Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary — Attraction in Hobart

There is a reason this place is rated tops on Tripadvisor -- it's amazing! We did the night time feeding. Going to Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary was the reason I wanted to visit Tasmania and it didn't disappoint.

Jessie, our guide, was super knowledgeable and very enjoyable. It is obvious that they really care about and for these animals... and the lifesaving measures for orphaned, surrendered, and hurt animals all across Tasmania are incredible! They are in the process of expanding their hospital. This is a great organization!

My only objection was that there was a family with a 2 year old, and we got stuck with them. I guess someone has to, but she was so loud that I had to glue myself to Jessie to be able to hear all the great information. A child-free option for the night time event would have been nice, but maybe not realistic.

It was a 2 and a 1/2 hour tour, and we got lots of opportunities to be educated about each of the animals and birds, as well as the opportunity to pet and feed some of them. They have quite a collection, though many of them are small.

These are the ones we saw/pet/fed: Tasmanian Bettong - we were lucky enough to spot this nocturnal animal, “Fry”, before the tour Forester Kangaroos - fed Parrots Tasmanian Devils - fed Cape Barren Geese Tawny Frogmouth - pet Short-beaked Echidna - pet and fed Laughing Kookaburra Blotched Blue-tongued Lizard - pet Ringtail Possum - pet Rainbow Lorikeet Sulphur Crested Cockatoo Eastern Quoll - fed Sugar Glider Wombat - pet

They also have a ton of kangaroos, many of whom were left over from a zoo that used to be in the place of the sanctuary. The kangaroos are incredibly friendly and like to be scratched on their chest and under their neck. If you put the food in your hand, they eat it right out of your open palm. I could have stayed there all day doing that.

There was a porcupine looking animal called a Short-beaked Echidna that has a really long tongue. We put on a latex glove and our guide, Jessie, smeared this paste on it and then the echidna would lick it off. It was the strangest feeling! We could pet them too, but only in one direction so we didn’t damage the spines.

We were able to feed the Tasmanian devil, and then it would use its strong teeth to crunch everything including the meat and the bones. In fact, they need to eat the bones because it grinds their teeth down. Apparently they have a very strong bite.

There was a Ringtail Possum that had the softest fur I've ever felt.

There was a bird called a Tawny Frogmouth that looks like an owl and we could pet its chest.

There was a bird named Frank with a big personality, who at 112 years old is the eighth oldest bird in the world!

At the end of the tour, he brought out Bean, a 7 mo old wombat who just wandered around us. We could pet him too when he came over to us. So cute! His mother had been hit by a car and it was a couple of days before someone found him in her pouch and rescued him.

The lighting at this time of year was amazing and created the best photos!

My last note is for expectation setting: The night feeding is a learning experience. While my husband and I both enjoyed it tremendously and felt it was definitely worth the expense (especially as a sanctuary), I am obsessed with animals and loved learning all about them. My husband was less into the education part. So if you want less learning, do the...

Educational, amazing wildlife sanctuary that focuses on wellbeing and rehabilitation. The best kind of place you experience animals!

We had the private night experience for feeding time... which was informative, fun and fascinating. The sanctuary is respectful of the animals. The enclosures are as natural as possible, with tones of enrichment and hiding spaces so the animals are not "displayed" or "presented" to the human visitors.

The night experience times in with the wildlife's natural waking hours as most are nocturnal. So they come out of their own accord as the timing of this syncs in with their natural feeding time with their guardians in the sanctuary. As guests, we were given clear explanations on how to engage with each animal.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and for a great cause! Proceeds go to continuing the work of rescuing, not acquiring animals. And the focus is on rehabilitation, so the sanctuary acts as an animal hospital to return wildlife to the wild.

It's not a zoo where animals are on display or perform for humans. This is such a vital distinction and so important for that public to understand.

Our human guide, Mark, was a warm, knowledgeable and fantastic guide. You can tell the staff love and respect the animals here. They see themselves as guardians and custodians and I have such respect for their mandate.

Highlights include the 2 echidnas who were suprisingly, the most expressive and delightful animals. Madge, the gentle young wombat (yet hopeful of her personality change for "the turning" when she's older so she can be released). The oldest cockatoo, Fred, whose rambunctious and loud personality rivals any flamboyant diva. Kelly, the queenly Tasmanian Devil who lay, relaxed and unaffected on her lounge of native grass as we cooed to her and waved, clearly used to the attention of an adoring public. And Thor and Odin, the pair of Tassie Devil brothers, who true to form, demonstrated the full range of brotherly love by snuggling, arguing, fighting, and then shuffling together again peacefully all in the space of 8 minutes.

Meeting each animal, we realised how much personality each of them had, how unique each individual is.... And how we should protect and respect them.

Although we were up close with the animals, we were constantly giuded how to engage with them, taught their lifecycles, how to respect them, to maintain boundaries and to allow them to come to us only if they wanted to. An excellent lesson in wildlife, how to engage, care for and respect our animal friends.

Thoroughly recommend to any local, interstate or...

I never felt this happy the whole year. The moment I hold the Wombat in my hand, one of the main reasons I want to visit Tasmania, it was pure bliss. The park is not much funded by Government and it may look as if it needs lot of development works. Especially, as our car was pulling into the park compound, I was a bit taken back by the looks of the surroundings. Even the drive way is not well maintained, there are no proper car parking spaces, the entrance is not that fancy etc. But, if you truly look inside, you will see a bunch of people who work hard and most importantly ready to offer their genuine care to the wildlife that resides here. And this love and affection surely outweighs even the best amenities.

This place is a home for many rescue animals. They even have a small clinic and a vet to take care of such animals who get hurt. The Tasmania evil, different variety of birds, the parrots, kangaroo, wombat, koalas etc, that was lovely. And if you pay $25 you get to spend time with the animals up close. The staff are so friendly and very helpful. I found pure love and emotion that is very hard to see around these days. It was definitely one of the greatest highlights of my Tasmania trip. This was also the first time in 3 years I saw Kangaroo. Being able to walk around them, see them up close, feed them is really a great thing. I was so happy as a small kid, a emotion that I found much needed in these times of distress and tension. Perfect place to unwind and relax. Lenny the Wombat is the best and he...