The Little Penguins of Melbourne

When you think of penguins, do you imagine an icy coast, somewhere near the South Pole? Me too! Well, we found out that a colony of penguins hangs out in Melbourne, Australia. And you can watch them waddle back to their home every night! We were SOLD! Join us this week for a peek at the little penguins of Melbourne.

A Little Bit About the Penguins

Growing between 12 and 18 inches tall, they are called little penguins or fairy penguins. They moved in during the 1950’s, when the breakwater was built in St. Kilda’s bay. These large boulders provided just the perfect spot for the penguins to nest, raise their young and hunt – a fun and unexpected by-product of creating the breakwater to protect the boats.

Walking Around St. Kilda

Everything we read said that we could see these little dudes head back to their homes right at sunset. So after spending the morning walking about the Brighton Beach Boxes, we made our way to St. Kilda.

Like many beach towns, there were a lot of fun and “touristy” things to do and see. We were excited to find out that they had a Luna Park amusement park – as we have visited the one in Coney Island, New York, several times.

We thought we could while away an hour there, but it turns out…it was CLOSED for remodeling. This is extremely “on-brand” for our travels. So…with hours until sunset, we decided to explore a bit more of the town.

A Little Pregaming at Abbey Road

After snagging some amazing deals at a couple resale shops, we came across a bar called “Abbey Road”. Being a HUGE Beatles fan in my youth, being slightly thirsty, and having time to kill, we decided to spend a little time there. And we were SO GLAD we did.

Looking for the Penguins

We walked along the bay and looked for the penguins. Instead, we found boats, a cormorant, and an overly-tanned man, in the really cold water. All of which led to Stephen, looking on his phone for other ways to find them.

The Penguin Tour

Lucky for us. we were able to get last minute spot on the St. Kilda Ferry Sunset Cruise.

As we left the bay and watched the sun go down, the Skipper told us how we could see the penguins making their way back to shore.

Rafts at Sunset

As we watched the waters, suddenly we could see black patches disrupting the waves. These were little rafts of penguins swimming together toward the shore.

Over 1,400 of these little birds make their way up the rocks, to their homes for the night.

A Little Help From the Red Lights

Darkness quickly descended, but we were still able to watch the penguins settle in for the night with the help of red light flash lights. It turns out, the penguins aren’t able to see red lights, so we can spy them getting cozy for the night, and they don’t mind a bit.

So Worth It

Though the cruise wasn’t cheap, it was SO WORTH it! I mean, when else will you get to see penguins in the wild? (Well, other than in Antarctica. Which is cold. And you have to take a boat over the roughest seas on the planet. So that’s a nope from me.) And if you add in the fun shops and the most righteous Abbey Road, the whole experience was a high point of the trip!

Thanks for joining us as we check out the little penguins of Melbourne! We hope you’ll stay in touch. You can see our latest on Facebook, watch us in real time on Instagram or if you’d like special stuff, just for our travel tribe, subscribe for free today.

Until next time!