Murchison River Caravan Park, Kalbarri

Murchison River Caravan Park is in the quiet town of Kalbarri. It has a great location – just across the road from the beach and within walking distance of shops and restaurants. Right next door is a very good restaurant called the Pickled Pelican that is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Travelling with one other couple, we had two large, powered sites next to each other. Trees shaded the sites and each site had a ground mesh mat, which certainly helped to lessen the sand being trailed into our campervan.

Many of the sites and picnic tables have views over the Murchison River to the Indian Ocean and the sunsets are stunning.

A seniors/pensioners discount of 10% per week or $2 per night is on offer. We paid $38.70 per night and stayed two nights. Cabins, which have two bedrooms, an ensuite and a kitchen, are available from $115 per night. Cabin prices start from $130 per night on long weekends and school holidays. The facilities include access for wheelchairs. Pets are allowed but not during school holidays. Check-in is 10:30am and check-out is at 10am. The caravan park is family owned and run and this shows in the staff being very friendly and helpful.

The ablutions block was very close to our sites so we didn’t have far to walk for our morning showers. The block was quite a bit older than the facilities at our previous stop, RAC Cervantes, but was much better designed. Each room had a toilet, shower, hand basin and bench, which made it much easier to use than the separate facilities at Cervantes. The camp kitchen was small but with all the usual amenities – stovetops, sinks, fridge, toaster, kettle and microwave. Washing and ironing facilities are available. There are also BBQs and a children’s playground in the park.

A big attraction in Kalbarri – pelican feeding – takes place every day at 8:45 am on the foreshore, directly across from the caravan park. This is a hugely entertaining and informative event. We learned about the pelican’s feeding and breeding habits and visitors can get close to the pelicans to watch them enjoy their fish breakfast. Volunteers have been feeding the pelicans in Kalbarri for 45 years and a gold coin donation is requested to help pay for the food.

The Murchison River Caravan Park is an ideal spot to stay to explore Kalbarri and the nearby national park where we were delighted to catch glimpses of migrating humpback whales making their way north.