The Great Ocean Road is 243 kilometres of coastline between Torquay and Allansford. It is also a road with a hundred tour buses on it every day, a sunrise at the 12 Apostles that everyone photographs in the same direction, and a Gibson Steps car park that fills by 8 am.
This guide is for Australians doing it independently, in their own car, with the knowledge to sidestep the tourist infrastructure and see the road properly.
Three days is the right amount of time. Two days means rushing. Four days means padding.
Starting point: Melbourne CBD
Ending point: Warrnambool (then the Princes Highway back to Melbourne, 2.5 hours)
Use the AI trip planner to adapt this itinerary for your specific start date and accommodation preferences.
What You’ll Need
- Own vehicle or hire car — book a hire car with DiscoverCars if you need one
- Fuel filled at Geelong — petrol prices jump significantly once you’re on the road
- Travel insurance — the mountain section between Lavers Hill and Port Campbell has no phone reception for 40+ kilometres
- Accommodation booked ahead — Apollo Bay and Port Campbell both fill quickly, especially in school holidays
- Cash — some camp grounds and small cafés are cash only
- National Parks Parks Victoria app for Gibson Steps parking
Day 1: Melbourne to Apollo Bay (243 km from CBD, allow 5–6 hours driving + stops)
Torquay — Start Here, Not in Geelong
Most people drive straight through Torquay. Stop.
- Torquay town beach — 5 minutes off the freeway. Calm bay beach, good for a stretch. The Torquay Hotel does breakfast from 8 am.
- Surf City Plaza — Rip Curl and Quiksilver both have factory outlets here. If you need a wetsuit, rashie or surf accessories, this is the cheapest point on the road.
- Bells Beach turnoff — 3 km south of Torquay. The car park is 500 metres from the beach. Walk to the cliff lookout. The beach itself is accessible via a steep path to the bottom. Even if you don’t surf, the bowl formation of the cliff is impressive.
Distance Torquay to Anglesea: 13 km | 15 minutes
Anglesea
- Anglesea Golf Club — The only golf course in Australia where kangaroos are part of the course. The fairway mob numbers 200+. You don’t need to play — the car park overlooks the 9th hole and the kangaroos are visible from the fence at dawn and dusk.
- Anglesea Beach — Small, sheltered, good for a swim if it’s warm. The town has two good bakeries.
Distance Anglesea to Aireys Inlet: 8 km | 10 minutes
Aireys Inlet
- Split Point Lighthouse — White lighthouse on the clifftop, known as the lighthouse from the ABC children’s series Round the Twist (if you’re over 30, you’ll recognise it immediately). Free to walk around the exterior. Guided tours A$18. Views east to Anglesea and west toward Lorne.
- Walk the clifftop path south from the lighthouse for 15 minutes — you’ll leave the crowds behind immediately.
Distance Aireys Inlet to Lorne: 23 km | 25 minutes
Lorne
Lorne is the Great Ocean Road’s most popular town — good cafés, a great beach, and Erskine Falls nearby. Allow 1.5–2 hours.
- Lorne main beach — Sheltered, patrolled in season, clear water. The best beach for swimming on Day 1 of the drive.
- Erskine Falls — 10 km inland from Lorne (sealed road). A$8 Parks Victoria day fee. A 230-step descent to a 30-metre waterfall in a fern gully. The pool at the base is cold but swimmable. Allow 45 minutes return.
- Kosta’s restaurant, Mountjoy Parade — Best fish and chips in Lorne. Order at the counter, eat at the tables outside. A$22–$28. No booking needed.
- The Lorne Hotel — Beer on the deck with the beach view is an obligatory stop. The steak is good if you’re eating here.
Distance Lorne to Apollo Bay: 45 km | 50 minutes (scenic, slower road section)
Apollo Bay — Night 1
Apollo Bay is the last town of any size before the Otways. It’s also genuinely pleasant — a working fishing harbour, good accommodation, and no pretension.
- Apollo Bay Fishermen’s Co-op — Buy fresh crayfish, salmon and abalone direct. Prices vary by season. The experience of buying directly from the co-op is part of the road trip.
- Apollo Bay Hotel — Built in 1927, refurbished, good pub dinner.
- Arrive before sunset — walk 10 minutes north along the beach from the township. The bay curves and the Otway hills rise behind. One of the best views on the entire drive and almost nobody walks here.
Where to stay in Apollo Bay:
Prices: A$130–$250 for motels, A$60–$100 for caravan park cabins. Find accommodation.
Day 2: Apollo Bay to Port Campbell (100 km, allow full day with stops)
This is the best day on the road. Cape Otway, the Otway Ranges, Gibson Steps, the 12 Apostles, Loch Ard Gorge.
Cape Otway Lightstation
Entry: A$22 adult | Open 9 am–5 pm daily
The oldest surviving lighthouse on mainland Australia (1848) at the tip of the Otway promontory. The view from the top takes in Bass Strait on three sides.
- Take the unsealed Lighthouse Road (13 km, 20 minutes from the Princetown Road junction) — completely passable in a standard car
- Climb the lighthouse tower — 80 steps, panoramic views
- Koalas on the drive in — The Cape Otway koala population sits in roadside eucalyptus trees at eye level. Drive slowly on Lighthouse Road and look up at every tree. You will see koalas here almost without fail.
- Check the telegraph station — Australia’s first international telegraphic link is explained here
- The walk to the cable hut (1 km return) passes through bush with very high koala density
Distance Cape Otway to Gibson Steps: 49 km | 50 minutes via Horden Vale
Gibson Steps and the 12 Apostles
Gibson Steps: Free | Open 24 hours
12 Apostles: Free entry | Car park fee A$8
The sequence here matters. Most tourists do the 12 Apostles at sunrise or at the time the tour buses arrive (10 am–2 pm). You should do it at sunset — here’s why:
The 12 Apostles face west. At sunset, the last light hits the stacks directly from behind the viewing platform and turns them from grey limestone to glowing amber. The colour transformation is spectacular and lasts 20–30 minutes.
At sunrise, the stacks are in shadow from the viewer’s perspective — you’re shooting into the light.
- Gibson Steps first (morning) — 86 steps down to the beach at the base of the cliffs. This is the only spot where you can stand on the beach and look up at the stacks from sea level. The 12 Apostles viewing platform shows you the tops; Gibson Steps shows you the scale.
- Loch Ard Gorge, morning — 800 metres west of the 12 Apostles. The wreck of the Loch Ard in 1878 killed 52 people; two survived by reaching this gorge. The beach inside the gorge is accessible via a short staircase and is extraordinary — surrounded by 70-metre cliffs on three sides, perfectly calm water. Often empty before 9 am.
- 12 Apostles at sunset — Return to the viewing platform 45 minutes before sunset. The stacks are currently (2026) eight in number, down from nine. The colour change is the main event.
- London Bridge at sunset — 10 km west of the 12 Apostles. Part of the arch collapsed in 1990 (stranding two tourists on the seaward section — they were rescued by helicopter). What remains is still spectacular at last light.
Port Campbell township: 12 km east of the 12 Apostles. Small, quiet, good base for Night 2.
- Port Campbell Hotel for dinner — basic but solid pub food
- Port Campbell beach — tiny, enclosed, protected from the Southern Ocean swells. Safe swimming.
Where to stay: Port Campbell has limited accommodation — book ahead. A$120–$180 for motel rooms. Find accommodation.
Day 3: Port Campbell to Warrnambool (60 km, allow 4–5 hours with stops)
A shorter driving day, but contains some of the road’s least-visited highlights.
Bay of Islands Coastal Park
- Bay of Islands Lookout — 12 km west of Port Campbell. Pull over at the marked car park. The cliff edge reveals a dozen limestone stacks and arches in a semicircle — better than the 12 Apostles for photographers who want variety and no crowds. Almost always empty.
- Curdie Vale Road walk (from Bay of Islands to Bay of Martyrs) — 30 minutes return, flat, excellent cliff-edge views
The Grotto and Arches
- The Grotto — A collapsed sea cave creating a circular rock bowl 30 metres across, with an opening to the sea. Staircase descends to the bottom. Free. 5 minutes from the highway. Most people drive straight past.
Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve
Entry: Free | 30 minutes from Port Campbell
A natural volcanic crater (25,000 years old) containing a wildlife reserve. Free entry, free wildlife.
- Emu sighting — Tower Hill has one of Victoria’s most reliable emu populations. Walk the crater circuit in the morning.
- Koalas — High density in the crater eucalyptus. Better odds of seeing wild koalas here than almost anywhere else in Victoria.
- Echidnas — Occasionally seen on the walking tracks early morning
- Walk the full crater circuit (5 km, 1.5 hours) — the Interior Lake in the crater floor is genuinely dramatic
Hopkins Falls
- 7 km north of Warrnambool via Hopkins Falls Road. Victoria’s widest waterfall — 50 metres across — during winter and spring flows. The flow drops in summer. Free. A$0. 5 minutes walk from the car park.
Warrnambool
Victoria’s largest regional city on the south-west coast. End point of the Great Ocean Road drive.
- Lady Bay Beach — 3 km of calm beach, excellent swimming in summer
- Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village — Museum covering Victoria’s most dangerous stretch of coastline for 19th-century shipping. A$18 adult. The Sound and Light Show at night recreates the Loch Ard wreck (seasonal, check ahead).
- The Pickled Pig Café — Best breakfast in Warrnambool. A$18–$24 for a full brunch.
- Southern right whales — June–October, southern right whales visit Logans Beach to calve. Whale nursery viewing platform 3 km from the town centre. Free. No boat required.
Return to Melbourne: Via the Princes Highway (A1) — 2.5 hours, flat inland drive. Total drive: 262 km.
What to Skip: Tourist Trap Checklist
The road has a few things marketed heavily that don’t deliver:
- The Twelve Apostles at sunrise — You’re shooting into the light. Sunset is correct.
- Tour buses generally — Any stop on a tour bus schedule will have 50+ people at the same time. The road’s best spots (Loch Ard Gorge at 8 am, Bay of Islands, The Grotto) are completely empty if you time them before the buses arrive.
- Otway Fly Treetop Adventures — Expensive (A$44) and the trees are the same as on the free Badger Weir walk in the Yarra Valley. Skip unless you’re specifically into treetop walks.
- Reverse direction (west to east) — The road was built west to east but driving east to west gives you better light for photography (sun behind you in the afternoon), slightly less traffic, and a more logical arrival at the 12 Apostles.
Driving Distances Per Day
| Day | Route | Distance | Driving Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Melbourne → Torquay → Lorne → Apollo Bay | 243 km | 3 hrs + stops |
| Day 2 | Apollo Bay → Cape Otway → 12 Apostles → Port Campbell | 100 km | 2 hrs + stops |
| Day 3 | Port Campbell → Bay of Islands → Tower Hill → Warrnambool | 60 km | 1.5 hrs + stops |
| Return | Warrnambool → Melbourne via Princes Highway | 262 km | 2.5 hrs direct |
Total driving: 665 km over 3 days
Total fuel cost: Approximately A$110–$150 depending on vehicle
Accommodation Summary Checklist
- Apollo Bay — book 2+ weeks ahead in school holidays
- Port Campbell — only 4–5 accommodation options; book as early as possible
- Alternative: camp at Johanna Beach (free, 30 minutes west of Apollo Bay) — basic but spectacular
- Alternative: Princetown caravan park (A$35/night) — 5 km from the 12 Apostles, basic amenities
Find accommodation along the Great Ocean Road route.
Book tours and experiences if you want guided sea kayaking at the 12 Apostles — operators run sunrise kayak tours that get you between the stacks at water level (A$75 per person).
Compare travel insurance — especially for the remote Otways section with no phone coverage.
Prices and hours current as of 2026. Always verify before visiting.
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