Where To See Kangaroos In Australia

Last updated: 23 June 2023

Kangaroos are not often spotted on city streets in Australia. In fact, overall they’re not seen as commonly as many people might think. In small towns and outposts the bush is frequently just beyond the backyard. This proximity to nature means it’s likely that travellers will encounter a variety of wildlife. But to have the best chance of seeing the much-loved, herbivores bounding past on their powerful hind legs, you need to head out of the city to open grassland. Here is our guide to the best places where to see kangaroos in Australia.

The information in this article is inspired by Inside Guides Australia - your essential guide for visiting Australia.

Murramarang National Park

South of Sydney on the New South Wales coast, Murramarang National Park lies along an expansive stretch of dramatic shoreline encompassing cliffs, rocky headlands and stunning sandy beaches backed by forest. The park is home to abundant wildlife. 

Troops of eastern grey kangaroos pass the time napping near the campgrounds and golden sands at Pebbly Beach until dusk when they congregate to graze. At nearby Pretty Beach, kangaroos are often seen near the bush hiking trails and cabins that are available to rent. Many are tame enough to come quite close to people, so you can watch them from the front porch hopping around on the grass.

Mungo National Park

Situated northeast of the town of Wentworth in New South Wales, Mungo National Park comprises most of a dry lake bed in the dried up Willandra Lakes system. An important aboriginal site, the area contains records of Aboriginal life dating back 40,000 years. 

Known for its otherworldly geological phenomenon, the Walls of China, a 30-m high white sand wall that is 30km long, the park supports a thriving kangaroo population. For close-up views, the best time is from late afternoon onwards when the kangaroos gather to feed in the grasslands or rest in shaded woodland areas. 

Red kangaroos are the most commonly found species in Mungo, and are identifiable by their earthy, reddish fur and size – males can reach a height of up to two metres.

Kangaroos in Mungo National Park, New South Wales. Photo: Shutterstock

Kangaroo Island

A wildlife paradise to the southwest of Adelaide, you can reach Kangaroo Island on the car ferry that regularly departs from the mainland. Blessed with some of Australia’s finest beaches at Stokes Bay and Emu Bay, the island also has striking rock formations sculpted by the elements, and Flinders Chase National Park which is the best place to experience its diverse wildlife. 

There are New Zealand fur seals at Cape du Couedic and hiking trails through varied landscapes where you can see wallabees, echidnas and kangaroos. 

Smaller than their mainland relatives, kangaroos on the island have darker, longer fur. Head to the park’s Black Swamp where they often rest amongst shaded vegetation by day, usually emerging to graze in the late afternoon, and again in the early morning.

Cape le Grand National Park

On the southern coast of Western Australia to the east of the town of Esperance, Cape le Grand National Park covers an expansive area encompassing rolling heathland, craggy peaks and unspoilt shoreline with pristine white sandy beaches. 

The park’s heathlands support diverse vegetation including a variety of wildflowers, and are home to mammals including pygmy possums and western grey kangaroos. 

Active from dusk until dawn, it is not unusual to see the kangaroos hopping about in the vicinity of the campground at Lucky Bay, bounding down the sandy beach or sunbathing on the sands overlooking the turquoise waters.

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If you are looking for where to see kangaroos in Australian West go to the Cape Le Grand National Park. Photo: Shutterstock

Yanchep National Park

Less than an hour’s drive north of Perth on the west coast of Australia, Yanchep National Park is notable for its numerous caves and abundant wildlife. Visitors can walk on the park’s trails, ranging from 500 metres to 46km long, to experience its unique coastal plain biodiversity. 

The koala boardwalk gives you the chance to get up close and personal to another of Australia’s favourite creatures, while the open grassy expanses of the park are frequented by an abundance of western grey kangaroos early and late in the day. At other times you might be able to spot them dozing in shaded areas out of the sunshine. 

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Featherdale Wildlife Park

The Western Highway and the rail lines head on from Parramatta to Penrith, thewesternmost of Sydney’s satellite towns, in a curve of the Nepean River at the footof the Blue Mountains (on the way out here you pass Featherdale Wildlife Park.

Located 30km west of Sydneyoff the M4 motorway between Parramatta and Penrith,this wildlife park hosts feeding sessions and talks throughout the day focused on koalas, flying foxes, kangaroos and other animals

Koala in Featherdale park Australia. Photo: Shutterstock

Cape Hillsborough National Park

Cape Hillsborough, 50km north of Mackay, is the site of a pretty beachfront national park that centres on a broad 2km beach. Backed by a good picnic area and framed by the beautifully wooded cliffs of Cape Hillsborough to the north and Andrews Point to the south, the shallow bay is good for swimming outside stinger season. 

Starting 500m back up the road towards Mackay, an excellent 1.2km circular trail follows a boardwalk through coastal mangroves, then snakes up to aridge for views out over open gum woodland peppered with grevilleas, cycads and grass trees. There’s also ahuge midden up here, left over from First Nations shellfish feasts, and plenty of reptilessunning themselves around the edges of the path.

Narawntapu National Park

One of the best places in Tasmania to see kangaroos, Narawntapu National Park is home to an abundance of marsupials; at dusk, Forester kangaroosand Bennett’s wallabies emerge to graze the grassland behind Bakers Beach (good for swimming).

You’ll need your own transport to get out here; it’s a meandering, 40km drive fromDevonport via the B71 then C740 to the main entrance and information centre.

Forester Kangaroo (Macropus Giganteus) in the Narawntapu National Park, Tasmania. Photo: Shutterstock

Grampians National Park

Rising from the flat, volcanic plains of western Victoria’s wheat and grazing districts,the sandstone ranges of the Grampians, with their weird rocky outcrops and starkridges, seem doubly spectacular. 

In addition to their scenic splendour, in Grampians National Park (Gariwerd) you’ll find a dazzling array of flora, with a spring and early summer bonanza of wild flowers and more than fifty bushwalks alongnearly 200km of tracks. 

There are also several hundred kilometres of road, fromsealed highway to unsealed and 4WD tracks, on which you can take scenic drivesand 4WD tours.

Woodlands Historic Park

Woodlands Historic Park, located in Greenvale and is known for its diverse ecosystems and abundant wildlife. This park is one of the best places where to see kangaroos in Australia. Visitors can observe and photograph kangaroos in their natural habitat. The park also has walking paths, picnic areas and other recreational activities that visitors can enjoy while watching kangaroos in the wild.

Eastern Grey Kangaroo at Woodlands Historic Park, Victoria, Australia. Photo: Shutterstock

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

Currumbin itself is a humdrum development whose main point of interest is Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. This seventy-acre reserve of forest and water was startedin 1946 by Alex Griffiths, who developed it as a native wildlife refuge. 

There are the usual feeding times (throughout the day) and tame kangaroos, but the park’s strongest points are its lively, educational shows and its wildlife hospital, which has large windows looking onto the operating rooms.

It’s also home to the TreeTop Challenge, an exciting graded series of zipline andhigh rope courses. On Friday evenings, the Sanctuary Markets features local and international food stalls, as well as arts and crafts.

Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary

The Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary has found fame thanks to its efforts to pull the endangered Tasmanian devil back from the brink of extinction. 

Because it specializes in the rehabilitation of orphaned and injured wildlife (hence theemphasis that this is not a zoo), it also houses the full quota of unique Tassie wildlife: mobs of Forester kangaroos, pademelons and wallabies, plus quolls, possoms,wombats and echidnas.

The Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary wombat. Photo: Shutterstock

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