Australia is a huge country and the kids really wanted to see koalas, kangaroos, and penguins, so we focused our time there on wildlife. Australians were some of the most consistently friendly people we met. Every time we went to the grocery store the checkout person asked us how our holiday was, and they were thoughtful and friendly everywhere.
We went first to Kangaroo Island, which is a few hours drive then a ferry ride from Adelaide in southern Australia. It feels very remote as it’s only accessible by ferry, and not as many tourists visit. The island’s kangaroo population was devastated in a wildfire several years ago, which we also didn’t realize until we arrived. We spent three days there mostly driving around spotting tons of koalas, kangaroos, and wallabies. We went to a sanctuary where the kids got to hold koalas and feed kangaroos, and saw seals along the coast. It’s a beautiful island. There were no services, stores, or food stores on half the island, so bringing sufficient food and water with you is essential.
Then we flew to Melbourne and drove to Philip Island because the kids wanted to see penguins on another continent. There’s a Penguin Parade there with thousands of penguins coming out of the water and running to their burrows every night. It’s very commercialized and many people started sprinting to get a good seat on the beach for viewing once the gates were opened. Watching the little penguins go onto the beach, run back into the water, then run toward their burrows was very cute. Being able to see them in their burrows, though, was much cooler because they were so close. Other than the Penguin Parade, we drove to some nice beaches and tried to spot wildlife on the way. It’s far more populated than Kangaroo Island but we still saw some wildlife. The food was fine, though mostly we were excited to be in a big grocery store for the first time in months.
We liked Australia but it wasn’t nearly as different as most of the places we had traveled, and we missed the sense of discovery that we had in the other places.
Highlights
- watching penguins interact with each other in their burrows at the penguin Parade.
- Seeing an echidna in the wild
- Seeing tons of kangaroos, wallabys, and koalas
Tips
- reserve seats for the penguin parade far in advance if you go, and bring warm clothes even in the Australian summer.
- If you have time, Kangaroo Island is worth a trip for wildlife viewing
- Reserve the ferry to kangaroo island in advance, and plan to get groceries and bring them with you anywhere on the island.
Food: 3
Budget: 3
Wildlife: 9
Vibe: 9