Penguin Parade Visitor Center

From Cowes we again boarded our coach for the short 7.4-km. drive, via Coghlan Rd and Phillip Island Rd/B420, to the brand new (it was opened just this July 2019) Penguin Parade Visitor Center to see Australia’s largest colony of friendly, frolicking fairy penguins (Eudyptula minor) at the iconic Penguin Parade, one of Australia’s most popular tourist attractions.

Check out “Phillip Island – Cowes”

Main entrance

With an area of 4,785 sq. m. plus over 1,800 sq. m. of interpretation & public spaces, this AUD58.2 million ($48.2 million from the Andrews Labor Government, along with a $10 million contribution from Phillip Island Nature Parks), world-class center, by itself a unique Australian experience like no other, can manage visitor demands (there are over 700, 000 visitors every year), including a peak of over 3,000 people expected on at least 15 days a year. By 2030, it is expected to cater for 840,000 visitors annually.

The modern, environmentally sustainable Penguin Parade Visitor Center, sitting between three distinct landscapes on the important Summerland Peninsula (the site of a historic buy-back scheme which saw an entire 6-hectare residential estate bought back, rehabilitated and returned to wildlife habitat), replaced and doubled the capacity of the previous Daryl Jackson-designed center built in 1988.

Strategically nestled in a junction of wetland, dune and headland, this exciting and visually breathtaking center showcases the surrounding spectacular landscape and places the much-loved Phillip Island Little penguins at center stage in their unique habitat.

Lobby

Designed by Terroir (a Hobart architectural firm) and built by Kane Constructions, its spectacular architectural design, inspiration and form, combining elements of the Peninsula’s basalt bluff, coastal dunes and wetlands, has been internationally acknowledged, winning at the 2019 International Architecture Awards, out of a field of over 380 submissions from 41 countries. Its complex roof and façade geometry comprises composite glue-laminated timber, steel and concrete with a zinc shingle façade.

This architecturally acclaimed star-shaped building’s overall environmental credentials are impressive, with low carbon building materials used throughout the center’s construction. It also has an array of 666 solar panels on the expansive roof, a water filtration system to recycle rainwater for non-potable use, increased roof and floor insulation, and double-glazed windows.

Its robust interior, consisting of exposed timber structure and plywood panels with integral color and texture, is structured around a major circulation path that has the capacity for large crowds and which forms a spine off which are arranged a series of dedicated spaces for ticketing, education, retail and restaurants.  The impressive laminated beams, at angled timber-clad ceilings, used sustainably sourced Victorian Ash hardwood.

The new visitor center has a wide range of new facilities including a host of fun and interactive activities for the whole family.

The interpretive habitat space provides a ‘penguins-eye’ view of the world, complete with life-size grass tussocks and cinematic projections.

The state-of-the-art, in-house theater, with seating for 100, is used for teaching and education groups, lectures, small conferences and conservation seminars, as well as the nightly showing of the Penguin Parade experience video.

Little Penguin Cafe

The dedicated education wing includes flexible activities classrooms for education rangers to deliver school programs. These will also be used as special group facilities for guided penguin viewing experiences (VIP or Guided Ranger Tours, etc.).

Gift shop

The center also has a café (Little Penguin Cafe) and a restaurant (Shearwater Restaurant), catering to all tastes and budgets (open 11 AM – 5:30 PM), where guests can enjoy an evening meal before or after their penguin viewing experience.

Two modern retail spaces, aligned with environmental priorities, also offer merchandise for sale, one of which is a specialty store focusing on Australian-made and responsibly sourced indigenous products as well as its best-selling plush penguin toys, dressed in jumpers knitted by volunteers, whose proceeds go into the park’s wildlife rehabilitation center.

Kyle

Penguin Parade Visitor Center: 1019 Ventnor Rd., Summerlands, Victoria 3922. Tel: +61 3 5951 2830. E-mail: info@penguins.org.au.  Open daily, 10 AM (2PM on Christmas Day). Admission: $26.60 (adults), $13.20 (children, 4-15 years of age), $66.40 (family) and $18.55 (Concession).