Sunday, April 29, 2012

Kick off Weekend Trips to Melbourne at Healesville Sanctuary

By Nia Lawrence


Enjoy fun-filled day trips from Melbourne and tour the city's attractions with your family. The bustling city is jampacked with sights and experiences, but your kids often prefer something new and wholesome. If this is your first time to visit the city, then you should bide your time and experience everything in bite-sized pieces. Melbourne is too big for a day's visit, and you're better off if you schedule a weekend trip so everyone in the family samples their own piece of the city's attractions. Your itinerary will include trips to Federation Square and a wine tour of the Yarra Valley regions, but you should indulge your kids first so they don't pester you along the way.

The list of things to do Melbourne is extensive, but your kids' cravings for adventure should be satisfied first and foremost. They may have seen their share of zoos and wildlife, but they'll surely experience something new at the Healesville Sanctuary. This nature preserve is accessible an hour's drive from the city; the simulated habitat is also located east of the Yarra proper, right at the Outback's doorstep. The animals aren't restricted by cages since their environment is expansive enough to allow full freedom of movement. The preserve doesn't scrimp on variety as well, as there are at least 200 species of birds, mammals, and reptiles born, bred, or raised in captivity here. Your children will also be thrilled at the opportunity to interact with them.

Make the most out of your day trips from Melbourne and double back on the Sanctuary's winding paths. You have all the good reasons to linger if you encounter dingoes, kangaroos, koalas, and platypuses along the way. It's best if you spend the entire morning and the better part of the afternoon here, touring the stops and frolicking on the open picnic grounds. There's a three-kilometer expanse of simulated bush lands to cover, which is doable in three hours or less. The 9 AM to 5 PM visiting hours should accommodate your trip; the park is also open throughout the week, even during the major holidays.

You can tour the three-kilometer expanse of park grounds in three hours, but the open grounds should tempt you to stay for a picnic and after-lunch frolic. You have to head out earlier if you want to tour the Yarra's famous wine countries, though. Take detours off Melba Highway on your way back and buy a couple of cases for your return trip.

There's plenty of things to do Melbourne, but you'll only savor everything if you sample these a day at a time. The city's attractions await, so clear your weekend schedule and come over for a visit.




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