Dubbo
Thubbo
Home of Taronga Western Plains Zoo
On the lands of the Wiradjuri people.
schedule 1 min read / Updated Jun 2026
A regional hub on the Macquarie River in central New South Wales, best known as the home of Taronga Western Plains Zoo. The open-range zoo covers 300 hectares and is one of the only places in the world where you can drive a car or cycle through a pride of white rhinos.
Dubbo sits at the junction of several major highways on Wiradjuri country, and has always been a trading centre for the wheat and sheep country around it. The name 'Thubbo' is a Wiradjuri word for a type of cap.
The Taronga Western Plains Zoo opened in 1977 as the country division of Sydney's Taronga Zoo, designed to give large African and Asian animals room to roam. The zoo now has over 4,000 animals on 300 hectares. Visitors get around on a 6 kilometre one-way loop that can be driven, cycled or walked, and the zoo runs overnight safari-tent stays inside the grounds.
The Old Dubbo Gaol in the town centre is a preserved 1870s prison where you can stand in the original condemned cell and see the working gallows. The Dundullimal Homestead, a surviving 1840s slab-timber homestead five minutes out of town, is one of the oldest of its kind in Australia.
Tourist locations
Places to visit in Dubbo.
6 locations to explore
Dundullimal Homestead
Australia's oldest surviving slab house
$15 adult
Full guide arrow_forwardOld Dubbo Gaol
Colonial justice brought to life
$24.50 adult
Full guide arrow_forwardRoyal Flying Doctor Service Visitor Experience
Outback medicine, up close
$23 adult
Full guide arrow_forwardTaronga Western Plains Zoo
Africa and Asia on the plains
$55 adult (gate); $49.50 online; valid for 2 days
Full guide arrow_forwardWellington Caves
400 million years underground
$32.50 adult (per cave tour)
Full guide arrow_forwardWestern Plains Cultural Centre
Art, history and community
Free
Full guide arrow_forwardWhere to stay
Holiday parks near Dubbo.
1 option via our booking partner
Bookings handled by our partner Parkbooker. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Scenic views
Lookouts near Dubbo.
You may also like
Coogee Beach
Penrith
Jervis Bay
Bellingen and Waterfall Way
Maitland
Cessnock
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park
Kosciuszko National Park
Hyams Beach
Brooklyn
Broken Hill
Blackheath
Attribution
Sources & credits
Content (1)
Images (2)
- African Wild Dog 0010 (4015897966).jpg · Rob Russell from Gosford, NSW, Australia · CC BY 2.0
- Anthosachne scabra habit4 (8478554428).jpg · Harry Rose from South West Rocks, Australia · CC BY 2.0
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
Images sourced from Wikimedia Commons under licenses that permit commercial use. If you are the rights holder and believe an attribution is incorrect, please contact us.