Boom-and-Bust: self-guided historical walking tour of Perth

The Boom-and-Bust tour tells Perth’s story from the struggling Swan River Colony to its coming of age as the City of Light. From First Contact to the present day, each stop on the tour progressively tells Perth’s story decade-by-decade. The tour includes current-day and historical footage to show how each shift in the State’s economic fortunes has driven waves of demolition, development and social change. Each stop is paired with different with hospitality venues across the CBD to showcase the best of the West. The Boom-and-Bust tour showcases quintessentially Western Australian stories such as: > The City’s strange obsession with heritage balconies > The ancient science of indigenous farming practices > Perth’s ‘scandalous’ modernist art movement > London Court: the first place in Perth to have air-conditioning > The rise, fall and rise again of Alan Bond > Demolished buildings of Perth

This is the starting point of the tour. Your self-guided walk will commence on arrival, including historical footage, audio commentary, venue recommendations and further historical references.

Your self-guided tour continues to His Majesty's Theatre where we feature the story of WA's first gold boom.

Heritage King St is the backdrop for the tale of farming in Western Australia.

The route continues through two stops in Hay Street Mall exploring Perth's Gilded Era and its recovery from the Great Depression.

The tour continues to the Council House where we tell the story of minerals and modernism.

Explore then-and-now for sites including the Former Esplanade Hotel.

The tour finishes at The Bell Tower, a short walk from Elizabeth Quay. Our last stop tells the story of how Western Australia's boom-and-bust cycle continues today.