Puffing Billy And Phillip Island Penguin Parade Bus Tour
Badge of Excellence
Melbourne, Australia
- 11 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Many Melbourne highlights, such as Puffing Billy and the penguins of Phillip Island, are far from the city and tricky to visit on your own. But this seamless full-day tour makes it easy for you to go. Relax as the bus takes you out to the Dandenong Ranges and down to the coast while your guide arranges your steam train tickets and the timing to see the adorable penguin parade.
- See a range of different outer attractions that many people miss
- Travel around with a guide who can assist you throughout the day
- All entrance fees are included for your convenience
- Escape the city to see other sides of Victoria beyond Melbourne
What's Included
- Entry to Emerald Lake
- Entry to ride Puffing Billy (Belgrave to Emerald Lake)
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Entry to Phillip Island Penguin Parade
- Entry to The Nobbies
- Guide
- Bottled waterAll food and beverage is excluded but there will be opportunities to purchase these items while on tour.
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup point
- The Windsor111 Spring Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3000 Australia
Pickup details
Pick up from: Hotel Windsor, 111 Spring St, Melbourne.
Itinerary
1
Puffing Billy Railway Lakeside Visitor Centre
4 hours ā¢ Admission Ticket Included
2
The Nobbies
1 hour ā¢ Admission Ticket Included
3
The Nobbies
2 hours ā¢ Admission Ticket Free
4
Phillip Island Nature Parks Penguin Parade
4 hours ā¢ Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Near public transportation
- Stroller accessible
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- Please note: ALL babies/toddlers/children up to age 15 must purchase a CHILD ticket.
- During peak periods larger vehicles may be used
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Woodrow_A
This tour is highly recommended. The tour guide went out of his way to make sure everyone had the best experience possible. His commentry was very informative.
Reviews
4.4
based on 369 reviews
Catherine_M, Apr 2026
The experience went from puffing billy to bobbins rocks to the penguin parade.
Simon was an awesome guide and kept the tour on time and fun.
Woodrow_A, Apr 2026
This tour is highly recommended. The tour guide went out of his way to make sure everyone had the best experience possible. His commentry was very informative.
Mary_S, Apr 2026
The train and sightseeing were great. Our driver/guide Simon, was terrific. He kept us happy on the long drive to and from Phillip Island. Unfortunately only a few penguins participated that night.
Our only complaint was that the van used was uncomfortable. Our knees were against the seat in front and there was no place under the seat to stretch out our legs. We are not particularly tall.
DilliPriya_B, Mar 2026
Lorraine did a great job as a guide had a great day...felt comfortable though its a new city and being a solo traveller
Tammy_L, Mar 2026
Penguin parade is super cool, they are so cute and little. Can't do this anywhere else. Train is just touristy ride thru people's backyards but fun. Saw wombats, penguins, achidnas, so cute. Guide was fun and informative
Anastasia_C, Mar 2026
Excellent tour! Very organized and on time. Itās a long day, basically noon to midnight, but really fun. Simon, our bus driver was terrific. Take a warm jacket/coat for penguin parade, itās cold and windy at night in March. Would definitely recommend.
Joy_V, Mar 2026
The time was changed for the tour to a later time not sure why. Felt rushed got to puffing billy rushed through on to train would have been nice to have time to look around and eat. Tour guide good and everything else was great saw lots of wildlife including penguins
Sandeep_S, Mar 2026
Train ride was good. There were no penguins to see coming out from ocean. Guide was very good. Showed us penguins in borough.
Lynn_L, Feb 2026
Lorraine was the best tour guide I could have asked for! We saw wild kangaroos, a koala, little penguins & burrows with their babies waiting for parents return with food. We had the best viewing spot thanks to her sharing her knowledge & experiences!!
BrendaJ_C, Feb 2026
DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY. Ticket says 10.30am pick up. Text message says 12.30pm. So, your there 10.30am just incase.....wasting half a day. Emails not answered, phone not answered. Driver was great and did the best he could with what he had. No stop in any town for dinner......you get a choice of 3 filthy eating places at the visitor center. Tables are disgusting. Food literally uneatable. Given your not back in melbourne until midnight, a 12 hour day, a decent meal would be appreciated. Penguins are great to see, but keep in mind you can see exactly these at st kilda pier and save yourself a 12 hour day with no clean toilets, no eatable food, and the cost of this tour.
Sharon_K, Feb 2026
Lots of fun, well worth doing. Our driver was fantastic. Should not need to make me write a book to give a review.
AnnMaree_J, Feb 2026
Wonderful day out thoroughly enjoyed it driver was very knowledgeable happy and helpful. Would like to do the trip again.
Zhu_Z, Jan 2026
Totally SCAM. No one showed up to pick up and no response from the guide. We trying to get refund of the operator at the moment
Response from Host, Jan 2026
Hi,
the tour was cancelled due to bushfires and you were notified.
A refund has already been issued.
Navneet_G, Jan 2026
Absolutely enjoyable tour with Russel our guide and driver of the day. His commentary made the tour lively and interesting.
Becky_C, Jan 2026
It is a fun and informative tour. Everyone is so friendly. The scenery is beautiful. A great experience!!!!!
JaeYoung_P, Jan 2026
This is a unique and exciting experience. I never had the puffing trains in my entire life. I and my family fully enjoyed this unique and exciting experience. All the views were also fantastic.
Susie_K, Jan 2026
They should know that the time they book isnāt what it ends up with. We scheduled for 10:30am pickup and we were picked up at 12:30pm. The communication with Wine hop tours didnāt happened as they said in their texts or phone recordings. I never received an email or a text back from my question.
Michael_R, Jan 2026
A very good trip driver was helpful and knowledgeable which made the trip the puffing billy train ride was most enjoyable and to see penguins in the wild was fantastic
Nina_S, Jan 2026
It was a great experience for puffing billy train and penguin island. The tour guide Chris explained about the areas along the way.
Rachel_H, Jan 2026
Matt was a great guide, made the information interesting and funny! He went out of his way to ensure we had decent food stops, even though it was New Yearās Day and a lot of places were closed. The highlight was the sight of the little blue penguins climbing up the hills from the beach back to their nests!
VICTORIA_R, Dec 2025
This tour group is utterly hopeless. We tried to get in touch with them throughout the weeks leading up to the tour as they sent us two sets of instructions for pick up. 10:30 and 12:30. We have trails of emails, messages and phone calls from us and Viator. Viator couldnāt even get a hold of them using the number or email provided. The phone number goes into a voice box. Emails are not acknowledged and responded to.
Needless to say, we went to the pick up point at 10:00 to be there early and waited and waited to no avail.
Finally at 11:15 another one of their bus drivers came and was able to phone the manager and confirmed that pickup time was 12:30.
However Viator and the ticket generated notes a 10;30 pick up time. Viator was hopeless in helping us resolve this issue.
WE DO NOT RECOMMEND TOURING WITH THIS GROUP. THERE ARE MORE RELIABLE COMPANIES.
Michaela_S, Dec 2025
This was our 2nd day in Melbourne and we cracked it with this tour. We were picked up on time and looked after expertly all day by Matty who drove the bus and provided the tour commentary which was full of humour and interest. There was a lot of driving during the day from the centre of Melbourne out into the hills and then following the train ride onto Philip Islandā¦but somehow that was worth it for the sights and experience we were being taken to.
The train ride was everything youād hope for with a light gauge steam railway adventure. Everyone gets place on a bench in a carriage but generally you sit with your legs dangling over the side so you can see more of the rainforest views and up and down the length of the train which is truly a unique experience. It can be a bit awkward getting on and off that. But with someone supporting you itās definitely worth doing for at least part of the hour train journey.
The tour guide has some discretion about stop offs and we called at a village called āEmeraldā to pick up some lunch. The bakery there was a real gem with Christmas themed decorations.
We had an extra activity to get shoehorned into the day which was optional at a wildlife park. Here we met Ozzie must-see animals including koalas, kangaroos, wallabies and many more.
We also got to stretch our legs on Philip Island along a man-made boardwalk along the coastline spotting the blue feather penguins in their natural habitat within a spectacular backdrop of the sea and setting sun.
The last part of the day was the penguin parade. You need a jacket for this whatever time of year as it happens after sunset looking over the sea. They little penguins were a bit shy when we were there and the watching crowds were inpatient, unable to sit still for 10 minutes to watch this natural show but that still didnāt spoil the experience, and the walk back to the visitor centre alongside the waddling penguins was very entertaining and fun.
The trip back to Melbourne from Philip Island took 1.5 hours to midnight, so it was a full 12 hour tourā¦.but we are so glad we did it as it was a very special day.
Simon_G, Dec 2025
I really enjoyed the tour. Our driver, Tony, was very knowledgable and gave some good commentary throughout the day. Puffing Billy was good fun, especially sitting on the ledges with your legs dangling out, though that's completely optional. We stopped in Cowes for lunch and the recommended fish 'n' chips was delicious. Phillip Island is primarily about the wildlife, we had sightings of wild wallabies, kangaroos and plenty of geese. The Penguin Parade was fascinating to watch, with seagulls impeding the penguins' route across the beach until sufficient numbers arrived. However, be aware a ban on taking photos and videos onsite after sunset means there's a chance you may not get much, if any, of you own footage of the penguins so be sure that seeing them with your own eyes is enough for you (some professional photos and video are available for free online). Penguin arrival is unpredictable, and in our case they arrived 20mins after sunset on a clear day with strong light levels. They may arrive earlier if the evening weather is cloudier or dull.
Mladen_J, Dec 2025
A ride on the iconic and charming Puffing Billy train offered wonderful glimpses into past rail operations.
I thoroughly enjoyed the tour of Phillip Island, where we spotted wallabies and kangaroos. Viewing the Penguin Parade felt like watching a live National Geographic documentary.
David is a highly informative tour guide, an enthusiastic host, and a great entertainer. He takes excellent care of his passengers, ensuring everyone travels safely and comfortably.
Thank you, David and Wine Hop Tour, for this unforgettable experience.
Francine_C, Dec 2025
We had the absolute privilege of having Terry as our guide. Terry was very informative and really cared about the environment we were going around to. The day was absolutely perfect. There was enough time for each stop and there was no rush. 10/10, Thank you Terry!!
Kate_C, Dec 2025
This tour was amazing and the best tour weāve been on because of our tour guide, Lorraine. Lorraine was so knowledgeable about the history of Melbourne and brought a fun energy to the time on the bus with her wit and sense of humor!! Lorraine is the best at what she does and a true professional. I would highly recommend any tour she is a part of!!
Holly_A, Dec 2025
We had such a lovely day, starting with the Puffing Billy train. Our tour guide Lorraine was so informative and engaging. She took a video of us on the train and shared the content afterwards.
After the train we ventured to Nobbies and explored the wildlife and she pointed out where penguin burrows would be and we spotted lots of wallabies too.
The penguin parade was great. They came out late when we were there, but we still managed to see lots.
I thoroughly recommend this tour. Lorraine looked after us and answered all our questions from start to find! So enjoyable.
Susan_F, Dec 2025
Take water and snacks with you. Warm clothing for both the train and waiting to see the penguins.
It's a long day for small children.
Bus was adequate but old.
Leah_S, Nov 2025
We were picked promptly on time at the Windsor hotel. The instructions said outside the hotel and maybe should have specified across the street (major intersection) but we got settled nonetheless. Our Tour Guide Marliese was very enthusiastic and informative as we went from stop to stop. At the Puffing Billy Railway once we were all settled in the train car, she stood on the platform taking photos for everyone.
At some point in the journey the train goes over a bridge. Marliese (Mars) was already there under the bridge waving and video tapping as we rode along. She didn't have to do that, but it was a kind gesture. She shared it with the group at the end of the day. We had plenty of free time after the train for food and a walk around.
Mars put together an Aussie playlist for our benefit as we went from place to place. As foreigners we loved this. We also made a quick bonus stop at Cape Woolamai to walk on the beautiful sandy beach.
It was recommended we have an early dinner during our stop in Cowes in order to maximize our time at the Penguin Parade. We also stopped at the Nobbies and walked the boardwalk, saw some local wildlife and learned a lot about Phillip Island and the conservation measures that are being taken.
When we arrived at the penguin parade. Mars told us what to expect, and how best to observe the penguins. Our tour seemed to have a slightly later meeting time after the event than many other tours. This was a great benefit because we could see more as the crowds started to thin out.
We were curious of the final tally of penguins we saw that night. Since Mars coincidentally was doing the same tour the next day, she offered to email us the final count from our visit which was by no means necessary but greatly appreciated. She went above and beyond. We really enjoyed this tour and would recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Angela_R, Nov 2025
This is a long day. Our guide was good but I felt like we could have had a bit more info along the way. The most disappointing part was we were expecting to be back in Melbourne at 9.30pm as per the tour info but it was 11.30pm and then we had to get back to our hotel from the drop-off point very late at night.
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