MARGARET RIVER EVENTS

Summer in Margaret River: The Ducks' Guide to December–February Events

Our ducks spend summer hunting for shade and puddles, and they have strong opinions about both. So we handed them the Margaret River events calendar for December to February and asked for a review.

They scored every event on Kid Factor, out of five quacks. We added the boring bits: when, where and what it costs. Birchfield sits 12 minutes from Margaret River and five from Witchcliffe, so each of these makes an easy day out from the farm.

Margaret River Christmas Carols

When: A Friday evening in mid-December
Where: Margaret River Senior High School oval, 158 Bussell Highway
Cost: Free (candles and food on sale on the night)
Kid Factor: 4 quacks

Pack a picnic rug and a torch for the walk back to the car. Carols by candlelight on a warm December evening make it feel like a proper Aussie Christmas, and the kids can sing as loud as they like. The ducks docked one quack because nobody invited them to join the choir.

Margaret River Christmas Street Party

When: The week before Christmas, from mid-afternoon into the night
Where: Bussell Highway, Margaret River (the main street closes to traffic)
Cost: Free
Kid Factor: 5 quacks

The Shire closes the main street, fills it with family activities, and Santa leads the street parade after landing by helicopter. The ducks gave it a perfect score. Any Santa who swaps reindeer for rotors gets their vote.

Christmas lunch in Margaret River, farm style

You can book Christmas lunch at a winery. You can also cook it yourself in a strawbale cottage with a donkey peering over the fence. Both cottages come with a full kitchen, and with the Dome sleeping eight and the Chalet sleeping six, the whole tribe fits around one table.

After lunch, the kids can take the carrot tops out to feed the animals. Ask us first which scraps are on the menu. While you're out there, look for orange blooms in the bush: WA's own Christmas tree, the Nuytsia, flowers in December.

Margaret River Farmers Market

When: Every Saturday, 7:30–11:30am
Where: Lot 272 Bussell Highway, Margaret River
Kid Factor: 3 quacks

Get there at opening, fill a basket for the cottage fridge, and stock up for Christmas week. Kids lose interest somewhere around the fourth vegetable stall. Breakfast from the market vans wins them back.

IRONMAN Western Australia

When: December (check the official IRONMAN site for race day)
Where: Busselton, about an hour's drive north
Kid Factor: 3 quacks

Athletes swim, ride and run their way around Busselton in one long day. Pick a spot on the run course and cheer. Kids love handing out high fives to people who have been moving since dawn. The ducks respect anyone who swims before breakfast.

IRONMAN Western Australia athletes in Busselton — Photo: Supplied, via Margaret River Region

New Year's Eve in Margaret River

Kid Factor: 5 quacks. Midnight runs late for a duck. They made an exception.

Our pick for New Year's Eve in Margaret River sits right outside your cottage door. Birchfield runs off-grid, tucked away in the bush, and guests talk about the night sky more than almost anything else. Let the kids stay up for midnight, count satellites and watch the kangaroos graze the paddock in the moonlight.

Busselton Jetty Swim

When: A weekend in February
Where: Busselton Jetty, Geographe Bay
Cost: Free to watch. Swimmers enter through a ballot that opens in October.
Kid Factor: 5 quacks. At last, an event in the water.

The main swim covers 3.6km around the jetty. Shorter options include the 1.6km One Mile Swim to Shore, Simon's 500m Shortcut Swim under the jetty, and a dedicated Kids Swim. Prefer to stay dry? Stick around for the free family sunset concert.

Swimmers at the Busselton Jetty Swim — Photo: Busselton Jetty Swim, via Margaret River Region

Margaret River weather in summer

Summer days in Margaret River run warm and dry, made for beach mornings at Redgate. Strawbale walls hold the cool when the day heats up, so the cottages make a good hideout for the afternoon.

Looking for more ideas for the kids? Our guide to things to do in Margaret River with kids covers the year-round favourites.

Kids jumping off a jetty in summer in the Margaret River region — Photo: Lewis French, via Margaret River Region

Common questions

What's on in Margaret River over summer?

The Margaret River Christmas Carols and the Margaret River Christmas Street Party in December, IRONMAN Western Australia in Busselton in December and the Busselton Jetty Swim in February lead the summer calendar. The Margaret River Farmers Market runs every Saturday morning.

Is the Margaret River Christmas Street Party free?

Yes. The Shire runs it as a free, all-ages event in the week before Christmas on Bussell Highway, with Santa leading the street parade after arriving by helicopter.

When is the Busselton Jetty Swim?

Over a weekend in February. The main swim covers 3.6km around the Busselton Jetty, with shorter swims and a Kids Swim, and a free family sunset concert for spectators.