Kangaroo Island is a unique destination just off the coast of Adelaide in the south of Australia. This small island is known for its protected nature, wildlife life, and relaxing island lifestyle that makes it so unique from the rest of Australia.
Much like its name indicates, the island has many kangaroos living on the island. However, the island is also home to other wildlife, including wallabies, koalas, and different reptiles. Unfortunately, in late 2019 and early 2020, over 42% of the island was burned by wildfires (bushfires in Australia), which displaced and killed many wild animals, decimated livestock populations, and completely changed the ecosystem of the island. Today, finding koalas in the eucalyptus trees along the roads is more challenging as they are still repopulating after the devastation. And the Flinders Chase National Park, of which 96% was destroyed, is still recovering and regrowing to its original natural and luscious beauty.
This does not mean that Kangaroo Island is not worth visiting. Quite the opposite! There are still a number of activities to do, quaint towns to explore, small shops and businesses to support, beaches to relax on, and animals to see throughout your time on the island.
Options for Visiting Kangaroo Island
Kangaroo Island is a ferry ride and a short drive away from Adelaide. This island is best visited independently so you can take your time visiting the island and seeing the different parts of the island that are of interest to you. However, having a car is not always accessible to every person. There are tours that operate on the island that allow you to see the different sites over 1-2 days without driving yourself around the island.
Itinerary Idea
9 Days Exploring Southern Australia between Melbourne and Adelaide
Days 1 - 3
Explore the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne
Days 4 - 5
Hike through Grampians National Park
Days 6 - 8
Discover Kangaroo Island
Read More In This Article
Day 9
Return to Melbourne
A Group Tour
Group tours are an easy way to visit Kangaroo Island to visit the highlights of the island in an efficient manner without having to drive, navigate the ferry, or even stay overnight on the island. If you are looking for a straight-forward way to explore this part of Australia, then a group tour could be the right fit for you. Many of these tours have the option to be picked up from Adelaide, Cape Jervis (where the ferry departs on the mainland), or a few towns on the island itself including Penneshaw, American River, and Kingscote.
Most tours are one or two days. The one-day tours align with those who are pressed with time but still want to see the landscapes and wildlife of the island. The two-day tours will allow people to experience more of the boutique and small-business economy that adds so much culture to the island. You typically will need to reserve the accommodation on the island independently from the tour. Sealink is the ferry company between Kangaroo Island and the mainland of Australia and they provide tours and experiences on the island. Here are the links to their one-day and two-day tours.
If you are looking for an independent, but pre-planned option, you can look at Sealink’s holiday packages, which have different itineraries based on your interests and preferences. These different experiences include food/drink vouchers, accommodations, optional car hire (rental car), and more, taking the time-consuming curation and planning of the trip out of your hands.
Visiting Independently
Visiting Kangaroo Island on your own gives you complete flexibility on where and how you spend your time on the island. You will be able to mix and match the activities, nature, and the slow drives with how you want to spend your time. Very little of your trip will need to be reserved in advance (besides accommodations) so you will have plenty of independence throughout the island.
How to Get to the Island
To get to the island, you will need to take a ferry and this is something you will need to reserve in advance, especially if you want to have options for different time periods on transporting to the island. If you want to maximize your time, you can take the first ferry in and the last ferry off of Kangaroo Island.
Sealink is the only ferry company that operates this route from Cape Jervis (Australia’s mainland) and Penneshaw (Kangaroo Island’s port city) and here is the link to reserve the ferry. If you are renting a car to go on the island, the only information you need at the time of the booking is to know the size of the car that you reserved (sedan, small SUV, large SUV).
You will want to get to the ferry 30 minutes prior to departure to load the car and yourself onto the boat. As the driver of the car, you will drive right onto the boat and any passengers will check into the ferry terminal and walk onto the boat. You can also take the ferry if you do not have a vehicle and are using tours to visit the island. The trip itself takes about 45 minutes and when you arrive on the other side, you will be able to drive right off the boat.
Where to Stay on Kangaroo Island
Small Towns Around the Island: Penneshaw, American River, Kingscote, Stokes Bay, and Vivonne Bay
Penneshaw
The port town to which you will arrive when you get off the ferry. This town has a few restaurants, bars, and accommodations, but we recommend going deeper into the island to find accommodations that allow you to explore the entire island efficiently.
American River
A tourist hub for the island, especially if you are looking for seafood and fishing activities.
Kingscote
The largest town on the island, giving you access to a larger amount of tourism infrastructure. This is where we recommend staying if you are looking to explore the north part of the island and the small businesses around.
Stokes Bay
The place to explore if you are looking for some nice relaxing beach time as it is adjacent to one of the nicest beaches in Australia. It is also close to Kingscote, making it secluded but not isolated.
Vivonne Bay
The only town on the south-side of the island but it is incredibly small. However, it gives you great access to the adventure activities of this part of the island and is close to Flinders Chase National Park.
Discovery Parks - Kangaroo Island or Anything Near Flinders Chase National Park
One of the few accommodations adjacent to Flinders Chase National Park. If you are looking to maximize your time in the national park, then this is the accommodation to look into.
Where to Stop on Kangaroo Island
Nature and Wildlife to Explore
The nature of Kangaroo Island is beautiful and one of the aspects that makes visiting this place so special and unique. The following are a list of places, sanctuaries, and parks that can be visited to truly appreciate the wildlife and nature of Kangaroo Island. Beyond these destinations, it is important to look around as you drive throughout the island; the nature and wildlife is everywhere! You may be driving down roads and see koalas up in the eucalyptus trees, or hiking along a path and be stopped by wallabies hopping across the road.
Disclaimer
Since the wildfires of 2020 on Kangaroo Island, wildlife significantly dwindled and is still in the process of recovering. As a result, it is not as abundant as it once was (or as is mentioned on multiple blog resources). It is important to set your expectations as you travel around the island. If you do encounter wildlife, you should consider the following:
- Keep a healthy distance between you and the wildlife to not scare or disturb them, especially when they have their young with them. Some animals can be territorial when they are with their young and may be aggressive, such as emus.
- Take photographs without flash. The light from the flash may severely affect their eyesight and, therefore, their ability to survive in the wild.
- DO NOT feed animals, no matter how cute they may be. It is important to keep wild animals wild so they can continue to survive without the support of humans. When humans feed animals, the animals are now trained to depend on people and the animals lose their instinct to hunt, gather, and fend for themselves.
- Be quiet to not disturb them
Disclaimer
Kangaroo Island Sculpture Trail
This walk is in Penneshaw and is a good introduction to the landscape and wildlife of the island. If you do the walk in the morning, you have a greater chance of running into local wallabies. The trail itself could take you between 30-45 minutes and has gentle inclines and some stairs, but it is an easy walk overall.
Emu Bay Beach
This beautiful beach is a short drive away from Kingscote. It is a popular location to relax at. There are even a few beachside stands with great snacks to help you enjoy the seaside landscape even more.
Stokes Bay Beach
The Stokes Bay beach is a little complicated to get to but making it onto the beach is absolutely worth it. It is one of the most beautiful beaches in Australia (by some publications). Once you park at the parking lot of the beach, you will hike through the coastal rocks and canyons to get to the secluded beach. This link on AllTrails will give you a better idea of how to find the beach. Because of the tide, you may need to wade through some water to get to the beach so be prepared with sandals and shorts as you make your way.
Flinders Chase National Park
This National Park is the largest protected land on the island. Unfortunately, 96-98% of the park was destroyed in the wildfire of 2020 but it continues to regrow today. As a result, it is not quite as full of animals as it once was. You can still expect to find a number of reptiles while you are driving and walking around the park. To start, you will need to purchase a park pass from the visitor center of the national park and then you can do a drive to some of the peak viewpoints of the park.
Drive to Admirals Arch and Fur Seal Lookout where you will get to see some rock structures along with fur seals resting on the rocks. You will drive by the Cape Du Couedic Lightstation and prominent lighthouse. Then, you can head to the Weirs Lookout where you can see the ruins of the lightkeepers of the island along with the dock they used to bring in supplies. Finally, you can head to the Remarkable Rocks Lookout and the Remarkable Rocks themselves and see the unique rock formations that have been formed on the coast. (Be careful of walking to the edge of the landscape and make sure to follow the signs posted to stay safe.) You will want to spend at least 1-3 hours doing this drive to really take in these different viewpoints.
After driving to these prominent destinations, you will want to head to the Platypus Waterholes Walk, a 3.4 mile (5.5 kilometer) walk through the forest of Flinders Chase National Park and the waterways that platypus live within the park. The platypus were remarkably able to survive through the wildfire and can be seen swimming in this area today. They are shy animals and are more active when it is quiet and at dawn or dusk. And if you do not have any luck seeing the animals themselves, you can read through the placards throughout the walk that will give you information about the animals, their habits, and their habitat.
Little Sahara Adventure Center
The Little Sahara Adventure Center takes advantage of the natural sand dunes that have built up on the south side of the island. These sand dunes are the perfect place for some adventure activities, including renting sandboards to go down the dunes, taking a buggy tour that shows the landscapes and wildlife of this portion of the island, riding an electric fat bike on the dunes to get an intimate tour of the nature of the island, and more. You can read more about the different activities provided here.
Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park
The wildlife park is an important conservation center for the island, especially after the bushfire of 2020. This organization is a zoo of local and exotic wildlife, a sanctuary for “pets” that people no longer know how to care for, and a hospital for the injured animals of the island, especially koalas, kangaroos, and wallabies. (Unfortunately, these marsupials are sometimes hit by cars and even if they are killed upon impact, their joeys in their pouch may survive and need human intervention to grow up successfully).
You can learn more about these animals and the work of the organization while at the park. You can also interact with different animals, including petting the koalas and feeding the kangaroos. The animals that interact with humans have no chance to return to the wild because they are too dependent on humans for a variety of reasons, including being raised by the wildlife park after being injured in the major wildfire of 2020. If you are looking to hold a koala, this could be a great place for that experience! You can learn more about this park and experience here.
Raptor Domain
This wildlife experience focuses on free-flight birds of prey, such as owls and eagles, and gives people a presentation every day at 11:30 AM and 2:30 PM. Not only can you learn about these birds, you can also purchase experiences to hold some of the different birds on the properties. This organization also helps rehabilitate birds that are injured on the island. You can learn more here.
Seal Bay Conservation Park
This conservation area is a protected portion of beach where mother seals raise their pups and spend time laying together, resting, and recovering after the mothers spend three days at a time in the ocean to find food. There are two paid options for seeing the seals on the beach. The first is a walk along the boardwalk above the seals. The seals do get relatively close to the boardwalks as they protect themselves from the ocean by laying up on the dunes. The second option is a guided walk to the beach, getting you within a few meters of the seals. If you have already had the occasion to see and interact with seals on a beach, then this experience may not be as valuable to you. You can read more about the experience and the pricing here.
Mount Thisby Lookout at Prospect Hill
This hike is more of a staircase and includes 500 steps to a viewpoint that allows you to have a 360° vista of the entire island, including many of the beautiful beaches, bays, and towns.
Small Businesses Worth Checking Out
The businesses of Kangaroo Island add to the quaint culture of the island and make it such a unique destination to explore. Here are just some of different boutiques, restaurants, and bars that are worth checking out. You can also ask locals for their recommendations to explore the island in an intimate way.
Millie Mae’s Pantry
This cafe is located in Penneshaw (where the ferry will drop you off) and is a great place to grab a bite to eat after getting off the early morning ferry.
Eucalyptus Oil Distillery
If you are looking for a place to buy some local souvenirs, look no further than the Eucalyptus Oil Distillery. During the harvesting season, you can take a tour to see the processing plant of the eucalyptus oil. And during the off season, you can shop the multitude of products they produce, along with some collaborations with other boutiques and small businesses across the island.
Wine Tasting - Springs Road
Kangaroo Island has a number of different vineyards and cellars to visit and taste some local wine. Springs Road is one of these cellars that produces wine from grapes grown on the island. The specialties of the region are Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. Stop by for a tasting of their different labels and buy a bottle to commemorate the trip.
Kangaroo Island Spirits
If you prefer spirits to wine, then you can look into this gin distillery near Kingscote. Their cellar door provides both tastings and cocktail classes.
The Pick and Shovel
This cocktail bar in Kingscote is a great place to grab a unique drink. They have a creative cocktail menu and unique bar snacks that are all delicious. It is owned by Kangaroo Island Brewery so it is a great place to try local beers if you cannot make it to their brewery.
Vivonne Bay General Store
This general store is known for their delicious whiting burger, which is a local white fish that is battered and fried on a roll. The shop has nice indoor and outdoor seating and exudes the local quaint personality of Kangaroo Island.
Emu Bay Lavender Farm
This may be one of the best places to eat on the island. Not only does this small business have lavender products from their local farm, they also infuse their food and drinks menu with the aromatic plant. Their Famous Lavender Scone is absolutely delightful and a great way to get a taste of the plant. You can also take the chance to take photos in the beautiful lavender fields around the cafe.
Clifford's Honey Farm
The honey farm is another small business on the island. They provide tours of the honey extracting shed every day at 1 PM. This is a great place to learn about the importance of bees in our ecosystem, get information about the honey production process, purchase a variety of honey-based goods, or try some of their local honey ice cream.
MORNING
AFTERNOON
DAY 1
Take the early morning ferry to be able to maximize your time on the island.
Start with a walk around the Kangaroo Island Sculpture Trail.
Get breakfast at Millie Mae’s Pantry.
Stop at Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Oil Distillery.
Head to Emu Bay Beach for a snack at the shack.
Drive and hike to Stokes Bay Beach and spend the afternoon relaxing in the sun.
Drive to Springs Road for a wine tasting
Spend the evening in Kingscote
DAY 2
Head to the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park and spend the morning learning about the animals of the island and Australia.
Spend the afternoon at Flinders Chase National Park.
Stay near the park in Vivonne Bay or in the Discovery Parks accommodations.
DAY 3
Head to Little Sahara Adventure Centre or the Raptor Domain, depending on if you want a thrilling adventure or to see more wildlife.
Get lunch at the Emu Bay Lavender Farm.
Hike up the Mount Thisby Lookout.
Take a later ferry back to the mainland.
Read More About the Blueprint Travelers' Personal Experience on Kangaroo Island
Update 46: Visiting Kangaroo Island to See South Australia Wildlife
We drove around Kangaroo Island to experience its unique culture, see amazing landscapes, and encounter incredible Australian animals.