We had the opportunity to get along to the Phillip Island Panguin Parade, down on Phillip Island. From Melbourne, it takes about an hour and a half to get down to Phillip Island.
We had fish and chips for dinner in Cowes, joined by a thousand or so hungry seagulls. The kids had a blast!
The Phillip Island Penguin Parade Visitor Centre was great, we were able to watch a short movie in their theatrette, before discovering about the little or blue penguins life cycle, lifestyle and habitats. Once the doors opened up it was off to the beach front along the boardwalks to check out the penguins.
A good tip, aim to sit towards the centre of the two large seating areas. There is no rush, you have plenty of space and time to get there. But the penguins come up between the seats. We had a great view of the sunset and the penguins as they walked right up the beach to us:
We watched the penguins come in for about 20 minutes, prior to heading up along the boardwalks. The penguins enter between the stands on the beach, but then go their separate ways to find their burrows. These burrows are scattered throughout the grounds. It was a great experience seeing these little penguins walking just half a meter from us along the sides, not really noticing or caring about the crowds.
Photography and filming is not allowed, due to the sensitivity of the penguins. Unfortunately every international guest ignored that rule and it seemed the rangers weren’t enforcing it either. Very frustrating, but we play by the rules here!
It was a great day trip activity, taking only a couple of hours. Highly recommended.