Great Ocean Road – Melbourne to Melbourne
Most people will take a 3 day tour to cover the Great Ocean Road and Grampians National Park. The below suggested itinerary covers the main points but allows for the flexibility to take longer to enjoy all these amazing sites as for a similar cost for 2 people you take 5 days to do it in a Spaceship!
Follow the signs out of Melbourne towards Geelong, but avoid Geelong city centre as it can get very busy! Torquay is the first main stop to check out Bells Beach. The iconic beach hosts many surf competitions over the year and maybe you’ll be lucky enough to check one out! Also home to the Rip Curl and Quicksilver surf brand you’ll find big stores to pick up your surf gear here.
Continue on to Lorne then Apollo Bay, but just make sure you keep the drivers eyes on the road as the scenery is well known to distract people! This stretch is considered one of the most scenic of the drive.
Just before Apollo Bay is a great camp spot right on the beach called Skenes Creek as it’s only around 3 hours from Melbourne you can really take your time getting here, or with your extra time you might even want to give kayaking with seals a go!
Past Apollo Bay are the Otway Ranges. Immerse yourself in some of Australia's best rain forest scenery in the Otway Ranges amongst tall trees, ancient plant life and lush ferns. Walk among giant tree ferns at Maits Rest or experience the full beauty of the rain forest on the Otway Fly Tree Top Walk.
Discover high waterfalls in the national park's narrow valleys, ranging from the impressive Triplet Falls to secluded falls over fern-fringed pools. View the dramatic cliffs and secluded beaches along the shore at remote and beautiful Cape Otway.
The most famous area, the 12 Apostles is further along right near Princetown.
Created by constant erosion of the limestone cliffs of the mainland beginning 10-20 million years ago, the stormy Southern Ocean and blasting winds gradually eroded the softer limestone, forming caves in the cliffs.
The caves eventually became arches and when they collapsed rock stacks up to 45 metres high were left isolated from the shore. View the 12 Apostles at sunrise and sunset as they change colour from dark and foreboding in shadow to brilliant sandy yellow under a full sun.
As the best time to see the 12 Apostles is at sunrise or sunset it’s best to stay nearby! The Apostles Camping Park has sites from $25 for the night and is a great base for easy access to the 12 Apostles and all the other great lookouts and walks of the area like the Gibson Steps, London Bridge and Loch Ard Gorge. See the team at the camping park for all the details.
Again having the extra time with a Spaceship allows you to see all the sites at your own pace and without the crowds.
Heading up past Warrnambool towards the Grampians National Park is still a peaceful drive as you move from the coast to the rain forest. Aim for Dunkeld as it has a great information centre to give you the best up to date info on where to go and what to do in the park (Address: Parker St, Dunkeld, Victoria 3294 Phone: 03 5577 2558).
Depending on how much you love nature is really the only limiting factor here! There are loads of spectacular walks, lookouts, waterfalls, aboriginal art sites, flora and fauna to see. Some of the best known spots are Mackenzie Falls, the Balconies, Beehive Falls, Reed lookout, and Mt William lookout. There are many, many more!
If you’re more adventurous canoeing, kayaking, mountain biking, quad biking or rock climbing are all options to do here as well. A couple of days here is certainly recommended if you like the sound of all this!
Halls Gap is the easiest place to stay on the northern end of the park. Halls Gap Caravan Park is a popular stop with campsites from $27 for the night.
The drive back from Halls Gap passes through Ballarat an historical town where you can check out the early stages of European settlement when the gold rush was on. There are activities to simply check out the gold fields or go to a show where the action surrounds you and you see what life was like back in the 1850’s!
As we mentioned earlier this itinerary can be done in 3 days or extended into weeks depending on your tastes. But price comparing you can do 4 or 5 days camping vs. 3 days touring. Get out and explore the outer space!
