Sovereign Hill: Tickets

Sovereign Hill Tickets & Information

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• Sovereign Hill Address: Bradshaw St, VIC 3350, Golden Point
• Opening Hours: Daily from 10:00 - 17:00 (Closed on Mondays)

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What is Sovereign Hill in Ballarat and What You Can See and Do There

• It's a living open-air museum where you can learn about the history of the Ballarat Gold Rush.
• Visitors can take part in fun family-oriented activities such as panning for gold or watch sweets being made in an authentic old-fashioned way.
• See how candles are made in a 'Candle Dipping' presentation and watch authentic artisans making their craft.
• You can even take a gold mine tour!
• It's a fun place to visit with kids due to the activities on offer but also because it gives them some history in a fun and interactive way! Although it's an open-air museum, it's not your typical old-fashioned museum!

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Who Can Enjoy Sovereign Hill and what makes it different from other attractions

• Sovereign Hill is geared towards all ages which means it's a great place to enjoy a family day out. However, if families are looking for more 'modern' entertainment including rollercoaster rides and other modern attractions, Sovereign Hill may be the best idea. It's a fun interactive and educational day out where you can take part in activities and watch other old-fashioned activities being done and that's why it's differentfrom other more modern attractions and a great place to spend some time.

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Is Sovereign Hill Worth Visiting

The fun open-air museum in Ballarat is around 90 minutes west of Melbourne and a great place to spend the day with the family. It authentically recreates the bustling atmosphere of an 1850s gold rush town and offers you a chance to step back in time to experience some of Australia's gold mining history! It's spread across 15 hectares of an authentic ex-gold mine and offers different activities for you to watch and even take part in!‍

There is a lot to see and do, so some of the Highlights at Sovereign Hill include

‍Main Street: The high street has more than 60 historically recreated buildings including shops, hotels, and a theatre and are all based on original Ballarat businesses and have costumed staff and volunteers working in them to help to make it more authentic and fun!

Gold Panning: A fun and popular activity to enjoy during your visit! Try your luck at panning for real gold in the real creek! They provide you with the gold pan and its down to you and it's 'finders keepers', so let's hope you get lucky and find some gold!

Gold Pouring Demonstration: Watch as A$150,000 worth of molten gold is poured into a gold mould to create a brand new gleaming bar of gold showing the process of gold smelting!

Underground Mine Tours: Explore the subterranean world of a real old gold mine with a guided tour that includes the history of the mine and techniques from the era and just how they used to search for gold in the mine.

Rare Trades Centre: See traditional crafts and trades where the Sovereign Hill artisans demonstrate skills from the 1850s including candle making, making boiled sweets, watch muskets getting loaded and then fired, as well as watching blacksmiths and wheelwrights performing their crafts!

Weather Considerations

Don't forget that Sovereign Hill is outside so weather needs to be taken in to account during your visit. Bring an umbrella for rainy days and a hat for the sunny ones!

Extra activities not included in ticket cost

There are some activities you can pay extra for when you arrive as well but some families don't like the extra costs though.

• Take a Coach Ride on a horse-drawn coach.
• Take part in some 'making' classes such as the candle dipping
• 'AURA' is a 90-minute sound and light spectacular about the history of the mine. The show is performed in the evening time only as the darker night sky is required due to the content of the show.

How long do you need to spend at Sovereign Hill to enjoy it

There is a lot to see and do at Sovereign Hill, so you can spend the whole day exploring it. However, if you have less time, as we know it's around 90-minutes to get there from West Melbourne, you can enjoy part of it in half a day. On arrival it's sensible to pick up your map and decide which activities you want to concentrate on and explore first and then if you have time left, you can still fit more in! We would always suggest trying to include the 'gold panning' as it is fun, but remember it is in water, so you may get splashed!

If you are short on time, we also think the 'Rare Trades Centre' is a must as well as the gold panning and visitng 'Main Street' as there is a lot going on there. Kids may not be interested in seeing the old mine tour in reality, but they may want to watch the gold being poured!

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