Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pacific Hwy., Somersby. & 02/4340 1022. Admission A$16 (US$10) adults, A$8 (US$5.20) children, A$40
(US$26) families. Daily 9am-5pm. Closed Christmas. Somersby is near Gosford, 84km (52 miles) north of Syd-
ney. By car: Take the Pacific Hwy. and the Sydney-Newcastle Fwy. (F3); the trip takes about 1 hr. CityRail trains
leave from Central Station for Gosford every 30 min. From Gosford, take the bus marked Australian Wildlife
Park (10-min. ride).
Featherdale Wildlife Park If you only have time to visit one
wildlife park in Sydney, make it this one. The selection of Australian animals is
excellent, and most importantly, the animals are very well cared for. You could
easily spend a couple of hours here despite the park's compact size. You'll have
the chance to hand-feed friendly kangaroos and wallabies, and get a photo taken
next to a koala. (There are many here, both the New South Wales variety and
the larger Victorian type.) The park's newest addition is the “Reptilian Pavilion.”
It houses 30 different native species of reptiles in 26 spectacularly lifelike
exhibits.
217 Kildare Rd., Doonside. & 02/9622 1644. Fax 02/9671-4140. www.featherdale.com.au. Admission A$16
(US$10) adults, A$8 (US$5.20) children 4-14, A$40 (US$26) families. Daily 9am-5pm. CityRail: Blacktown
station, then take bus 725 to park. (Ask driver to tell you when to get off.) By car: Take the M4 motorway to
Reservoir Rd., turn off, travel 4km (2 1 2 miles), then turn left at Kildare Rd.
Koala Park This is probably the only place in the country (unless you travel
all the way to Kangaroo Island in South Australia) where you'll be able to spot
this many koalas in one place. In all, there are around 55 koalas roaming within
the park's leafy boundaries. Koala cuddling sessions are free, and take place at
10:20 and 11:45am, and 2 and 3pm daily. There are also wombats, dingoes,
kangaroos, wallabies, emus, and native birds here, too. You can hire a private
guide to take you around for A$70 (US$46) for a 2-hour session, or hitch onto
one of the free “hostess” guides who wander around the park like Pied Pipers.
84 Castle Hill Rd., West Pennant Hills. & 02/9484 3141 or 02/9875 2777. www.koalapark.com. Admission
A$15 (US$9.75) adults, A$8 (US$5.20) children, A$40 (US$26) families. Daily 9am-5pm. Closed Christmas.
CityRail: Pennant Hills station via North Strathfield (45 min.), then take any bus nos. 651-655 to park.
Oceanworld Manly Though not as impressive as the Sydney Aquarium,
Oceanworld can be combined with a visit to Manly Beach (see “North of Syd-
ney Harbour,” below) for a nice day's outing. There's a decent display of Barrier
Reef fish, and more giant sharks. Also here are the five most venomous snakes
in the world. Shark feeding is at 11am on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
There is also a dive with the sharks program.
West Esplanade, Manly. & 02/9949 2644. Admission A$16 (US$10) adults, A$8 (US$5.20) children, A$40
(US$26) families. Daily 10am-5:30pm. Ferry or JetCat: Manly.
Taronga Zoo Taronga has the best view of any zoo in the world. Set
on a hill, it looks out over Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, and the Harbour
Bridge. It's better on the legs to explore the zoo from the top down. The main
attractions are the fabulous chimpanzee exhibit, the gorilla enclosure, and the
Nocturnal Houses, where you can see some of Australia's many nighttime mar-
supials out and about, including the platypus and the cuter-than-cute bilby
(the official Australian Easter bunny). There's an interesting reptile display, a
couple of impressive Komodo dragons, a scattering of indigenous beasties—
including a few koalas, echidnas, kangaroos, dingoes, and wombats—and lots
more. The kangaroo and wallaby exhibit is unimaginative; you'd be better off
going to Featherdale Wildlife Park (see above) for happier-looking animals.
Animals are fed at various times during the day. The zoo can get crowded on
weekends, so I strongly advise visiting during the week or going early in the
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