Five indoor rock climbing walls to conquer this weekend

But you don’t have to be a budding Edmund Hillary to give it a go: there are plenty of indoor rock climbing centres that have simulated climbs that challenge in a variety of ways. And with plenty of safety gear and experts to keep watch, it’s quite a bit safer for kids and adults than hitting the slopes of Everest or K2. Want to find an indoor rock wall that’s a pleasant drive from major city centres? Give these ones a crack.

You probably already know Phillip Island is about more than just penguins and koalas. But Clip ’n Climb is also about more than just wall climbing. There’s the Game Wall augmented reality climb in which, for instance, you might have to climb for your life and save the earth from plummeting meteors. With virtual reality gaming and 3D adventure pods as well, it’s the total entertainment experience. And apparently the potato cakes aren't too bad either.

With its mix of techno-industrial design, Centre of Gravity on NSW’s north coast offers indoor climbs for kids as young as three years old. For older climbers there’s a variety of challenging walls culminating in the Leap of Faith that requires jumping onto a swinging trapeze seven metres off the ground. There’s also a two-storey Dark Zone Laser Tag maze with fog, laser lights and plenty of noise if you’re more into chase-and-shoot games.

For a reasonably serious climbing gym, Rock It in Warana on the Sunshine Coast has a pretty open attitude to beginners as well. Staff will walk newcomers through their paces, demonstrate the art of belaying – holding one end of the safety rope – and even conduct academy classes for all ages. There’s a variety of walls of varying difficulty so if you’re on the Sunshine Coast and feel like some challenging exercise for body and brain, give it a go.

A combined winery and rock-climbing centre might sound like a strange mixture, but that’s just what you get at Southern Boulder located in the grounds of Magpie Springs. This is McLaren Vale so it’s a lovely enough area just out of Adelaide, and the climbing and bouldering (smaller walls with a thick safety mat) experiences are excellent. There’s also slack-lining balance challenges and even yoga classes and you can finish off in the cellar door for a tasting afterwards.

It’s a nice drive to Launceston from anywhere in Tassie, or you can take the car down from Melbourne on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry. However you get there, try the LIRC where kids can climb the walls (theirs, not yours for a change) for as little as five bucks. There’s auto-belaying to take care of safety, bouldering for shorter climbs and even a caving adventure for something different.

Related: Top five adrenaline-junkie activities to do this weekend

Related: Top five Mini-Golf courses worth a drive

Related: Australia’s five best drive-in cinemas