The St Kilda penguin colony has reopened to the public after a four-year hiatus, drawing attention to its new online ticketing system. The temporary colony at St Kilda Pier in Melbourne also reopened to public viewings on October 29. This followed a major $53 million Reimagining the Penguin Exhibit renovation to Fischer Hall set out to enhance the visitor experience while better protecting the penguins.
Thanks to the new ticketing procedures, visitors must now reserve one of two one-hour time slots per evening. Each session is capped at 150 participants. This represented a positive shift from the previous management under Earthcare St Kilda and Parks Victoria. They wanted to continue managing the penguin experience before, during and after the renovation. With the management contract going to Phillip Island Nature Parks, it brought a different method of booking tickets.
Sadly, tickets to the special penguin viewing experience are already sold out until late March 2026. Moreover, April’s bookings have not yet come out. Countless eager travelers are being turned away due to the intense competition for ticket reservations. They call the booking for passengers a complicated and confusing process.
Knowing that we had experienced overcrowding in the past, we made the decision to put a ticketing system in place. On some days, attendance topped out at 2,000 attendees. This sudden surge created unwanted stressors for the penguins, such as flash photography and overcrowding around their nesting sites.
“People were sticking their selfie sticks into penguin nests, and back then people were allowed all over these rocks as well,” – Flossy Sperring.
The new ticketing system was adopted largely due to these concerns, but implementation hasn’t been smooth sailing either. Field testers have stated that they have found it hard to navigate their new booking platform, which has caused confusion over time slots available.
“There were just people literally everywhere as penguins were coming up; there would just be people sitting on the rocks in front of their nests.”
Gabriele Tuccillo expressed concerns about the long-term nature of the ticketing situation:
“It was a bit confusing and it wasn’t exactly clear when you could see what was available next,” – Rhianna.
Mark Anderson from Phillip Island Nature Parks praised their first ticket release on record for being inundated with demand.
“What if I actually did book it in March? And then at some point, you know, I’m not going to be in Melbourne.”
Despite the challenges of the new system, some visitors have suggested that a walk-in option could alleviate issues with capacity. Flossy Sperring pointed out how many tickets are never used because the experience is free, creating a lot of unused capacity.
“We had an overwhelming response for tickets in the first release, which unfortunately meant that some people have missed out.”
Sperring mentioned that it would be beneficial if visitors could come in as walk-ins when attendance is low:
“We plan to start releasing tickets more regularly in the new year, with a shorter booking window, and we are currently looking at ways to give priority access to local residents.”
To mitigate complaints about no-show reservations, Anderson proposed that ticket holders be required to pre-cancel their reservation if they will not be using it.
“Because it’s free, what’s happening is a lot of people aren’t actually showing up, and so we’re not at full capacity,” – Flossy Sperring.
Sperring pointed out that the cancellation process may hinder attendance:
“So it would be really great if people could actually come in as walk-ins if it’s not busy.”
Recognizing the challenges with ticketing and operations, there is optimism that continued improvement will come in the future.
“We encourage people to cancel early if their plans change so they can be re-booked,” – Mark Anderson.
However, Sperring pointed out that the cancellation process may hinder attendance:
“They [ticketholders] have to phone Phillip Island to cancel up, and I think that means that a lot of people aren’t doing that, and so then we’re ending up with the boardwalk not being at full capacity.”
Despite the hurdles surrounding ticketing and management, there is hope for improvement in the future.
“We had hoped that we would be able to manage the penguin viewing experience because we have an understanding of what locals want,” – Flossy Sperring.
