Visiting Perth Zoo and The Koala Bears

The Missus had wanted to look at the iconic animals of Australia: Kangaroos and Koala Bears. You would have thought it should be easy to find in Australia, but as fate would have it, we did not get the opportunity at all. 

But first, let's talk about getting to Perth Zoo, which is the straightforward part.

The easiest way would be to get to Elizabeth Quay Bus Station. You may hear other references to it as Esplanade Busport, its old name before it was renamed in Jan 2016. 

Since this is a busport, lots of buses in Perth starts or ends at this station, so you should have no problems getting here. Once you alight from any bus, find your way upstairs and you should find yourself somewhere similar to the photo below.

Elizabeth Quay Bus Station (Perth Esplanade Busport) Interior (Photo from Wikipedia)

It's not a big place, you should easily locate the information counter.

Elizabeth Quay Bus Station (Perth Esplanade Busport) Information Counter (Photo from Wikipedia)

I will discuss in another thread about the Perth transport system, but meanwhile stop by at the colourful timetable booths and grab a copy of Bus Timetable 12 for Bus Routes 30 and 31, which goes to Perth Zoo. 

Bus Timetable 12 for Route 30 and 31 to Perth Zoo

You may want to grab other timetables for other places of interests you have planned for. If you have any queries, you can also ask the friendly staff at the information counter.

Pro Tip: Grab a copy of the "Tickets and Fare Guide" from the information counter as well. Other than bus fares, it also contains a Transperth Zone Map which will help you to estimate your bus fares.


Once you are done with the timetable booths, it's time to head down to Platform E3. The waiting area for Bus 30 and 31 is the same, so just hop on the first bus that comes along. 

The trip is a quick 5min and will be a 2 Section fare. You will stop directly outside Perth Zoo (Stop 11847). The return bus station is just on the opposite side (Stop 11865).

Perth Zoo Entrance (Photo from Wikipedia)

Adult tickets are $29, Children (4-15 yrs) are $14, under 4 yrs is free. There is also a Family price of $75.20 for 2 adults with 2 children. You can find other ticket types from this link, but they may not be applicable to foreigners.

Perth Zoo Ticket and events list

Pro Tip: You have to pay for the printed map if you get it over the counter. Do yourself a favor, download and print from the zoo website before hand. Alternatively, there is a big map display just few steps into the zoo, snap one with your camera.

Big Map display board near ticket counter in Perth Zoo

You will also get a copy of the timings for guided walks and feeding presentations when you purchase your tickets. You can also find the latest list online here. The earliest one starts at 10am, the last one is about 3pm. So try to be there earlier, especially if you are bringing kids along.

To be frank, Perth Zoo is not big, there's not a lot variety of animals. You can expect to finish touring within half a day unless you intend to stay until 3pm for the last presentation. So you will still have time to plan for some other places to visit. I recommend combining it with an afternoon's visit to Kings Park since it is near Elizabeth Quay Bus Station and on the way back.

So back to my earlier rant on Kangaroos and Koala Bears. Busselton and Dunsborough did not offer us any places to see these animals. The first place we could find them was Albany Wildlife in Discovery Bay, which was disappointing and a story for another day. Undeterred, we decided to try our luck at Perth Zoo. Only to find out that the Koala Bears habitat was under construction and the Koalas were relocated elsewhere and not for visiting... zzZZZzz..

So moral of the story? If you intend to visit the zoo, do a check (via a call maybe?) if any of the animals are not open to public.