Further economic growth was fuelled by completion of the South Western Railway in 1893, which linked Bunbury with Perth.

[4] The first registered sighting of Greater Bunbury was by French explorer Captain Louis de Freycinet from his ship the Casuarina in 1803.

The bay on Greater Bunbury's western shores was named Geographe after another ship in the fleet.

In 1830 Lieutenant Governor Sir James Stirling visited the area and a military post was subsequently established; it only lasted six months.

[3] In 1884 the Government decided to construct a railway from Bunbury to Boyanup, 16 miles (26 km) long.

Two of the three bombs planted failed to explode and the resulting damage to the port was estimated at only $300,000 (equivalent to $2,000,000 in 2022), although shrapnel broke windows in a nearby housing estate and the blast was heard up to 20 kilometres (12 mi) away.

[16] Bunbury is situated 175 kilometres (109 mi) south of Perth, at the original mouth of the Preston River and near the mouth of the Collie River at the southern end of the Leschenault Inlet, which opens to Koombana Bay and the larger Geographe Bay which extends southwards to Cape Naturaliste.

Bunbury has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen classification Csa) with warm to hot, dry summers and cool wet winters.

In 2007 Bunbury was recognised as Australia's fastest growing city for the 2005/06 period by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

In December 2013 the Western Australian Planning Commission published the Greater Bunbury Strategy to guide urban, industrial and regional land use planning; and associated infrastructure delivery in the Greater Bunbury sub-region in the short, medium and long terms.

[20] The economy of Bunbury is diverse, reflecting the range of heavy and general industries in the locality, mining, agricultural landscapes, services for the growing population, key transport links and the influence of Perth.

[21] The mining and mineral processing sector remains the main economic driver for Bunbury ($2 billion annual turnover).

The proposed expansion of the port, as identified in the Bunbury Port Inner Harbour Structure Plan, will promote further economic growth for the sub-region, and may in time be an economic stimulus for the corporate support and ancillary services associated with port-based industries locating to Bunbury city centre, further strengthening its role as a regional city.

Seven had its origins in Bunbury as BTW-3 in the late 1960s and then purchased other stations in Kalgoorlie and Geraldton, as well as launching a satellite service in 1986 to form the current network.

Seven's studios and offices are based at Roberts Crescent in Bunbury, with its transmitter located at Mount Lennard approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) to the east.

The rooms of the cottage are furnished and artifacts displayed to reflect the way of life for a family in Bunbury in the period from the 1880s to the 1920s.

[24] The WA Performing Arts Eisteddfod is held annually at the Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre.

[26] Located in the precinct is South West Sports Centre,[27] home to Bunbury Basketball Association.

National Route 1 provides road access to the wider region, and includes: Bussell Highway links to Busselton to the west.

The Eelup Rotary, where Forrest Highway terminates in East Bunbury, was named by the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia as the worst regional intersection in Western Australia and has since undergone a $16m upgrade, which included eight sets of traffic lights (which were switched on in the early hours of Monday 21 May 2012) and extra lanes for each entrance.