The nitty gritty
The Great Ocean Road is prime koala-spotting territory, along with the route to the lighthouse at Cape Otway. A short ferry ride from Paynesville in Gippsland will take you to nearby Raymond Island, where you can see koalas lazing about in the trees along the Raymond Island Koala Walk. The relatively undeveloped French Island, in Western Port Bay, is home to a sizeable and healthy population of wild koalas, and well worth a visit.
For a guaranteed sighting of a koala and a chance to see them from their treetop vantage point, visit Healesville Sanctuary and the Koala Conservation Reserve on Phillip Island. Maru Koala and Animal Park in Gippsland and Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park on the Mornington Peninsula allow you to get up close to koalas. Conservationists at Wildlife Wonders on the Great Ocean Road lead you through bush to spot wild koalas, and Melbourne Zoo's koala-viewing area is also a highlight.
Some furry facts
While eucalyptus is obviously delicious and has a sufficiently high water content to ensure koalas only need to drink occasionally, it provides few nutrients. As a result, koalas sleep for around 20 hours a day and move sluggishly when they're awake. A marsupial that's closely related to the wombat, the asocial koala weans its joey at 12 months and sends it out to find its own way in the world.
