La Perouse

A beautiful historic area, La Perouse is where Captain Arthur Phillip’s First Fleet initially landed in 1788 before deciding on Sydney Cove. The Aboriginal connection to the area, named after a French explorer, dates back thousands of years and indigenous-led Kadoo Tours offers fascinating insights.

Getting to La Perouse in Sydney’s southeast is easy by public transport, with direct buses from the city centre. As well as intriguing history and heritage and the magnificent northern headland of Kamay Botany Bay National Park, there are three seaside golf courses with amazing coastal views.

On the northern headland is La Perouse Museum, where you’ll find exhibits from the voyage of Comte de la Perouse, who arrived just days after the First Fleet. In heritage-listed Cable Station, the museum houses the complete Atlas of the Voyage of La Perouse as well as local Aboriginal stories.

Nearby is the 1880s-built Bare Island Fort, featured in the Tom Cruise film Mission: Impossible 2. Once a quarter on Bare Island you can experience Blak Markets, a wonderful day of traditional Aboriginal dance performances, indigenous arts and craft stalls as well as tasty bush tucker.

The water around Bare Island is a popular spot for scuba diving and snorkelling. Up on the headland is the Henry Head walking track, a 4km return trail to Endeavour Lighthouse and World War II battlements. You can walk a little farther to Cape Banks for more breathtaking bay and ocean views.

On the mesmerising coastline north of Cape Banks are three splendid golf courses - St Michael’s Golf Club, The Coast Golf Club and Randwick Golf. All three clubs have enticing restaurants. There are delicious places to eat in La Perouse too, such as The Boatshed, a seafood delight on the pretty bay.