Sunset, dinner and the stars

About this experience

This is the tour most people book, and it fixes the main problem with a Pinnacles day: the hour. Coach day trips that leave Perth in the morning reach the pillars around noon, in flat light and, from December to March, real heat. Autopia sets off after lunch instead and moves the start through the year so the group is walking among the limestone as the sun goes down. Its own booking page lists the seasonal departures: 12pm in June to August, 12:30pm in May and September, 1pm in October, March and April, 1:30pm in November and February, and 2pm in December and January.

The road north is part of the day. The listing has stops at a lookout near Guilderton or Lancelin, wildflower country at Nilgen Nature Reserve when it is in flower (August to October), and Hangover Bay, a white beach inside Nambung National Park. Then the guided walk among the pinnacles, about 1 to 2 km on sand, as the colour comes up. After dark you get a locally sourced picnic dinner with one glass of wine, a telescope session and Aboriginal Dreamtime stories from the guide.

Two honest caveats. Clear skies decide the second half: cloud can hide the sunset and the stars, and the listing says the telescope runs weather permitting. And it is a long, late day. The operator gives a return of about 9:30pm to 11pm depending on the season, the drive home is in the dark, and the main meeting point is the Criterion Hotel on Hay Street; the listing also offers selected inner-city pickup points and transfers to a nominated pickup point, so check yours at booking. The listing price starts at US$139, with park entry included.

• The Pinnacles at sunset, not at midday
• Departure moves with the season to catch the last light
• Picnic dinner with a glass of local wine
• Telescope stargazing and Dreamtime stories, weather permitting
• Coastal stops at Lancelin or Guilderton and Hangover Bay

How the day runs

1. 12pm to 2pmLeave the Criterion Hotel

   Meet outside 560 Hay St at the seasonal time on your ticket. Have lunch before: the next meal is dinner.

2. About 1.5 h inCoast lookout

   A break near Lancelin or the Guilderton lookout for the first view of the Indian Ocean and the white dunes.

3. AfternoonNilgen and Hangover Bay

   Wildflowers at Nilgen in spring, then a photo stop on the turquoise water at Hangover Bay.

4. Before sunsetWalk among the pinnacles

   A guided walk of about 1 to 2 km on sand while the low sun turns the limestone orange and the shadows stretch.

5. After darkDinner, telescope and stories

   Picnic dinner with a glass of wine, then the telescope and the night sky if the cloud stays away.

6. 9:30pm to 11pmBack in Perth

   The coach returns to the Criterion Hotel or your selected inner-city drop-off point.

What's included

Who it suits

What guests say

Tips before you book

• Bring a warm jacket in every season. The desert cools fast after sunset, and from May to September nights at Jurien Bay average around 10 °C.
• Check the moon before you book a date. A full moon washes out the Milky Way; a new moon gives the darkest sky.
• Pack a torch, a hat and a fly net. Flies are bad in late spring and summer until the sun goes down.
• Tell the operator about dietary needs when you book. The dinner is set in advance.
• Winter departures (12pm) get you back earliest, with sunsets around 5:25pm in June.

Read next:

• Sunset and stargazing
• Tours compared
• Is it worth visiting?

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