Hotels in Geraldton, Australia

A little about Geraldton...

Geraldton is a city and port in Western Australia located 424 kilometres (263 mi) north of Perth. According to the 2001 census, Geraldton has a population of 29,996, making it the fifth-largest city in Western Australia.

Today the city is an important centre for mining, fishing, wheat, sheep and tourism.

Attractions: The construction of the St Francis Xavier Catholic Cathedral started in 1916 but was not completed until 1938. The cathedral was designed by Monsignor John Hawes who was both an architect and a priest.

The lighthouse located on Point Moore was recently repainted and established as another cultural attraction of Geraldton.

Geraldton's public high school, John Willcock College is famous for having been attended by Ernie Dingo. Also recently the school became the first in Australia to have a laptop programme with all students being provided with Apple Notebook Computers for study purposes.

Memorial to HMAS SydneyHMAS Sydney was lost off the coast north west of Geraldton and there is a memorial overlooking the city. After years of searching, the wreck of HMAS Sydney was discovered north of Geraldton, 150 kilometres (81 nmi) from Shark Bay on March 16, 2008.

A popular past time of Geraldton Locals is surfing. The Geraldton Boardriders Association runs surf events throughout the year and Surf2skool, Geraldton's only surf school offers developing surfers lessons, trips and coaching. Popular surf spots include Flat Rocks, Back Beach, Greenough, Glenfield, and Sunset Beach.

Geraldton is also an internationally renowned windsurfing location. The most popular spot is Coronation Beach, located just north of the town. "Coro" is a spectacular port tack jumping site, with flat water on the inside and unhindered Indian Ocean rolling swell offshore. In the late afternoon, the wind swings a little more offshore and starboard tack waveriding becomes possible.

Geraldton is also home to a flourishing horse racing industry, that since 1887 hosts the annual Geraldton Gold Cup. The 2007 Geraldton Gold Cup was won by the Clive Lauritzen trained 8yr old TapDog. The race was historically significant. Tapdog became the first horse to win the race three times, Clive Lauritsen became the first trainer to win the race 6 times, Roy McKay became the first jockey to win the race three times, and owners Peter Day, Jeannette Day, and Hans Hoiskar equalled the most wins by an owner in three. The race also passed the million dollar mark for the first time in tote turnover.