Hillarys Yacht Club

Sailing waters

Everything happens in and around Hillarys Boat Harbour, the marina development of the late 1980s on Perth's northern coastline that has become one of the city's favourite recreational boating destinations. Racing and coaching take place in semi-protected ocean water off the marina, on the northern as well as the southern side of the harbour — open-sea sailing with the breakwater's shelter close at hand, well suited to teaching juniors who are stepping up from enclosed water, and testing enough to prepare Optimist and Laser sailors for state and national competition.

The harbour geography also shapes a rich keelboat calendar. The club's signature races use the coastline in every direction: the Mindarie and Return and Marmion Reef Race stay local, the Fremantle and Return and Rottnest and Return head south and offshore, and the Fairway Race, Commodore's Cup, Australia Day Race and Mariners and Shepherdess Cups fill out the season. The club hosts the interclub "Pot of Gold" regatta, and its skippers compete in Yachting WA offshore events including blue water contests bound for Geraldton, Carnarvon or Bunbury — so a Hillarys keelboat crew can progress from Sunday club racing to genuine ocean passages without changing clubs.

Shoreside infrastructure matches the scale of the water. The clubhouse offers a restaurant, function room and bar with ocean views on the upper storey; a separate junior clubhouse serves the training programs; and the pen field of 270 on-the-water berths ranges from 8 by 4 metres to 21 by 6 metres, plus catamaran pens, with boat lifting and racking services available. Annual pen rental in the 2026/27 schedule runs from around $6,038 for a small fixed pen to approximately $18,748 for the largest floating berth.