Cover image: South West Bottega. Image: Wildflower Creative

The next best thing to owning a pony is to take one on a bush ride, right? A ride through wildflowers, marri trees and wattle at Jesters Flat is a special treat.

Named after Australian poets and arts figures, handsome Australian stock horses are bred and raised by the Jesters Flat team. Opt for the Beginners Bushwalk, led by competent and caring trainers who love the wildflowers and native flora too. This particular tour is taken at walking pace, perfect for young children or first-time riders.

They also offer a range of horse rides including through Boranup Forest, a beach ride in Busselton and multi-day riding retreats. Book ahead as tours fill up quickly.

If you prefer a different kind of saddle, Brooksey from Margaret River Mountain Bike Tours now offers e-bike tours from the karri forest to the coastline, with complimentary wildflower spotting included.

Jump aboard a Ngilgi Cave Cultural Tour with Koomal Dreaming for an incredible new perspective on the Aussie bush. Josh Whiteland is a Wadandi cultural custodian and an incredible storyteller, sharing knowledge of his saltwater ancestors and his love for his home, Cape Naturaliste.

The whole family will be mesmerised by Josh’s fire lighting demo – especially if you, too, spent hours as a kid unsuccessfully rubbing sticks together – as well as a didgeridoo performance in Ngilgi Cave’s amphitheatre. The tour takes you through native bushland and the Ngilgi Cave Ancient Lands experience, where Josh points out food and bush medicine, then into the ancient Ngilgi Cave.

And it doesn’t stop there, choose from a range of cultural activities with Josh – essential stuff for keen visitors of any age.

Did you know that over 100 limestone caves lie beneath the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge? That’s why it’s called Caves Road! Four of these highly decorated caves are open to the public to enjoy, and Ngilgi Cave and Mammoth Cave are both particularly good for younger kids. I recommend a baby carrier on your front for babies, leaving both your hands free to hold the handrail as these caves have some serious stairs.

Ngilgi Cave Ancient Lands Experience in Yallingup features an interactive, accessible above-ground experience before heading underground, and the famous Tunnel of Doom. After a brief intro, you’re free to explore the cave at your own pace. The Tunnel of Doom is optional, and your kids might opt to do it dozens of times. Perfect for burning off energy.

Mammoth Cave in Boranup Forest, south of Margaret River, is awesome for younger kids too. You’re given an audio guide on arrival, and you can walk straight in – no waiting for a tour at a set time. It’s an important megafauna fossil site, with bones on display in the cave and sculptures of the extinct creatures at the entrance.

Lake Cave and Jewel Cave are mind-blowingly good too, especially once your kids are a tiny bit older, maybe 6 years plus. Check out Which cave is best for me to find out more.

September-October is peak hour on the Whale Super Highway in the northern part of the region – this is the time to check out some cetaceans and teach your kids about beautiful whales. Southern right, blue and humpback whales migrate through the region, and you can see them on a whale watching charter or from select land lookouts.

Whale-watching cruises depart Dunsborough and Busselton in spring, as 35,000+ whales swim through Geographe Bay. Whale Watch Western Australia, Naturaliste Charters and All Sea Charters have beautiful big boats or catamarans with toilets and tea or coffee-making facilities, and they’re great for sighting whales.

For land-based whale watching, take a tour of Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse where the eagle-eyed guides are always on the lookout, recording thousands of whales each season. There’s a series of walking trails from the lighthouse; try the whale lookout walk which is about 2 kilometres each way – take an off-road pram for younger kids, and watch out for snakes. Point Piquet on the Eagle Bay-Meelup Road is also fabulous for whale watching, with its 270-degree bay views.

Kids love a miniature train ride, and the Busselton Jetty Train offers superb bay views as you chug 1.8 kilometres along the historic jetty – the longest in the southern hemisphere. At the end of the jetty, the adventure begins. The Underwater Observatory was built in Fremantle and floated down to Busselton, and there’s so much more to learn thanks to the interpretive signage.

The Leeuwin current brings warm water into Geographe Bay, helping create a unique maritime ecosystem for coral, sponges, octopus, starfish and fish. They even spy the odd seal, whale and mermaid through the huge Perspex windows, 9 metres below the surface.

We visited in late winter when the visibility wasn’t quite as good as usual, so a virtual reality experience with 3D goggles added to the fun. There’s time to take photos and admire the life-size whale murals at the end of the jetty before the return train ride to the foreshore, and excellent Sea Play by the Bay playground.

Just 600 meters from Busselton Jetty lies The Mermaids Cave & Cafe, featuring a seashell collection and aquariums filled with ocean goodness. During the school holidays, meet a real-life mermaid who tells you about her life in the ocean.

If you and your little ones don’t mind getting wet, explore Busselton’s beautiful Underwater Sculptures on a snorkel or scuba diving tour with Swan Dive. The kids won’t stop talking about the kaleidoscope of colourful corals and fish for the rest of the school holidays. No prior experience required.

What an inspiration to learn that the kind people from Yelverton Brook Eco Retreat have built a massive – and massively expensive – electric predator-proof fence to protect the native wildlife.

With a bit of luck, you can meet some gorgeous little critters on a Nocturnal Animal Tour tour with South West Eco Discoveries. Brothers Mick and Ryan run the twilight tours, picking you up from your accommodation and driving you to the eco sanctuary. You take a short walk through the bush as they point out ancient balga (grass trees) and seasonal wildflowers, arriving at a clearing where you’re served billy tea and cookies.

Your evenings are reserved for lazy board games and snuggles by the fireplace? No problem, opt for an eco tour around Cape Naturaliste, or ask Bushtucker Tours about the family pricing available for their award-winning Margaret River Canoe Tour.

You can’t come to the Margaret River Region and not visit the chocolate factory, right? With an array of scrumptious chocolatiers to choose from, you’ll be on a happy sugar high for days.

Gabriel Chocolate, The Margaret River Chocolate Company and Temper Temper all offer fabulous chocolate tasting experiences, exquisite handmade chocolate and great coffee, too. The Margaret River Chocolate Company now offer Junior Chocolatier Classes where you can create your very own chocolate masterpiece and take home your personalised Giant Freckle. Personally, I love Gabriel’s hot chocolate and fresh cookies, The Margaret River Chocolate Company’s choccy bilbies (a fundraiser) and Temper Temper’s design-your-own bar.

Yallingup Chocolate is worth a visit as well, from the team behind Commonage Coffee Co, with a beautiful store filled with sweet treats and plenty of space for kids to run around and burn off some steam.

The newest choc-on-the-block is Little Otto’s Big Choc Shop in Busselton, with a whimsical shop offering delicious chocolate creations and gelato made in-store.

Top tip: Get a wholesome lunch into the kids to balance the sugar rush. Newly opened South West Bottega in Vasse, fully undercover Origins Market, or charming Meelup Farmhouse in Dunsborough are excellent family-friendly choices.

Take your pick from one of three awesome maze adventures: Yallingup Maze, A Maze’n Margaret River and Boranup Forest Maze. All unique, all wonderful.

Yallingup Maze is crafted in wood, and the owners change it regularly lest local kids get to know the way out by heart. They also have great coffee and homemade food, and a nature-style playground and minigolf. If the weather isn’t cooperating for outside activities, they have a fantastic selection of board games for all ages available to play in their café.

A Maze’n Margaret River is popular with young couples – and it’s an absolute credit to its garden-loving creators. A true hedge maze, and quite challenging, there’s also beautiful gardens to explore, mini golf, and a BBQ picnic area as well as a full café.

Boranup Forest Maze is another great place to stretch your legs and get lost amongst the maze’s hedges. Just off Caves Road, the kids will add some Fitbit steps running and exploring.

To keep the weird and wonderful afternoon rolling, don’t miss Wow Illusions, too. The Gravity Defying Room, Illusionary Artworks, Wacky Toilet and Grow Big or Small in the Blink of an Eye, are all big favourites among the kids.

Budding Tarzans, there are two fabulous zip line and high ropes courses in the region.

Just outside Dunsborough next to Bailey Brewing Co. is the excellent Next Level Monkey Business which welcomes visitors of all ages. The courses have been designed to encourage people out of their comfort zone (regardless of age and experience) whilst always feeling safe. They have low-to-the-ground obstacles and zip lines to get you started, with the courses working up to the The Mega Zip which has you flying 100 metres over the lake. Awesome for thrill-seekers from 4 years to 74 years, they cater for individual climbers, large groups, and families.

Outside Busselton in the world’s last remaining tuart forest, you’ll find Forest Adventures. Hailed as “the adult’s zip lining course that kids can do too”, dial up the adrenaline and get ready for some serious tree top challenges. Perfect for families with slightly older kids, you have to be 7+ years to tackle the ‘family-friendly’ courses. As a guide, my brave eight-year-old blitzed course 4 (of six), which has a suspended totem swaying ladder, climbing 18 metres up into the trees before enjoying nine consecutive zip lines. Awesome!

Sunflowers Animal Farm is a wonderful place to spend an hour or two with the kids (and babies under 24 months are free). All of the animals are super friendly, from cute little guinea pigs right up to cows and horses. There are also native animals at the farm, including kangaroos and emus. Grab a bucket of animal food and set off for a wholesome day.

Not far from Sunflowers, Meelup Farmhouse is perfect for a relaxed brunch or lunch, and the kids can run the grounds or feed their friendly animals – incredibly fluffy silkie chooks, goats, aplacas, geese, highland cows, and a friendly chocolate labrador. If you’re based at the other end of the region, check out Scoops Farm for an equally satisfying farm animal fix.

Your holiday is over and your kids haven’t seen a kangaroo? Hard to imagine, but you can always stop at Bunbury Wildlife Park to break up the return journey. Lots of native animals to explore, and their enormous playground alone is worth a visit.