The main attraction here is the penguin watching every night although Granite Island is also a nice excursion during the day as well. Access is by either a horse-drawn tram or a short walk across the causeway.
Penguin watching
Healesville Sanctuary
This wildlife sanctuary is home to over 200 species of Australian wildlife including kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, koalas, platypus and Tasmanian devils. A visit is an excellent opportunity to get up close with a wide variety of native Australian animals.
Free entry with the iVenture Melbourne card
Free entry to the Healesville Sanctuary with the iVenture Card Melbourne sightseeing passHanging Rock Recreation Reserve
The Hanging Rock Recreation Reserve is home to native wildlife such as wallabies, kookaburras and koalas that are usually easy to find sitting high in the gum trees.
On New Year’s Day and Australia Day (26 Jan), the Hanging Rock horse races are held at the racecourse within the reserve.
Koala Conservation Centre
This is a wildlife park dedicated to koalas where you can walk along a boardwalk in the
treetops and see koalas up close.
Port Lincoln Visitor Information Centre
Penguin Parade
Every night at sunset, little penguins emerge from the sea and make their way across the beach to their home amongst the sand dunes. It’s best to come here during the summer when there are more penguins; during winter it can be bitterly cold with winds coming up from Antarctica and very few penguins making the trip to their nesting ground. The Phillip Island Penguin Parade is one of Australia’s most popular tourist attractions; a huge grandstand has been built to accommodate the hundreds of spectators, and the beach is floodlit detracting from what would otherwise be an amazing natural attraction. There is also an information centre on the site with displays and a short film about penguins.
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
There are several wildlife parks around Phillip Island but this one is the closest to Cowes and the most convienent if you’re staying in Cowes and don’t have a car. It is home to dingoes, emus, koalas and Tasmanian devils and you can hand-feed kangaroos and wallabies.
Phillip Island visitor information centre
National Wool Museum
Geelong’s big attraction is this well designed museum that depicts the history of Australia’s wool industry. It also demonstrates the process of shearing, spinning and knitting.