by Loreena Walsh | VIC Destinations & Activities
When planning a family holiday, it is not always easy to keep every family member happy. So for a great day out that has something for everybody, the in the gorgeous state of Victoria, family day trip ideas are everywhere. From markets to railways, to museums and galleries, there’s activities that include kids rides, to cultural indulgence. So let’s take a look at some quick tips for a day out.
Arriving at Melbourne gives you the chance to experience the metropolitan life and Australian culture. There are plenty of Melbourne family attractions that let the kids connect with nature, while providing plenty of relaxation time for parents too. Taking a ride on the free tram is also a great way to navigate the city and see what’s on offer. So let’s take a look at a few things to do:
Luna Park
This iconic theme park will keep the entire family entertained for hours and hours. From the youngest members to the oldest, get swept away in the joy, happiness and exhilaration that is Luna Park.
Adventure Park in Geelong
With watery fun for the entire family, the Adventure Park at Geelong offers fast paced extreme water rides, right through to a tiny tot splash zone. The restored 1920’s style grande carousel offers something different and unique to experience while you’re there.
Caribbean Gardens Market
The Caribbean Gardens Market is a brilliant idea for a family day out. First of all, there is a huge number of stalls selling fresh produce, IT equipment, clothes and many more things. However, probably the most exciting attraction is the rides. Together, you can explore the gardens by a fancy train, by boat or by chair lift. The Gardens offer many playgrounds for the little ones and give the parents time to relax in the greens.
Diamond Valley Railway Eltham
Old and young alike are fascinated by history and the imagination often drifts away to the more adventurous times. In the Diamond Valley Railway people can learn about and travel on passenger carrying railways built there in miniature. Driving through forests and bush, everyone can truly feel drawn back to a different time.
Of course, when travelling with many members of the family, the budget has to be planned carefully. For that reason, the theme park visits are best organized with regard to seasonal discount offers which occur now and then and sometimes even the whole year round. The internet proves to be a great place to find various coupons for getting discounts. In that way, the trip does not cut a deep hole into the money bag, and leaves the opportunity to repeat a trip like this more often.
by Loreena Walsh | Slider Features, VIC Destinations & Activities
The Great Ocean Road is one of the most iconic tourist drives in Australia, and one that won’t disappoint the senses. From never ending horizons of turquoise oceans, to luscious green rainforest retreats, quaint fishing villages and delicious boutique eateries, fun activities, everything from great camp sites to exquisite accommodation options, it’s definitely one of our most recommended Australian family holidays. Taking in winding coastline and breathtaking rainforest, the journey offers a visual feast for the eyes.
Getting to the Great Ocean Road.
The Great Ocean Road is located in Victoria. The official road is the B100, starting around Torquay and ending around Warrnambool. It stretches for about 250kms, although there are gorgeous towns such as Port Fairy and Portland a little further down the road than this and it’s well worth continuing on to include them in your journey.
The closest city to the Great Ocean Road is Melbourne. If flying in to begin your road trip, Melbourne airport offers a range of car hire options and is 1.5 hours from the starting point, Torquay.
Family Transportation on the Great Ocean Road
For families, a self drive tour is recommended as it’s much easier to adjust your itinerary to suit the kids needs. If you decide to drive your own car, factoring in the travel distance and accommodation and time requirements to get to the starting point is important. If the distance is prohibitive, then hiring a car is a great option.
For those people who don’t feel comfortable driving long distances with children, or on roads they aren’t familiar with, or the distance to travel from home to the starting point in your own car is prohibitive, there are still options for a Great Ocean Road tour. There are plenty of bus and coach tours available that offer tours taking in a variety of tourist sites and budgets. If opting for a guided tour or bus tour, be sure that children are able to handle sitting quietly so to not affect other travellers.
Family Accommodation Options Along the Great Ocean Road
There are many great towns, sites and natural wonders along this amazing stretch of highway. The great news is that there are also a large number of accommodation options to suit all budgets. Towns such as Lorne, Apollo Bay, Cape Otway, Warrnambool and Port Campbell all offer accommodation ranging from luxurious to basic camping. Add to this a variety of options within Cape Otway National Park and you can be sure that whether it’s cheap campsites, gorgeous B&B accommodation or 5 star options, there’s something for all families on this road trip.
Head over to our next addition to this series where we are taking a closer look at family camping along the Great Ocean Road as we continue with the next addition to our Great Ocean Road for Families series…..
Do you have family travel stories from the Great Ocean Road? Share them in the comments section below, we’d love to hear them!
by Loreena Walsh | Family Travel
Australia is known as the lucky country, and for good reason, for those of us who live here, we really are blessed with an amazing gift. Sure, there’s things that aren’t how we wish them to be, but for the most part we’re blessed with AMAZING Australian nature and wildlife, a great laid back culture, great healthcare, great education and the opportunity to live our dreams if we really want them enough. I’m not going to get into arguments about what may be lacking in the areas of health care and education, and you wouldn’t either if you really took time out to compare our standard of living to many countries in the world!
With that being said, I often wonder if our country is so amazing, why is it that so many people I know have travelled overseas yet never visited Kakadu, Uluru, The Kimberley’s or any of the other amazing destinations we have right on our doorstep? There are people risking their lives for the chance to live in our country, and yet so many Aussies tend to flit off overseas for their family holidays. What happened to the great Australian family holiday? The one where you take a family road trip and explore what our rich red soil has to offer?
There are so many reasons to stay home and travel Australia with your kids and skip the overseas holiday for now, here’s our top 5 reasons for travelling Australia with your family 🙂
- 1. You’ll discover just how little you know about Australia and you’ll learn heaps! In the days when the furthest I’d ventured from home was 4-5 hours, I honestly thought I knew what Australia was about. Oh boy how wrong was I! Venturing into different states and regions of Australia is sometimes comparable with exploring a new country! There is a vast divide between what life is like in Cities or coastal regions vs life in remote communities and outback towns. There’s even a huge difference between our Capital Cities. People speak a little differently, have different stories, and different issues, yet we’re all uniquely Aussie and that connects us all.
- 2. You’ll support local industry and help keep people in jobs. Australia has faired reasonably well in in respect to the Global Financial Crisis, but that doesn’t mean that some industries haven’t suffered. Our healthy economy means that it’s become cheaper for Aussies to travel overseas and more expensive for people to visit us from abroad, that makes for a tourism industry that’s feeling the pinch. If you can’t afford to stay in 5 star hotels, there’s plenty of ways to make travelling around Australia affordable, by camping, or choosing family cabins, caravans or even camper trailers you can spread your money further than otherwise possible. Every little town you visit on the way, every small business you support will be oh so grateful!
- 3. You’re children will be inspired! This is especially true if you’re living in a large suburban area or city. Heck we live in regional Australia and our kids are still blown away each time they explore a new corner of our country. Children are inquisitive by nature, they love to discover and explore and there’s lots of opportunity to do that on the road. Not only will they learn so much about the country that’s nurturing them, they’ll learn about other cultures too. You’ll meet lots of people travelling from a wide range of countries on the road, and it’s great to listen to their stories and lifestyles back in their homeland.
- 4. Bridge the Gap! Theres no excuse not to visit friends in distant places if you’re travelling Australia on your own schedule. Take the opportunity to do numerous road stops on the way, discover all the great towns and landmarks and treat yourself to visits with people you don’t get to see often. Staying with friends and family can save you money too.
- 5. REALLY get to know your Family! Not only will travelling give you a chance to reconnect with those you’ve been missing, but it’s also one of the best opportunities to get to know your own family. In our busy schedules it’s easy to pretend we’re spending time together, but more often than not it’s just fleeting moments of chit chat. Living on top of one another brings about amazing opportunities to not only get to know your children, it also allows you to learn and explore together creating memories that will last a lifetime and help shape your children for the future.
While I absolutely understand the desire to travel overseas, I truly feel that people often push aside exploring their own country simply because it is there, and they feel it will always be there. Life truly is too short to not see Australia, and I can’t recommend enough hitting the road with your children, no matter their age to open your hearts and minds together to forge memories that are unforgettable!
