During the April school holidays, KAOS takes over Anglesea for two days of action and adventure in the local bush, rivers and beach front.  For kids aged 3 to 13 this is a massive day (or two) of fun.

When: 13-14 April 2019, registrations open at 7.30am (first activity 9:15am, last activity concludes 4:30pm)

Where: All around Anglesea.  Registration takes place at the Anglesea Lions Park on Cameron Road (next to the Bowling Club)

Cost: $50 for 1/2 day, $100 for full day, $155 for both days, $170 for the weekend & camping, more details

When we went to our first KAOS I have to admit I really wasn’t sure what we were in for… added to that the website was a bit tricky to navigate and the booking system not very intuitive.

BUT it was absolutely worth the drive and the perseverance! The kids had such an amazing time and everyone we encountered throughout the day was lovely.  And it was a massive day.

Being April we were at the mercy of the weather, but thankfully the weather gods came through and we were spoilt with an absolutely spectacular day – with a slightly chilly start and end.

So what is KAOS Anglesea?  It’s not one organisation as such – it’s a collection of holiday programs, school camps, outdoor adventure groups (think Scouts and YMCA) and other local organisations who all come together to run this huge weekend of activity.

As a family, KAOS Anglesea is an amazing way to try out a huge range of activities you might not usually have access to – especially things like the giant swing and high ropes.  But also things like surfing, mountain biking, sailing and skateboarding.  And it’s not just high action activities – there is also mini golf, rock pooling, cooking, hut making, photography and other creative activities.  And that’s just the start of it – families are also invited to join the campout overnight and make a complete weekend of it.

The hardest part for us was agreeing on what activities to sign up for – there are so many choose from!

Two weeks before the event the activity bookings go live (so you can reserve your tickets in advance and when the activities go live you’re all set to log in and book the kids into what they want to do on the day).  I guess if you have your heart set on a specific activity then it’s good to log in as early as possible and claim your spot – we were a bit slack in that regard and I only booked the kids activities a few days before.  We were not disappointed with the options that were still available – in fact, the kids were thrilled.

The other thing to keep in mind when you’re booking your activities is that the venues are scattered around Anglesea – the furthest drive is 10 min, so it is doable (we did it) but you might want to not race about and just enjoy your morning at one venue and your afternoon at another.

Parents don’t require a ticket – but you do need to register yourself in the system.  And note that it’s preferred that you attend and take part in the activities too… especially the water-based activities (a must if your kids are younger).  All the activities are run by organisations that run these kinds of programs all the time – so they know what they are doing and provide specific briefings at the beginning of each activity.

Pack sneakers, bathers, clothes you don’t mind getting dirty, sunscreen, a hat, drink bottles and plenty of snacks!  There is an hour and 45-minute break for lunch – we had time to eat lunch and visit the beach.

Activities that we took part in:

• High Ropes
• Canoeing (tip: this is a good one for parents to take part in – Charlie (9) was just okay, but he was struggling with his younger co-paddler)
• Stand Up Paddleboard
• Low Ropes & Flying Fox
• Boomerang Art – with the unexpected highlight of the day: a lesson on Boomerang throwing

Just when we didn’t think it could get any better their faces got painted with mud and we all learnt how to throw a boomerang!

The kids were wrecked by the end of the day and we couldn’t eat dinner early enough before our drive home!  We did pause to take in the view before we set off home – can you tell Charlie is exhausted and was asleep in the car about 4 minutes later?!

One final note: Anglesea is about an hour and a half drive from Melbourne – and while it’s an easy day trip… given the early start (it’s encouraged to register before 8.30am to avoid the crowd) we decided to head down the night before.  We stayed in Torquay at Wyndham Torquay and had a great burger at Bottle of Milk.

Disclaimer: we were invited to take part in KAOS Anglesea 2018 (with a pass for Charlie and Immi provided by the organisers).  All views are my own and current at the time of publishing.  We covered our own costs for travel, food, and accommodation.