West End

“Encompassing 200,000 square metres and 250 buildings, Fremantle’s historic West End is one of the largest places to be listed in the Western Australian State Register of Heritage Places. It’s labyrinth of laneways, historic tales, and adventurous small bars have inspired several generations of photographers, filmmakers, and Instagrammers.” 

Daring escapes, misadventure, plague, and fires all make their way into the folklore of this particularly storied precinct, where Federation-era merchant warehouses, ornate facades, and grand Australian hotels built to support our growing port in 1829 still stand today.

On Bannister Street you’ll find the Hougoumont Hotel, named after the last convict ship to arrive in Fremantle in 1868 with 62 Irish Fenians on board including one John Boyle O'Reilly who went on to plan the incredible prison escape known as the Catalpa Escape. A mural dedicated to the six Irish prisoners who escaped covers an entire wall of the hotel. 

The hotel itself makes for a far smoother voyage, using innovative, purpose-built sea container construction (so very Freo), while nano-brewery and bar Calamity’s Rod makes for the perfect spot to refuel with a basket of hot chips and a beer, right beneath the mural.

Glance into the heritage shopfronts that line High Street and you’ll find everything from surfboards and authentic Aboriginal art to high end couture and the iconic Australian UGG boot. New Edition Bookshop, The Record Finder, Port Jarrah Furniture, The Upcycling Mutzs, Service Denim, Three Stories, and The Chart & Map Shop are just some of the indi gems you’ll discover.

Peppered along the narrow streets and laneways are interesting small bars, award-winning dining, cafes under stairs, parklets, and even a distillery. Visit Republic of Fremantle and distil your own spirit at their gin school, sample salumi and fresh pasta streetside at Vin Populi, or dare to enter famous pirate bar Darling Darling for libations.

The university crowd from Fremantle’s Notre Dame campus means there’s plenty in the way of quick fare to grab for those who prefer to keep moving, like a decadent sandwich from Peggy’s or a comforting bowl of pasta from Pasta Addiction.

Fremantle’s reputation as a creative city was also born in this neighbourhood when artists flocked to the old warehouses to reclaim them for studio space. Collectives and galleries line the streets and artists still call the Pakenham Street Art Space and Old Customs House home today.

No creative city is complete without music, and the West End delivers. Head to vinyl bar Ode to Sirens or plug into a set from local musos at The Corner Room next door, get your country shuffle on at Honky Tonk Blues Bar, or swing by the historical Fremantle Buffalo Club. The club was held by the Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes from 1938 until it was incorporated as a not-for-profit in 1964 and is now run by members elected to a volunteer committee.

At the end of the West End the WA Shipwrecks Museum houses hundreds of relics from ships wrecked along WA’s treacherous coastline, including the original timbers from Batavia (wrecked in 1629), the de Vlamingh Dish, and countless artefacts from Dutch shipwrecks Zuytdorp, Zeewijk and Vergulde Draeck. It’s recognised as the foremost maritime archaeology museum in the southern hemisphere and sits within an 1850s-era Commissariat building that has been restored to its historic glory.