Gumbuya World: A Winter Adventure

https://gumbuya.com.au/

2705 Princes Hwy,
Tynong VIC 3813

Gumbuya World (the revamped old Gumbuya Park) reopened at the end of 2017 with a water park, and a whole heap of new attractions. What else arrived at the end of 2017? My second baby was born, so we only went for our first visit to check out Gumbuya World last week. I couldn’t wait. I visited with another mum and we had 5 kids under 4 between us.

So the big draw card for Summer at Gumbuya World were all the water slides and the lazy river; so what is there to do in Winter at Gumbuya World? Plenty.

For starters in Winter there is reduced pricing, lesser crowds, and therefore you can squeeze a heap more into your visit.

We started off by visiting some of the Australian animals. Now I wouldn’t say I am an overly knowledgeable animal person, but I can honestly say the animals living at Gumbuya World are stunning. The birds, snakes, dingos, you name it were brightly coloured, looking happy, with big enclosures. I guess they just looked really healthy and full of life; go and see for yourself and you’ll get what I mean.

You can buy a little bag of animal food for $3 at the entrance (100% buy it), and use it to feed the animals in the petting zoo as well as the wallabies and kangaroos. Being the “quiet” season the animals were not having as much guest provided food as they would have on a busier day. This meant that our toddlers had a blast feeding all the super keen animals and were spoilt for choice with which kangaroo to hand feed next.

There’s even two albino wallabies which are super cute too!

Also being the quiet season it meant there were plenty of keepers available to talk to and learn more about all the animals. If you see Liam, go and say “Hello”. He was super friendly and passionate about all the animals at Gumbuya World.

After seeing some animals it was time for a coffee and a snack. Gumbuya World does not allow outside food or drink to be brought in. There were no bag checks, but that is the official policy. Being quiet season it felt like there were less food options and places to eat than there might be in the Summer, and overall I felt the food range was a bit lacking, especially for snacks.

Fortunately no one in our group had dietary issues, but if you have a vegetarian child I didn’t see any great choices (nuggets and chips, calamari and chips, fish and chips for example). If you have dietary issues I would encourage you to contact Gumbuya World before visiting to see if there is food catering to your needs; especially in the off season.

After a snack it was time for the rides. Your entry ticket gets you unlimited turns on all the rides! Best part about going in the off peak season? No queues! We just rode that roller coaster back to back.

There are ten different rides presently at Gumbuya World, with more to come. We visited with a 4yo boy, a 3yo girl, a 2yo girl and 2 babies (go us!). The oldest child could go on most but not all of the rides, and the toddler girls could go on 3 or 4, but it didn’t feel limiting. Gumbuya World has a heap of info on their website about each ride and the associated height restrictions so take the time to read up before you go. You can find the info here

After riding it was back to the café for lunch. Worth noting is right next to the café is a fully fenced playground which I have been told is the only original element of Gumbuya Park that remains post reno. Love, love, love that it was fenced and with picnic tables all around.

Lunch was quick to arrive and well priced. I got the outback burger (plus extra pineapple for 50c) and got my daughter the fish and chips. We were both pleased and food was yummy.

One last stroll through the animals and we were ready for home, with 5 tired children.

Other things worth knowing:

pram/wheelchair friendly
pass outs are available
lockers are available

So what are these reduced Winter prices???

Adults (16+) $25
Child (3-15) $22
Senior $22
Under 3 are free

And if you attend in June kids enter for free with a paying adult. See the facebook post all about it here

Areas to improve on?

Not too much; after all it is brand new! But definitely if they want to commit to no outside food and drink there needs to be more choice and variety available.

The other thing I’d like to see would be scheduled animal talks. Whenever we visit a zoo I like to see “ahh yes, the koalas have a keeper talk at noon” etc, and that helps to guide my day and give my daughter a bit more of a schedule of events to work through.

We had a great time and can’t wait to return again soon. I daresay we will visit again in Winter at least once, and definitely will be back to see (and review) Gumbuya World in Summer!!

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