Aussie Mefites, your advice is sought

February 19, 2013 4:47 AM

My brother just moved from the UK to Perth, WA, and I'm planning to buy him a birthday present in the form of a voucher for something he can do out there. What would you recommend?

Brother likes film, coffee shops with wi-fi, outdoorsy things, and Australian sunny weather and beaches. He's based pretty centrally at the moment although looking for something more permanent, so ideally whatever I got him would be something he can use in multiple locations or something he can get to fairly easily (he'll have a car).

Ideas I've had so far: vouchers for a coffee shop chain, vouchers for surfing lessons, boat trip or more active sightseeing trip of some sort. Are there any specific companies for those, or any other ideas, that you'd recommend?

posted by Catseye to travel & transportation around Perth, Australia (9 answers total)

I did a wild dolphin swim with Rockingham Wild Encounters a few years ago. Highly recommended.
posted by Jakey at 4:58 AM on February 19

redballoondays.com.au is good for this stuff, and you can search by location too

But maybe kitesurfing?
posted by kaydo at 5:03 AM on February 19 [1 favorite]

Ooh, it's a great time of year to arrive in Perth!

He's in luck, because Perth International Arts Festival is on at the moment.

If he likes film and being outdoors, he will love the Lotterywest Festival Films at the Somerville outdoor cinema. You could call up and pay with a Visa card for a couple of tickets to be picked up at the gate.

http://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/show.aspx?sh=LOTTERYW13#.USN3APIls6s

(Sorry, I fail at the fancy embedded link thing.)

The venue is gorgeous: it's an open-air auditorium formed by huge pine trees within the grounds of the beautiful University of WA. Seating is rows of deckchairs, and everyone arrives early to picnic in the grounds before the film starts (venue opens at 6 pm, movie starts at 8 pm when it gets dark).

You can bring your own picnic or there's a range of food and drinks on sale there. If you're feeling generous, you could even buy him a hamper for two from Charlie's Woodfired Pizza; we saw people enjoying one last week, and they said it was delicious:

http://d1xnk2turuq1ak.cloudfront.net/Documents/3155_8103_Charlies-Pizza-DL-Menu-lr.pdf


On a different note - a trip to Rottnest Island is a must. It's a little island a short ferry ride off the coast of Perth. No cars are allowed, so everyone rides bicycles. It's extremely laid back, and home to some stunning beaches. Accommodation is very hard to come by during peak season (i.e. now), but you could book ferry tickets for a return day trip:

http://www.rottnestisland.com/

These are two things that I, as a local, love to do. Will post again if I think of any more!
posted by Salamander at 5:11 AM on February 19 [2 favorites]

YES ROTTNEST ISLAND - I came here to say that. Maybe you could get him a boat ticket to get out there, and a voucher to hire snorkelling equipment?

I went to Perth for two weeks a few years ago and my day snorkelling on Rottnest remains one of the most magical things I've ever done.
posted by greenish at 5:21 AM on February 19

P.s. OP, memail me if I can help with more specific details. :)
posted by Salamander at 5:23 AM on February 19

I agree with the Rottnest Island ferry tickets. It is a great day out and now is a perfect time of year for a trip over and some snorkelling.
posted by honey-barbara at 6:34 AM on February 19

You can get gift vouchers or memberships for Luna Palace cinemas, Perth's independent arthouse chain.
posted by hot soup girl at 6:55 AM on February 19 [1 favorite]

2nding redballoondays... even if you don't get a voucher directly from their site it has heaps of great outdoorsy ideas.

You could buy him a cappuccino maker (unless he prefers to go to cafe's for the wifi). Myer and target are two department stores where you can buy things online.
posted by praline at 2:59 PM on February 19

Belated follow-up - my brother was thrilled as anything with his gift voucher for a trip to Rottnest, snorkelling and bike hire included. Thank you all!
posted by Catseye at 6:28 AM on May 3 [1 favorite]