Visitor Map & What to Expect
Sovereign Hill is a recreated goldfields township set over 25 hectares on a site that forms part of the richest alluvial goldfields the world has ever seen.
They offer a wide range of activities carried out by costumed staff and volunteers, many of whom portray some of the behaviors and prejudices of the 1850s!
There is so much to see and do at Sovereign Hill. We have:
- The Red Hill Gully Diggings where you pan for real gold
- More than 50 working horses, including Clydesdales & Percherons
- Craftsmen at work in traditional 1850s trades
- A 10-minute, self-guided underground adventure tour of the Red Hill Mine which depicts the discovery of the 69kg Welcome Nugget, the second largest gold nugget ever found
- Regular demonstrations and street theatre performances by our staff and actors
- 1850s-style shopping
Sovereign Hill’s Outdoor Museum is built on a low hillside and includes some steep grades. Their roads are not sealed, so please wear practical shoes and keep to pathways. Most exhibits are wheelchair accessible.
Thinking of coming in costume or fancy dress?
Sovereign Hill is famous for its costumed interpreters. Their costume is an important part of their role as a museum interpreting the gold rushes. They research it thoroughly and wear it under strict guidelines. Their visitors know that the costumed people they meet are staff or volunteers who can help and inform them during their visit. Their costumed staff are also trained on how to respond in an emergency—visitors must be able to quickly identify staff who can help them in an emergency.
Their Sovereign Hill Schools—the Red Hill National School, St Peters Denominational School, the Ragged School, and from 2007 the St Alipius Diggings School—give participating students a costumed immersion in the life of a 19th-century child. Wearing their costume according to strict guidelines and using the mid-18th century manners they are taught are vital parts of their program. The students take great pride in their presentation and role play. They become important players in their story.
So please respect the responsibilities and roles of their staff and volunteers, and the experience of other visitors, by not wearing a gold rush period costume or fancy dress on your visit.
Remember that you can have a photograph taken in costume at their Red Hill Photographic Rooms.
School group visitors undertaking goldfields or history studies should contact Sovereign Hill Education to discuss opportunities for programs using costumes.