just offshore in the Indian Ocean. Travel to Rottnest by high-speed ferry from either Perth or Fremantle (your choice), and then embark on a sightseeing tour of the island by coach. While you listen to narration from an informative guide, check out landmarks like the West End and Wadjemup Lighthouse. Then enjoy free time in the afternoon to explore the car-free island at your leisure. You may upgrade when booking to include lunch.

Day trip to Rottnest Island with coach tour, from Perth or Fremantle
If departing Perth, cruise down Swan River, past local landmarks and Millionaire’s Row
Listen to commentary from a guide as you circumnavigate the island by air-conditioned coach
See spectacular locations including Wadjemup Lighthouse and the West End
Upgrade to include lunch at Karma Rottnest
Spot the island’s famous marsupial, the quokka, and marine life such as dolphins and fur seals
Enjoy free time in the afternoon to explore at your leisure

What's Included

Round-trip ferry to Rottnest Island
90-minute coach tour
Local guide
Lunch (if option selected)
Rottnest Island Authority fee
Round-trip Swan River cruise (if departing from Perth)

Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional activities (bike, snorkel gear, surfboard or stand up paddleboard hire)

Departure & Return

Possible departure locations

Departure Point

Rottnest Express Barrack Street Jetty Terminal, 2 Barrack St, Perth WA 6000, Australia
Ferry departs Barrack Street at 8:45am. We recommend arriving 30 minutes before departure.
B Shed Terminal Rottnest Express, Peter Hughes Dr, Fremantle WA 6160, Australia
Ferry departs B Shed at 9:30am. We recommend arriving 30 minutes before departure.
Rottnest Express North Port Rous Head Ferry Terminal, 1 Emma Place, Rous Head Rd, North Fremantle WA 6159, Australia
If you have selected a hotel pick up, please contact Rottnest Express directly to confirm your hotel pick up time.

Return Details

This activity will end right where it started.

What To Expect

When booking, select your ferry departure location—either Perth or Fremantle—as well as the option to include lunch on the island, if you wish.

Your day trip starts with the high-speed ferry ride to Rottnest Island. If you’re departing Perth, cruise along the Swan River to Fremantle, where the river meets the Indian Ocean, to pick up more passengers for the ride across the water to Rotto, as it’s referred to by locals. When you arrive, hop aboard your coach for an island sightseeing tour.

Listen to commentary from your guide about the history, culture and wildlife of the island, known for its secluded beaches and its resident quokkas, small marsupials who call Rottnest home. As you circle the island, make stops at Wadjemup Lighthouse and the West End, where you can hop off to stroll down the boardwalk, admiring coastal views. Look for fur seals at Cathedral Rocks, and watch for the possible humpback whale, which might be seen from September to November.

When your tour ends at Thompson Bay, you are free to enjoy the island independently until it’s time to catch the ferry back to Perth. Perhaps rent a bike to check out one of the 63 beaches or 20 bays, go snorkeling or stand-up paddleboarding, or visit attractions like Lomas Cottage, Rottnest Island Museum or Pilot Boathouse. (Rentals, activities and entrance fees are at your own expense.) If you select the lunch upgrade, head to Karma Rottnest for a buffet of hot dishes, deli items, salads, desserts and beverages.

Your day trip then ends with the return ferry ride to Fremantle or Perth.

Swan River

Commentary along the Swan River

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Rottnest Express (Pass By)

Ferry transfer

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 3 days of travel. In this case confirmation will be received within 48 hours, subject to availability
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation

Infants must sit on laps
Infant seats available
Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Most travellers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 32 travellers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s cancelled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

about cancellations

Frequently Asked Questions

The answers provided below are based on answers previously given by the tour provider to customers’ questions.

Q:What is the policy on sanitisation during Discover Rottnest with Ferry & Bus Tour from Perth or Fremantle?

A:The policies on sanitisation are:

Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Regularly sanitised high-traffic areas
Gear/equipment sanitised between use
Transportation vehicles regularly sanitised

Q:What is the social distancing policy during Discover Rottnest with Ferry & Bus Tour from Perth or Fremantle?

A:The policy on social distancing is:

Social distancing enforced throughout experience

Q:What measures are being taken to ensure staff health & safety during Discover Rottnest with Ferry & Bus Tour from Perth or Fremantle?

A:The policies on staff health & safety are:

Guides required to regularly wash hands
Regular temperature checks for staff

Traveller Photos

Traveller Tips

A great experience but be wary of the wind picking up in the afternoon.

Easy option to then get the train back to Perth.

Reviews

4.5

233 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travellers

Showing 1-10 of 233 reviews

A reasonable day out but a "bus rush".

DrBarbara_C, July 2022

The boat journey down the river was good as was the commentary along the way. Once on Rottnest, we found the bus trip tried to cover so much ground that there was insufficient time out of the bus to enjoy the surroundings and take photos. It was all a bit rushed. Again, commentary good but we would have liked time at several locations to appreciate bush and sea licatiobs.

Past and Present Rottnest Island

Phillip_J, June 2022

Viewing the beautiful coastline of Rottnest Island and discovering the history involving the early settlement.

Enjoyable

Nanette_J, June 2022

Volunteers were informative & friendly. Great bus tour. Good weather. Lovely island. Cute quokkas. Visit again

Great and fun

Yan_P, June 2022

Managed to catch the ferry to rottnest. And from fremantle to rottnest, the waves were a little strong but still fine. Fun experience. Our bus tour guide Damien was really awesome. Very detailed explanation and entertaining. I would recommend those who wants to have a chill day to take the bus cos its gonna save ur time to have a good lunch with the quokkas. However, the return ferry left on the dot and i missed it. Spent another hour on the island and took the next ferry which i can only alight at fremantle. But its alright cos the train trip to perth is not costly. In all, i really enjoyed the experience on this natural island!!!

A must to do.

Greg_F, June 2022

This trio lived up to my expectation and exceeded. The trip down the Swan was nice. The narration was hard to hear due to poor annunciation and being overpowered by the engine noise. The trip across the Indian Ocean was spectacular with the moored ships, yachts and the sea spray from our vessel. The bus tour was very informative and Sharlene’s delivery was clear and loud. Plenty of insight into the island life, history, fauna and flora. More stops would have been nice but they are on a schedule. Where we did stop was certainly spectacular. We were dropped back to the town centre and left to our own wanderings. Plenty of Quakkas about. So laid back and inquisitive. The colour of the accommodation units was very striking. The walk to Bathurst Lighthouse gave more spectacular views. The trip back was just as spectacular. The cruise along the Swan restful.

Excellent trip

Stan_G, June 2022

The tour of the island was great with all the beautiful ocean views, and walking around the historic buildings not forgetting the Quokkas.

1 traveler found this review helpful

Great Tour

Nadia_F, June 2022

Great beaches and an excellent tour by Damo who was very informative. Sad to hear the history regarding the indigenous prisoners.

An amazing time

nyree_s, May 2022

We had an amazing time on both the ferry ride and Rottnest island. The swan river information tour was fun and interesting to listen to as we went down the swan river, how I would wish for a bit more space as we were packed together in the seats.

Lovely Day

helentwist60, May 2022

Lovely Day Booked from Sydney and experience was as promised. Beautiful island worth visiting. Very polished tour.

A Must See island!!

Tully_G, May 2022

The island is a Must See! Jody and our driver were fun, funny, friendly and informative! The island is beautiful and the Qokkas..., well, just cute! Highly recommend!

Excellent customer service

Ming_T, May 2022

I made my booking a week before arriving Perth and a day before the Rottnest Island trip, I made another booking for 2 friends deciding to join us. I am very thankful for the responsive help on the online chat and the lady who called me on my mobile on Sunday evening, a day before the trip. She helped me arranged for all of us to be on the same ferry (despite the last min. 2nd booking) and making sure we are in the same tour group. I was having problem accessing my email and couldn’t receive the confirmation. She was very spontaneous and helpful to resend the confirmation to my other email as well as to my friend. So thank you very much for the excellent service, we had a great trip at Rottnest Island. Highly recommended customer service 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

1 traveler found this review helpful

Rottnest Experience

Ronald_G, May 2022

Great experience - cute quokkas everywhere. Bus tour was very informative. Would recommend to anybody.

The discovery bus trip...

Paul_F, May 2022

The discovery bus trip around the island was very informative as it provide the history of the island.

Great trip

Cathie_R, May 2022

Wonderful day, great commentary on boat and bus. Fell in love with the quokkas , food was terrific at the dome

Great day trip options

SengWei_H, Apr 2022

Bus tour good for day trips and those who cannot cycle around the island. Quokkas are everywhere. Would have wished they stop at the lighthouse to let us off for a while with the bus tour.

1 traveler found this review helpful

Great tour and good value for money.

Patricia_V, Apr 2022

Damien our tour guide was excellent - lots of information and the occasional funny Dad joke. The island is beautiful and we would have loved to have spent more time there especially to swim and snorkel!

Quokkariffic❣️

DianaOnslow, Apr 2022

Damian was an extremely happy person who loves his job as he was very informative & happy to joke around a very good your guide & a fabulous day out. Happy to get my selfie with a Quokka too.

The discovery bus tour...

SIEWLING_F, Apr 2022

The discovery bus tour was informative and the Quokka was so cute. Best trip in Perth. Highly recommended. 👍👍👍

A beautiful day on Rottnest😀

Yvonne_P, Nov 2021

Fantastic day with the bus tour around the island & lunch was also good. Great to see the quokka’s A beautiful island with some lovely bays.

Raw hamburger for lunch no thanks!

Johanna_B, Nov 2021

The ferry and tour were really great and I enjoyed this part of my day emmensly, however do not get the lunch at Karma it was so bad I couldn't even eat it, raw hamburger meat and cold chips that took over an hour, if you are thinking of taking this package, skip the lunch add on and enjoy lunch of your choice at the many other options on the island. Ruined my day!

2 travelers found this review helpful

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Questions?

Product code: 5297DR

Terms & Conditions

Discover Rottnest with Ferry & Bus Tour from Perth or Fremantle

From USD 90.47

Select Date and Travellers

Overview

What's Included

Departure & Return

Departure Point

Return Details

What To Expect

Additional Info

Cancellation Policy

Frequently Asked Questions

Traveller Photos

Traveller Tips

Questions?

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