We had not travelled anywhere since March due to COVID-19. We were supposed to visit Malaysia/Singapore this month for a friend’s wedding but our flight got cancelled. Since Ben already taken 3 weeks leave, we decided to go for a short 3D2N road trip to Phillip Island.

Since I last updated my blog in September 2020, the COVID cases had declined in Victoria and finally reached zero since late October till now. The government has eased up most of the restrictions from November. At the moment, we do not even have to wear masks if we can keep safe social distancing.

Since the tourism industry suffers the most from the pandemic, the Victorian government encourages people to travel by giving a $200 regional travel voucher (reimbursement) if we spend at least $400. There is a limited number of vouchers and on a first come first serve basis. These vouchers are extremely popular and the first batch was exhausted in less than a day, and we were lucky to get it.

 

A relaxing stay at Island Cove Villas

We stayed for 2 nights in a villa. There is a tennis court and swimming pool so we brought our sporting and swimming clothes… but we did not use any of these facilities due to laziness. 😅 We watched a few movies and also kept eating.

Because of COVID-19, we had to throw all rubbish by ourselves because the cleaner cannot come in until the 2nd or 3rd day after we left the place. It is already so hard to book a stay during the Christmas period, and I think it is even harder now because a 2-night stay will take up the place for 3-4 days.

 

Koala Conservative Reserve

In 2018, we went to Maru Koala and Animal Park to see koalas but this time we chose a different one: Koala Conservative Reserve.

It is a big park and we walked around to spot the koalas. There are more than 10 of them. I think this is a better place for koalas because it is a more natural place with more space for them. They will be happier living here.

 

Exploring The Nobbies

The Nobbies is a popular attraction on Phillip Island. It is an important site for Australia’s largest colony of fur seals. It also has a boardwalk and a few lookout areas. The Antarctic Journey (a ‘museum’ of penguins) is also located here.

 

Penguin Plus – the ‘premium’ penguin viewing experience

We think now is a great time to see penguins on Phillip Island because there are no international tourists. We had visited here in 2018 and it was flooded with tourists.

Due to COVID-19, we must pre-book tickets to visit penguin parade. We only booked the Penguin Plus ticket a few days before visiting and the Saturday tickets were already sold out, so we had to visit on Sunday.

The Penguin Plus ticket is more expensive ($60) than the general viewing ticket ($27). This ticket offers a closer view of the penguins with fewer people and also gives access to the underground viewing. However, the ranger told us that the underground viewing is closed due to COVID-19 because it is not possible to maintain safe social distancing there.

Ben and I were trembling while waiting for penguins to come out from the sea because we had underdressed – I only wore a short while Ben did not even bring a jacket. We did not expect this because it was very warm in the afternoon (about 26-28 degrees temperature), but it is so windy and cold here and I will remember to bring more clothes next time.

 

A surprisingly good café – Café Lugano

We did not expect such a good café in a touristy place and we went to this café twice. It had amazing food and coffee.

 

A 2-hour drive that took us 4 hours

Ben and I are both very laidback when it comes to travelling. According to Google Map, it takes about 2-hour drive each way from our home to Phillip Island but we took about 4 hours. This is because we kept stopping and eating along the way.

We passed by San Remo, a fishing village, on the way to Phillip Island, maybe next time we will stay here because it has a beautiful sea view. We may skip the Loch Village next time because it is quite a detour.

If the COVID-19 is continuously kept under control in Victoria, it is very nice to travel even if it is just a short trip. We felt very refreshed after this trip after staying at home for so long. 🙂