Journey To Where The Wild Things Are

School children who are wondering where the wild things are may find the answers on the NSW Sapphire Coast over the long summer holidays.

The Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre and National Parks and Wildlife Service are both running a variety of programmes that allow kids – and their parents – to get up close and personal with a range of local wildlife in guided programmes at very reasonable prices (see contact details below).

NPWS is offering a range of activities in various national parks and other locations around the Sapphire Coast. They include Rock Pool Ramble and Baby Shark Feeding, Nunnock Swamp and Platypus Experience, and a boat trip across Eden’s Twofold Bay with a guided tour of the Davidson Whaling Station.

The Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre offers Rocky Shore Ramble, a 90-minute guided tour of the local rock platforms with a marine biologist to help participants learn what lurks along the water’s edge.

Rocky Shore Ramble is priced at $8 for adults, $4 for children and $20 for families. It is run with a minimum of four participants and bookings are essential.

There are Snorkelling Tours, also guided, to discover the underwater world of the Sapphire Coast region. Participants need to be 12-years-old-plus, and the two-hour sessions are priced at $25 for adults, $10 for children and $60 for families.

The Centre is also offering a range of 30-60-minute creative sessions for children, such as Marine Mobiles, Seashell Creations, Deep Diver and Slimy Sand. Each session costs $7 and the child gets to take their creation home.

For children (and their parents) who want to learn how to kayak, Coastlife Adventures offers a range of tuition tours.

Ocean Experience tours begin in the estuaries of Merimbula or Pambula before heading out into the ocean nearby. This tour is aimed at beginners and intermediate paddlers, with a minimum age of 12.

For less confident novices or younger paddlers (5-8 years, if accompanied by adults), there’s the quieter experience of still water paddling with the River Tour. Qualified instructors teach kayaking skills on Bega River, with the bonus chance of spotting wildlife above and below the waterline. Coastlife also offers surfing and stand-up paddleboarding lessons for novices of all ages.

Local transport specialist Deane’s Buslines has a special summer holiday deal for primary and second school students (and their parents) who are travelling around the coast.

The Happy Holiday Pass ($20) offers unlimited bus travel on any of Deane’s passenger services around the coast six days a week, and links towns such as Bega, Merimbula, Pambula, Tura, Wolumla and Eden. Adults pay full fare.

The same company is also offering a range of adventures over the holidays including day trips to Mogo Zoo (near Bateman’s Bay), a kayaking/snorkelling tour and a national parks walking tour.

CONTACT DETAILS

NPWS: 1300 361 606 or (02) 6494 5000; http://www.wildwildworld.com.au

Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre: (02) 6496 1699; http://sapphirecoastdiscovery.com.au

Deane’s/Soul Quest Travel: (02) 6495 6452; http://www.deanestransitgroup.com.au

Coastlife Adventures – 1300 762 993 / (02) 6494 1122; <http://coastlife.com.au>

More information and accommodation details are available by calling toll-free on 1800 150 457 or by visiting the region’s website, http://www.sapphirecoast.com.au