Australia Family Travel Review: Adelaide, Sydney Aquarium, Seal Bay, Wildlife Sanctuary, Barossa Valley Wine Tour, Australian Open

Our trip was filled with incredible moments! From the start in Sydney to our finish in Melbourne, everything went smoothly and better than expected. In Sydney, our hotel location in the Rocks area was perfect! It was an easy stroll through the eclectic Rocks area with many shops and cafes, and a short walk to Sydney Harbor, the Opera House, and the Pitt Street shopping district. A highlight was definitely the Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb. We did the sunset climb on our first day and had a beautiful view of the sunset while on top of the bridge. The guide was entertaining and knowledgeable, and we felt safe the entire climb. Coming down, we were treated- coincidentally, to a fireworks show over the Opera House! What a view! We also enjoyed our city bus tour and hopped off at Bondi Beach for a walk along the surf. We also rode the city loop and explored the aquarium. We also enjoyed a walk through the botanical gardens and took a ferry to Manly. Highly recommend a stop there for lunch and a beach walk.   

In Adelaide, we met friends (we were a host family to a tennis player from Adelaide years ago), and had a Wine tour of the Barossa Valley. The tour was amazing and the food pairings were perfect. We especially enjoyed the small wineries and meeting the winemakers, namely two cellars. 

The next day, we had our flight to Kangaroo Island where our Kangaroo Island tour guide greeted us. He gave us a personal tour of the island, visiting beaches, viewing seals, kangaroos, and had a wonderful picnic lunch. The next day, we had another guided trip, also from a Kangaroo Island local tour company. Our guide was also very knowledgeable and took us to find Koalas in the wild... we saw many! We then visited Seal Bay and were treated to wonderful beaches and close-up seal action! We also visited a wildlife sanctuary where we were able to touch koalas and feed kangaroos. We ended the day with a stroll on the beach as the sun was setting. We were able to see much of the fire devastation, and with both of our guides as locals, there was much sadness in what was lost, but great pride in the beauty that remains. There was a large presence of firefighters and teams that were working to help in the rescue efforts. That being said, Kangaroo Island was still beautiful and we were so glad that we didn't cancel this portion of our trip.

After Kangaroo Island, we flew to Melbourne. Once again, our hotel was perfectly located on the Yarra River, with easy walking access to restaurants, shops, and the Australian Open. We loved our walking tour and exploring the back alleys and learning about the history of Melbourne. After this, we had an excursion to Phillip Island, which was definitely a highlight! We had several stops along the way, but the grand finale was the Penguin Parade! The guides were extremely knowledgeable and helped us understand the nightly march of the penguins to higher ground. We were up close to the penguins and were able to watch as over 1,000 penguins scurried up the beach to reach safe grounds. The penguin guide, as well as our driver, helped us learn of the preservation efforts to help the penguin area. 

The following day we had a bus tour to the Great Ocean Road. The trip was long, but was broken up with several stops along the beach and a stop at an Ecolodge, where we had an up-close viewing of a mama kangaroo with a Joey! Finally, we reached the 12 Apostles lookout, which did not disappoint! The view was spectacular and the weather was amazing. The next day, we explored Melbourne on foot, walking around the botanical garden and strolling through the Farmer's Market. Our grand finale was going to the Australian Open for the men's doubles final and the men's singles final. The weather was perfect and we were treated to an unbelievable event! Overall, our trip was absolutely unforgettable! We loved Australia!!