The Phillip Island Penguin Parade is one of Australia’s best known wildlife experiences, attracting visitors from around the globe to witness the nightly return of the world’s smallest penguins to their burrows. Located on Summerland Beach at the western tip of Phillip Island, approximately 90 minutes’ drive southeast of Melbourne, this natural spectacle offers a unique to see the little penguins in their natural habitat.
Getting There
Driving is the most convenient way to reach the Penguin Parade, especially if you intend visiting other attractions in the area. This is the option we used as we were travelling through southern and eastern Victoria. We also booked accommodation on Phillip Island so that we did not have to drive a long way after the Parade finished. A large on-site carpark caters for the many visitors that arrive as well as buses.
Several tour operators offer day trips from Melbourne to the Penguin Parade, often including stops at other attractions such as the Koala Conservation Reserve and Churchill Island. These tours provide a hassle-free way to experience the parade without the need for personal transport.
What is the Phillip Island Penguin Parade?
Each evening at sunset, hundreds of Little Penguins (also known as fairy penguins, little blue penguins, or blue penguins) emerge from the sea and waddle across the beach to their sand dune burrows. This nightly ritual is a result of their daily foraging trips in the ocean, and the parade offers a rare opportunity to observe them up close in a natural setting.
Penguin Parade Visitor Centre
Opened in 2019, the state-of-the-art Penguin Parade Visitor Centre has a range of facilities and educational exhibits. The centre features interactive displays, a theatrette, and information pods that provide insights into penguin biology, behaviour, and conservation efforts. We arrived here over an hour before the parade started. This allowed us to book in with our tour, look around the centre and have a hot drink before venturing out.
Viewing Options
To cater to different preferences and budgets, the Penguin Parade offers several viewing experiences:
- General Viewing: Access to tiered seating and boardwalks, providing a broad view of the penguins’ journey
- Penguins Plus: An upgraded platform closer to the penguins’ path, offering more intimate viewing.
- Underground Viewing: An indoor, eye-level perspective through a 25-meter glass panel, allowing close observation of the penguins without exposure to the elements
- Guided Ranger Tour: A guided experience with a ranger, including headset commentary and beachfront seating
- Ultimate Adventure Tour: A small-group tour to a secluded beach area, providing a more private encounter with the penguins
- Family Wildlife Tour: Designed for families, this tour includes a pre-parade talk and front-row viewing with a dedicated guide.
Bookings are essential, especially during peak periods, and can be made through the official website. Proceeds from ticket sales support ongoing research, habitat restoration, and wildlife rehabilitation programs.
Ultimate Adventure Tour
We chose the Ultimate Adventure Tour, as we wanted to experience the penguins up close. Unfortunately, the weather was very windy, and too much sand was blowing off the beach which would have made it very uncomfortable. Instead, the guide arranged a personalised tour.
The tour commenced with a talk to our group of eight by our guide. This covered the ecology of the fairy penguins and the centre’s conservation efforts. We were issued with headphones, weatherproof jackets binoculars and torches.
Following our guide, we walked through the sand dunes where we saw penguin burrows and a few early arrivals. Fortunately, as it was not yet dark, we were able to take photos. Our guide said they would inform us when we could no longer used our cameras.
From here we were given front row seats in the viewing area. From now on photography was banned so as to not confuse the penguins.
As the penguins came ashore, we were able to use binoculars to see them us close. It was amazing to be able to see them hesitate in the surf until they felt it was safe to waddle across the beach. On the night we watched over 200 came ashore but on a busy night there might be over 500.
Surprising us and the guide several bandicoots also ran along the beach searching for bugs to eat in the seaweed. We saw several more on our walk back to the visitor centre. Eastern barred bandicoots were introduced to Phillip Island in 2017 because it is fox free.
From here the guide took us to the underground viewing area. In this area a small window at ground level allows you to see the penguins walking past only a metre away. This was amazing as we could see them up close as they waddled by.
What Did We Think?
This was an amazing experience despite not getting the tour we booked (not the centre’s fault – no one controls the weather). Seeing the penguins up close as they waddled and sometimes fell over getting to their burrows was unforgettable. As a bonus we saw bandicoots foraging in the seaweed. This experience is highly recommended to anyone who visits the area. The photos below really do not convey what we saw, as photography is prohibited after a certain time so as not to startle the penguins.
Our photos are available for purchase on
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