It may be warm out, but there are plenty of ways to stay cool at Whiteman Park!
Most of our attractions will be open every single day of the December-January school holidays - with the exception of Christmas Day or if there are any fire bans. And with plenty of both paid and free things to do, there is something for everyone, no matter what your budget is.
We put together a list of some of the things you and your kids can do on a day out a Whiteman Park, so if you're looking for an adventure-filled, inexpensive day out with the kids put us on your to-do list!
At the top of the list are two of our must-do wildlife experiences. They also happen to be the priciest of the things to do at Whiteman Park, but what you'll see and learn more than makes up for it!
1. Meet our local wildlife on a Kids Woylie Walk in Woodland Reserve. These school holiday special tours include a meet and greet with Pretzel and Kate, our education reptiles, as well as getting to see the wild woylies, quenda and more in the reserve.
2. Feed the kangaroos at Caversham Wildlife Park and see over 200 native animal species - from Tasmanian devils to penguins, to the adorable wombats at the interactive Meet the Wombat & Friends experiences! You can also snap a selfie with a koala or hand feed the kangaroos. Priceless!
Not every activity has to come with a cost. These are some budget-friendly options to keep the kids entertained over the summer:
3. Visit Revolutions Transport Museum to take part in their free school holiday activities and explore the museum with their kids’ activity sheets. Entry to the museum is by donation, and the school holiday activities are free to enjoy, making this one spot well worth a visit!
4. Grab a racquet or basketball and make use of our multi-use sports court. Forgot to bring them with you? Pop into the Visitor Information Centre to borrow some equipment. There is no charge to hire these - we just need a license or similar as security.
5. Don't miss the Tractor Parade at 1.15pm on the second Sunday in January (fire bans allowing). Tip: make it interactive by getting them to count how many red or blue tractors are in the procession!
Whenever the temperature allows, there are lots of fun ways for your little ones to run wild at Whiteman Park:
6. For a unique way to explore the Park, hire a pedal-powered go kart from Pedal Play. It's a great way for your kids to burn off some excess energy - and you can get them to drive you around for a change!
7. Run, jump, climb and explore Pia's Place, our all-abilities nature playspace at Mussel Pool East (mums and dads, grab your caffeine fix at the Mussel Pool kiosk, right outside the playspace too!).
8. Play in one of the many playgrounds, run around on the wide-open lawns, or play a game of family cricket (just remember to bring a tennis ball to play with!).
If you need to get the kids away from their screens and into the fresh air, head to the Park early in the morning (we open at 8.30am!) to visit some of our favourite natural spaces.
9. Download and print off some activity sheets from our website and use them to discover areas of the Children's Forest you haven't explored yet. From fairy doors to cockatoo artworks and more, there are lots of winding paths to discover in the 18 stages of the Forest! To save printing them yourself, you can also pick up copies from the Visitor Information Centre when they open at 10am and explore on the cooler days too.
10. Get out and wander one of our bush trails, or the 14km of shared use paths. Budding photographers will find plenty of wildlife to snap, particularly around the Werrillyiup Trail's Horse Swamp when you visit early in the day too!
11. Pop by the street library, outside the Whiteman Park Administration building and a do a book swap. You could even set the kids up under the shade of a tree to read in the fresh air for a while!
12. Take some time to chill out or tell some stories at the Healing Place.
They say some of the best things in life are free, which is true, but there are also some things worth spending on too!
13. If Christmas doesn’t overdo the sugar intake, satisfy the sweet tooths amongst you with a bag of sweet treats at The Lolly Stop. Take some time to explore the artisan shops in the Village Mall while you’re there and you might find your kiddos a new pet (rock!), or something to treat yourself with.
14. Check out all the cool cars at the Motor Museum of Western Australia. Challenge the kids to count how many model cars they have in the collection to keep them busy for a bit (maybe not *all* the cars though - there are a lot of them!)
15. Grab some lunch or a scoop of ice cream at the Village Café. Plus, kids eat for free at breakfast on Sundays from 8.30am ‘til 11.00am, so why not start the day right with a hearty meal for all before exploring?
With so much transport heritage in the Park, you can’t miss experiencing these ‘living’ museums, where your kids can see history brought to life.
16. Take a vintage train ride* on the Bennett Brook Railway, looking out for wild kangaroos and other wildlife in the Park's banksia woodlands.
17. Visit the Tractor Museum to see Tail End Charlie and all the amazing farm machinery on display! They also have an amazing new mural to check out. Bonus: kids get in free!
18. Finally, hop aboard one of the heritage electric trams for a ride* to Mussel Pool. Better yet, make the most of the new train station at Park’s eastern entrance to experience transport new and old! Just check that there are no fire bans in place first, as its ‘leisurely’ 2km walk into the Village without the tram ride!
Can you check them all off?
These are just a few of the things that you can do at Whiteman Park during the summer school holidays - and we're open 8.30am to 6.00pm every day for you to enjoy them!
Of course, you can always chat to our amazing volunteers at the Visitor Information Centre or explore our website further for ideas. Just remember, there is always something fun to do during the school holidays!
^Check the monthly What’s On for specific opening days and hours.
*Some attractions may not operate on very hot days, or when the fire weather precludes them from doing so.