Join us on a 1-day Adventure to Kangaroo Island exploring Kangaroo Island's nature, wildlife and local wine & cider on this new one day tour.
Aside from the amazing wildlife, Kangaroo Island is also well known for its thriving food and wine industry. Your local guide will introduce you to some of the island’s leading producers, where you'll have the chance to find out about their products, history and sample their range.
Days
- 1 day
Group size
- Max 48
Start / finish
- Adelaide / Adelaide, or start on Kangaroo Island
Return
- See itinerary for details
Transport
- A coach with a local guide, with an accommodation transfer available if you are not already on the island.
Meals
- A two course lunch at the Emu Ridge distillery, plus tastings through the day — island cider, a honey soft drink, and a structured wine tasting at False Cape.
Route
Included experiences
- Raptor Domain — the only free flight birds of prey presentation in South Australia
- Emu Ridge — South Australia's only commercial eucalyptus oil distillery, with a guided tour
- Kangaroo Island Ciders — the Colony Cove range, tasted at Emu Ridge
- Clifford's Honey Farm — a guided tour of the honey room and the extraction process
- Clifford's Honey Farm — a honey soft drink, with a Honey Wheat Ale as an option
- Pennington Bay — a photo stop at a spectacular south coast beach
- False Cape Wines — a structured tasting at the cellar door on the Dudley Peninsula
Pictures / Videos
Itinerary
1 Day Kangaroo Island Wildlife Tour
Discover Kangaroo Island's nature, wildlife and local wine & cider on this new one day tour. Aside from the amazing wildlife, Kangaroo Island is also well known for its thriving food and wine industry. Your local guide will introduce you to some of the island’s leading producers, where you'll have the chance to find out about their products, history and sample their range.
On this tour you'll visit the incredible Raptor Domain for the exciting and educational "Free Flight" Birds of Prey Presentation at Raptor Domain. The only free flight Birds of Prey display in South Australia, it is thought by many to be the most interactive Birds of Prey display in Australia.
Next, travel to Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Distillery (South Australia’s only commercial Eucalyptus Oil Distillery) for a delicious 2-course lunch followed by an introductory talk about the history of the oil distillery and take a guided tour. Kangaroo Island Ciders’ range of Colony Cove products including Apple Sparkler, Draught Cider and Original Cider are available for tasting (additional cost). Finish off with some free time in their souvenir shop where you will find an assortment of Eucalyptus, Tea Tree and Emu Oil products.
Your next stop is Clifford’s Honey Farm, where you’ll enjoy an informative guided tour of the honey room where you will learn about the extraction process, taste a honey soft drink and have the option to sample the Drunken Drone Brewery’s Honey Wheat Ale. In the farm gate shop, you can see a working beehive where you can try to spot the Queen bee. There are different varieties of pure Kangaroo Island Ligurian honey and beauty products to purchase as well as their famous honey ice-cream.
Continue to Pennington Bay, a spectacular beach on the south coast of Kangaroo Island for a photo opportunity. This delightful tour ends with a visit to the new False Cape Wines Cellar Door on the beautiful Dudley Peninsula, where you can soak up the views and enjoy a structured tasting of their premium wines. Your tours ends at the Penneshaw Hotel where you have ample time for dinner (own expense) before returning to the Penneshaw Ferry Terminal for your return ferry and coach transfer back to Adelaide.
Reviews
4.7
Based on 55 reviews
Verified from
Real reviews from travellers who've done this tour, gathered from around the web and paraphrased.
AI summary of 55 reviews
Travellers consistently praise the knowledgeable, friendly and often humorous coach drivers and guides, many of them locals with detailed information about the island, as well as the smooth organisation across the multiple coach, ferry and flight transfers. The wildlife encounters stand out most frequently, particularly the close beach viewings of sea lions and seals, along with sightings of koalas and kangaroos and the scenery of the Remarkable Rocks and Admirals Arch; the provided lunch is also regularly described favourably. Several reviewers note the option to fly back to Adelaide, which many recommend for shortening the journey. The most common criticism is that it is a very long day with an early start and considerable travel time, leading many to suggest flying one leg or spending more than one day on the island. Additional caveats include changeable and sometimes cold or wet weather, a fair amount of walking and stairs, occasional difficulty hearing guides, and the tight, hurried schedule.
How we collect and publish reviews
Where they come from. Our reviews are gathered from independent review sites and from guests who share feedback with us directly after their trip. They come from people who have actually travelled on the tour.
Why some are edited. Many of our guests travel in their second or third language. Where a review is hard to read, we lightly edit spelling, grammar and punctuation, or paraphrase a sentence for clarity. We never change the rating, the meaning or the sentiment, and we never write a review on a guest's behalf.
Reading the originals. Reviews sourced from public review sites appear there in their original form, and can be read in full at their original source at any time.
“It was worth paying the extra to fly back”
Large groups rarely result in a good tour.
“It was a really great tour!”
It was a really great tour!
“Great trip!!!”
although very long day. Would recommend it to all. KI much larger than I thought and I enjoyed the various trips to see the seals and sights. Our guide was very friendly and very knowledgeable about the island and its history.
“This was a great tour!”
It's a long day but you get to see a lot and cover all the highlights from the island. Bring sunscreen, camera, blanket or pillow for long coach ride to Cape Jervis. The tour guide is very knowledgeable and will make your travel all seamless. See kangaroos, koalas, sea lions.
“This is an excellent tour!”
It offered much more than I expected, I really enjoyed it. There is such a lot to see on Kangaroo Island - the ferry trip is only 45 mins and easy, the sea lion colony is fantastic, you will get right onto the beach and up close to the sea lions. The rock formations and beaches are spectatular and there is a chance to see Australian wildlife at the National Parks. It's really good. A lot to see in a day, but it's doable and the best trip I did on my South Australian visit.
“Astonishing geological phenomenon!”
It's a packed trip starting at 6:00 am and ending around 10:30 pm. But it is an incredible trip. The sea lion viewing at seal beach by itself makes the trip and that is only one part. Remarkable Rocks were an astonishing geological phenomenon. The tour company does a great job of getting as much into the trip as possible.
“Great day.”
Organisation was excellent. The tour guide Glen was fabulous with his knowledge as a local from the Island. He made us all feel welcome. The weather was perfect and the flora and fauna spectacular. Loved it !!!!! Lunch was yummy and high quality too. K
“Was a great day!!”
This was a great day visiting all the highlights on K. I. Lunch was great, the ferry ride was great, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. my grandchildren, 17 and 14, , we all loved visiting where we had never been before. and loved Adelaide and surrounds very much.
“It was excellent!”
The tour guide/driver was very informative and friendly. All was good except that perhaps the tour company may like to put a note that the weather on the island is going to be cold and suggest to tourists to bring along a coat.
“Magnificent!”
I paid extra to take the plane and it was 2 hours late departing, so by the time I got to join the group it was lunch time! However it was a nice lunch, the tour staff were professional and friendly, and the island is magnificent. I would go back again, but stay longer, 1 day is not enough, particularly in bad weather. I did not get detailed info about the trip details, i.e. flight time, boat time, etc, and this would have been useful.
“The trip is nice!”
I went there with a terrible weather condition. The trip is nice, however, it is simply too far to get there. The tour bus pick me up at 6:15 AM and I arrived Seal bay at 11:20 AM. 5 hours for just one way. I highly recommend to fly there or back, unless you want to spend 10 hours on the bus.
“Our drivers and guides were great ”
Kangaroo is a great place and one we will return to when we have more time. It was a long day and the weather was horrendous but we wouldn't have missed it for the world.
“Enjoyable!!! ”
This trip is a very full day due to the distances involved however well worth it for the unique nature of Kangaroo Island. A very pretty place to see a lot of Australia's flora and fauna in one place. Also very pleased it is fox and rabbit free. We thoroughly enjoyed the day day and the island.
“This was a very busy day but definitely worth the trip! ”
We saw so much wildlife including a pair of boxing kangaroos! I learnt a lot about Kangaroo island and would definitely go back there! We decided to opt for the bus and ferry there and then we flew back to Adelaide in the evening. It was really worth the money to fly home, we were dropped off at the airport 1 hour before the others even reached the ferry. We were flown back to Adelaide where a driver waited with our names on a board and then drove us back to our hotel, we were back by about 730-8pm, the others would not have reached their hotel until around 1130pm.
“We loved it.”
The bus driver on the KI leg was very knowledgeable about the island. His commentary did not stop and he gave very detailed descriptions. He supplied us with drinking water as well. The other bus drivers, one who picked us up and the other one who took us to our hotel were also very good. Their service was very courteous. Overall, it made our visit to Kangaroo Island one of the most memorable day trips we've had in Australia.
“Absolutely delightful and unique visit ”
Although there were several transfers involved from city coach to ferry to coach on the Island to ferry and coach again back into the city all manned by different staff care was taken at every stage to ensure no hiccups! Thank you. M
“A superb trip!!”
With lots of fascinating animals and features viewed.The trip was made by the attention,knowledge and humor of our local driver/guide. Highly recommended. We are glad we paid extra to fly back as It shortened what would have been a very long day.
“Amazing! Wonderful!”
That trip was simply the best one during my stay in Australia! The island is full of wildlife undisturbed by tourist presence: sea lions, koalas, kangaroos and wallaby's not speaking of various species of birds and other creatures! Amazing! Wonderful! Very cognitive.
“Fantastic Island to visit”
The transport arrangements were smooth including return. Our coach driver was knowledgeable and funny bloke. Definitely you need to wear rain jacket as some places, it was windy. Despite the cloudy day, it was great to see the seals (fur & non-fur) in their natural habitat closely. Saw the Koalas at Hudson Bay. While over there, honey tasting was marvelous. Lot of different flavours and the staff were very helpful and welcoming. Nice lunch before heading to the remarkable rocks and arch. Nice dinner at local Pizza place.
“Long day, but worth seeing Kangaroo Island.”
Really enjoyed Seal Bay and the Remarkable Rocks area. Lunch was a very good buffet consisting of a variety of salads, grilled sausages and chicken. Reason for the 4 stars was due to our guide being a little snooty sometimes. Otherwise good tour. We did the ferry to the island and then the flight back. We enjoyed the flying back because it was at sunset and you get back a few hours earlier than taking the ferry and driving back the same way.
“Kangaroo Island is outstanding!”
We chose to take the ferry out, which included an enjoyable bus ride through the farming countryside, and then fly back, which was swift and easy as the night set in. The car was waiting and the return was very efficient overall. Kangaroo Island is outstanding, and all the places we visited were excellent. Seals, koalas and kangaroos were all in sight, and the scenery - particularly the Remarkable Rocks - very beautiful. A very enjoyable and memorable day!
“A very long day but worth it”
If you have lots of time consider taking two days otherwise book yourself a day off afterwards. Good lunch provided and good commentary from the coach driver. Be aware the crossing can be choppy or worse.
“A long day but well worth doing”
Lots to see and the guides were very professional. Saw koalas, seals, sea lions and wonderful rock formations.
“Kangaroo Island is such an amazing place.”
I truly recommend this tour if you have only 1 day available. The schedule is very tight though.. wish we can spend more time at each places so would recommend the 2 days tour if time allows.
“This was a nice trip.”
We flew both ways to cut down on time. We saw Kaolas, Seals, nice scenery. I would have liked to spend more time at the Eucalyptus factory.
“Would thoroughly recommend!”
What a fantastic day! Really impressed with how well organised the trip was, from the hotel pick up, the coach and ferry, an excellent and knowledgeable guide, great lunch and then flight and private car back to the hotel. The scenery was beautiful even though there was plenty of wind and rain! We were able to get up and close with the sea lions at Seal Bay and met some koalas and kangaroos at the reservation. The Remarkable Rocks are just that - remarkable! All of this was capped off with a succession of incredible rainbows that added to every picture we took.
“Absolutely perfect day!”
I would highly recommend taking the bus and ferry to Kangaroo Island then flying home. All of the sights on this trip were fabulous. If you don't have the time to do an overnight on the island this is the best substitute.
“The tour was wonderful, our tour guide was great”
The tour was wonderful, our tour guide was great. The contact with Joe was very good, perfect service. There's just no better way to do it. Thank you very much
Frank and Helen
“Once in a lifetime!!”
Once in a lifetime way to see seal beach, koalas, and remarkable rocks. Lunch was just ok. Tour was 50 people that day. Did the fly in/fly out same day. The pickup was a little too early for my taste which left me at the gate for more than an hour before flying, but it was great to be done with the tour by 6:00 and back at the hotel having dinner at 7:00. I'm not a fan of small, propeller planes, but REX Express was more than fine and professional for the short 30 minute flight over.
“Great trip!!”
With all sections of the itinerary on time and well organised. Kangaroo island was excellent, bus was first class and tour guide knowledgeable. It was a very long day but couldn't see how it can be shortened.
“A very well planned day out.”
We chose the cruise out, fly back option, and it was excellent. Great 45 minute cruise over to the island, where we were met and transferred to a coach with a great guide. The walk on the beach with the sea lions was awesome. An excellent 2 course meal with choice of menu. The flight back to Adelaide was only 20 minutes, where we were meet by a taxi to take us back to our accommodation.
“This was a great day out!”
It's an early start - beginning at 6 am with the hotel pick up but this maximizes the time you get to spend on Kangaroo Island. It's about an hour and a half from Adelaide to the ferry, then a 45 minute ferry journey to Kangaroo Island. We took the ferry on a very calm day but I imagine on a rough day that you'll need a few sea sickness pills. Once on the Island, the tour guides were fun and knowledgeable and we saw a lot of wildlife including sea lions and seals. And the Remarkable Rocks are, well, remarkable. There's so much to see it is a bit of a whirlwind tour in a day, so if we went back we'd like to spend a couple of days on the island rather than just a day. We flew back at the end of the day which saved about three hours on the return journey. If you're short on time I'd recommend this tour. If you have longer, I'd recommend going for a few days. There's lots to see.
“ Breathtaking scenery!!!”
Its worth a 16 hour flight and then a ferry to get to Kangaroo Island!! Breathtaking scenery, the Remarkable Rocks, the various sea stops, the sea lions the fur seals....it was a full day!!!Again, the tour director/bus driver was incredible!!
“A good day trip!”
A good day trip if returning to Adelaide by air. This option gets you back at a reasonable hour. Probably a long day otherwise.
“ I will be coming again.”
Kangaroo Island is fantastic and Beautiful. My friends and I had a great day. They Locals on the Island are lovely and helpful. A special mention to our Bus driver on the Island, Daniel (Sealink). He was funny and full of information. He made our day complete.
“A long day but a most enjoyable one.”
Our coach driver was a wealth of knowledge about the island. Potential tourers should be aware that there is a fair bit of walking involved and you need to be able to negotiate stairs and long boardwalks to get the the sights.
“Your drivers are well prepared!”
The only thing you should provide is a language translation. Your drivers are well prepared about locations and explanations, but not all tourists speak English so well to understand them...! A registered not at all live explanation in foreign languages could be sufficient.
“Great place and passionate guides made this trip excellent.”
The day was very intense with a lot of diverse places visited if you have more time, two days may be a better option to really explore all the gems on the island, but this trip still managed to leave us satisfied that we seen a lot.
“Spectacular!!”
This is a quick over view of Kangaroo Island which covers local wild life and scenic attractions. For me the down side was the horrendous early start from Adelaide (if I was going again I would stay in the peninsula area) - it makes for such a long day. The many up sides compensated by supplying an informed commentary, close encounters with sea lions, viewing other wild life but most of all the spectacular rock formations. The day was a bit hurried as K I is much bigger than you imagine, but if you are limited for time then this will at least give you a taster of the place.
“An excellent day!”
We did the coach and ferry out and the flight back totally recommend doing that as a very long day otherwise. Our tour guide was excellent everything timed to perfection. We saw Kangaroos, koalas, Sea lions and seals all in the wild and amazing scenery a day well worth doing.
“A great experience!!”
The tour was excellent. It is well organized, so we got to see many things despite being on the island for one day. Even though the time at each location is understandably a bit short, this did not hinder our enjoyment of the various places. The tour guide Daniel was absolutely outstanding ! He provided extensive information and comments, without being overwhelming.
“AMAZING!!”
Our tour guide was awesome, we had a gorgeous day and saw so many cool animals, views, and had a great lunch. Would definitely recommend, worth every penny.
“The whole tour was fantastic!”
Our first time over to Kangaroo Island and we both had an excellent day tour. Our driver was very informative because he was 3rd generation on the island and new a lot about. it and he liked a laugh. Only down side was a very long day starting at 5am and home 10.30pm. My suggestion would be to stay over in Penneshaw for one night before returning to Cape Jervis. Other than that we thought the whole tour was fantastic and we are planning another trip over to a different side of the island one day in the future.
“We really enjoyed our trip.”
Kangaroo Island was certainly different. Our coach drivers were full of information. We enjoyed seeing the Seals but were unable to hear the Guide. We would suggest that they be provided with a microphone. The Admirals Arch was beautiful. Also the rocks. We certainly made the right choice by flying back. it is a very long day.
“Fantastic!”
Everything was well organised and walking along the beach with the sea lions was amazing!
“A great day!!!”
A great day out even if the temperature was 41c.Saw a lot of wildlife and great views. Would recommend that you take the flight back, a liitle expensive but worth it as you arrive back by 19.30.
“We had a great time”
The tour guide was great and very informative. The amazing rock formations and time on the beach with the seals was worth this long day.
“Fabulous!!”
We really enjoyed the trip. I was travelling with my husband and 2 kids ages 11 and 14 and they really enjoyed all the sights also. This trips is a fabulous way to see the island in 1 day.
“Great Day Out”
This trip was one of the highlights of our whole holiday. We travelled all over the island, stopping regularly to see seals, koalas, kangaroos & some spectacular scenery. The coach was really comfy & air conditioned & water was provided. Lunch was lovely - chicken / sausages with salad & bread plus a dessert.Would definitely recommend taking a hat & some sun cream! It was a really long day, but well worth it.
“Cannot recommend enough!”
We had a great day! Our tour guide Alex was awesome and we got to see some truly amazing sights!
“A worthwhile day!!”
A long day that gave you full coverage of this wonderful animal paradise. Luckily we saw everything advertised and they were magnificent. A worthwhile day illustrating what Australia had possibly been like before man changed it!
“Had a beautiful day!”
Host was entertaining and knowledgeable. Definitely recommend flying on the return journey.
“Fantastic tour!!”
Using a flight for one trip from the island was the right way for saving time - excellent places to visit and perfect guide!
“Scenery spectacular.”
Excellent tour guide/ coach captain Daniel who was friendly efficient organised knowledgeable and witty ! he made the day a top experience for all.
“I highly recommend!!”
This was a very full day and long tour even though we returned to Adelaide by plane which I highly recommend. Kangaroo Island was wonderful and we saw a lot of wildlife. There is quite a bit of walking that would be strenuous for people with walking difficulty.
