Experience Wildlife in Melbourne

1. Melbourne Zoo

Melbourne Zoo dates back to the year 1862, but all the 300+ animals here have the best and most contemporary enclosures. The Trail of Elephant feature shows the lives of resident Asian elephants, set in a very accurate-looking country village setting. Other attractions are Orang-utan Sanctuary, Wild Sea Exhibit, Lemur Island, the Meerkats and Lion George. Kids and adults, both will enjoy a fantastic day out in the best zoo in Melbourne.

2. Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium

Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium has endless themes to explore the mighty underwater fauna of the Indo-Pacific. There is Bay of Rays for stingrays, Croc Lair for crocodiles, Mangroves, Coral Caves, Shipwreck Explorer and many more. One can see penguins here too. For more exciting adventures, there is the Shark Dive Xtreme and 2.2 million litre Oceanarium featuring a panoramic 360°C view of the closes underwater view one can get without actually going to the ocean bed.

3. Healesville Sanctuary

Located at the foothills of the Yarra Ranges, Healesville is a very beautiful sanctuary to visit. The place takes special care of animals indigenous to Australia, like koalas, platypus, emus, Tasmanian devils, kangaroos, wombats and lyrebirds. There is a Meet the Keeper session to know more about these wild creatures, and a spectacular Bird of Prey live action show with a wedge-tailed eagle and a peregrine falcon.

4. Werribee Open Range Zoo

Werribee Open Range Zoo spread across 225 hectares is kind of like an Africa inside Melbourne. The Safari tour will take you through arid landscapes and Savannah grasslands typical to Africa. One can see plenty of zebras, giraffes, rhinos and horses. Inside, there are natural enclosures for lions, hippos, camels, bison, elephants, cheetahs and gorillas. There are animals unique to Australia as well – emus, koalas and kangaroos. There are facilities for an overnight stay in the camp in the zoo for the adventurers at heart.

5. Phillip Island

Unlike the other places, the wildlife attractions of Phillip Island are completely natural. Hundreds of tiny little penguins emerge from the sea after spending the day at the water and make their way back to their burrows in the sand at sunset. This completely unique phenomenon is something to cherish forever.

6. Moonlit Sanctuary

Moonlit Sanctuary has the usual Australian animals in an open, homely bushland area spread over only 10 hectares. So it can be easily seen on foot. The best part about Moonlit Sanctuary is that you can buy small bags of food and feed the emus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas by your own hand. There are Keeper Talks available at the enclosures of dingo, koala, python, wombat and Tasmanian devil. The place offers a Lantern-Lit Evening Tours as well, living up to its name.

7. Port Campbell National Park

A bit far away, but Port Campbell is still the best national park near Melbourne. The Great Ocean road merges into the rugged escarpments, which lead on and fall away to 70 m high cliffs along the coastline between Princetown and Peterborough. Home to the famous rock formations, Twelve Apostles, Port Campbell National Park, is hands-down one of the prettiest scenes that Australia has.