Phillip Island Penguin: A Day Trip to Brighton Beach and Moonlit Sanctuary from Melbourne

Experience the best of Phillip Island in one day! Visit Brighton Beach, Moonlit Sanctuary, and witness the magical sight of fairy penguins waddling up the beach at dusk.

Duration: 12 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Brighton Bathing Boxes - Photo opportunity of Melbourne’s most colourful attraction!
  • Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park - Explore Moonlit Sanctuary where you have the opportunity to feed Kangaroos and Wallabies under the supervision of Sanctuary staff plus view many famous Australian animals.

Moonlit Sanctuary is dedicated to helping save Australia’s endangered wildlife from extinction. Many of the animals kept at the Sanctuary are threatened with extinction. However, just keeping and breeding rare animals is not enough, they must interact with programs aimed at saving them in the wild.

  • The Nobbies - Beautiful views across the ocean while you spot the local seal colony
  • Phillip Island Nature Parks - Penguin Parade - The nightly spectacular! See the cute little penguins waddle ashore to their nesting grounds.
What's Included
  • Pickup from Selected Hotels
  • On-board WiFi
  • Friendly & Informative Tour Guide
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
  • All fees and/or taxes
  • Entry fees for Moonlit Sanctuary and Phillip Island Penguin Parade
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Food & Drink
  • Kangaroo & Wallaby Food
Additional Information

See all the world class attractions of Phillip Island in one day on this small group eco tour from Melbourne.

Departing Melbourne at around midday, you’ll travel to Victoria’s most colourful attraction, the iconic Brighton Beach bathing boxes for an opportunity to visit the beach and take some time to admire these historic landmarks.

Get up close to koalas and other Australian animals at the Moonlit Sanctuary Conservation Park under supervision from the incredible staff at the Sanctuary. Watch a wildlife show and even have the chance to hand feed cute Wallabies and Kangaroos!

The highlight of your Phillip Island experience will begin at dusk as you watch the fairy penguins waddling up the beach into their burrows in the sand dunes.

  • Photography of any kind is not permitted at the Phillip Island Penguin Parade
  • Large bags, strollers, prams, baby capsules, luggage & walkers cannot be brought on board
Location
Brighton Bathing Boxes
131 Esplanade, Brighton Beach
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(2707 Ratings)
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Peter_l
Sep 6, 2024
Go West is the tour company to go with in Melbourne!!! - Go West is the tour company to go with in Melbourne!!! Excellent customer service from communicating in a timely fashion and letting us know of unforeseen delays. Our guide, Lucy, is by far, one of the best guides I’ve ever travelled with. She is extremely positive, knowledgeable and a joy to be with! Her enthusiasm for the wildlife we encountered is so infectious. She made sure that everyone on the tour felt important and cared for. Thanks so much Lucy & Go West for a wonderful experience to Phillip Island!!! 👍👏
Review provided by Viator
Ireska_a
Sep 3, 2024
True Australian wild life experience! - I enjoyed the tour so much. We went for the brighton beach first, then to the moonlight sanctuary. So happy to see koalas, kangoroos, wallabies, dingoes, and other amazing Australian wildlife. The weather was rainy and very windy, but we enjoyed the nobbies a lot too. The most awaited time is the penguin parade! Gosh love to see them waddling through on their way back home! Our tour guide is Michael, and he's been amazing from the start. He is very informative, funny, and accomodating. We faced some road closure during pick up and was 2 mins late because we need some time reaching the meeting point, but Michael was kind enough to wait for us. He also made sure everyone was counted for before we move to other destination. Thank you for making this trip memorable for us.
Review provided by Viator
Ramesh_k
Aug 9, 2024
A Tour Well Worth It - The tour was well paced and the specific stops - Brighton Beach Boxes, Moonlit Sanctuary, Nobbies and Penguin Parade - were well selected. The drive itself is an attraction and try to keep awake throughout. But one factor beyond anybody's control is the rain. My suggestion is that the weather forecast be looked at so that if it is within the non-cancellation deadline, and an alternative rain free date is available, go for it. Our guide, Noah is one of the rare breed who emphatically ticks positively all the important boxes. Affable, informative, helpful, accommodative, clear communication skills, safe driving, and yes, a budding musical talent. Ask him to belt out his rendition of 'I Am Australian', guitar included!
Review provided by Viator
Ymma2014
Aug 8, 2024
Amazing Philip Island Tour - Thank you Go West for this great experience in Melbourne. The tour guide Sherif is professional, caring and passionate. He is humorous and provided useful information about Philip Island and Australian wildlife. Comfortable coach that we could rest during the long trip. Convenient as point to point transfer between different sites. The most amazing part was the penguin parade on Philip Island. Extremely happy and touching to meet those tiny lovely creatures. Will surely join Go West tour next time when we travel to Australia
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alicia_k
Aug 8, 2024
Absolutely worth every penny!! - Absolutely loved our tour guide Jools!! She was very knowledgeable as well as funny and entertaining!! She took great care of our crazy crew!! Loved seeing the penguins waddle up the beach!!!
Review provided by Viator
Charles_m
Aug 2, 2024
Everything went great. - The tour overall was a great experience. Everything promised was accomplished and seen. The guide was very talkative and friendly. I just wish the bus was not so cramped. I’m tall and had absolutely no leg room.
Review provided by Viator
Robert_s
Jul 9, 2024
Fun and easy way to encounter Australian wildlife - I got to meet all the wildlife that I've always associate with Australia. The Moonlit sanctuary was a perfect family friendly environment for encounters with emus, wombats, dingos, owls, kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, etc. To cap it all off, we ended the evening at Philip Island and watched the famous penguin parade. My high expectations were met by my tour guide, Sherif, who was both funny and knowledgeable.
Review provided by Viator
Analiei
Jun 30, 2024
A unique Australian adventure - This was one of the highlights of my first trip to Australia. In a span of about 10h I have experienced something I call uniquely Australian. We stopped by Brighton Beach to see colorful beach boxes. It looked like a happy and relaxing place. Next, at Moonlit Animal Sanctuary I saw kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, wombat, and many birds I’ve seen for the first time. Then we headed off to Phillip Island to see the penguins on parade. Along the way I saw beautiful sceneries of the countryside with cows (first time to see pure white ones), sheep, and horses, and the coast. At Phillip Island we hiked on a boardwalk down a hill; the view was magnificent. Then to the much anticipated penguin parade, we passed by many wallabies, geese and other birds. Up to this point I have taken lots of beautiful pictures. After sunset the little penguins started coming out of the water; they were so cute and funny as they waddled from the water through a stretch of sandy beach and onto the hillside to their burrows. No picture- taking here but it was okay. Our guide, Rachael, was very nice, friendly, entertaining and informative. She is a gem. I would do this eco tour activity again if I come back here. It was so worth the time and money I spent.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gfamilytravelerg
Jun 28, 2024
#AskForMichael #tinyPenguins - Don’t take this tour without Michael, a native of “Mel-burn” and easily the best driver and tour guide in my 50+ year traveling soul. Knowledgeable, informed, and engaged, if not a bit festive. Not too much or too little, the “Goldilocks” right in the sweet-soy middle of know-it-all tour guides and those who don’t care. #AskForMichael
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Scenic27146103276
Jul 1, 2024
A Pleasant Visit to Philip Island , Moonlit Sanctuary , Melbourne - I enjoyed the Philips Island Tour and saw the little penguins parade . The moonlit sanctuary was a wonderful experience. The Tour Guide Terry was professional, entertaining and informative. It was wonderful value for money .
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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