Little visited Broome Is Fast Becoming Known in Australia, and for good reason: there are a lot of Awesome things to do in Broome!
Tropical Broome is one of Western Australia’s best destinations, and tourism here is starting to kick off like never before. It’s slowly but surely working its way onto traveller’s itineraries and into holiday maker’s plans.
And why? Because, this little city at the Top End of WA is awesome, and there are A LOT of things to do in Broome.
But don’t worry, Broome is a VERY laid back place and while tourism is increasing, its remote location far up in the north of Western Australia ensures that few people still make it here, especially in comparison to other parts of the state.
It’s still off the beaten track, but it won’t stay that way forever.
Awesome Things To Do In Broome!
From the beautiful white sandy stretches of Cable Beach to close encounters with fearsome crocodiles, Broome has a lot to offer. There’re mangroves, craft beer breweries and mangoes galore here.
They even hold the odd crazy crab race…
To help you out with your travel plans when visiting Western Australia’s Top End, I’ve put together this guide on the most awesome of things to do in Broome!
Relax on white sands at Cable Beach, one of the best things to do in Broome!
Cable Beach is long. 22 kilometres of pristine white sands and rolling blue waves long. While a few spots can get crowded in the dry season- from march through to October, also the best time to visit!- there’s always space along the long, wide stretches of beach to find solitude.
This is the best beach in Broome, and one of the best things to do in Broome is to relax on the white sands and enjoy the spectacular tropical sunsets out to sea.
Drink Ginger Beer At Matsos Brewery
No trip to Broome is complete without a visit to Matsos Brewery. This craft beer establishment has swept across the whole of Western Australia, with its famous alcoholic ginger beer leading the charge. I guarantee you, it is delicious.
Matsos first started brewing in Broome, and the bar here serves different flavours and varieties of beer, from the famous ginger beer, to mango and lychee amongst many more. They offer more standard brews too, if you aren’t into the tropical flavours, and they serve up an amazing curry.
If you’re really into Matsos, they offer tours of the brewery too -it’s small place though, most of the major brewing is now done in Perth to meet demand- accompanied by tasting paddles of the diverse array of drinks they concoct afterwards.
Watch The Strange Natural Phenomenon Of The Staircase To The Moon
The Staircase To The Moon is a really unique natural phenomenon. Broome town is surrounded by tidal mud flats, and when the full moon rises over these flats it creates the strangely mystical staircase you can see in the picture below.
The best time to see this event is between March and October, and you can find the predicted dates at the Visitor’s Centre Website HERE.
The best places to see it are Town Beach, where a market is held every evening of the Staircase, or at the fancy Mangrove Hotel Resort where indigenous music accompanies the rising of the moon in an atmospheric setting and drinks flow late into the night.
Hunt For Dinosaur Footprints At Gantheaume Point
Gantheaume Point is a red and rocky peninsular which juts out into the blue waters overlooking Cable Beach. It’s a beautifully scenic spot and it’s also the site of numerous fossilised Dinosaur footprints.
Broome has one of the highest tidal differences in the world, and this means that at low tide, vast areas of the rock are uncovered, and this is where the footprints are found.
Check locally for the best time to visit- you have to be careful of the tides of course- and get hunting for the footprints!
Experience A Close Encounter With A Crocodile At The Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park
Broome is home to saltwater crocodiles. These fearsome beasts are occasionally even seen swimming off the famous Cable Beach, but this is rare indeed.
If you do want to get up close with the crocs though, then Broome is home to the Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park. The park’s late namesake was an Australian documentary maker and croc hunter. He established the park as a refuge for crocodiles that would otherwise have been shot, and consequently the place is home to some of the largest, and most dangerous crocs in Western Australia.
They hold a graphically named ‘Feeding Frenzy’ every day at 3pm, and give guided tours at the same time. The guides were extremely educational and passionate. I learned an incredible amount about these animals and how to respect and fear them.
The Park may not be for everyone though, as while it is a refuge for wild, dangerous crocodiles and a place where a huge amount of scientific research is undertaken, to fund all this they also farm particular breeds of crocodile here to sell for meat and leather.
It’s your choice, but it is a thoroughly educational experience.
Eat And Drink Everything Mango At The Mango Place
If you love mangoes then Broome is the place for you.
One place in particular has taken mango madness to new, dizzying heights. The Mango Place is a farm, restaurant and bar that fuses EVERYTHING with mango.
Mango wine, mango pizza, mango cheesecake, beef and mango pie, even mango mini golf… whatever that is.
Everything here is mango based, and the best items on the menu are the wood fired mango pizzas!
Walk Streeters Old Wooden Jetty
This old, ramshackle, creaking wooden jetty is right by the small but colourful Chinatown- which is less a town and more just one street…
Streeters Jetty is one of the most historic places in town. It was originally used to bring in the pearls, the industry which turned Broome into the place it is today, and has been there in some shape or form since 1897.
It’s a listed piece of heritage, a brilliantly photogenic spot surrounded by mangroves and stretching across the mudflats, hidden away in the centre of town.
Watch A Movie While Sitting In A Deckchair At Sun Pictures, The World’s Oldest Outdoor Cinema
At least one evening in Broome needs to be spent experiencing a movie at Sun Pictures. Movies are shown nightly, and it does’t particularly matter which movie you watch exactly, because it is just that, an experience.
Sun Pictures claims to be the oldest continuous outdoor cinema in the world. It’s been operating since 1916. The decor is decidedly rustic but the movies shown are the latest releases.
Inside the large open air garden moviegoers sit on deck chairs, and every 20 minutes or so will be interrupted by the roar of jet engines as a plane flies directly overhead to land at the nearby International Airport.
Visit The Japanese Cemetery To Learn About The Multicultural History Of Broome
Broome was built on pearling. The industry brought in people from across the British Empire and Asia to work here in the colonial era. In the process, Broome was transformed into a multicultural melting pot, the legacy of which you can still experience across the town.
But while you can tour the huge pearl farms and marvel at the enormous pearls in the shops across Broome, the place to really start to understand Broome and the pearling industry is the Japanese cemetery.
While the Europeans and Australians ran the businesses, it was the Asians and Aboriginals- in particular the Japanese- who did the dangerous, hard work of diving for pearls. Hundreds of lives were lost over the years, and in the Japanese Cemetery you can really see first hand the dangerous consequences the work had on the people who made Broome their home.
Score A Local Bargain At The Courthouse Markets
By the old Broome courthouse every Saturday- and Sunday during peak season- market stalls pop up selling local goods and delicious food. It’s a community place, with quirky items for sale and food from all of the diverse cultures of Broome on offer.
You can find out more at the Broome Markets website HERE!
Spend A Wild Night Gambling On The Diver’s Tavern’s Crazy Crab Races
The best night in Broome is a night at the Crazy Crab Races. Yes, you read that right. The Diver’s Tavern, an iconic establishment by Cable Beach, plays host to this most insane of events in Broome.
Every Sunday during peak season the Diver’s Tavern pits crab against crab in epic races throughout the night. Money is gambled, lost and won here, and a good part goes towards local charities too.
It’s an event that has to be seen to believed!
Richard Collett
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