If you're doing a far-ranging Western Australia tour, or simply visiting the state capital, Perth, for a short period of time, don’t overlook the Perth seaport, Fremantle.
It’s a city in its right but being the Perth seaport and only 19 kilometres from the Perth city centre, Fremantle has become a virtual Perth suburb as the state capital continues to grow outward.
It’s one of the interesting and nearer Western Australia places to visit when you’re in Perth, another being Rottnest Island across the water.
Treasure-trove of relics
Fremantle, Western Australia, straddles the harbour on the edge of the Indian Ocean at the mouth of the Swan River.
It is a place rich in maritime history, and its maritime museum is a treasure-trove of relics from as far back as the days of the Dutch navigators in the 17th century.
America's Cup
In the 1980s -- in September 1983, in fact -- the Fremantle Yacht Club wrested the America’s Cup from the United States, the first time it had ever been won by a non-American and the first time the Auld Mug, as the Cup is affectionately known, had ever left American shores.
The Cup defence was held off Fremantle in 1987 in a sea duel which saw America regain its Cup (but which it lost again, later, to New Zealand).
National Trust buildings
Fremantle, or Freo as it is called by the locals, is very much a laid-back city.
It’s a place of sidewalk cafes, restaurants, bistros, buskers, museums, craft shops, painters — and boutique beers.
Freo is considered one of the best preserved 19th century seaports in the world, with more than 150 buildings classified by the National Trust.
Development activity preceding the 1987 America’s Cup defence has introduced newer, more modern buildings, but it substantially retains much of the atmosphere of its colonial past.
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