WA Shipwrecks Museum — Attraction in Fremantle

This is a place where everybody should go. It represents a slice of WA history and a very interesting one. Children are very well entertained by the variety of exhibits. There is no entry fee, you can choose to donate $5, there is a machine at the reception where you can paypass for exactly that amount. There is also a box where you can donate cash if you choose to. Very interesting exhibition and using story telling method of shipwrecks around West Australian coasts, from the last survivors of Austro-Hungarian barque Stefano from 1875 that resorted to cannibalism to survive, to the shipwreck that took more than 160 years until it was able to identity its name and to the engine that was more 100 years underwater, and once restored – it can still work. An entire room is dedicated to the Dutch sea captain de Vlamingh who discovered and explored the West Coast, our current WA of what was then called New Holland, as they named Australia. There are lots of exhibits, beautifully restored, and that makes you wonder how that porcelain, the pottery and glasses survived the water and the centuries, military items, and even an incomplete set of chess pieces. That was my favourite. There is also a souvenir shop well stocked with history books about the topic and other gift items. The museum has wheelchair access and lift and friendly staff ready to assist in each room. We spent very interesting few hours...

Back in the day this was the maritime museum and I've always liked coming here. Being a super stingy guy, I love the fact that museums are free. There are a lot of good museums in WA, but the Shipwrecks museum is probably the most underrated (except maybe that Tractor Museum in Caversham that I almost went to one time).

The imposing wreck of the Batavia is still there, and still very well preserved. The story of the Batavia shipwreck may be dumbed down for the kids, but it is a good intro for those curious about the atrocities that happened before WA was even a civilisation. There are remnants of WA's maritime past - antique gilded things, paintings that beat anything in AGWA, books with them cursive handwritings you don't see anymore because people forgot how to write. And that skeleton.

If you're a visitor to Freo, go to the Sail and Anchor, the markets, but please don't skip this...

I do love coming here with the kids but there was an event on which involved fire engine rides and jumpy castle. I looked this morning on the website and must have missed where it was running because I kept getting asked if I had a ticket, rides are free with a map. Get a map with a ticket, the kids were interested so I asked could they get a map. I got asked if I had a ticket, I looked confused and the kids were asking what it was about but the two attending just stood there offering no help or explanation. If it's a prepaid thing fine, sold out no problem but some sort of feedback would have been nice instead of just staring at us. We ended up moving through and it was lovely and quiet (due to the fanfare outside) and the kids had fun finding clues. Plenty of fascinating stories and history here, wheelchair accessible and...