Long before any ferry tied up in Thomson Bay, the island at the end of this crossing was Wadjemup — the Noongar name the Rottnest Island Authority renders as the place across the water where the spirits are. The boat from Barrack Street Jetty lands you at the Main Jetty, where a memorial sculpture stands at the far end, and it takes about ninety minutes to get there.
SeaLink's published seasons run to 31 January 2027 and were read on 22 September 2026; the Rottnest Express times are sampled dates, because that operator publishes its schedule one day at a time SeaLink Rottnest Island – ferry timetables · 2026-09-22
The Rottnest Island Authority puts the island's Noongar history at the front of its own website, and it is worth reading before you buy a ticket. Wadjemup is Whadjuk Noongar country, described by the Authority as a resting place of the spirits and as a memorial place for Aboriginal men and boys whose bodies still lie beneath its sand. The Authority carries a content warning on that page and apologises for the language of the past. The sculpture Koora-Yeye-Boordawan-Kalyakoorl stands at the end of the Main Jetty, so it is the first thing a ferry passenger walks past.
The practical picture is simpler than the historical one. Three companies serve the island from four mainland points, and only two of them sail from the Perth CBD: SeaLink Rottnest Island and Rottnest Express, both from Barrack Street Jetty on Elizabeth Quay. Each runs the city service once a day. Everything else in their timetables belongs to Fremantle.
Ninety minutes is the number to plan around. The Rottnest Island Authority says up to 90 minutes from Barrack Street Jetty and SeaLink says approximately 90 minutes for the same run, which is two independent sources agreeing — and it is roughly what the Rottnest Express grid shows too, once you allow for its calls at B Shed or Northport on the way.
Every fare to Rottnest has two parts: what the ferry company charges, and the island admission fee the Rottnest Island Authority levies on every visitor. Operators collect the second on the Authority's behalf and it is bundled into the price you pay at booking, so the figures below are the totals. SeaLink also warns that its prices move with demand, which is why everything here is a from.
The admission component depends on whether you sleep on the island. A day visit is $21.50 for an adult; staying overnight lifts it to $28.50. SeaLink and Rottnest Express quote identical admission figures, which is how we know they are the Authority's numbers rather than either company's.
| Adult | $ 134.50 |
| Concession or student | $ 124.50 |
| Youth 13–16 | $ 114 |
| Child 4–12 | $ 70 |
| Infant under 4 | Free |
| Family, 2 adults and 2 children | $ 369 |
| Adult, one way | $ 100.50 |
| Child 4–12, one way | $ 52 |
| Adult, extended return (staying overnight) | $ 141.50 |
| Child 4–12, extended return | $ 73.50 |
| Adult, same-day return | $ 135.50 |
| Child 4–12, same-day return | $ 73 |
| Family, same-day return | $ 378 |
| Adult, one way | $ 104.50 |
| Adult, extended return | $ 142.50 |
| Adult, day visit | $ 21.50 |
| Adult, staying overnight | $ 28.50 |
| Child 4–12, day visit | $ 11 |
| Child 4–12, staying overnight | $ 14.50 |
| SeaLink adult, same-day return from Fremantle | $ 90 |
| Rottnest Express adult, same-day return from Fremantle | $ 87.50 |
SeaLink fares dated 1 July 2026 to 31 March 2027; Rottnest Express fares stated as valid until 30 June 2027; both read on 22 September 2026 SeaLink Rottnest Island – ferry fares · 2026-09-22
The city route is not a straight line to the island. It starts well inland at Elizabeth Quay, follows the Swan River down through Perth and past the port, and only then crosses open water. That river leg is what turns a 25-minute Fremantle hop into a 90-minute journey — and, according to the Rottnest Island Authority, it is on the ocean stretch that humpbacks and southern right whales turn up in season. It is the only crossing we cover in Western Australia.
The jetty sits at the bottom of Barrack Street on Elizabeth Quay, in the middle of the Perth CBD, with bus and train stops nearby and several paid car parks around it — the Rottnest Island Authority mentions the parking but does not quote a price, so neither do we. Both operators ask you to be there thirty minutes before departure to label luggage and bikes and collect tickets.
Every ferry, whichever mainland port it left from, ties up at the Main Jetty in Thomson Bay. At the end of that jetty stands Koora-Yeye-Boordawan-Kalyakoorl — Past-Present-Future-Forever — and the island's authority asks arrivals to pause there. The Wadjemup Museum is a short walk from the settlement behind it.
The Authority lists four departure points. Barrack Street Jetty is about 90 minutes; Fremantle is about 25; Hillarys Boat Harbour, served by Rottnest Fast Ferries, is about 45. Make sure the timetable you are reading is the one for the port you are actually leaving from.
SeaLink runs the Perth service once daily in every season it publishes, and Rottnest Express has a single city departure too. Miss the morning boat from Barrack Street and your options are a train to Fremantle or a different day.
SeaLink collects passengers from Perth accommodation to connect with the 08:30 at Barrack Street, at no charge, and says outright that it is not available for Fremantle departures. It has to be reconfirmed by phone at least 24 hours out.
Every visitor pays it and the ferry company collects it for the Rottnest Island Authority, which puts it towards conservation and island facilities. It is already inside your fare — but it is also why the headline prices look higher than a ferry ticket alone.
Stowage is limited, so bikes, boards, kayaks and trolleys must be pre-booked. SeaLink caps bike dimensions at 1.3 m by 1.8 m by 45 cm, will not take tandems, and requires e-bike batteries to be carried separately as hand luggage.
The gap between the city fare and the Fremantle fare is the decision most people are really making. SeaLink's adult same-day return from Barrack Street is $134.50 with admission; the same ticket bought at Fremantle is $90.00. Rottnest Express shows the same pattern, $135.50 against $87.50. What the extra buys is the Swan River leg with commentary, a departure from the middle of the city, and — on SeaLink — a free transfer from your Perth hotel. What it costs you is an hour of the day in each direction and the flexibility of a port with sailings all afternoon. Rottnest is not the only island where the boat is the smaller line on the bill: the Daydream Island transfer in the Whitsundays sorts its passengers by whether they have a room booked, and charges accordingly.
Neither schedule is quite as fixed as a single departure time suggests. SeaLink publishes eight seasonal tables through to the end of January and the Perth column never changes; Rottnest Express publishes a new page for each date, and on the days we sampled its return to Barrack Street moved between 16:00 and 17:00, reaching Perth from 18:00 to 18:45. There is also a premium city service advertised on its offers page whose stated operating days contradict its own timetable, so we have left it off this page rather than publish a departure we cannot stand behind.
One per operator. SeaLink sails at 08:30 from Barrack Street Jetty in every season it publishes through to 31 January, and Rottnest Express left at 08:45 on all five dates we sampled. Everything else on both timetables departs from Fremantle.
About 90 minutes. That is the Rottnest Island Authority's figure and SeaLink's, and it matches the Rottnest Express grid on its direct days. When the Express calls at Northport on the way it takes closer to two hours.
Considerably. SeaLink's adult same-day return is $134.50 from Perth against $90.00 from Fremantle, both including admission; Rottnest Express is $135.50 against $87.50. Fremantle also has many more sailings, so you are not tied to one boat.
It is a Rottnest Island Authority charge that every visitor pays: $21.50 for an adult day trip and $28.50 if you stay overnight, $11.00 and $14.50 for a child aged 4 to 12. The ferry company collects it for the Authority and it is already inside your fare.
SeaLink's Perth return is 16:30 off Rottnest in every published season. Rottnest Express varied on the dates we checked — 16:00 on one, 17:00 on two others — reaching Barrack Street between 18:00 and 18:45. Check your specific date with that operator.
Yes, twice over. Barrack Street Jetty has bus and train stops nearby, and SeaLink runs a free accommodation transfer from Perth hotels that connects with the 08:30 — a service it does not offer at Fremantle. Reconfirm it by phone at least 24 hours before you travel.
Yes, but pre-book it. SeaLink charges $20 for a pedal bike and $25 for an electric one, caps the dimensions at 1.3 m by 1.8 m by 45 cm, will not carry tandems, and requires e-bike batteries to be removed and packed in hand luggage.
No. Hillarys Boat Harbour is served by Rottnest Fast Ferries, a third operator, on a crossing the Rottnest Island Authority puts at about 45 minutes. Neither the times nor the fares on this page apply to it.
At the Main Jetty in Thomson Bay — all of them, from every mainland port. The Koora-Yeye-Boordawan-Kalyakoorl memorial sculpture stands at the end of that jetty, and the Authority encourages visitors to stop there.