Phillip Island: An Island Built for Family Getaways
With its Penguin Parade, Grand Prix Circuit, beautiful coastline and tons of wildlife viewing opportunities, there’s something for everyone on Phillip Island.
No visit to Melbourne is complete without a drive southeast to explore Phillip Island, a natural playground and family destination. Just 90 minutes south-east of Melbourne, Phillip Island boasts breathtaking beauty with rugged coastline, idyllic beaches and native wildlife encounters. With a number of scenic villages to discover, family activities across San Remo and the entire island and plenty of places to relax, there is certainly a lot to experience.
You can welcome home the hundreds of Little Penguins as they emerge from the sea at dusk, spend the afternoon meeting sleep koalas and playful seals in their natural habitats or savour delicious treats at the chocolate factory and enjoy local wines at boutique cellar doors.
Phillip Island’s rugged coastline and range of beaches spans the spectrum. You can easily discover quiet bays and some of the best surf beaches in Australia; enjoy tranquil strolls along scenic coastal tracks and leisurely beachside picnics all in one day!
Phillip Island offers enough fun, interactive and stimulating adventures to create a lifetime of family holiday memories. Seaside townships of Cowes and San Remo offer boutiques, galleries, markets and a range of restaurants, cafes, bars and hotels, and all your holiday services. At Phillip Island, there is something for all ages and interests.
Top 10 Things to Do in Phillip Island
10. Phillip Island Chocolate Factory
Without a doubt, the Phillip Island Chocolate Factory is the sweetest and most addictive attraction on Phillip Island. A dream destination for kids and lovers of chocolate, Pannys Amazing World of Chocolate is an amazing, entertaining, interactive and educational chocolate exhibition where you can see chocolate used and presented like nowhere else in the world. Take a tour of the chocolate factory and study the chocolate Art Gallery of famous paintings, admire a two-metre chocolate statue of Michelangelo’s David and explore a 12,000 piece chocolate mosaic of Dame Edna Everage. Kids and adults will love playing with the chocolate village complete with working trains as well as making their own chocolate art and eating it.
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Address: Pannys Amazing World of Chocolate, 930 Phillip Island Rd, Newhaven
Opening hours: 10am to 5:30pm, daily
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9. Phillip Island Helicopters
One of the best ways to see Phillip Island is from the air with Phillip Island Helicopters. Get a bird’s eye view of the entire island including Cape Woolamai, the Grand Prix track, penguins and seals or opt to go further and see the surrounding area including Cowes, Dromana, Sorrento, Cape Shank and Flinders. Alternatively, skydive the Island and take in the spectacular coastal views as you plummet to earth at speeds of 200kph. Whichever option you choose you will have the thrill of your life. Phillip Island doesn’t get any better than this.
Address: Phillip Island Helicopters, 1340 Phillip Island Rd, Newhaven
8. Cape Woolamai Phillip Island
The golden beach of Cape Woolamai is a popular surfing spot patrolled by Surf Life Savers. For the more adventurous, a series of walking tracks across the Cape reveal breathtaking views of cliffs carved by wind and waves.
Cape Woolamai has numerous spectacular walking trails. Walks range from 4-8kms in length. The most popular is the 8km Cape Woolamai circuit walk.
Pinnacles Walk – Spectacular scenery of rock formations carved by wind and waves.
4km, 2 hours return: moderate.
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Old Granite Quarry Walk – Enjoy secluded beaches, sheltered waters and coastal woodlands.
6km loop, 3 hours return: moderate to difficult.
Cape Woolamai Beacon Walk – Walk to the historical beacon at the highest point on Phillip Island and enjoy views over Cape Woolamai beach.
6.6km loop, 3.5 hours return: moderate to difficult.
Cape Woolamai Circuit Walk – For those wanting a challenge, this walk will take you past the Pinnacles to a secluded cove that was once a busy granite quarry.
8km, 4.5 hours return: moderate to difficult.
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7. Churchill Island Phillip Island
Journey back in time and explore the heritage and tranquil scenery of Churchill Island. Travel across the bridge to Churchill Island Heritage Farm where every turn unveils a new surprise. Meet the likes of Max the Clydesdale horse and Gregory the peacock. Wander the old homestead and experience the daily heritage farming activities including cow milking, sheep shearing, blacksmithing, boomerang throwing and whip cracking. Meander the island’s many walking and cycling trails as you look for wetland birds and learn about Aboriginal culture, and be sure to pause beneath the majestic Moonah trees.
Address: Churchill Island Heritage Farm, 246 Samuel Amess Dr, Churchill Island
6. Phillip Island Maze
This stimulating, magical and bizarre world of optical illusions, mazes, puzzles and mind games will entertain adults and children alike. A Maze’N Things is an award winning theme park that provides hours of old-fashioned fun with a touch of technology. Enjoy your time being intrigued by gravity defying objects, or seeing things that aren’t really there. Stretch your mind as you seek solutions to stacks of visual, written and hands-on puzzles. Scratch your head as you ponder in the maze on where you really are, or where you should be. Hold your sides as you belly-laugh with friends. Be challenged, be captivated, be puzzled, be exhilarated, be magical, be tricked at this Phillip Island maze and have the time of your life.
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Address: A Maze’N Things, 1805 Phillip Island Rd, Cowes
Opening hours: 10am to 5pm, daily
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5. Koala Park Phillip Island
The best place to see Phillip Island’s large koala colony is at its Koala Conservation Centre where you can walk along the tree-top boardwalks and come face-to-face with koalas in their natural habitat. These cute and cuddly creatures are asleep most of the time; however, the tree-top boardwalks allow you to get up-close and personal with these lazy animals. A couple of short and easy walking trails allow you to explore the Koala Conservation Centre and the surrounding areas. Look for the clues at the base of the trees and listen for the laugh of kookaburras while you soak up the scent of eucalyptus. Wander the extensive trails through the natural Australian bushland and enjoy the abundant bird and animal life including wallabies, echidnas and bats.
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Address: Koala Conservation Centre, 1790 Phillip Island Rd, Cowes
Opening hours: 10am to 5pm daily, 6pm in summer
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4. Seal Rocks Phillip Island
Located off the westernmost tip of Phillip Island, Seal Rocks host Australia’s largest colony of fur seals, more than 10,000 creatures that can be seen basking on the rocky platforms or playing in the surf in midsummer. They are best viewed from the new Nobbies Centre perched next to the rugged cliffs of The Nobbies, or by taking a boat trip. The Nobbies Centre has interactive ‘seal spy’ cameras which zoom in on the seals, while boat tours allow you get a close-up view of these animals as you cruise past these playful creatures in the summer months.
Address: Nobbies Centre, Ventnor Rd, Summerlands
Opening hours: Open 11am to one hour before sunset daily
3. The Nobbies Phillip Island
The Nobbies is the perfect place to explore the rugged coastline of Phillip Island and to spot some of the local birds and animals that have made this area their home. Explore the windswept coastline along the cliff top boardwalks and look for seals and whales. Feel the power of the blowhole as the wild waters of Bass Strait crash into the cliffs. Visit from September to April and watch thousands of shearwaters (also known as mutton birds) as they nest here before returning north to the Bering Strait in the Arctic. Pay a visit to the Nobbies Visitors Centre to view one of Australia’s largest fur seal colonies through the interactive ‘seal spy’ cameras and discover the local marine life through interactive displays.
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Address: Nobbies Centre, Ventnor Rd, Summerlands
Opening hours: Open 11am to one hour before sunset daily
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2. MotoGP Phillip Island
The Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit continues the island’s long involvement with motor sports, dating back to 1928 when the Australian Grand Prix was run on local unpaved roads. Since then the circuit has been redeveloped and holds regular races as well as big-ticket events, such as the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix in October. The circuit operates year round and attracts tourists from around the world to enjoy the motorsport experience. Revisit history within the Visitor Centre’s History of Motorsport display or follow in the footsteps of motor racing champions on a Guided Circuit Tour. Let rip in a Go Kart on the 750-metre scale replica Grand Prix track or buckle in for the real deal: an adrenalin-amping triple Hot Lap lightening ride around the circuit.
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Address: Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, 381 Back Beach Rd, Ventnor
Opening hours: Open daily between December and January
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1. Phillip Island Penguins
Phillip Island is best known for its Penguin Parade, an extraordinary natural spectacle and Victoria’s most popular tourist attraction. Every evening at sunset, hundreds of Little Penguins come ashore at Summerland Beach and waddle across the sand to their burrows in the Spinifex tussocks, just as their ancestors have been doing for thousands of generations. Seemingly oblivious to visitors watching from raised boardwalks, the penguins spend time around their burrows in the dunes preening themselves and, in summer, feeding their hungry chicks. It’s a magical experience and a highlight of any visit to Phillip Island.
The penguins arrive around 8pm daily (arrive an hour early for prime seats).
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Address: Phillip Island Nature Park, 1019 Ventnor Rd, Ventnor
Timings: Open daily from 10am
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Where is Phillip Island located?
Phillip Island is located along the southeast coast of Victoria, Australia just 90 minutes southeast of the city of Melbourne.
How to get to Phillip Island?
Phillip Island can be reached via car from Melbourne along the Monash Freeway (M1). Exit Cranbourne and Phillip Island exit to the South Gippsland Hwy (M420). The highway continues to the Bass Hwy (A420) which will take you through Grantville, Corinella and Bass. Continue on for San Remo and Phillip Island.
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