The best holiday kid's clubs in Australia

Kids’ clubs – the saviour of holidaying parents everywhere. Whether your offspring are at the crawling stage or the sneering stage, there’s a club out there to suit. We’ll help you find it.

If you don’t discover the joys of a good kids’ club early on, you may miss out on some truly memorable family holidays. Sure, there may be times when you can’t wait to hand them over and occasions when you prefer to spend precious holiday time actually in their company – but isn’t it great to know there’s a choice? In no particular order, here are Australian Traveller’s pick of the kids’ clubs.

Run away to the circus

No need to call the RSPCA – there isn’t a clapped-out old bear in sight at the brand new Cirque Espace, Novotel Twin Waters’ Cirque du Soleil-inspired circus school. The 4.5 star resort on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast beachfront has always gone out of its way to make kids happy with its excellent Club Dolfi – and now there’s the added element for anyone aged seven and up (ie, you can do it, too) in the form of the Exhiler8 Flying Trapeze, a static trapeze, juggling, acrobatic balancing . . . it’s a tumbling, clowning free-for-all.

Open daily, Club Dolfi also has a new games and play area, meaning kids aged anywhere from two to 12 can check in for activities such as painting, jewellery making, sand sculptures, movie and popcorn nights, discos, puppet and clay design, kite flying – all along the resort’s private, enclosed lagoon beach. While your kids will expect you to put your hand in your pocket for them until the day you die, Club Dolfi offers a brief respite – for each full-priced session your darlings attend, they receive one Dolfi dollar to spend on Dolfi merchandise. A nanny service for children under two years is also available on request.

Shh! Don’t tell the kids . . .

. . . but Couran Cove Island Resort off the Queensland Gold Coast (www.courancove.com.au ) is only 40 minutes from theme parks such as Dreamworld, Wet ‘n’ Wild and Movieworld. The island itself has many different styles of accommodation, including two-bedroom waterfront lodges, four-bedroom villas on the Broadwater or in the Forest setting, 2.5-bedroom nature cabins for self-catering, and waterfront hotel rooms and suites – so check to make sure which will suit you best. Guests bike around this spacious resort or take the tram.

The Kites Kids’ Club is an activities centre for children aged three to 12 and is run by trained coordinators who supervise highly entertaining pastimes such as frog and crab spotting expeditions, treasure hunts, pipi gathering, kayaking, boat making, sand castle competitions and even a mini Olympics.

A clown school, arts and crafts, T-shirt painting and special theme nights are just some of the other activities – as well as something called “mud madness" which I don’t want to ask any more about (it probably involves laundry – but what the heck, that’s as good an excuse as any to book yourself an additional spa treatment). Costs are from $18 for morning and afternoon sessions and $30 for an evening session, including Spa Island dinner. There’s also a babysitting service.

Lighten up

Pack only the essential toys your child won’t leave home without when you visit the Novotel Pacific Bay Resort in Coffs Harbour, NSW (1300 363 360), as toys for babies and toddlers can be hired for ten dollars a bag. Babysitting is also available, as well as supervised trips to the movies and Hungry Jacks in school holidays. Package stays are available at this resort overlooking Charlesworth Bay, and up to December 24 a family can stay in a one-bedroom suite from $231 a night, with a free activities pass thrown in.

Since this is a Novotel, kids aged two to 15 can avail themselves of Club Dolfi and all its attendant delights – programs for making Shrek hats and jungle masks, painting sea collages, that sort of thing – and be kept generally entertained while you’re off taking care of the washing and cooking (all spa suites feature a full kitchen and laundry). Or perhaps you’re off relaxing in your spa bath. Either way, once those chores are done you might be found by or in one of the three swimming pools, playing a round of golf or having a treatment at the day spa. Music, games and video nights are also available for the kids. Nearby, see the Wallabies training facilities, the Big Banana and other family attractions.

For the little (and the big) kids

For a destination that ticks all the family boxes, Hamilton Island nails it. It’s postcard-perfect location is ideal for recharging your batteries, all while the little ones run down theirs – in the best possible way. Go-karting, mini golf, tenpin bowling, a wildlife park, and an array of watersports – to name but a few activities – will keep the whole family busy, while the Clownfish Club (Hamilton Island’s childcare centre) is on hand when kid-free moments beckon. Three of the island’s five resorts cater for young children and even include a generous ‘kids stay and eat free ’ offer.

For the big kids, there’s a plethora of adrenaline-inducing activities such as water tubing, wakeboarding, waterskiing ad windsurfing. If that’s not enough action, they can hit the hills on an adrenaline-fuelled quad bike expedition, or set off on a jet skiing or sea kayaking adventure, leaving you free to loll on a sun lounger.

Play tag with a turtle

I (almost) wished I were a kid again when I first saw the fun they were having on the Heron Island Junior Ranger Program. Heron is a coral cay actually on the Great Barrier Reef and, as part of the Marine National Park, it’s of course surrounded by an ocean filled with bright fish, is aflutter with thousands of noddy terns (watch your head), and hosts turtle-nesting season from November to April. The island just barely makes it into the tropics, so it’s not really subject to a rigid Wet and Dry season.

Kids aged seven to 12 can join the Junior Ranger Program during Australian eastern seaboard school holidays (and at other times by request, minimum of three), with activities designed to earn them 15 colourful badges. During turtle season they become part of the Queensland Turtle Research monitoring program, with activities including reef walks and snorkelling, turtle tagging, charting the night sky and “piloting" a helicopter. Registration fee is AUD$55, which helps to raise funds for the Queensland Turtle Conservation Program, while also covering the cost of Junior Ranger activities, workbooks and badges.

You can swim straight off the beach to the coral and take snorkel and dive trips to some sensational spots. All meals are included in the tariff and the atmosphere is very laid-back – but with enough nightlife to keep parents happy, too.

Little rascals

Don’t fancy being squished into one room? The two- and three-bedroom resort cottages at Rafferty’s Resort beside Lake Macquarie sleep up to six. A home from home, they’re designed for families (and/or friends), with large living areas complete with TV/Foxtel, gourmet kitchen, courtyard and a veranda, with all the resort facilities on the doorstep. Along with the children’s playground, there’s Rafferty’s Rascals Kids Club for ages four to 12, which operates at weekends and during school holidays.

There are four grass tennis courts (two floodlit) and four swimming pools with one indoor, heated and with a spa. Lakeside beach games such as volleyball help keep kids amused, along with all kinds of other activities on, in and around the lake and property grounds. The resort also has a general store on the property with – importantly – wine sales.

Just over an hour from Melbourne, spectacular walking and hiking trails encompass ancient landscapes, forested ridgelines and volcanic peaks.

Just a short drive from the city, the urban sprawl gives way to rolling hills, mineral springs, and lush forests that will have you feeling like you’re in the bucolic countryside of France. Encompassing Daylesford , the Macedon Ranges, Castlemaine and the Central Goldfields, this pocket of Victoria is a region where nature, art, and wellness intertwine. Heritage towns hum with creativity, good food and wine, and welcoming locals. While Daylesford hikes, and those nearby, offer the chance to take a pause and reconnect with nature.

1. Hanging Rock Summit Walk

Etched into folklore, few places in Australia carry as much mystique as Hanging Rock. Rising dramatically from the plains near Woodend, this volcanic mamelon offers a beautiful nature walk. The walk begins at a gentle pace, weaving through shaded woodland before it gets a little steeper as the path starts to climb and twist to the summit. From here, you’ll have views that stretch across the Macedon Ranges. The walk is roughly 1.8 kilometres return, but the real reward lies in standing among the weathered boulders, feeling the age and energy of the earth beneath your feet.

2. Macedon Ranges Walking Trail

Macedon Ranges Walking Trail camel's hump lookout — Walk to Camel’s Hump. (Image: Clair Derwort)

The Macedon Ranges Walking Trail traverses around 19 kilometres of forest and mountain landscapes. The full trail is a six-hour circuit, with most of the walk being a grade three; however, you don’t have to tackle it all at once. There are shorter walks that will take you through the tall mountain ash forests, to tranquil picnic areas, and sweeping views from Camels Hump and the Memorial Cross. The best times of year to head out are autumn, when the mountain turns into a tapestry of crimson and gold, and spring, when wildflowers brighten the trail.

3. Mount Alexander Traverse

Towering above the goldfields near Castlemaine, Mount Alexander is a granite giant that offers some great bushwalking trails. The Mount Alexander Traverse winds along the mountain’s rocky spine through dry eucalypt forest that opens up in sections to reveal beautiful panoramas across Loddon Valley and all the way to the distant Grampians. Once a site of ancient volcanic activity (and later a gathering place for the Dja Dja Wurrung people), the mountain’s granite tors are now quiet and create a beautiful, serene atmosphere for a moment of reflection while walking.

4. Murmuring Walk

Murmuring Walk daylesford hikes — Circle the picturesque Sanatorium Lake.

Located an easy drive from Daylesford, Murmuring Walk offers something a little different. Circling Sanatorium Lake, this free audio-guided walk aims to immerse you in the rhythms of Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country by blending the sounds of nature with a multi-layered soundtrack. There are two routes to explore while you listen: a shorter loop around the lake itself and a longer circuit that extends deeper into the woodland.

5. La Gerche Forest Walk

Located in Creswick, the La Gerche Forest Walk honours the legacy of John La Gerche, a 19th-century forester who championed the regeneration of the then gold-rush-ravaged land. Today, over 100 years later, his replanting efforts have grown into a living cathedral of towering pines, oaks, and native gums. As you meander along the 2.2-kilometre circuit, you’ll find interpretive panels along the way that help tell the story of La Gerche’s vision, so you can learn as you wander.

6. Sailors Falls Loop

Just outside Daylesford, Sailors Falls tumbles through a fern-lined gorge, fed by mineral springs. Thought to be named after the sailors who jumped ship to seek gold in the area during the 1850s gold rush, the loop walk begins at the car park and descends through a cool, shaded gully to the base of the falls. From here, you’ll make the climb back via the mineral springs. It’s a short but enchanting walk – about 1.5 kilometres in total, so make a day of it by packing a picnic to sit by the springs; you’ll feel worlds away from the city.

7. Paddys Ranges Loop Walk

Further north, the Paddys Ranges State Park loop reveals a different side of Victoria’s Heartland – dry forest, golden light and hints of a gold-rush past. This protected reserve is a stronghold of box-ironbark woodland, providing vital refuge for endangered species. In spring, the forest floor is awash with the colour of over 230 species of wildflowers, so a springtime walk is a must-do. As you walk the 4.5-kilometre loop trail, keep an eye out for remnants of old mine shafts and rusted relics from the prospectors who once sought their fortunes here.

8. Mount Franklin Summit Walk

An extinct volcano turned picnic ground, Mount Franklin (known as Lalgambook to the Dja Dja Wurrung people) is one of the region’s quiet marvels. The summit walk follows a narrow, winding path through native forest to the crater’s rim, where you’ll get glimpses of farmland and forest below. It’s a moderate climb – just over an hour return, so it can easily be done if you’re camping in the surrounding reserve for a weekend nature retreat.

The trails of Victoria’s Heartland offer a chance to reconnect with the landscape, local history and yourself. Start planning your next adventure at daylesfordmacedonlife.com.au.

The best holiday kids’ clubs in Australia