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All 8 Kingscote Attractions »

Kangaroo Island Penguin Centre

Kingscote Wharf, Kingscote, Kangaroo Island, South Australia 5223, Australia
(08) 8553 3112
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Ranked #3 of 4 tours in Kingscote
3.5 of 5 stars 14 Reviews
Type: Tours, Nature/ Wildlife Areas
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14 reviews from our community

Visitor rating
    3
    1
    7
    3
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Date Rating
Chevy Chase, Maryland
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 28 May 2012 NEW

We took a tour with about 12 other people to see the fairy penguins. It is after dark and unfortunately you don't get to see the emerge from the water. Instead, most of the spottings are while they are hanging out by their nests. I'm glad we got to see them and it was worth the price of admission, but... More

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Prague, Czech Republic
Senior Contributor
27 reviews 27 reviews
Reviews in 10 cities Reviews in 10 cities
7 helpful votes 7 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 23 May 2012 NEW

The tour was just ok. Informative enough, but the group was too big and you can only do after dark, so only see the little guys in a red light that doesn't bother them as much as a normal flashlight would. We got to see plenty of them and were cute. I don't know what to recommend as an alternative... More

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See 2 more reviews by EuroAmiCZ for Kingscote
Cinnaminson, New Jersey
Senior Contributor
27 reviews 27 reviews
Reviews in 17 cities Reviews in 17 cities
26 helpful votes 26 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 26 April 2012

Went with my 11 year old daughter. The groups were way too big. There were many younger kids in our group, and they, and their parents were always the lucky ones to see the penguins. I saw one. My daughter was lucky enough to see a bit more. They should really make the group sizes smaller...like about10 in each group.

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See 2 more reviews by WorldTravlingNJMom for Kingscote
Port Augusta, Australia
Senior Reviewer
10 reviews 10 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 21 April 2012

Familiy of four undertook the penguin tour in Kingscote. As part of a large group the only people who were able to see the penguins were those at the front near the guide, the remainder missed out. A pelican feeding display held two hours prior was very entertaining in comparison and made the travel to Kingscote worthwhile. Would not recommend... More

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See 2 more reviews by Reeba315 for Kingscote
Adelaide, Australia
Senior Contributor
28 reviews 28 reviews
Reviews in 11 cities Reviews in 11 cities
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 15 January 2012

A wonderful day, you really need a couple at least, the only down side is that the ferry is very expensive... so much to see over there, and loved the seals.. that was magical...

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Seattle, Washington
1 review
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 30 December 2011

Having previously had an awesome penguin experience several years ago at Phillip Island, Victoria, despite the cold weather, I had high expectations for a similar experience this summer at K.I., South Australia. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. All four of us independently concluded that the K.I. penguin experience was lame enough to abandon our tour about half... More

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Brisbane, Australia
Senior Contributor
31 reviews 31 reviews
Reviews in 18 cities Reviews in 18 cities
23 helpful votes 23 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 15 December 2011

We were a bit disappointed that we didn't see very many penguins. In fairness, we went on the earlier tour of the evening and we were advised that we'd probably see more penguins on the second tour, but we were very tired and didn't want to wait another hour. Also, although our group was very small (most others elected to... More

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See 6 more reviews by kr_afol for Kingscote
Rochester, MN
Contributor
15 reviews 15 reviews
Reviews in 12 cities Reviews in 12 cities
13 helpful votes 13 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 5 December 2011
1
person found this review helpful

[Unfortunately TripAdvisor won't create separate reviews for the Pelicans vs the Penguins, so I'm combining two reviews into one.] Pelicans: Most entertaining 15 minutes you can have while dressed ***** (5 stars!) I never realized how goofy pelicans look up-close. They are really goofy. Put 30 of them together in one place and they look goofier still. Add a guy... More

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Rome, Italy
Top Contributor
61 reviews 61 reviews
Reviews in 34 cities Reviews in 34 cities
21 helpful votes 21 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 10 November 2011

The penguin centre building is very small and a bit depressing when you look it from the outside. inside there are some fishes, but you not even try to compare it with a regular acquarium! the penguin tour they propose though is really something woth it's 17$!!!! they bring you aroung a penguin nesting colony at night pointing with this... More

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See 2 more reviews by ermione81 for Kingscote
Raleigh, North Carolina
Top Contributor
66 reviews 66 reviews
Reviews in 34 cities Reviews in 34 cities
18 helpful votes 18 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 4 November 2011

For $17 a person, you'd think they could keep the group sizes smaller, but it was about 20 people per guide. Considering you are supposed to stay very quiet when on the nocturnal penguin walk, that made it virtually impossible for 2/3rd of the group to even hear anything the guide was saying. When we would spot a rare penguin... More

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See 4 more reviews by fievel1079 for Kingscote

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