Visitor Information -- The Broome Visitor Centre on the Broome Highway at Bagot Street, Broome, WA 6725 (tel. 1800/883 777 in Australia, or 08/9192 2222; www.broomevisitorcentre.com.au), provides information and a booking service. It's open Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm, and Saturday and Sunday 8:30am to 4pm. It's closed Good Friday, December 25, and open with restricted hours on other public holidays.

Book hotels and tours well in advance of the peak June to August season.

Getting Around

Avis (tel. 08/9193 5980), Budget (tel. 08/9193 5355), Europcar (tel. 08/9193 7788), Hertz (tel. 08/9192 1428), and Thrifty (tel. 08/9193 7712) all rent conventional cars and four-wheel-drives. Check the rules on where you're allowed to take your vehicle. Hertz also rents camping-gear kits and car-top tents that affix to larger four-wheel-drives. Among the motor-home companies are Britz (tel. 1800/331 454 in Australia, or 08/9192 2647) and Australian Pinnacle Tours (tel. 08/9192 8080).

The Town Bus Service (tel. 08/9193 6585; www.broomebus.com.au) does an hourly loop of most attractions, including Chinatown and Cable Beach and, May to Oct, every half-hour as well. A single adult fare is A$3.50, a day-pass is A$10, and a five-trip multi-rider is A$16. Children under 16 travel free with a parent; otherwise the fare is A$1.50.

There are several taxi companies, including Broome Taxis (tel. 13 10 08) and Roebuck Taxis (tel. 1800/880 330).

Many companies run a variety of day tours of the town, plus trips to natural attractions farther afield, like Windjana and Geikie Gorges, Tunnel Creek, and the Dampier Peninsula, or four-wheel-drive camping safaris along the Gibb River Road.

Getting There

Qantas/Qantaslink (tel. 13 13 13 in Australia) flies direct from Perth daily, and Sydney and Melbourne in peak season. Virgin Blue (tel. 13 67 89 in Australia) flies direct to Broome from Perth and Adelaide, with connections from other cities. Skywest (tel. 1300/660 088 in Australia; www.skywest.com.au) flies from Perth daily. Landing at Broome is surreal, either sweeping low across Cable Beach or roaring in at rooftop height over the town. Never mind inner-city suburbs; this is inner-city airport -- literally within walking distance.

Greyhound Australia (tel. 13 14 99 in Australia) has five services a week from Perth, taking around 33 hours. The fare is A$432. Greyhound's daily service from Darwin via Katherine and Kununurra takes around 27 hours; the one-way fare is A$396.

Broome is 34km (21 miles) off the Great Northern Highway, which leads from Perth in the south and Kununurra to the east.

Keep Exploring