While it’s most famed for its motor sports and penguins, it’s far from all that Victoria’s Phillip Island has got to offer grey nomads.
The 100 km2 island is ringed by stunning coastline, is home to a rich diversity of wildlife and birdlife, and the friendly permanent population of around 10,000 is always eager to welcome travellers.
As you might expect from an island whose population commonly swells fourfold during tourist season, grey nomads have plenty of caravan parks to choose from.
While a ferry service operates between the Mornington Peninsula and Phillip Island, most grey nomads arrive from the mainland via a 650-metre concrete bridge which brings them to the picturesque fishing village of Newhaven.
The famous Phillip Island penguin parade. PIC: Visit Victoria
Newhaven, and the island’s other towns, such as Rhyll and Cowes, are great places to stroll, to shop, to eat and to generally relax, but most travellers eventually heed the call of the wild. When they do, they normally head to the island’s western tip where they can stroll around a series of boardwalks to view the collection of rocky islands known as The Nobbies. Some 1500 metres offshore, Australia’s largest colony of fur seals can be spied at Seal Rocks. Visitors can join a wildlife cruise to take a closer look at these playful creatures.
Most people though consider the fabled fairy penguins to be the main attraction here. Outside the Penguin Parade Visitor Centre, travellers can watch the miniature penguins emerge from the ocean and waddle across the beach to their sand dune burrows.
A walk to Pyramid Rock Lookout is well worth the effort. PIC: Visit Victoria
Across at the south-eastern tip of the island is Cape Woolamai. There are some great walking tracks along the ancient pink granite cliffs here, and it’s also a great place for birdwatchers to spot muttonbirds and many other species. Here also is a ‘break’ much loved by surfers. For nomads not keen to hang five, there are plenty of other less wild places in the island’s north in which to take a dip, including Cowes and Ventnor Beach..
While the island may appear fairly sedate most of the time, it’s not always that way. The Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit regularly hosts the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, the World Superbike Championships, and some serious V8 Supercar racing. If you’re not on the island at race time, a visit to the Phillip Island Circuit Visitors Centre gives a great insight into the history of racing here.
Other places enjoyed by grey nomads include the historic farm at Churchill Island which offers a glimpse into the past lives of early Australian settlers. Many visitors also consider The National Vietnam Veterans Museum a place they simply have to visit, either to remember, or to better understand!
So, whether you like high octane excitement or a leisurely evening of penguin gazing, Phillip Island hits the spot.
