Phillip Island is a beautiful destination for a long weekend or holiday adventure with the kids just under two hours out of Melbourne CBD. If you’re really keen, you could probably do a day trip here during the summer months when the days are a little longer too. With a wealth of things to do in Phillip Island with kids, including some unique animal encounters, it has become one of our Victorian highlights.
We visited mid-summer and whilst the island was busy due to the school holidays, we also found it to be quite a relaxing place to explore. It is one of those places that needs inclusion on your kid bucket list!
Things to do on Phillip Island with Kids
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My first trip to Phillip Island was back when I was eight years old. Back then, the Penguin Parade was considerably smaller than it is today, with volunteers lighting the paths of the penguins by torchlight and little penguin crossings throughout the area to prevent tourists stepping on them. Boy has it changed.
With so many things to do on Phillip Island with kids, it became a popular school camp destination and I found myself back on the island during Year 11 as part of a citizen science initiative. My biology class spent days weighing baby mutton birds and squishing through muddy mangroves collecting data.
My childhood and adolescence feature Phillip Island quite a few times so when we planned a summer road trip through Victoria I knew it needed to be included on our itinerary.
So what is there to do on the island? Are there many things to do on Phillip Island with kids?
Phillip Island Penguin Parade
The Summerlands are part of the UNESCO Western Port Biosphere Reserve with the Phillip Island Nature Parks supporting significant populations of little penguins, hooded plovers, short-tailed shearwaters and other international migratory bird species, and mammals such as koalas, possums, wallabies, Australian fur seals and bats. Each evening as the sun sets, Little Penguins waddle up from the ocean to head back to their nests. The kids will have a whole lot to look at as you explore the area.
A visit to the Penguin Parade is an amazing experience you must do at least once. Watching thousands of Little Penguins make landfall and the clumsily run for their burrows all over the nature park is spectacular. The kids found this both impressive and amusing (they are so clumsy on land which makes for amusing viewing).
The Phillip Island Penguin Parade is the island’s drawcard with the dusk event usually sold out well in advance so we suggest making this one of the first things you book once you confirm your travel dates.
Read our Guide to the Phillip Island Penguin Parade with kids for more information
Address: 1019 Ventnor Rd, Summerlands, Victoria 3922
Open: Penguins arrive at sunset every evening. We suggest you arrive at least one hour before penguin arrival time to explore the visitor centre display. Access doors to the viewing areas will open approximately 1 hour prior to estimated penguin arrival time.
Website: www.penguins.org.au
Antarctic Journey at The Nobbies Centre
The Antarctic Journey at the Nobbies Centre offers hands-on fun, interactive activities and state of the art multimedia experiences to learn about Antarctica, it’s animals and the adventures Australia has embarked on to learn more about this icy continent.
WWF-Australia have partnered with Phillip Island Nature Parks to develop this exhibit which includes augmented reality experiences, an interactive dinner table, a chilly room so you can feel the cold and much more.
Address: 1320 Ventnor Rd, Summerlands 3922
Open: Opens at 10.00 am each day. Last entry to the Antarctic Journey at the Nobbies is approximately 2 hours before sunset each day, and the Nobbies Centre itself closes approximately 1 hour before sunset each day to protect the native wildlife.
Website: www.penguins.org.au
Churchill Island Heritage Farm
Churchill Island is a historic space that was the site of the first European agricultural pursuits in Victoria and has been farmed since the 1850s. With over 57 hectares to explore, the whole family will love exploring this historic farm and participating in such activities as milking the cow, shearing the sheep, and either pumping the water. We enjoyed the cafe which overlooks the ocean.
Address: 246 Samuel Amess Drive, Churchill Island 3925
Open: Churchill Island Farm Precinct is open from 10am daily except Christmas Day when we open at 2pm.
Website: penguins.org.au
Koala Conservation Centre
The Koala Conservation Centre in Phillip Island is a non for profit nature park dedicated to research and conservation programs for Koalas. A visit here will see you and your family explore The Koala Reserve’s unique tree top boardwalks and close viewing areas where you can get an up-close view of the resident koalas. You may even spot wallabies, possums, echidnas and snakes that also call this place home!
Address: 1790 Phillip Island Road, Cowes 3922
Open: 10am to 4pm daily (First Sunday in April to first Saturday in October) | 10am to 5:30pm daily (February 1 to first Saturday in April and first Sunday in October to Christmas Day) | 10am to 6pm (Boxing Day to end of January) | 2pm to 5:30pm (Christmas Day)
Website: www.penguins.org.au
A Maze’N Things
A Maze’N Things is a space dedicated to creating fun for the kids and the rest of the family. Here the kids can unwind and enjoy mini-golf, mazes, live magic trails and even a rope course. If your kids love puzzles and optical illusions, hands-on fun and physical activities, this is the place to take them on the island to burn off some steam.
Address: 1805 Phillip Island Rd Cowes VIC 3922
Open: Open 10am – 5pm, 7 days a week!
Website: www.amazenthings.com.au
Phillip Island Chocolate Factory
If you need a sugar hit then make sure to head to the Phillip Island Chocolate Factory where you can enjoy an interactive tour of the factory, create some chocolate yourself and try a sample of two. It’s yummy, but can be very busy!
Address: 930 Phillip Island Rd, Newhaven VIC 3925
Open: Open at 9:30am, 7 days a week
Website: phillipislandchocolatefactory.com.au
Cape Woolamai
Situated on Phillip Island’s most southerly point, Cape Woolamai is also the highest part (called The Beacon), of the island. It was here, back on biology camp, that I once headed to survey and weigh mutton birds as it boasts the island’s largest shearwater rookery.
If you love hiking you will enjoy Cape Woolamai where you can enjoy three different walks: Pinnacles walk (4 kilometres in length); Old Granite Quarry Walk (approximately 6 kilometres in length); or, Cape Woolamai Beacon Walk (approximately 6.6 kilometres in length).
What you don’t want to miss at Cape Woolamai are the unique granite rock structures called The Pinnacles, just make sure you head there at low tide!
Beaches
Phillip Islands has quite an array of beaches – it is an island after all!
Beaches to swim with the kids
Cowes Main Beach
Cowes Main Beach has the unusual title of being the biggest north-facing beach in the entire state of Victoria. It is the most popular beach on the island, and is patrolled during summer.
Cowes Beach
Cowes Beach offers shallow waves and an array of amenities close by making it quite popular with families.
Safety Beach
Usually a well-patrolled beach during summer, Safety Beach is popular with families
Smiths Beach
Also typically well patrolled during summer,, Smiths Beach offers calm waves and gentle surf.
Red Rocks Beach
Whilst this beach isn’t patrolled, it is sheltered, sandy and provides some lovely shallows to splash around in.
Ventnor Beach
With surfing prohibited, Ventnor Beach is the beach for those who like to lounge on the sand and look out onto an endless horizon.
Surf Beaches
Surf Beach
Do not go here to swim! Surf Beach is the destination for experienced surfers who can navigate strong currents and big waves.
Shelly Beach
Shelley Beach is the perfect surf beach for beginners with small waves.
Woolamai Surf Beach
More suited to surfers, Woolamai Beach is known for its strong rips and currents which provides some large wave swells to navigate
Berrys Beach
Whilst it is enjoyed by surfers, Berrys Beach has a scattering of rock pools that make it perfect for a visit. You will need to climb down the wooden stairs to get to it.
Beaches to Snorkel
Kitty Miller Bay
Stretching around half a kilometre in length, Kitty Miller Bay has some lovely deep rock pools where you can observe colourful marine plants, fish and other marine life.
Where to stay
There are numerous places to stay on Phillip Island however they tend to book out very quickly over the school holidays and long weekends so I highly suggest planning your trip some months in advance if you are hoping to travel over these periods.
We stayed at Nini’s Surf Sanctuary via AirBnB
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