Dog Beaches in Perth: Off-Lead Areas by Council

Every Perth metro dog beach, by council

In WA the Dog Act 1976 lets each local government declare dog exercise areas (where dogs may be off the lead) and dog prohibited areas. So there is no single Perth dog beach list. We read each coastal council's own page or policy and put the results in one place. Where a council publishes no hours, the table says so rather than guessing.

Checked against each council's own page or policy in November 2026. Councils can change these orders, and on-site signs always win.

Beaches where dogs are prohibited (all from the same council sources): Scarborough Beach sand (City of Stirling allows dogs on a lead only in the reserve's car parks, thoroughfares and footpaths), the central City Beach and Floreat Beach between the Dartmouth Avenue path and the Oban Road drain, the main Cottesloe beach, Port Beach and Leighton south of the 209 metre dog section, South Beach south of Douro Road, the whole City of Joondalup coast from Burns Beach to Marmion except Hillarys Dog Beach (so Sorrento, Mullaloo and Whitford Nodes are out), Coogee Beach, Ngarkal Beach and Woodman Point in Cockburn, and every City of Wanneroo beach reserve outside the three dog beaches.

Heading south of Cockburn? Rockingham has its own dog beach rules, covered in our Rockingham dog beaches guide.

Best Perth dog beach by use case

The councils that set the rules

This guide covers the nine coastal local governments from Wanneroo in the north to Cockburn in the south. Each card below is what that council says, in its own words where it matters, with a link to its page.

Perth dog beaches, in detail

1. Peasholm Dog Beach, Scarborough

Peasholm is one of Perth's best-served dog beaches. The City of Stirling venue page places it on West Coast Highway, between Floreat and Scarborough Beach, and lists public toilets, showers, a dog wash area, drinking fountains and animal drink facilities. The City describes the parking as free and floodlit, with 40 bays, and notes that a spot cannot be guaranteed (checked November 2026).

Off-lead? Yes. It sits on the City's dog exercise areas page, where dogs must stay under effective control. No hours are published. Watch for: a full car park on warm weekends, and the edge of the dog area. Walk north onto Scarborough Beach sand and you are in a dog prohibited area.

2. Hillarys Dog Beach and the Whitfords horse beach

Hillarys is the City of Joondalup's only dog beach, described by the City as “a stretch of coastline dedicated all year round to the exercising of dogs.” Dogs can be off-lead under effective control. They must be on a lead in the car park and on the path to and from the sand. Use the Dog Beach access path. The City says dogs may not enter via the Whitford Nodes South car park path or from the northern Hillarys Marina groyne.

Immediately north is the Hillarys Horse Beach, also called the Whitfords Horse Beach, which is what most people mean by “Whitfords dog beach.” Horses may use it from daybreak to midday, Monday to Saturday. Dogs must be on a lead there on Monday to Saturday mornings, and may be off-lead on Monday to Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday. The City's page also marks short prohibited and on-lead zones either side of the horse access path, so follow the signs there. If you live near Joondalup, our Joondalup adoptable dogs page lists dogs in rescue near you.

3. North Floreat and South City Beach

The Town of Cambridge has the longest dog beach stretch we could confirm in the metro area. Its Dog Control Policy describes North Floreat Beach as the strip from the low water line to the base of the dunes, running north from the stormwater drain opposite Oban Road to the Town's northern boundary, “approximately two kilometres.” South City Beach runs south from the access path opposite Dartmouth Avenue to the Town's southern boundary.

Between those two points, the central City Beach and Floreat Beach are dog prohibited, and so are the sand dunes north to the boundary. Keep your dog on the sand, not in the dunes. The Town's website blocks some automated readers, so if a link will not open for you, its rangers can confirm the current boundaries.

4. Swanbourne Beach

The City of Nedlands lists Swanbourne Beach as a dog exercise area. In a reminder to owners, the City says dogs may be off-lead in the Swanbourne exercise area but must be under control at all times and not disturbing other beach users, and that failing to follow the Dog Act rules can lead to a $200 infringement.

One exception matters: the sand beside the Swanbourne Beach development, from north of the access path at Odern Crescent and Marine Parade to the development's northernmost access path, is dog prohibited, as is the Swanbourne Beach playground. Signs mark the line.

5. Cottesloe: South Cottesloe and Grant Street

The Town of Cottesloe has two dog beaches, and neither is the famous main beach. South Cottesloe's dog beach runs from the small groyne at Beach Street “all the way to Mosman Beach.” Grant Street Beach is at the northern end of North Cottesloe, and the Town warns it has rocks and reef, so keep an eye on your dog in the water.

Grant Street has the only seasonal time limit we found on a Perth dog beach: dogs are not allowed there between 10am and 4pm from October to March. South Cottesloe has no published limit. Under the Town's designated areas for dogs, any public beach not on the list is dog prohibited.

6. Mosman Beach

The Town of Mosman Park describes Mosman Beach as a 600 metre stretch bordered by South Cottesloe to the north and Leighton to the south, and a designated dog exercise area. Its dog map shows it green, meaning off the lead at all times. The Town is rehabilitating the dunes with native planting, so keep dogs off fenced or revegetated dune areas.

7. Leighton (northern end) and Port Beach

“Leighton dog beach” is smaller than many people think. The City of Fremantle's Dog Exercise and Prohibited Areas policy makes only the area within 209 metres of its northern boundary a dog exercise area. From that line south to Port Beach Road, Leighton and Port Beach are dog prohibited.

The upside: that 209 metres joins Mosman Beach, which joins the South Cottesloe dog beach. Put together, the three council areas give one continuous dog-friendly walk from the Beach Street groyne in Cottesloe down to the Leighton line.

8. South Beach, South Fremantle

The same Fremantle policy lists South Beach Reserve (North), from Douro Road to Scott Street, as a dog exercise area. South of Douro Road to the South Beach groyne, including the playground, dogs are prohibited, and the footpath next to the off-lead area is on-lead. Like every Fremantle exercise area, it turns on-lead while a Council-authorised event is running there. For dogs in rescue around the port city, see dog adoption in Fremantle.

9. Trigg and North Beach dog sections

Two short City of Stirling sections suit locals: Trigg Beach between Kathleen and Bennion streets, and North Beach between Castle and Margaret streets. Outside those street-to-street lines, both beaches are dog prohibited, so learn the cross streets before you go.

10. Cockburn: C.Y. O'Connor Beach and Jervoise Bay

The City of Cockburn names two beaches dogs can use: C.Y. O'Connor Beach, north of the South Fremantle Power Station to the Catherine Point groyne, and Jervoise Bay dog beach, facing south to the Henderson shipbuilding area and reached via Jervoise Bay Cove road. Woodman Point, between them, has been dog prohibited since 2020 to protect the Australian Fairy Tern and migratory shorebirds. Coogee Beach and Ngarkal Beach are also dog prohibited.

Perth dog beaches by season

Heat, snakes, wildlife and water safety

Heat and hot sand. This is the biggest routine risk on a Perth beach. Use the back-of-your-hand test on dry sand: if it is too hot for your hand, it is too hot for paws. Carry fresh water and a bowl, since seawater is not drinking water. Never leave a dog in a parked car. Heatstroke is an emergency, so get to a vet immediately.

Snakes in the dunes. Dugites, gwardars and tiger snakes live around Perth's bushland, wetlands and coastal scrub, and bites rise in the warmer months. Most dune areas are off limits to dogs anyway (Cambridge prohibits the City Beach dunes, and Mosman Park is replanting its dunes), so keep to the open sand and the marked paths.

Shorebirds. Cockburn closed Woodman Point to dogs after an environmental assessment found federally protected shorebirds rely on it. On any beach, call your dog away from birds resting on the sand. The Town of Mosman Park's dog rules put it simply: the dog must not chase or harass any other person, animal or bird.

Water. Not every dog can swim, and a rescue dog's history is often unknown. Let a new dog find its feet in the shallows first. Keep dogs out of the water when surf is rough. Councils can close a beach at short notice, for example for an algal bloom, so check the council's alerts page before you go.

Ticks and 1080. Paralysis ticks are not established in WA, so the local tick risk at Perth beaches is low; ask your vet about prevention only if you travel east. 1080 fox baiting is a bushland and reserve issue rather than a metro beach one, but watch for “1080 POISON RISK” signs if a beach walk leads into bush.

Know your nearest emergency vet. Perth's 24/7 hospitals include Animal Emergency Service (formerly Perth Vet Emergency) at Cannington and Osborne Park, The Animal Hospital at Murdoch University and WAVES at Success. Save the nearest one before a summer beach trip.

Off-lead still means a lead in your hand

Under section 32 of the Dog Act 1976, a dog in a dog exercise area must be held, tethered, or supervised by a competent person who is close by and carrying a lead they can attach. The City of Fremantle quotes this in its policy, and the Town of Mosman Park puts it plainly: carry a leash so it can be quickly attached. Your dog also needs to be registered with your council and wearing its tag. Our Perth dog registration guide covers how that works.

Clean up after your dog on the sand as well as the path. The City of Stirling lists a $100 on-the-spot penalty for leaving droppings, and the Town of Mosman Park lists $250 for failing to collect them. For grassy off-lead parks rather than beaches, see our Perth dog parks guide.

When is my new rescue dog ready for an off-lead beach?

A dog beach is the hardest off-lead test there is: no fences, other dogs running loose, birds, waves and car parks behind the dunes. A newly adopted dog does not yet know its name well, has no bond with you, and may bolt if a wave or another dog startles it. Most adopters do better waiting a few weeks.

• Read the adoption paperwork. Some rescues note that a dog is not suitable for off-lead areas, or should not mix with unknown dogs. Follow it. The foster carer often knows how the dog handles recall and other dogs.
• Start on a long line. A long line on a quiet dog beach, at a quiet time, lets the dog run while you build a recall.
• Pick the right beach. A long, less crowded stretch such as North Floreat at an early hour is a gentler start than a busy weekend car park beach.
• Check the microchip details. Make sure the chip and council registration show your name and number before the first off-lead run.
• Keep the first visits short. Leave on a good note, before your dog is tired or overwhelmed.

Many of the dogs we list from Perth rescues are adults living in foster homes, so the carer can often tell you how the dog handles recall, water and other dogs before you commit. Our Labrador adoption guide and best dog rescues in Perth are good places to start.

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