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Donnybrook
- Categorised in: Towns
In the mid 1990s Donnybrook was dubbed the ugliest town in Western Australia by a consultant named Peter Kenyon. Today, lots of people know just where Donnybrook is, and Peter Kenyon is keeping a low profile, at least in the South West.
To be fair, it seems unlikely that Peter really meant it, as Donnybrook is a very pretty place indeed. On the South West Highway, straddling the Preston River, and with orchards in every direction, this is a little hamlet that is worth visiting, and worth a few minutes to stop.
It’s one of the State’s primary fruit growing areas, and it is common among those in the know for a trip to any place in the south to have to include a stop at Donnybrook to get fresh fruit.
The area has tons of tourist potential, and is close enough to Bunbury for commuting if you feel it necessary. The forest isn’t far away, but from the main street, the town feels a lot more European than most in the region, with deciduous trees and some stone buildings.
On the South West Highway, this town is easy to get to, it’s got interesting things surrounding it, and it wears it’s status as a town with seasonal industry fairly comfortably. The local backpacker accommodation fills to capacity at harvest time in the orchards for instance.
For someone who wants a country town lifestyle but also to be reasonably close to the regional city, Donnybrook is well worth checking out.
Photo courtesy of Donnybrook Shire
| Population | Around 2500 |
| Distance to Perth | 206 km |
| Distance to Bunbury | 38 km |
| Distance to beach | 38km |
| Annual Rainfall | Approx 950mm |
| Schools | Primary schools, 1 District High school (to Year 10), TAFE Centre |
| Police | Police station |
| Health Services | Public hospital, aged care facilities, medical centres, dentist, child heath centre |
| Shops | Banks, Supermarket, and a range of speciality stores |
| Sport | A range of sporting associations exist for juniors and seniors - including Soccer, Basketball, Australian Rules, Shooting, Hockey, Cycling and more. |
| Other Facilities | Recreation centre and ground, indoor swimming pool (heated), library. |
| Major Industries | Fruit growing is the most obvious industry and very important here. As a town that has been a regular stopping point for decades, it is comfortable with it’s tourism industry and some greater concentration is going that way now. The timber industry isn’t apparent in the town centre, but is close by, as is quarrying for the well known Donnybrook Stone. Plans have been proposed for a pulp mill in Donnybrook, looking to a manufacturing base, but that proposal is unclear. There are also significant plantings of wine grapes and olives nearby. |
Donnybrook Holiday Accommodation
Click here for great deals on Donnybrook holiday accommodation.
Local Donnybrook Links
Donnybrook - Balingup Shire - www.donnybrook-balingup.wa.gov.au