Perth on a Budget: 11 Cheap and Free Things to Do
Perth on a budget: the free stuff is the good stuff
Perth’s best attraction costs nothing. Kings Park is 400 hectares of bushland and garden, free and open 24 hours, and it’s bigger than New York’s Central Park. Add the free CAT buses, the CBD Free Transit Zone, and two genuinely free beaches (Cottesloe, Scarborough), and most of what makes Perth worth visiting is already covered before you spend a dollar. The two things worth paying for, WA Museum Boola Bardip and the Bell Tower, run $15 and about $18 respectively (roughly US$10.50 and US$13). This guide covers all 11, plus what to skip.
Perth on a budget: the essentials
| Factor | Detail |
|---|---|
| Days needed | 2 to 5, city only (Rottnest, Fremantle and Swan Valley are a separate trip, see Perth day trips ) |
| Best months | September-November and March-May; avoid the Dec-Feb heat if budget-conscious sightseeing on foot is the plan |
| Daily budget | $60-90/day (~US$42-63) covering transit, one paid sight every other day, and a mid-range meal |
| Booking warning | The WA Museum’s free-entry promo ended March 2025; budget the $15 in, don’t expect it to still be free |
11 cheap and free things to do in Perth
| Thing to do | Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Kings Park & Botanic Garden | Free, 24/7 | 400ha, treetop walkway, 3,000+ native WA plants |
| Free CAT buses | Free | 4 colour routes loop the CBD/Northbridge every 5-15 min |
| CBD Free Transit Zone | Free | Trains City West-Claisebrook, buses anywhere in City of Perth |
| Elizabeth Quay foreshore | Free | Swan River waterfront promenade, no ticket needed |
| Cottesloe Beach | Free | Calmer, family-oriented, Norfolk pines |
| Scarborough Beach | Free | Livelier, surf and kitesurf, ~12km NW of the CBD |
| Swan River foreshore walk/cycle | Free | Both riverbanks, city skyline views |
| Art Gallery of Western Australia | Free | Perth Cultural Centre, closed Tuesdays |
| Swan River ferry (Elizabeth Quay-South Perth) | $3.50 cash / $2.80 Autoload SmartRider | Standard Transperth fare, not a paid cruise |
| WA Museum Boola Bardip | $15 adult / $10 concession | Free under-15s and carers |
| The Bell Tower | about $18 adult (concessions/family cheaper) | 10am-4pm daily, last entry 3:45pm |
The CBD Free Transit Zone and free CAT buses, explained
Perth’s public transport got simpler on 1 January 2026: the old zone system is gone, replaced by a flat Go Anywhere Fare of $3.50 cash/contactless or $2.80 with an Autoload SmartRider, covering any single journey up to three hours anywhere on the network. Inside the CBD itself, you often won’t need even that. The Free Transit Zone lets you tag on and off trains for nothing between City West and Claisebrook, covering all three central stations (Perth, Perth Underground, Elizabeth Quay), and any bus trip that stays within the City of Perth boundary is free too. On top of that, four color-coded CAT bus routes, Red, Blue, Yellow and Green (Green runs weekdays only), loop the CBD and Northbridge every 5-15 minutes with no card needed at all. A SmartRider card only becomes worth buying ($10 standard, $5 concession, plus a minimum credit load, purchased in person only) once you’re heading beyond the free zone to the beaches or the airport.
Two paid sights actually worth the $15
Everything else on this list is free; these two aren’t, and both earn their keep. WA Museum Boola Bardip, in the Perth Cultural Centre, reopened in 2020 after a $400M redevelopment across five heritage buildings, including the old 1855 Perth Gaol; general admission runs $15 adult, $10 concession, free for under-15s and carers. A widely repeated claim that it’s free in 2026 is wrong: a free-entry promotion ran December 2024 to March 2025 and has since ended. The Bell Tower, at Barrack Street Jetty by Elizabeth Quay, houses 18 bells, 12 of them genuinely historic bells from London’s St Martin-in-the-Fields gifted to WA for Australia’s 1988 Bicentenary. General entry runs about $18 for adults (concessions and family tickets are cheaper, and the guided bell-chiming experience costs more than basic entry), open 10am-4pm daily with last entry at 3:45pm. Check current Bell Tower ticket options before you go, since pricing has shifted a few times in recent years.
Is Perth expensive to visit?
Not if you lean on what’s free. Kings Park, the beaches, the CAT buses and the Free Transit Zone cost nothing, and a realistic daily budget of $60-90 (about US$42-63) covers transit, a paid sight every other day, and a proper sit-down meal. The main way to overspend here is paying for taxis or a rental car you don’t need inside the free-transit core.
Is the WA Museum free in 2026?
No. A free-general-admission promotion ran across WA Museum sites from December 2024 through March 2025 and has since ended. Current 2026 pricing is $15 adult, $10 concession, with under-15s and carers still admitted free. Budget the $15 in rather than expecting a repeat of the old promo.
Where to stay in Perth on a budget
The CBD and Northbridge put you inside or next to the Free Transit Zone, which matters more here than in most cities: every night you stay outside it is a night you’re paying Transperth fares just to get back to your hotel. Check Perth CBD and Northbridge hotel rates on Booking.com before you commit, since prices swing hard around Fringe World Festival (21 January-15 February 2026) and the wildflower season crowds in September-October. If a guided orientation is worth the money on a first visit, browse Perth city tours on GetYourGuide rather than paying for a full hop-on bus pass; most of what it covers is walkable and free anyway.
When to visit for the best value
Seasons run backwards from the Northern Hemisphere here: December-February is Perth’s hot, dry summer, routinely 35-40C+, while June-August is the cool, wet winter. Neither extreme is disastrous for a budget trip since the free attractions (Kings Park, the beaches, the river walks) work in any weather, but the shoulder seasons, September-November and March-May, give you the most comfortable free sightseeing without paying a premium for it. If you want a genuinely free river view, skip the paid river cruises and take the $3.50 Transperth ferry from Elizabeth Quay to South Perth instead; the skyline view from the South Perth foreshore afterward costs nothing at all. For day trips beyond the city, Rottnest Island, Fremantle and the Swan Valley have their own cost breakdown in Perth day trips , separate from this city-only list. Pair this guide with the 2-day , 3-day , 4-day or 5-day itinerary, or the Perth cost breakdown for a shorter version of this same list. Do the free things first, every day, and let the $15 sights fill the gaps rather than anchor the schedule.