Driving Great Ocean Road in three days
There are so many ways to explore the Great Ocean Road. You can walk it, cycle it, drive it over a week or even see it in one day. We decided to explore the coast over three days. We hired a car from East Coast Car Rentals in Melbourne which cost about £85 for 3 days.
We left Melbourne and drove to our first hotel, the RACV Resort Torquay, in the evening as there’s not much to see and do along the way. Then, we started our journey from Torquay.
Day 1: Torquay to Apollo Bay
Torquay
Our first stop was Bell’s Beach, home of surfing and the site of the official Rip Curl Pro Surfing comp. You can wander down to the beach if you have time or if the weather is on your side. During our visit it was cloudy and windy, and there was only two surfers in the fairly flat sea. We stayed less than 30 minutes here but on a good day you could stay much longer.
Anglesea
Next we went to Anglesea Golf Club. It might sound like a weird choice, but the grounds are home to kangaroos that feed off the fresh grass. We took a 25 minute tour which cost $15/£7.50 per person. We were lucky and it wasn’t full when we arrived but booking ahead is advised.
Airey’s Inlet
Then we drove to Aireys Inlet, where we walked along to Split Point Lighthouse (you might recognise it from the TV show Round the Twist) and the Eagle Rock Marine Sanctuary. It takes 15–30 minutes to see the rugged coastline. There’s a beach you could stop at for lunch or sunbathing if the weather is good, but we decided to move on and make a start on Great Ocean Road ‘proper’.
At this point you’re technically on Great Ocean Road, but the next stop is the Memorial Arch at the Eastern Entrance. It’s a popular place to stop for 5 minutes to take photos of the arch, and you can learn more about the history of the area.
Lorne
We stopped in Lorne, a town famous for its cockatoos, and had a coffee on the beach at the HAH cafe. If you’re lucky, you could also spot seals at the tree-lined Lorne beach. It was cloudy during our visit so we stayed less than 30 minutes.
Next we drove 15 minutes off-route to see Erskine Falls. You can walk about 2 minutes from the car park to the viewpoint, or 150m down steps to see the falls from the base. We didn’t have a lot of time (and were done with steep steps after our Blue Mountains hike!) so we made this a short pit stop of 5-10 minutes before moving on.
Teddy’s Lookout is a famous viewpoint over Lorne, where you’ll see sprawling views across the ocean and Great Ocean Road. You’ll only need about 10 minutes here.
Kennett River
Then we drove to Kafe Koala on the Kennet River. There’s a nature walk here, but we went the other way to do the Koala Walk. They’re hard to spot as they tend to stay high up in the eucalyptus trees. But we managed to spot about 6 along our walk. You can make this as long or as short as you like. It’s uphill and just follows a gravel road through a forest, so it isn’t the prettiest walk you’ll do in Victoria but you can see the see from some points.
The best way to spot koalas is to look out for small crowds of people gathered at the base of trees. Chances are, they’ve spotted one and as people come along and others leave, the group remains as a koala marker. The koalas themselves are hard to spot, but then tend to nap in the boughs of trees, so look for small furry bundles where there should otherwise be a V-shaped gap!
Apollo Bay
We stayed in Apollo Bay at the Waterfront Motel. It’s only a 1 hour 40 minute drive from Torquay which meant we had a lot of time to explore each area without worrying about our schedule. We arrived before 6pm and were surprisingly tired from all the stops we’d made along the way. We got fish and chips from the highly-recommended Fisherman’s Cooperative on Apollo Bay Harbor, which closes at 7pm.
If you’re planning to eat out, book ahead. The towns along Great Ocean Road get busy with tourists staying overnight and a lot of the restaurants close earlier than we were used to.
Day 2: Apollo Bay to Port Campbell
To explore Apollo Bay we went for a 4 km run along the bay to the harbour and back in the morning. Then, we headed to the Mariner’s Lookout for an amazing view over the sea, beach, and countryside.
Cape Otway
The first stop on our drive was Mait's Rest Rainforest walk. This 30 minute loop (it took us more like 20 minutes) is fully marked and easy to follow. It takes you through incredible rainforest scenery with green ferns and towering elm trees.
From here, we went to Cape Otway Lighthouse. We spent another 30 minutes here and entry is $10/£5 per person. To enter the lighthouse, you’ll need to book a guided tour. It's an easy loop walk with amazing sea views and a cafe on site.
Port Campbell National Park
If you have time and the weather is good, stop at Johanna beach. It’s a beautiful, wild stretch with rough seas that are too dangerous for swimming. It’s about 10-20 minutes off the main road (take a red Johanna not Evans Track like Google Maps says). But it’s a peaceful place to stop for lunch.
12 Apostles
Our next stop was the much busier Twelve Apostles. As amazing as it is, it’s very touristy. We stayed about 20 minutes here and because we came at about 3pm the sun was behind us. For the best photos try to come before midday when the light will be better.
Loch Ard Gorge
Close to Twelve Apostles is Loch Ard Gorge. I actually found this way more interesting and impressive than the apostles. The ocean rips through the gorge and crashes so hard against the rocks that you can feel the spray from the top of the cliffs.
You could spend 15-30 minutes here depending on whether you walk the whole way around. There’s a fascinating history of a ship that wrecked here, and at times you can access the beach. We also saw a bandicoot in the car park!
Port Campbell
We spent the night at the Port O’Call in Port Campbell and at the Port Campbell Hotel. We arrived in the cute seaside town at about 4:30 pm and could have carried on to the sites further along the coast that afternoon. But since we had time the next day before heading back to Melbourne, we decided to stay in and rest on the terrace of our motel room instead.
Day 3: Port Campbell National Park
Once you’re in Port Campbell, you’ve almost completed the main stretch of Great Ocean Road (although you could carry on to Adelaide if that’s where you’re headed). At the end of our third day we were heading back to Melbourne to fly to Tasmania. So we only left a few sights within Port Campbell National Park to check out in the morning.
London Bridge
Our first stop west of Port Campbell was meant to be The Arch. But it was closed so we went straight on to London Bridge. The viewing point here is a 2 minute walk from the car park. Stopping to take in the view, read about the rock formation, and get some photos takes less than 10 minutes but it’s worth the stop.
The Grotto
Despite having seen a whole lot of rock formations at this point, I was pleasantly surprised by how impressive I found The Grotto.
You can view the rock arches and sinkholes in this area of the coast from different levels. The birds-eye view from the top platform looks across the cove, but at the bottom of the stairs you can look through the hole of the grotto and watch the waves crash on the other side.
We spent about 15 minutes here but if it’s busy it might take you longer to get photos at the bottom. It was quiet when we arrived but we still had to wait for a lot of tourists to get their photos in front of the arch.
Peterborough beach
If you have time, stop at Peterborough Beach to break up the rock formations and get a coffee. We didn’t get much time here and it was cold and windy, but it’s a pretty beach and a nice place to relax if the sun’s out.
Bay of Martyrs
This cove and the nearby Massacre Bay have a horrible history – as the name suggests. Europeans arriving in Australia killed large numbers of aboriginal people here.
You can learn more about the indigenous groups who lived here and what happened to them as you walk along the viewpoints overlooking Bay of Martyrs. You can also go down to the beach when the tide is low, but the sea is too rough for swimming.
Bay of Islands
A five minute drive away is the Bay of Islands, where you’ll get a closer look at the standing rocks that you see in the distance at the Bay of Martyrs. There are different viewpoints where you can see the bay from different sides, including a view of tiramisu rock.
The best things to see on Great Ocean Road
After three days exploring the Great Ocean Road, these were our favourite spots (and how long you need them).
Bell’s beach (10-60 min depending on the weather)
Anglesea Golf Club kangaroo tour (25 min for the tour)
Eastern Memorial Arch (5-10 min)
Teddy’s lookout, 10-20 min
Kennet River koala walk (at least 30min)
Mait's Rest rainforest walk (20-30min loop)
Twelve apostles (20-30 min)
Loch Ard Gorge (15-20 min)
The Grotto (20-30 min)
Bay of Islands (15 min)
You can carry on all the way to Adelaide, but we went back to Melbourne at the end of our three day road trip.