Wildflower season in Australia’s Golden Outback is a truly magical phenomenon. The 6-month flowering season starts at the top of the state covering the outback plains with carpets of flowers, and then they flow down to the south coast region, sitting pretty with an ocean blue background.
Esperance and Ravensthorpe both showcase their local wildflowers at two wildflower shows that celebrate the beauty of the wildflower season that continues to blow travellers and tourists away every year. Both are amazing in their own right, but if you combine them and add in a few days exploring the wildflowers in the national park, you’ve got a pretty amazing road trip adventure!
Ravensthorpe Wildflower Show
The Ravensthorpe Wildflower Show and Spring Festival is an annual, vibrant celebration of the amazing flora the South East Coast of Western Australia has to offer. This year is the 40th wildflower show, and it's taking place between Monday 12 and Sunday 24 September.
The show is even internationally recognised as one of the best wildflower shows in the world! Visit the show to explore over 600 flowering plant species, all in the one place.
There are guided walks with wildflower knowledge and speakers, a hot spot bus tour, a 4WD tag along tour to explore the Ravensthorpe Ranges and discover the Fitzgerald River National Park. The Ravensthorpe Regional Herbarium will also be open for guided visits. The show is held each year in September, which is prime bloom time for the flowers in the area. The wildflower show is open daily at the Ravensthorpe Town Hall.
Esperance Wildflower Festival
The Esperance Wildflower Festival began in 1990 and has grown into something spectacular. The show, taking place from Tuesday 20 - Saturday 24 September, will feature and display over 500 individual specimens, art exhibitions from over 400 school students, cultural presentations by Nyungar Elders, keynote presentations from internationally renowned Australian botanists, displays from local organisations, an interactive community sculpture project, and more! This years theme is Celebrating Carnivorous Plants.
The Esperance Wildflower Society help to run the festival, and the societies aim is to promote awareness of local native flora and the need for its conservation. The annual festival provides an opportunity to present many species of flora to the general public, including species that are unlikely to be seen in casual visits to the bush.
Why not combine the two shows and make a longer holiday of it? A great road trip for the whole family to enjoy, especially those wildflower enthusiasts who cannot wait to hit the road this wildflower season! These two events are not to be missed and they create a fantastic wildflower road trip throughout Road Trip Country.