The Hon. Rita Saffioti, Minister for Tourism (WA), Media Release, 11 September 2023
Travel to Rottnest Island is free for kids aged 12 and under this weekend and island admission fees have also been waived as part of the Little Quokka’s Big Birthday event.
The annual event, which will be held across Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 September, celebrates the arrival of new quokka joeys with a program of free activities for the whole family including:
- live entertainment;
- arts and craft activities;
- photography workshops;
- eco-education sessions; and
- meet and greets with rangers to learn about the new quokka joeys.
Registrations are essential through the Rottnest Island website.
Quokkas are a Rottnest Island icon and a major drawcard for tourists all over the world.
They live up to about 10 years of age and female quokkas will generally have one baby, or joey, each year.
Joeys are born tiny, only about 35 grams, and with no fur. The first six months of their life are spent in their mother’s pouch and following then, they’ll start to venture out into the world but remain close to their mother’s side until they’re at least 12 months old.
Comments attributed to Tourism Minister Rita Saffioti:
“With free travel and island entry for kids, and free activities and events across the weekend, there’s no better time to get the family together and head over to Rottnest Island to celebrate our beloved quokkas.
“Quokkas are a Western Australian icon and hundreds of thousands of people flock to Rottnest Island each year to see the friendly animals, so it’s fitting that they get their own special event to celebrate the arrival of new baby joeys.
“There’s so much to do over the weekend with live entertainment, arts and craft activities, education sessions and even meet and greets with the rangers, so I certainly encourage people to register for their free tickets and head along to what will be a fantastic event.”
