French Island National Park

Naturaliste Tours is a great way to get a glimpse of French Island’s natural bushland and coastal areas inside the large national park (2/3 of the island) as well as seeing the farmlands and community. Our wonderful guide Linda is a “local”, of 10 years standing, is passionate about the island and has a sound understanding of the need to balance the beautiful natural assets of the island and sharing them with visitors. We now know so much more about French Island, and it’s history, and thanks to Linda can understand why the locals are so keen to protect the island. Our tour was comfortable in the 4WD transporter, perfect for the unmade roads, with enough height to give good viewing.The Western Port Ferries service from Phillip Island was seamless so no waiting at all.We would like to visit again in the spring for the wildflowers, orchids and birds.

There's a lot to like on the island; flora and fauna are pretty unique and there usually aren't too many people around. The island doesn't have much in terms of services, and is best explored by foot or bicycle. Access via ferry is convenient. Bring insect repellent for mosquitos.

Secluded coastal bushland with plenty of native marvels if you're prepared to rough it. Do your research, there's no drinking water and the only shop & campsite is KMs from the ferry on the west side of the island.

I'm surprised this place have so few reviews. Went there with my wife last weekend and loved it! It's extremely quiet, not touristic at all!We were on the island for 6 hours and did the 10km hiking trail. We managed to see around 30 koalas, most of them from a very close distance! That was absolutely incredible!We saw two big snakes too, unfortunately, from a very close distance as well. When they noticed us they went the other direction, however, it was still quite scary so make sure you look at your feel when on the island.There one store where you can drink coffee or get something to eat. You can also rent a bike there if that's something you're interested in.To get to the island we took the ferry from Stony Point (29$ both ways per person) which takes only 15 minutes.Would strongly recommend the island for an easy hike on Saturday or Sunday!

This place fantastic to visit and there's heaps of wonderful things to see and do here. Plus heaps of beautiful wildlife to see. There is also heaps of lovely walking tracks to venture along and you can hire a bike for $30 dollars for the day to ride some fantastic bike paths

Walk, bring your bike or take a guided tour, either way you can have a great day out on French Island.

Very lesser known place. Bring your bike or hire one from one and only general store located here. Good place to see birds and camping.

Lots of koalas, flies and snakes! Highly recommend hiring/bringing a bike (the walks from the jetty are mostly track roads, with limited views). Much more to explore with a bike.Koalas are everywhere, and you can expect to see 10+ on a day visit at least. Be careful for snakes (we saw a few), and for the love of god, bring fly repellent! (They will drive you insane!).Limited shade on the walk(s), so bring plenty of water. General store/cafe is about 3km from the jetty, and worth a rest/break.

Very minimal sevices available on the island. If you don't mind isolation it's a peaceful place and there are lots of birds and koalas to catch a glimpse of. Just be sure to bring your own hiking eqipment, snacks, emergency gear and water. You can hire a bike at the general store but it is several kilometers to get anywhere in the national park and you will hardly see anyone. The Roads are very bumpy, loose dirt so you will need to be in good shape to walk or bike on them. French Island national park is only accessible by inter-island ferry leavibg from stony point jetty near Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula. Summer is tourist season. The ferry may be cancelled if the weather is too windy.