点评:My wife and I enjoyed a short two nights stay in Maleny in the heart of the Queensland Sunshine Coast Hinterland, (105 kilometres north of Brisbane) during September 2023. The occasion was the wedding of one of my nieces at Tiffany’s Wedding Centre, overlooking the Glasshouse Mountains.
On our full free day we decided it was time to include a visit to the highly acclaimed Maleny Botanic Gardens and Bird Park and we were not disappointed. It was a most memorable and delightful visit. The place is a privately owned garden, consisting of nearly 23 acres (9.3 hectares) of gardens, set on a 110 acre (44.5 hectare) property about 5 kilometres south west of Maleny.
This place is amazing and visitors get a lot for the very reasonable admission price. We chose to take two of the combined tour tickets that incorporated the Gardens, Farm Friends & Aviary at the seniors concession price of $40 each. However there are multiple admission packages to suit every individual and family need. The attraction owes its existence to the vision of Frank Shipp, the property owner, who acquired land which previously housed cattle and built his dream gardens in 2005. He wanted to share the beautiful views and landscape with the public. He certainly has achieved that.
Our first port of call was the Bird World section of our entry package. We arrived at the entrance with its snappy promo signage of “Welcome to Parrot-Dise”. There are five aviaries displaying some of the most exotic birds on the planet. Before we could venture forth it was a condition of entry that we first watch an informative video explaining the safety features for visitors and the birds and the dos and don’ts to ensure all have a pleasant experience. I though this was a most responsible action on the part of the staff and full marks there. It was suggested we stay close to the guide to get the best experience from the birds and parents were instructed to supervise and keep a close eye on their children. You can’t ask fairer than that. All jewellery, glittery items and hats with buttons have to be removed prior to the tour as the birds love to borrow and play with these items. Also a feather duster can be provided to those visitors who want the birds to keep their distance from them. That was a thoughtful gesture. What is particularly pleasing is the sheer size of each aviary, such that all the birds can fly freely and their welfare is not compromised. The management has not missed a beat here – they have thought of everything to make the visit extra special for both the birds and human visitors alike.
Now let’s review the bird display. What can I say other than magnifical indeed! We were treated to a highly informative and educational fifty minute ‘walk through’, interactive guided tour. There are five tours running daily. The tour showcased a rich tapestry of hundreds of rescued birds, both large and small on display from all over the world including galahs, white cockatoos and multi coloured parrots and macaws providing a living kaleidoscope of glorious rich colours in combinations such as red, yellow and blue or green and yellow or blue and yellow to list just three. A real buzz was when these birds rested on our shoulders or our wrist or even on the top of our heads with not a care in the world and as tame as can be. All the adults and children on the tour were particularly excited and captivated throughout. And to think this rare opportunity to witness such a dynamic bird display had its genesis with Frank Shipp who started the aviary because of all the unwanted birds that turned up in the area.
From the Bird World to the “Farm Friends” enclosure - a section of the park showcasing a fine display of miniature animals. My wife and I really enjoyed this and we had good opportunities to get close up and personal by feeding and holding these “small fry” animals. The many children there were as excited here as they were at the Bird Park. There were Mediterranean miniature micro donkeys, miniature goats, baby-doll sheep, miniature pigs and lots of chickens and roosters. We were captivated by what was on offer. A lovely picture was painted of a group of happy children playing on the stationary Thomas the Tank Engine train in the animal enclosure with some of the animals deciding to join them. Kids will always make their own fun!!
Finally we set off on a walking tour of the beautiful landscaped gardens which were very extensive and colourful. The walking paths were so well maintained and there are plenty of them – 8 kilometres of them in fact. We witnessed a wide range of different plants of all shapes and sizes throughout our walk and we were aided by a fairly easy to read free site map provided to guide us along the way. Nice features of our walk included the Rose Garden, the many artificial lakes, a number of rotundas and on the way stopping at a picnic shelter to obtain the most stunning views of the Glasshouse Mountains. We chose not to take advantage of the hired motorised buggies available to make it easier to get around the Gardens. However walking allows you to see those little things often missed when driving around.
In all we were here for three hours. However in truth, if travellers have the time you need to make it a full day because there is so much to see. We missed other interesting features including for example the rainforest areas. Nevertheless our three hours here were priceless and we left the place with many happy memories.
We were just so impressed with this amazing tourist and educational attraction. The management and staff have put so much into the venture for visitors’ enjoyment. It is a 'must do' on any Sunshine Coast Hinterland visitor’s itinerary.
It is so awesome that we have such a top international standard tourist attraction as this, offering so much for visitors and right on our Brisbane doorstep. Congratulations to all concerned. My wife and I hope to call again soon.
翻译:2023 年 9 月,我和妻子在昆士兰阳光海岸腹地中心的马莱尼(布里斯班以北 105 公里)度过了短暂的两晚。当时我的一个侄女在蒂芙尼婚礼中心举行婚礼,俯瞰着玻璃屋山脉。
在我们整天的空闲时间里,我们决定是时候参观备受赞誉的马莱尼植物园和鸟类公园了,我们并没有失望。这是一次最难忘和愉快的访问。这个地方是一个私人花园,占地近 23 英亩(9.3 公顷),坐落在马莱尼西南约 5 公里的 110 英亩(44.5 公顷)的土地上。
这个地方很棒,游客可以以非常合理的入场费获得很多东西。我们选择购买两张组合旅游门票,包括花园、农场朋友和鸟舍,老年人优惠价每张 40 美元。但是,有多种门票套餐可以满足个人和家庭的需求。该景点的存在归功于业主 Frank Shipp 的远见,他在 2005 年收购了以前饲养牛群的土地并建造了他梦想中的花园。他想与公众分享美丽的景色和风景。他当然做到了。
我们的第一站是入场套餐中的鸟类世界部分。我们到达入口时,看到“欢迎来到 Parrot-Dise”的醒目宣传标牌。这里有五个鸟舍,展示了地球上一些最奇特的鸟类。在我们冒险之前,我们必须先观看一段信息丰富的视频,解释游客和鸟类的安全措施以及应该做的和不应该做的事情,以确保所有人都有愉快的体验。我认为这是工作人员最负责任的行为,满分。他们建议我们靠近导游,以获得与鸟类的最佳体验,并指示父母监督和密切关注他们的孩子。你不能要求比这更公平了。参观前必须摘下所有珠宝、闪亮物品和带纽扣的帽子,因为鸟儿喜欢借用和玩弄这些物品。此外,还可以为那些希望与鸟儿保持距离的游客提供鸡毛掸子。这是一个体贴的举动。特别令人高兴的是每个鸟舍的面积都很大,这样所有的鸟儿都可以自由飞翔,而且它们的福利不会受到影响。管理层没有错过任何一个环节——他们考虑到了所有方面,让鸟类和人类游客的参观都格外特别。
现在让我们回顾一下鸟类展示。除了壮观之外,我还能说什么呢!我们参加了一次信息丰富、教育性强的 50 分钟“步行”互动导览游。每天有五次游览。这次旅行展示了来自世界各地的数百只获救的鸟类,它们有大有小,包括粉红凤头鹦鹉、白凤头鹦鹉、多色鹦鹉和金刚鹦鹉,它们组成了一个活生生的万花筒,色彩绚丽多彩,有红、黄、蓝、绿、黄、蓝、黄等,仅列举三种。当这些鸟儿无忧无虑地停在我们的肩膀或手腕上,甚至停在我们的头顶上时,我们感到非常兴奋。旅行团中的所有成人和儿童都特别兴奋,全程都被迷住了。想来,这次难得的机会见证了如此充满活力的鸟类表演,这要归功于弗兰克·希普,他因为该地区出现了许多不受欢迎的鸟类而创办了鸟舍。
从鸟类世界到“农场朋友”围栏——公园的一部分展示了精美的微型动物。我和我的妻子非常喜欢这个,我们有很好的机会近距离接触这些“小鱼”动物,喂食和抱着它们。许多孩子在这里和在鸟园一样兴奋。这里有地中海迷你小驴、迷你山羊、洋娃娃羊、迷你猪和许多鸡和公鸡。我们被这里提供的东西迷住了。一幅可爱的画描绘了一群快乐的孩子在动物围栏里玩托马斯坦克火车,一些动物决定加入他们。孩子们总是会自己找乐子!!
最后,我们开始步行游览美丽的园林,这些园林非常广阔,色彩缤纷。步行道维护得很好,而且有很多——实际上有 8 公里长。在整个步行过程中,我们看到了各种形状和大小的植物,我们还得到了一张相当容易阅读的免费地图的帮助,它引导我们一路前行。我们步行的亮点包括玫瑰园、许多人工湖、参观了许多圆形大厅,途中在野餐棚停留,欣赏玻璃屋山脉最壮丽的景色。我们选择不租用机动四轮车,这样可以更轻松地游览花园。但是步行可以让你看到开车时经常错过的那些小东西。
我们总共在这里呆了三个小时。但事实上,如果旅行者有时间,你需要把它安排在一整天,因为有太多东西可以看。我们错过了其他有趣的景点,例如雨林地区。尽管如此,我们在这里度过的三个小时是无价的,我们离开时留下了许多美好的回忆。
我们对这个令人惊叹的旅游和教育景点印象深刻。管理层和员工为游客的享受付出了很多。这是阳光海岸腹地游客行程中的“必做之事”。
我们有这样一个顶级国际标准的旅游景点,为游客提供如此多的东西,就在布里斯班的门口,真是太棒了。祝贺所有相关人员。我和我的妻子希望很快能再次打电话。