There are many places you can hold a koala bear in Australia, such as one of the many zoos. There are decent zoos in Sydney and Melbourne, but I’d recommend Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Queensland, since it is one of the most famous, oldest and most renowned Koala Sanctuary in the world.
You can get there by bus from central Brisbane (445 from 40 Adelaide Street) or 430 from Queen Street Bus Station, or you can rent a car or go via ferry. A company called Miramar runs boat cruises there regularly.
There’s a lot more to it than koalas believe me! The entrance fee is roughly $28 Australian Dollars although they have different prices depending on what category you fall into.
According to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary experts, hugging a koala is easy by following these steps:
1. Stand opposite a koala handler
2. Place your hands on top of one another in front of your body around waist height
3. Make sure you keep your hands together while the koala handler places a koala on you.
4. Act like “a tree”and support the koala’s weight by remaining still and keeping your hands under the koala at all times (see above)
There’s also a – 6. Do Something Quirky, and so I decided to have my koala photographed with my travelling Northern Ireland flag…
Koala Hugging is Illegal in parts of Australia!
Yes that’s right – in New South Wales it is banned which is an extra incentive for you to head up to Lone Pine and have your happy koala cuddling moment.
I’d thoroughly recommend it! It’s a lot safer and less crazy than feeding hyenas.
Here’s a video I made at the Koala Sanctuary at Lone Pine:
Top photo only: www.wallpapers1920x1080. com
Jonny Blair is a self confessed traveling nomad who founded and blogs at Don’t Stop Living. He sees every day as an adventure. Since leaving behind his home town of Bangor in Northern Ireland ten years ago he has traveled to all seven continents, working his way through various jobs and funding it all with hard work and an appetite for travel. Don’t Stop Living, a lifestyle of travel’ contains over 1,000 stories and tips from his journeys round the globe. He wants to show others how easy it is to travel the world, give them some ideas and encourage them to do the same but most of all he aims to constantly live a lifestyle of travel. He is currently based in Hong Kong and on Twitter @jonnyblair.
