Sarah Chen moved from Melbourne to Margaret River in 2016. She'd come for a surf trip and never left. A decade later, she runs a small ceramics studio in the town center and knows the region with the intimacy that only long-term residents have. I sat down with her at Colonial Brewing Co. on a warm Saturday afternoon.
Sarah: I came for ten days of surfing and found a town where people actually know each other. In Melbourne, my neighbors were strangers. Here, the barista at my cafe knows my coffee order, the butcher saves me lamb cutlets on Fridays, and the surf crew texts me when there's a good swell at Surfers Point. I didn't plan to stay. But every time I thought about going back, I'd watch a sunset over the Indian Ocean from a vineyard and think, "Why would I leave this?"
Sarah: They come for two days and try to hit 15 wineries. That's... not how this works. You end up remembering nothing except a headache. The region deserves at least three or four days. Two for wine, one for the coast and caves, and one for just the town. The Saturday farmers market (8:30AM-noon, every week) is where you actually meet the people who make the wine and cheese and chocolate. It's the town's living room.
Also, people skip the coast entirely. We have some of Western Australia's best surf breaks. Surfers Point is accessible for intermediate surfers. Prevelly Beach is great for families. And the Main Break, where the WSL Pro competition happens — that's a serious wave. Watching from the cliff is free entertainment.
Sarah: Morries Anytime. It's on the main street but tourists walk past it because it doesn't look like a "tourist restaurant." Their woodfired pizzas are the best in the region. The Settlers Tavern has live music most weekends and excellent pub food — their steak sandwich is legendary locally.
For a splurge, Arimia is a working farm that does a set menu paired with their own wines. You eat in a barn overlooking cattle paddocks. AUD 120 per person including wine. It books out weeks ahead.
Sarah: The caves are extraordinary and I feel like they're an afterthought for most visitors. Mammoth Cave has 35,000-year-old megafauna fossils and a self-guided audio tour (AUD 24). Lake Cave has a suspended crystal formation reflected in an underground lake — it's genuinely magical. Jewel Cave is the most dramatic formations.
And the Boranup Karri Forest. It's 20 minutes south and it's one of the most beautiful forest drives in Australia. Karri trees reaching 60 metres, dappled light, complete silence. I go there when I need to reset. It's free. Bring a picnic.
Sarah: The Cape to Cape Track. It's a 135km coastal walking trail from Cape Naturaliste to Cape Leeuwin that takes 5-7 days. But you can do day sections. The Wilyabrup Cliffs section (about 8km) passes some of the most dramatic coastline I've ever seen — granite sea cliffs, blowholes, and wildflowers in spring. Free. Pack water and sunscreen.
Also, the olive oils. Olio Bello does tastings of single-estate olive oil that are as sophisticated as wine tastings. AUD 10. Most people don't think of olive oil as a "tasting" experience, but the quality here is exceptional.
Sarah: The organized wine bus tours where they herd 20 people through six wineries in five hours. You taste nothing properly and spend half the day on a bus. Rent a car, pick 3-4 wineries, have lunch at one of them, and actually enjoy yourself. Or hire a private guide for AUD 150-200 per person — they take you to the small producers that the bus tours skip.
Sarah: I'm biased, but autumn (March-May) is perfect. Harvest season, warm days, cool nights, the summer crowds have gone, and the vines are turning gold and red. It's absolutely beautiful.
Spring (September-November) is wildflower season. The Cape to Cape Track is carpeted in colour. And winter (June-August) is truffle season, whale watching from the coast, and cozy fires in the cellar doors. Every season has something.
Summer (December-February) is busy but gorgeous. Just book accommodation months ahead and be prepared for AUD 50+ wine tour prices.
Sarah: A case of wine from a producer they'd never heard of before the trip. Margaret River Dairy Company cheese (they vacuum-pack for travel). Gabriel Chocolate bars. And a bottle of Olio Bello olive oil.
Honestly, the best souvenir is a memory. Sitting at a cellar door at sunset, drinking a glass of something you fell in love with that afternoon, with the karri forest behind you and the sound of kookaburras. That's Margaret River.
For our wine-focused guide to the region, read Margaret River for Wine Lovers. If you're extending your Western Australia trip, Perth is three hours north and worth a few days.
