Kununurra, WA 6743

It was one the jewel of the Kimberley, now it’s just a dirty stone.

Although a beautiful natural environment, sadly it is now rife with social issues. Vandalism, theft, property damage, a poor high school, political problems, diving house values , shocking tourism industry service and attitude, absolutely ludicrous rates and local government and long term locals leaving in the droves.

The employment situation has dried up and so too have opportunities.

Especially bad for travellers , theft is a MAJOR issue. Social media pages dedicated to the problems.

Do your research

It's a small regional town as far away form Perth as you can get without leaving WA. It's good for young families. There are playgroup sessions on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Good library with children's books and dvds. The library also runs rhyme times Tuesdays and storytime and craft time on Thursdays. Kununurra Neighbourhood House is open most weekdays and also runs a stepping stones school for pre primary.
There a a number of day care options but places are limited. The green school St Joesph runs an after school club for those that work after 2pm when.
Similar to most other northern towns there are some social issues due to a few dysfunctional families and they cause almost all the problems in town.
Once your children reach high school there is very limited choice with only one high school in the town.

I really did not like this place. There is too much activity at night yelling coming from the street. My son loved his school but had a lot of time of as he was always sick due to the other kides in class getting sick. I think I can say I like the weather its nice but if I didn't have to be hear I wouldn't.

Not at all what is expected of a "North West" town. Always surprises first time visitors because of the beautiful tropical green everywhere, the stunning river and lakes, and the incredible kimberley outcrops all around including in middle of town.
The town is a vibrant place with lots of separate industries operating, so easy to get work and expensive to live in, although many employers provide rent or electricity subsidies which helps.
A huge range of beautiful places to visit for free within an hour of home. Waterholes, National Parks, gorges, waterfalls and of course Lake Kununurra and Lake Argyle to explore - bring a boat! We also have some of the best Barrmundi fishing in the world!
For a small town of only 7500 people there are good shops with 2 supermarkets and a couple of dozen specialty shops, 5 different hotels with restaurants and a range of other restaurants and fast food options.
7 day extended trading hours and a brilliant 24 hour roadhouse shop which sells almost everything you might need at short notice, are real pluses as well.
There are some social issues with the town attracting people from indigenous communities around the region, and sometimes the visitors go a bit overboard when in town, but this is normal across the top end and really much less of a problem in Kununurra than many other places.
The distance is a challenging, although Darwin is only a 45 minute flight away the 3300km to Perth is a bit expensive. There are plenty of flights and this is increasing every year as the tourism reputation grows.
Generally a great place to live, with a 3 minute commute to work each day and great opportunities for work and recreation.

Cons:
The school is crap; there are no areas restricted to private home/land buyers; a lot of break-ins; some people allow their children to jump over your fence and enter your property; buying and renting homes/land is ridiculously expensive (although is has come down a tad); very unsanitized around the main shopping complex area; high threat of contracting mosquito-borne diseases; too far from cities; and no direct flights to Melb/Syd/Bris/Alice S/Adel/Hob/Can (have to have an over-night stay in Darwin then board the next day);

Pros:
Excellent place if you're a farmer (eternal water supply, great soil, etc); nice weather; pretty rivers/creeks/lakes/parks; nice cafe; fancy airport terminal (upgraded); and good birdlife (out of town).

Very quiet and laid back. Clean green Tanzanian/Kenyan type enviro/landscape. Friendlyish people (not overly friendly though). Room for improvement (needs more recreational things to do).

What a fantastic place to live and bring up your children! Situated right on the Ord River, there is no shortage of beautiful scenic locations to enjoy. The rich contrast of the stunning red rocks against the lush tropical vegetation and the crystal waters of surrounding waterfalls and waterways will stay in our memories forever. We went for 2 years and ended up staying for almost 2 decades! The friendly people, wonderful closeknit community and relaxing lifestyle are all qualities of Kununurra that make it unique in our eyes. An experience that we highly recommend.

Perched just above the Argyle Dam wall, Lake Argyle village is a popular lunchtime spot for travellers who have come to see this magnificent body of water, and to learn about the Ord River Scheme. Triple J Cruises run fantastic jetboat tours between here and Kununurra, with shuttle buses doing the return trip. The Tavern – the only business in the village – has as its specialty, Silver Cobbler, caught fresh in the Lake. Bus groups often have lunch here before going on the cruise. Around the Tavern is a pleasant, though hot, camping ground and there are plans afoot to develop this into a more resort style complex. Urgh!

Kununurra is located just over 3100 km from Perth, and is half-way between Darwin and Broome – 1057 km to each. The town came into being in the 1960s as a town to house and service the workers of the massive Ord Irrigation Scheme and its lynchpin, the Argyle Dam. This massive and far-sighted project has seen this area become the fruit bowl of Western Australia, with a constant supply of gravity fed irrigation water to the plains surrounding Lake Kununurra and the Ord River. Sugar cane was until very recently one of the main crops grown here, but the closure of the sugar refinery has virtually shut down this industry. The main crops now are Sandalwood (principally for the Asian incense and fragrance markets) and mangoes.

The town itself has a bustling shopping centre, two supermarkets, diamond showrooms (featuring diamonds from the nearby Argyle Diamond Mine), and camping supplies. It is a major stopping and shopping point for travellers in the Kimberley.