Prevelly is a small beach-side town located near the famous Margaret River Valley wine region in Western Australia. We enjoyed spending our last couple of days in Australia enjoying the wine, fine food, and watching sunsets over the Indian Ocean.
Things To Do & See
1) Margaret River Valley Wineries
A trip to the Margaret River Valley is not complete without wine tasting. Here are some of the wineries that we enjoyed most during our visit:
- Leeuwin Estate — Our favorites were the Art Series Chardonnay, Siblings Shiraz, and the Art Series Cabernet Sauvigion. We also were excited with a program they were offering allowing us to ship wine to our home at no extra cost (shipped from a Napa distributor.) We look forward to enjoying a bottle with our family on our return.
- Cullin Wines — We enjoyed many of the wines we tasted at Cullin, and wish we could have taken a bottle to enjoy at a later date. If my memory serves me correctly, our two favorites where their flagship (and most expensive) wines, the Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvigion.
- Vasse Felix — The winery originated in 1967 and was the first in the area. We enjoyed nearly every wine we tasted and had a fantastic lunch at their restaurant. (Bookings recommended for the restaurant.) Our favorite wines were: Heytesbury Chardonnay, Heytesbury Cab Sauvigion, and the Filius Cabernet Merlot.
2) Margaret River Chocolate Factory
We enjoyed sampling our way through their delicious chocolates. We even purchased a bag for the road, that only lasted two days! It was a good addition to our itinerary and helped satisfy our craving for a sweet treat. Note: There are also locations in Perth and Swan Valley.
3) Lunch @ A Winery
We were impressed by the number of onsite restaurants available at many wineries. We enjoyed the leisurely pace, wine pairing, and delicious food available. (See restaurant options below for a couple of our favorites.)
4) Sunset Over Indian Ocean
From our beachfront accommodation in Prevelly, we enjoyed watching the sunset over the Indian Ocean from Surfer’s Point. Equipped with our camera, sweatshirts, beach towel and bottle of wine we made the short walk to the popular destination and watch the sunset over the water.
5) Movies at Cape Mentelle
A great date night — a movie, dinner, and wine — all in an open air theatre at the Cape Mentelle winery. If possible, try and reserve a beanbag chair. Bring your own food or buy the gourmet food available for sale. (All alcohol must be purchased on site and can not be brought in.) Don’t forget your jumper (sweatshirt or jacket) as the temperature drops in the evening.
6) Cheese Tasting
We noticed a few signs for cheese tastings in the area, but unfortunately it did not fit into our schedule. If their ice cream in the area any indication, I am sure the cheese is fantastic!
7) Ice Cream!
One of our favorite stops was at Millers Ice Cream Farm, where we could have easily ate a gallon of ice cream. Just thinking about it makes me hungry for some of their ice cream!
8) Busselton Jetty
Located in the neighboring town of Busselton, make the 1.8km walk out to the end of the longest wood slated jetty in the Southern Hemisphere, to the fish viewing aquarium at the end. Or if you prefer, catch a ride on the mini-train. The entry fee to access the jetty was nominal. We enjoyed the walk, views, and learning a bit about the history of the jetty. However, we elected to forgo the added entry to view the fish off the end of the pier.
9) Breweries
Although known as a wine region, the area is also home to a few breweries. Since our time was limited, we only visited Eagle Bay Brewery on our way to Margaret River. If time would have permitted, we would have enjoyed stopping by a few others.
- Eagle Bay — Eagle Bay is a brewery and winery located on the north side of the Margaret River Valley in Eagle Bay. The brewery also had a nice restaurant with sweeping views. (Stop into Wise across the street for some of the best views in the area.)
Restaurant Recommendations
1) Vasse Felix (Cowaramup)
We had a fantastic lunch at the restaurant at the Vasse Felix winery, overlooking the vineyard. We highly recommend adding this as a stop on any itinerary. Advance booking recommended.
2) Eagle Bay Brewery (Eagle Bay)
We enjoyed a leisurely lunch on the patio at the Eagle Bay Brewery (and winery).
3) Sea Garden View (Prevelly)
A small local restaurant with fantastic views over the coast at the Indian Ocean. A great place to watch the sunset and have a casual meal.
Accommodation Options
We did not find too many budget friendly accommodation options in the area. We elected to rent a small self-catering studio (Sea & Soul) in the beach town of Prevelly. We enjoyed the location. Outside of a couple of minor things (like obtaining the wireless password and having the power to the wifi accidentally switched off for > 8 hours overnight), it satisfied our needs.