Broome Attractions
What to See and Do in Broome
Relax! The main Broome attractions go well with the Broome motto: "Let yourself go!"
Soak up the atmosphere. Go for a stroll on the beach, swing in a hammock, enjoy a cocktail, adapt to Broome...
Australia is a big country. By the time you arrive in Broome you have probably spent some time on the road or in airports.
You deserve a day of luxurious inactivity before you get serious again...
When you are ready to get serious visit the Broome Visitor Centre on the corner of Bagot St and Broome Hwy.
They can help you with all your questions about Broome attractions and your booking needs.
Here are some ideas of things to do, and some of the best places for doing nothing...
Broome Attractions - Activities (and Inactivities... )
Let's start with the most famous attraction of Broome: Cable Beach in Broome. Australia is known for other beaches, like Bondi, simply because these beaches are in areas where hundreds of thousands of people live.
But Cable Beach in Broome is the only Australian beach amongst the top five beaches in the world!
(The beach was named after the telegraph cable to Indonesia which I mentioned in the history section.)
22 km of pristine white sands and the clear turquoise of the Indian Ocean. It's hard to beat. And even better, unlike the rest of the Kimberley and the whole northern coast of Australia, Cable Beach in Broome is safe for swimming. No sharks and no crocodiles. To good to be true?
Well, it is. I need to add a word of warning. In the time between November and April you need to take care as box jellyfish and stingers might be present. But lets face it, few people visit us during the wet season anyway...
By the way, you can see crocodiles if you like. Just visit another one of the Broome attractions, the Broome Crocodile Park.
Once you've had enough of lazing on the beach you can take part in a variety of water sports, like parasailing and surfcats. You can even do Padi dive courses in Broome.
Everybody's favourite activity on the beach has nothing to do with water sport, though.
Take a camel ride along Cable Beach on sunset. You can go in the morning and afternoon, too, but you can't beat the sunset for photographs, can you?
Other Broome attractions are Riddell Beach and Town Beach. At Town Beach you can see the wrecks of the three Flying Boats that were sunk by the Japanese in WWII, but only at very low tide. The Visitor Centre can help you out with the tide times.
Riddell Beach is where the locals go when they want to get away from it all for a bit. You'll find it between Riddell point and Gantheaume Point, about 8 km from town.
It's a scenic area of ancient red cliffs, providing a vivid contrast against the waters of the Indian Ocean.
The area experiences 10 m tides, and when the tides are very low you can find dinosaur footprints. (At high tide you'll have to make do with the plaster casts of the prints displayed at the top of the cliffs...).
While you're there you can visit the lighthouse and Anastasia's Pool. The pool was built in sandstone by the former lighthouse keeper for his arthritic wife.
Back to Broome attractions in the town itself. Chinatown with its unusual mix of Colonial and Asian architecture is a reminder of Broome's early days. The original commercial and industrial centre of the town was once busy with pearl sheds, billiard saloons, entertainment houses and Chinese eateries.
Today you can find some of the world's finest pearl showrooms here, as well as many other specialty shops. A good place to go souvenir hunting. The Chinatown markets are normally on Sundays (dry season) in Johnnie Chi Lane.
I mentioned the Courthouse in the history section, but not its attractive gardens, and not the Courthouse markets. Held every Saturday (Cnr Frederick and Hamersley St) these are the largest art and craft markets in the Kimberley. You get music and food thrown in as well, its a great atmosphere.
If you like jewellery, art and craft you will find a huge selection of outlets in Broome. It's not just about pearls either, although, being one of the major Broome attractions, they are featured prominently.... Just check with the Visitor Centre, there are too many shops and displays to list them all here.
At Willie Creek Pearl Farm you can gain insights in the world of modern cultured pearl industry, whereas Pearl Luggers will take you on a trip into the past. The tour and cruise experience starts at the museum and finishes with a sailing cruise aboard a pearl lugger.
Not to be confused with the Willie Cruises, sunset sailing cruises where you slurp cocktails in your hammock while hoping to see whales or dolphins...
There are also hovercraft cruises along the coast line (the only commercial hovercraft in Australasia!), fishing cruises, helicopter flights and the scenic flights to the famous "horizontal waterfalls".
The phenomenon of the horizontal falls is created when the big tides force the water through a narrow gap between islands.
If the tides are right you will even be taken on a boat "cruise" through the gap...
Just out of Broome on the shores of beautiful Roebuck Bay you can find the Broome Bird Observatory, a world famous birding location. It's a peaceful and restful place where you can get accommodation, take different tours, watch and learn about migratory shore birds or just relax.
These Broome attractions should keep you busy for a few days, and give you an idea why Broome is so popular as a tourist destination. But, as with any popular spot, you might find that at the peak of the tourist season there are... well... a lot of tourists in town.
Not a problem. In the next section I will tell you about all the areas near Broome where you can get away from them...
You may also want to check my other site, the Kimberley Guide, for more Broome Attractions.
Next page: What to see and do around Broome, Western Australia
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