Despite there being nearly 50 million kangaroos in Australia (two for every person), finding one close to a major city isn’t as easy as you may expect.
Whilst you can see kangaroos in zoos or sanctuaries, nothing compares to seeing a mob hopping around in the wild. Sighting one of these incredible animals in their natural habitat should be high on everyone’s list, and the great news is that Melbourne is actually one of the best places in Australia to see one, with big populations within a relatively short distance of the city.
We’ve put together a comprehensive list of all the best places to see a wild kangaroo in Melbourne, so you don’t have to rely on getting lucky. We’ve picked the places that are as close to a guarantee as you can get with spotting animals in the wild.
The Best Places to See Wild Kangaroos near Melbourne
These are the best places to see kangaroos near Melbourne:
1 - Gresswell Forest, Greensborough
Just 20km north of Melbourne’s CBD is the Gresswell Forest, a pretty patch of Aussie bush. This small area has 200 Eastern Grey Kangaroos and we got lucky spotting them despite visiting in the middle of the day.
The Gresswell Forest has quite a few short walking trails that meander around a relatively dense forest. You’re not likely to see a kangaroo on the trails themselves (although you might at dawn or dusk), but if you go in search of lush green grass (a kangaroos’ favourite), you should easily find them. The trick is to walk off the trail and into the bush, you don’t have to go far and you can’t get lost!
Within minutes of walking off trail, we bumped into four and then kept finding more wherever we went!
The Gresswell Forest is also home to lots of birds, so if you want to see Rainbow Lorikeets, Crimson Rosellas and Cockatoos, then head here.
We just want to note that you have to go through a gate to enter Gresswell Forest and there are some fences but the roos are completely wild.
Getting to Gresswell Forest
Getting to the Gresswell Forest from the CBD isn’t too difficult, even if you are using public transport. It’s a 35 minute drive by car, but you can also hop on a train from Hurstbridge to Watsonia. From there it’s a 1km walk to the forest and the whole journey should take about 45 minutes.
Check out: One of Melbourne’s best hikes - the Werribee Gorge Circuit
2 - Plenty Gorge, Greensborough
Plenty Gorge is a surprisingly large park, so finding roos here should be trickier but we’ve never had any problems. There are a few walking paths that will take you to where the kangaroos are, or - if you have a car - you can drive around the perimeter to find them.
Once more, it didn’t take us long to see a mob, including two big male kangaroos. Our visit was late afternoon and as the area is large we’d recommend early or late in the day when the roos will be grazing in the open.
Getting to Plenty Gorge
Ideally you will want a car to visit Plenty Gorge which is a 35 - 45 minute drive from the CBD in Melbourne. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself having to take a train, then walk to a bus to get to the entrance of the park (about an hour’s commute).
Read next: Where to see wild kangaroos near Sydney
3 - Westerfolds Park, Templestowe
Westerfolds Park is a beautiful spot for a summer evening, with a few open fields and many barbecues going on. Add in kangaroos hopping around to complete this very stereotypical Australian scene!
Once more, we saw some within minutes of getting out the car and they really didn’t seem to be too bothered about us being there. They weren’t even phased by the dogs running around either! Whilst we saw a few different roos here they were more solitary than the first two spots, and we didn’t see a mob. But it was still another great place to see a kangaroo very close to Melbourne.
Getting to Westerfolds Park
Westerfolds Park is in the North-East of Melbourne, in the suburb of Templestowe. If you’re driving, it’s a 30 minute journey (and one of the closest spots to the CBD). It is also a really easy one to get to by public transport as there is a bus that goes from Swanston St to within a five minute walk of the park.
Read next: The Kennett River Koala Walk - one of the best places in Australia for wild koalas
4 - Lysterfield Park, Dandenong
Dandenong and the Dandenong Ranges are some of the best spots to see wild kangaroos near Melbourne. Lysterfield Park is high on the list when it comes to the likelihood of seeing these creatures, as we were able to see a few, even in the middle of the day!
These roos were simply lying under trees, staying out of the heat of the midday sun. If you come early or late in the day they will often be grazing in the open, but scout the bush beside the paved paths if visiting at any other time.
There’s also a nice lake trail you can take at Lysterfield Park and there were plenty of kids who were enjoying the cycling tracks here.
Getting to Lysterfield Park
Lysterfield Park is a 45 minute drive from Melbourne and is on the edge of the Dandenong Ranges (a place that is well worth making a day trip to).
5 - Cardinia Reservoir, Dandenong
Cardinia Reservoir is another spot famous for kangaroos, but we weren’t so lucky when we went. We saw plenty of signs of them, including droppings everywhere, but they eluded us on this trip. We visited late morning and wouldn’t recommend it as the area is massive and once they’ve gone into the bush for the day they will be very difficult to spot.
Whilst there is a “kangaroo viewing trail” (which looked like a steep hike to the reservoir), the most common place to see them is by the Crystal Brook Picnic Area. If you go in the early morning or late afternoon, you will probably see plenty out in the open and chomping on the grass.
Getting to Cardinia Reservoir
Cardinia Reservoir is a 50 minute drive from Melbourne and we recommend heading towards the Crystal Brook Picnic Area for the best chance of seeing a kangaroo.
Read next: A complete itinerary for a 2 day city break in Melbourne
6 - The You Yangs
The You Yangs are a little patch of bushland in the middle of huge swathes of farmland to the west of Melbourne.
The main attraction of the park is the hike to the top of Flinders Peak with the chance of seeing some wild koalas, but You Yangs Regional Park is also home to large mobs of kangaroos (if you’ve seen the Ray Mears Victoria episode this is the spot where he saw them).
Wallaby in the You Yangs
If you haven’t seen a wallaby yet keep your eyes open in the You Yangs. We saw this little guy on the scenic drive so you don’t actually have to get out and hike if you don’t want to.
Getting to the You Yangs
The You Yangs are an hour west of Melbourne, and the only way to get there is by car. Be careful with google maps as it may try to take you along some private roads. Make sure you’re heading towards Turntable Car Park or Turntable road which is accessible from the southern part of the park.
Read next: The five best places to spot a wild platypus
A little further afield
The next few choices are great day trips from Melbourne where you can see a kangaroo as well. Favourites such as the Mornington Peninsula, Great Ocean Road, Wilson’s Prom and the Grampians are great places to see wild kangaroos.
7 - Cape Schanck, Mornington Peninsula
The Mornington Peninsula is a beautiful stretch of coast south of Melbourne and Cape Schanck is a great place to combine a hike with some wildlife watching.
As well as the amazing views, you can also see kangaroos at Green Bush, right at the start of the Bushrangers Bay hike. We saw them in the long grass among the trees just off the main trail. Keep your eyes open as you walk beside the bush and you will hopefully get lucky.
The walk is just over 12km long (if you do the full loop), taking you along the coast, and past beautiful beaches to the lighthouse at Cape Schanck but you’ll only need to walk for around 0.5-1km if you’re primary interest is spotting roos.
Getting to Cape Schanck
The hike to Cape Schanck starts from the carpark for the Bushrangers Bay Trail. This is a 1 hour 20 drive from the centre of Melbourne and takes you to the very south of the Mornington Peninsula (one of our favourite weekend getaways from Melbourne).
8 - Wilson’s Prom
The Prom is one of our favourite places in Victoria and this beautiful area is teeming with wildlife. As well as the kangaroos, Wilson’s Prom is famous for its wombats, wallabies and emus. The coastal trails and beaches here are jaw-droppingly beautiful and spending a few days in the Prom is the perfect break from Melbourne.
Finding roos here is easy and we saw them every day of our visit, but your best bet if you have limited time is to go very early morning of late afternoon. We saw the biggest mob when we went to the Prom Wildlife Walk, we were actually looking for emus which we didn’t spot but the roos made up for it!
Getting to Wilson’s Prom
Wilson’s Prom is a three hour drive south-east from Melbourne.
Read next: Our favourite places to spot wild wombats
9 - Halls Gap Oval
The Grampians are another of our favourite places in Victoria, with incredible hiking trails and a whole lot of wildlife. It’s one of the best places in Victoria to see emus, as well as wallabies and roos.
The best place to be guaranteed to see kangaroos though, is the Halls Gap Oval. When we visited we saw a big mob including a few little joeys you can see below.
There are many spots around Halls Gap to see kangaroos, as we even saw them in the surrounding fields of our motel!
Getting to Halls Gap
Halls Gap is a three hour drive north-west of Melbourne, and is in the heart of the Grampians.
Read next: 12 epic things to do in Lorne
10 - Anglesea Golf Club
Anglesea Golf Club on the Great Ocean Road is a very popular spot for seeing kangaroos and is the place to head to if you don’t want to go hunting them out yourself. The club run kangaroo tours, taking you to where they are so that you won’t have to go traipsing through the bush!
If you don’t fancy a tour, you can drive round the perimeter and see if you can spot them, you’ll almost certainly be lucky early or late in the day. It is private property though so you can’t go walking over the golf course but if you stick to the roads that run alongside it you will be fine. Golf Links Road or Harvy Street are a good bet.
Getting to Anglesea Golf Club
Anglesea Golf Club is in Anglesea on the Great Ocean Road. It is a 1 hour 30 drive south-west of Melbourne.
Read next: 5 places where you can spot cassowaries in the wild
Kangaroos near Melbourne Map
The map below will give you a rough idea of where all the best places to see kangaroos are in relation to Melbourne. If you want to check these locations out on google maps, simply click on this link.
Top tips for spotting kangaroos in Melbourne
1 - Go early or late: The early morning or late afternoon are the best times to see kangaroos in the wild as they tend to avoid exposed areas in the heat of the day.
2 - Look for the green stuff: If they have the chance, kangaroos always go for the freshest green grass. In many places, we’ve found the kangaroos congregated on the one patch of green grass around.
3 - If you go in the middle of the day, look under the trees: During the hottest parts of the day, kangaroos search for shade to cool down. If you are looking between 10am and 3pm, check under the trees.
4 - Keep your distance: Whilst kangaroos look cute and friendly, male kangaroos can be grumpy and even lethal. Never get between a male and females with joeys. Stay at least 10 metres away and don’t touch them.
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Are you visiting Melbourne? Have you been and have a great spot to see wild kangaroos? Let us know in the comments below!
