No ferry is required on Victoria's Phillip Island, making it RV accessible for those interested in sheltered beaches, wildlife and world-class surf.
Just 90 minutes south-east of Melbourne, Phillip Island/Millowl is renowned for its sheltered beaches, world-class surf, abundant wildlife, walks and the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix. But the island is most famous for its nightly penguin parade that sees the world’s largest colony of little penguins waddle ashore. PI also claims Australia’s largest fur seal colony, tonnes of birds and a few koalas too. Accessed by bridge, it’s one of the few islands in Australia you can drive to – no ferry required.
Cruise Views (Seal Rocks)
Located two kilometres offshore in Bass Strait, Seal Rocks is home to Australia’s largest fur seal colony. Wildlife Coast Cruises has a special permit that allows them to sidle within 20 metres of the rocks, and witnessing about 5,000 seals going about their everyday business at such close range is a truly special experience. With narration from the captain, the boat moves around different locations to watch them rolling and diving in a frothy-blue seal soup and bleating noisily on rock platforms. Views of the coast on the way out are a bonus. In winter, half-day whale watching cruises circumnavigate the island.
Hike
There’s nothing like a cliff walk for soaking up big-horizon sea views, and the Cape Woolamai Walk traces the highest point on the island. Starting on the beach – incidentally, a popular surf spot – this walk climbs up to a well-graded track around the clifftops, with amazing views over frothing water, sea caves and the granite sea stacks of The Pinnacles. Numerous trail combos take from 90 minutes to four hours. The cape is riddled with shearwater (mutton bird) burrows, so if you visit from October to April, it’s worth returning at sunset to see up to a million birds return after a day out fishing (you only need walk about 20 minutes from Woolamai Beach carpark to see them).
