Perth/City

Perth City or Perth CBD is the central business district in Perth, but there are plenty of other things to see than just tall buildings and busy men in suits.

Understand


The centre of Perth metropolitan area is the City or CBD, Central Business District, located on the Swan River around inland. It's the main business and shopping centre, and together with adjacent Northbridge, forms the entertainment centre.

The City extends about 1 km north-south and 2 km east-west. The pedestrianised Forrest Place, and Murray Street and Hay Street malls are interconnected through arcades, and have a range of shops and services.

At Forrest Place you will find the General Post Office (GPO, open Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM and Saturday 9AM-noon), the Tourist Information Centre, Perth Train Station and the Forrest Chase shopping centre including Myer Department store.

The main east-west streets are Wellington Street (northern boundary), Murray and Hay Streets (which become pedestrianised shopping malls in the centre), St Georges Terrace/Adelaide Terrace and Riverside Drive (which runs along the Swan River and forms the southern boundary of the CBD). The main northbound street is Barrack Street which runs along the eastern end of the central shopping district, and the main southbound street is William Street to the west.

By train, bus and car
The City has the main transport hubs for the metropolitan area, and the airport buses run downtown along Adelaide Terrace to Elizabeth Quay. See Perth for more information.

By ferry
A ferry makes the short hop across the Swan River, running between Barrack St Jetty on the City bank and Mends St Jetty in South Perth. This is the most direct route across the river to South Perth, the Old Mill or the Zoo - however the Zoo is a bit of an uphill hike from Mends St jetty, you may prefer the bus. Ferries run every 15 min weekdays and 30 min on weekends. You will need a 2-section ticket for $2.20 to go one way across.

Get around
Transperth info-centres provide timetables and journey advice for all its services at the central train station, Wellington Street bus station, the Esplanade Busport (south of St. Georges Terrace, near the bell tower), and Plaza Arcade in the city centre (the Plaza Arcade can be found between the Hay and Murray St malls - if walking from St. Georges Terrace, walk up London Court and across the Hay St mall; the Plaza Arcade is located directly opposite the exit to London Court).

By bus
Transperth buses are free within the city centre Free Transit Zone. The zone is bounded to the north by Newcastle Street, to the west by Thomson Street, to the east by the loop beyond Plain Street, and to the south by the river. In addition there are four CAT bus routes that are free throughout, every 5 to 15 min from around June 29, 2024 to June 29, 2024. You don't need a permit or Smartrider for any of these, just get on. The bus stops have route maps and show arrival time of the next bus. See www.transperth.wa.gov.au for timetable and a detailed route map.

The five lines are:
 * Red CAT runs an east-west loop and stops at Royal Perth Hospital, WACA cricket ground, Perth Mint, Wellington Square, the Murray St Mall/Perth Underground train station, His Majesty's Theatre, Parliament House, King St and Wellington St bus station & central train station.
 * Yellow CAT runs east-west from Thomson Street, past City West metro train station, along the length of Wellington Street past central bus & train station to WACA, then Claisebrook metro station.
 * Blue CAT runs north from Elizabeth Quay up Barack Street past Murray Street mall and the art gallery and museum, then curls through northern streets before returning south past the central bus & train stations.
 * Green CAT (Monday-Friday only) runs from Elizabeth Quay west past King's Park and the Botanic Gardens, then heads north to City West and Leederville metro stations.
 * Purple CAT (every day) runs from the Elizabeth Quay bus station up St George's Terrace, past King's Park, past the QE2 hospital to the university of Western Australia and stop by the Abraham's reserve by the river. It runs as a loop service, every 10 minutes in peak hours and wvery 20 minutes at other times and weekends. No tickets needed.

By train
You're unlikely to use the train for journeys just within the city centre, the bus is generally more convenient. Train journeys within the Free Transit Zone (eg the loop from central station via Perth Underground to the Esplanade) are free only if you have a Smartrider or other valid ticket; otherwise you will need a 2 section ticket for $0.60 to go one way.

Train is a good way to reach other districts such as Fremantle, see those districts "Get in / around".

Festivals and events

 * Many local festivals occur in the suburbs of Perth and in Perth itself throughout the year - best to check current information from the Perth Tourist Information centre
 * Many local festivals occur in the suburbs of Perth and in Perth itself throughout the year - best to check current information from the Perth Tourist Information centre
 * Many local festivals occur in the suburbs of Perth and in Perth itself throughout the year - best to check current information from the Perth Tourist Information centre

Do
The city riverfront is a popular spot for walking, running and cycling. But for most physical activities you'll want to head to other parts of the metropolis: to the coast for beach & water sports, to Rottnest Island for more of the same, and to the hills for hiking.

Buy
There are three major supermarkets located in the city:

These supermarkets accept all forms of payment including Visa, MasterCard and American Express.

King Street has some of the more expensive shops in Perth, including Louis Vuitton and Gucci.

But at the Northern end of King Street from Murray Street to around the corner of Wellington Street you will find a mix of fantastic locally owned boutique stores with more afforable designer Australian clothing and interesting designer imported clothing and a great coffee shop. Some of the best shops to visit are Love in Tokyo, Billy and Rose, Cult Status, Zekka, Mame and Dilettante.

Hay Street and Murray Street malls are the main shopping precinct of Perth. They have a number of chain music, clothing and department stores. The two are connected by several arcades, including Carillon arcade, Plaza arcade and Picadilly arcade. These have a number of off-beat Asian fashion stores, unique jewelry shops, and even a shop which specialises in gourmet teas. Basement level of Carillon arcade has a large food court. You can go and have a free Didgeridoo Lesson at Creative Native in Forrest Chase.



People seeking alternative clothing with a dance/street bent might want to check out Narcissist clothing (located along Barrack St - just listen out for the drum & bass oozing from the stairs that lead down to this basement level shop) and Red Rover clothing (Murray St east), the former of which also sells 12" vinyls, CDs, DVDs and a small selection of DJ equipment.

Elizabeth's secondhand bookstores - along Hay St (west) near King St. There is also one located along the cappuccino strip in Fremantle which is open 'til late on weekdays, are one source of old books - Fremantle has a number of other stores as well.

Harbour Town located on Wellington Street in West Perth (Yellow Cat to Harbourtown or Train, Fremantle line to City West, within Free Transit Zone) is good for a budget shopping spree, and contains primarily outlet stores.

Coffee
Perth is home to a thriving, European-style cafe culture, influenced by the large number of Italian migrants. There are a number of stylish cafes, including:



Internet
Internet cafes can be found mainly in parts of the CBD, and Northbridge

Internet news sites directly linked to local newspapers are:
 * The local daily The West Australian a locally owned tabloid newspaper, with the Australian more as a national paper, it is linked with the local Sunday newspaper the Sunday Times.
 * The site 'Watoday' is not linked to a newspaper.

Go next
The top day-trips within Perth are to Fremantle and to Rottnest Island.

See main Perth page for out-of-town options, ranging from day-trips to weekend getaways to great Australian expeditions.