Fodor's Expert Review Western Australian Museum and Old Perth Gaol
Editor's Note: This property is currently undergoing renovations.
Whether you fancy getting close to a taxidermied wallaby, dinosaur fossils, meteorites, or hundreds of colorful butterflies, you'll find it all contained in the state's most comprehensive museum. The site also includes some of Perth's oldest structures, such as the Old Perth Gaol. Built of stone in 1856, this was Perth's first and only prison until 1888. After being decommissioned as a gaol it became Perth's first museum in 1897. Get a feeling for Perth's criminal past and have a coffee at the Muse Café in the leafy courtyard close to where executions once took place. Today it is part of a much larger museum where permanent exhibitions include "Diamonds to Dinosaurs," which uses fossils, rocks, and gemstones to take you back 3.5 billion years. "Katta Djinoong: First Peoples of Western Australia" has a fascinating collection of primitive tools and lifestyle artifacts used thousands of years ago by Australia's Aboriginals. International and national visiting exhibitions, though ticketed,... READ MORE
Whether you fancy getting close to a taxidermied wallaby, dinosaur fossils, meteorites, or hundreds of colorful butterflies, you'll find it all contained in the state's most comprehensive museum. The site also includes some of Perth's oldest structures, such as the Old Perth Gaol. Built of stone in 1856, this was Perth's first and only prison until 1888. After being decommissioned as a gaol it became Perth's first museum in 1897. Get a feeling for Perth's criminal past and have a coffee at the Muse Café in the leafy courtyard close to where executions once took place. Today it is part of a much larger museum where permanent exhibitions include "Diamonds to Dinosaurs," which uses fossils, rocks, and gemstones to take you back 3.5 billion years. "Katta Djinoong: First Peoples of Western Australia" has a fascinating collection of primitive tools and lifestyle artifacts used thousands of years ago by Australia's Aboriginals. International and national visiting exhibitions, though ticketed, are a highlight.
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