Phillip Island - Fast Facts

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Phillip Island - Fast Facts

Phillip Island (including Rhyll, Ventnor, Cape Woolamai, The Nobbies and the Penguin Parade)
Large island famous for its little penguin colony
Located only 124 km south of Melbourne, at the entrance to Westernport, Phillip Island is a popular day trip from Melbourne. It is connected to the mainland by a 640-metre long bridge at San Remo which, in 1969, replaced an older suspension bridge.

Phillip Island covers some 10,000 hectares. It is 26 km long and 9 km wide and consists largely of open and flat countryside. The permanent population, in the off-season, is some 5500 but the island currently attracts some 3.5 million visitors each year which makes it the most popular single tourist destination in Australia. Its large little penguin colony and other natural features (such as Churchill Island, Seal Rocks and the Koala Conservation Centre) are the major attractions although the island is sufficiently large to have a few substantial towns (see entries on Cowes and Newhaven) and a wide variety of activities, including the popular Phillip Island motorcycle race track.

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