Australia’s Golden Outback shares the same time zone as the rest of Western Australia (GMT+8). It is two hours behind Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania time and one and a half hours behind South Australia and Northern Territory time.
The weather and climate in Western Australia’s Golden Outback, which takes up more than half of Western Australia, varies considerably as you travel across the region.
Average temperatures range from 15ºC in winter and can reach as high as 45ºC in the summer months. You should ensure that you and your vehicle are suitably prepared for the variations in conditions in the seasonal climate.
Below are some of the average temperatures (degrees Celsius) for some of the towns throughout Australia’s Golden Outback.
Dec-Feb |
Mar-May |
Jun-Aug |
Sep-Nov |
|
Esperance |
25 |
23 |
27 |
21 |
Kalgoorlie |
32 |
25 |
18 |
25 |
Merredin |
33 |
23 |
15 |
21 |
Narrogin |
30 |
23 |
15 |
21 |
Meekathara |
37 |
29 |
20 |
29 |
For more information about the weather and climate in Western Australia’s Golden Outback please visit the Bureau of Meteorology’s website.
Western Australia’s Golden Outback observes the same driving laws and regulations as the rest of Australia. Vehicles travel on the left-hand side of the road and it is compulsory for all passengers to wear seatbelts.
You are permitted to drive on a current out-of-state or overseas licence for a period of one year. If you hold an out-of-state or overseas driver's licence it must be carried with you when you are driving and produced on demand to a police officer if requested.
Driving through Western Australia’s Golden Outback may take you into some remote areas where forward planning is extremely important. A comprehensive Guide to Driving on WA Roads contains useful information that will ensure you have a safe and enjoyable journey. Multilingual booklets can be found on the Road Safety Commission website.
For further information on road safety please visit the Road Safety Commission website.
Western Australia's remoteness has provided the State with a natural barrier against many pests and diseases. To help keep Western Australia disease-free there are strict quarantine laws regarding importing and transporting plants and food stuffs.
While they may seem harmless, nuts, seeds, fruit and vegetables, plants, flowers, honey, animals and introduced birds pose real threats to the Western Australian environment. Even used fruit and vegetable containers should be presented and scanned by Australian Quarantine and Inspection Services (AQIS) to ensure they are clean, and present no risk.
The best rule to follow is, ‘if in doubt, declare it’. State-based AQIS officers are friendly, welcoming and professionally trained and generally return more than 90 per cent of declared items to visitors. They want you to have a great holiday in Western Australia. Be warned, heavy penalties apply to those people not declaring items identified as a risk.
Visit Quarantine WA online for further information.