Manjimup: Locals Guide + Things To Do 2023

If you’re looking for the best things to do in Manjimup and tips on when to visit, how to get there, and where to stay, this guide from a Perth local will be invaluable.

Manjimup is surrounded by state forests in Western Australia’s South West. It was previously a timber town but is now well known for its fresh produce, Pink Lady Apples, and beautiful forests.

Things To Do in Manjimup

Manjimup is an outdoor lover’s delight. Surrounded by natural beauty, there is plenty to do and see. This map will help you plan your itinerary.

Manjimup Heritage Park

The 12-hectare Heritage Park is a key tourism precinct in Manjimup. It incorporates a large adventure playground, museums, natural bush, and walk trails.

The Power Up Electricity Museum shows the evolution of electricity, from the first light globe to solar energy. It costs A$14 per adult, A$8 for children over four, and A$30 for a family (includes 2 adults + 3 children, or 1 adult + 4 children).

Learn about the history of the State’s timber industry at the State Timber Museum. The price is A$5 per adult, A$2 for children over four, and A$12 for a family.

Kids will love the large adventure playground with flying fox, a fort with slides, and a tall 17m lookout tower with a giant enclosed metal slide. Our girls loved the flying fox and the towering slide.

Wander through the native bushland and discover Australian and non-Australian trees. From August to November, a wide range of wildflowers can be seen. Be careful of snakes when they are more active during the warmer months.

Go back to how Manjimup would have been in the 1950s and 60s in the Historic Hamlet area. As you visit replicas, and some original relocated buildings, learn about the life of a timber milling town. We found this part interesting and informative.

At The Steam Museum, you will find out how steam was used to power the sawmills and speed up the process. It is free to enter.

At the Rail Relics display, see locomotives and haulers from the 1890s and the equipment used to pull logs through the forest. Kids can climb and explore them.

PARK Manjimup Café has a beautiful outdoor seating area with timber decking and tables. It is open for breakfast and lunch from 9 am daily – call 9700 9013 to make a booking.

The Manjimup Heritage Park is one of the best things to do in Manjimup with kids and offers some indoor attractions if it’s raining. It’s also a good choice for a picnic, with lots to do for children and toilet facilities. We went here a couple of times during our stay.

Manjimup Town

Manjimup Visitor Centre is at the start of the town, opposite the Timber & Heritage Park. They provide maps and information on Manjimup and the surrounding area.

Manjimup Town is a regional centre for the largest shire in the South West region. Supermarkets, including Woolworths and Coles, are located here and shops like Target.

There are a few restaurants/cafes in town; Manjimup Chinese Restaurant, Southern Roasting Co, Cilantro Café (Indian), and Two Little Black Birds Café.

The King Jarrah Tree

The King Jarrah Tree can be found outside of Manjimup town centre, on Perup Road. This massive tree is thought to be over 500 years old and is 2.6m in diameter and 45m in height.

As you turn off Perup Road, there are picnic tables, bbq, and toilets. A 600 m walking track loops around the King Jarrah tree. From September to November, look for beautiful wildflowers. The path is suitable for prams and wheelchairs. You will also see what remains of Queejup’s birth tree, a Noongar stockman who was born under this tree.

It’s amazing to see such an old tree, but it wasn’t a highlight of Manjimup.

The Four Aces, One Tree Bridge & Glenoran Pool

Four Aces, One Tree Bridge, and Glenoran Pool are south west of Manjimup on Graphite Road.

A gravel car park is just off Graphite Road, with a path leading along Donnelly River to Glenoran Pool.

Glenoran Pool is touted as an ideal place to swim on a hot summer day and used to be the local swimming pool for the settlement of Glenoran. However, a sign says swimming is not recommended due to the strong current, cold water, and varying depths.

Head back to the car park and under the road bridge (the suspension bridge over Donnelly River was built as a safer alternative for cyclists and hikers of the Munda Biddi Trail and Bibbulmun Track) to One Tree Bridge.

As you may have guessed, One Tree Bridge is made from a single karri tree. Local settlers Herbert and Walter Giblett built the bridge in 1904 by felling an enormous tree so it dropped across the 25m wide river. The rest of the structure was made with local jarrah trees and was used to cross the Donnelly River until 1943, when it disintegrated and fell into the river. What is left of One Tree Bridge is an important part of the local history.

A 2.1 km trail can be walked through the towering trees from One Tree Bridge to the Four Aces and return. Four Aces are a straight row of 400-year-old Karri trees, but the true beauty is in the forest around them, with fallen trees covered in moss.

Fonty’s Pool

Archimede Fontanini created Fonty’s Pool in 1925. It irrigated his vegetables but soon became a favourite spot for families to picnic.

We stayed at Fonty’s Pool Caravan Park so we could use the pool free of charge. Non-guests can swim here, but there’s a $3 fee. The water was pretty cold in September, but there were tractor inner tubes for the kids to float in. It’s a beautiful and relaxing spot to sit while the kids play.

It would be amazing in summer and the best place to cool off on a hot day.

Manjimup to Deanmill Heritage Trail

The Manjimup to Deanmill Heritage Trail is an easy 5.5 km (one-way) walk along an old rail line. It also forms part of the Munda Biddi Trail, a world-class mountain biking trail.

The walking trail goes through bush and farmland, and wildflowers are abundant in spring.

The tramway ran from 1912 to 1966, linking the sawmill to Manjimup. Deanmill was named after Alfred Dean, the mill’s first manager.

The historic town of Deanmill is very small, with quaint homes and a good example of an old timber town. The old Town Hall was built around 1914 but has been left to deteriorate.

Manjimup Farmers Market

Manjimup Farmers Market is open every Saturday (except Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Day) from 8.30 am to 12.30 pm. Grab a bite to eat or buy fresh produce, jams, dried fruit, wines, and many other delicious items.

Join a Truffle Hunt

Truffle Hill is one of the few truffières that allow people to participate in a truffle hunt. The 2023 season runs from Friday 2nd June to Sunday 20th August.

Costs are:

Truffle Hunt Only  A$75pp (Sunday to Thursday 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm)

The Truffle Experience A$120pp (includes a tasting platter with paired wines)
Friday & Saturday 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Saturday & Sunday 10:30 am – 10:30 pm

Places are limited to a maximum of 16; unfortunately, children cannot take this tour.

Day trip to Pemberton

Pemberton is 32 km from Manjimup and is a beautiful area to explore, including Big Brook Dam and Beedelup National Park.

Find out all the best things to do in Pemberton and start planning your day!

Events in Manjimup

Manjimup is a popular town for hosting events, including the well-known Cherry Harmony Festival, Truffle Kerfuffle, Manjimup 15,000, and Targa West Rally.

The Cherry Harmony Festival celebrates the region’s fresh produce, including the red cherry. Expect parades, wine tastings, log chopping demonstrations, displays, food stalls, and live music.

The Australian truffle season starts in June, with the annual event, Truffle Kerfuffle, starting it off. Manjimup is the heart of Australian truffle country; more truffles are found here than anywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere. The rare black winter truffles are unearthed minutes from here, so the earthy aroma is intense. I have yet to attend this festival but had a truffle degustation at Friends Restaurant (now Rusty Fig) in Perth. It was divine, and I plan to attend Truffle Kerfuffle one year.

Accommodation in Manjimup

Have you booked accommodation?

We use Booking.com for most accommodation bookings as they offer free cancellation on many properties and have a price match guarantee. We book through Stayz (part of VRBO) for private accommodation as we find it is often cheaper than Airbnb.

Tip: Accommodation gets booked quickly, especially during the WA school holidays. To avoid disappointment, book early.

Manjimup distance from Perth & how to get there

Manjimup is in the Southern Forests region in Western Australia’s Southwest, about 295 km south of Perth. The driving time is around 3 hours and 15 minutes, through stunning countryside once you leave the main highway. It’s a lovely getaway from Perth.

International and domestic visitors will fly into Perth Airport. Find details about visas, prohibited items, currency, and safety in this Australia Travel Guide and tips on arriving into WA and other essential travel information in this Western Australia Travel Guide.

There are car hire booths at Perth airport, but it’s best to pre-book your car rental.

To compare Australia car hire prices, Discover Cars is an award-winning car rental comparison website. They offer competitive pricing in over 10,000 locations worldwide and are have a high rate of customer satisfaction.

Drivenow is a good resource to compare campervan hire in Western Australia as it includes all the large companies like Britz, Maui, Jucy as well as smaller ones.

Compare Rental Cars Here.

TransWA runs buses via Bunbury that stop in Manjimup. However, it’s easier to get around this region with a car. SouthWest Coachlines also have a service from Elizabeth Quay in Perth to Manjimup.

Manjimup Forecast & Weather

The hottest months are January & February, where the average highs are 27 degrees.

The coldest months are from June to August. During this time, the temperature will be around 14/15, with a minimum of 6.

The most rain falls between June and August, with December to February being the driest months.

I like spring when the fields are green from the winter rain and the wildflowers are out. The weather can be dicey with a bit of rain.

See the detailed 7-day forecast at the Bureau of Meteorology.

Brief History & Settlement of Manjimup

Firstly, I’d like to respectfully acknowledge the Noongar People, the Traditional Owners, and First People of these lands. I would like to pay my respect to the Elders past, present, and future, for they hold the memories, the traditions, the culture, and hopes of the Noongar People.

Manjimup’s meaning is derived from local Aboriginal words’ Manjin’, meaning ‘an edible reed’ and ‘up,’ which is ‘meeting place.’

Manjimup was first settled by Europeans in 1856 when timber cutter Thomas Muir settled there.

Agriculture and Forestry are now the town’s primary industries. With its rich soil, Manjimup produces gourmet foods, including black truffles, cherries, chestnuts, apples, avocados, wine, and olive oil. This region supplies a significant portion of the State’s food and exports internationally.

The Cripps Pink apple, or Pink Lady as they are better known, was developed here in the 1970s by John Cripps.

Western Australia’s South West Travel Guide

This detailed travel guide provides information on all the regions that make up Australia’s South West. Read about the destinations, including what to do and where to stay.

Read More….

Western Australia Travel Guide

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