Whoever named this 243-kilometre stretch of road in southern Victoria did a good job, but if you know where to turn left or put on your bathing suit, and when to have a scenic argument with your boyfriend about his hair-raising curves, it might be your best bet. amazing Great Ocean Road. If you read this guide to the Great Ocean Road, you can keep adding superlatives.
With sand still in your socks, allow me to be your B100 guru, starting in a spectacular city hotel and ending in a sophisticated guesthouse close to the beach. Buckle up – this is where your Great Ocean Road journey ends.
First stop: United Places Hotel Botanic Gardens
Arboretum Union Square Hotel
While some people travel southeast from Adelaide to the end of the Great Ocean Road, you'll need to drive 7 hours before you turn onto the B100. It's best to do what most people do and start out in Melbourne, just over an hour away from the start line, ready to go in the intended direction.
The United Places Hotel Botanic Gardens is our city's preferred sanctuary: surrounded by lush treetops botanical gardenyet only 5 minutes from the M1 motorway, taking you all the way to the start of a road trip in the Surf Coast Shire in the morning. There is ample free street parking nearby, and freshly baked pastries are delivered to your suite for breakfast for free. Enjoy the lush views from your balcony (all rooms have one) and save some travel expenses.
Second stop: Gooley's Torquay's popular sandwiches
Driving time: 90 minutes
Torquay is the first town on the Great Ocean Road, and it's lucky indeed – it's home to the best “sanger” (aka sandwich) on the Surf Coast. Find the red and white striped awning and you'll find it Guli's: Dan Gooley A beloved deli where locals go to great lengths to keep their favorite items on the menu (roasted pastrami and fresh “gabagool” are two frontline favorites). Whichever sandwich/coffee combo you choose, head to Surfside Beach (it's more fun than the foreshore) and don't leave without a visit to Torquay Sweet Shop and Torquay Books, two independent stalwarts that exude small-town charm.
Stop Three: Growing Up in Anglesey – Local Champion
Driving time: 20 minutes
As you drive from Torquay to Anglesea you may want to stop and enjoy a series of spectacular beaches: Bells Beach (home of the annual beach event) Rip Curl Pro), South Beach, Addiscott Beach and Addis Point Beach. Since you're a proper salty surfer, you're in for grow — Anglesea is a mix of cafes, farm shops and lifestyle boutiques, where tanned, shaggy-haired locals enjoy vegetarian meals on sun-drenched picnic tables. After you've had your fill, you can peruse your favorite clothing, handmade ceramics, and weighable tea cans. It’s also the perfect place to stock up on handmade chips and cold kombucha for future beach picnics.
Stop 4: The still-working Split Point Lighthouse in Aireys Inlet
Driving time: 15 minutes
Split Point Lighthouse
Next we turn to see one of the few attractions on the Great Ocean Road working lighthouseThe best place to see it is on the golden stretch of Sandy Gully Beach – a truly underrated corner of the coast. I'd love to tell you that we're here to learn about the maritime history (it's worth spending $12.50 on a self-guided tour and climbing to the top), but we're mainly here for the flower-topped pies Lighthouse Tea Room The storybook garden next door is filled with purple salvia flowers. After scones and cakes, stroll a short distance to a series of lookouts, where you can see Eagle Rock, which takes on a golden and crown-like shape in the waves.
Stop 5: Lorne Falls Circuit
Driving time: 25 minutes
Heading into Lorne under the wooden Memorial Arch landmark, there aren't many places to stop – the roads (by far the most curvy on the route) are all about distant views that are easy to appreciate from a car. The real action starts at Lorne, the waterfall wonderland of the Great Ocean Road. Once here, research the nearest parking lot and choose your fighter: a tall, skinny waterfall (Erskine Falls), a beautiful rock pool (Phantom Falls), or a waterfall where you can stand behind a thundering waterfall (Lower Karimna Falls). These are listed in order of difficulty, but – aside from a few steep steps – it's very doable to reach each one on foot.
Stop Six: A Greek Feast at Ipsos Restaurant and Bar in Lorne
Drive time: 10 to 30 minutes, depending on which waterfall you visit
Unlike neighboring Apollo Bay (the next town along the line), which has a dearth of dining options, Lorne is a seaside buffet. pizza pizzaRunner-up for his wisteria-strung shed, but the top prize goes to IpsosA highly regarded Greek restaurant at the end of Lorne's main street. Ipsos, run by local restaurant royalty the Talimanidis family, has recently and deservedly regained a hat-trick (Australia's version of a Michelin star). We can only assume the inspector took a bite of their already falling apart lamb with smoked hummus and made his verdict on the spot.
Stop 7: Shelter Cafe in Apollo Bay, enjoy latte, sauna and ice bath
Drive time: one hour
Situated in a lovely heritage home (one of the oldest remaining residences in Apollo Bay), family run shelter Here you'll find Melbourne's favorite Market Lane coffee beans, sweet yeast swirls and a fridge full of small-batch natural wines. You can dine in one of the vintage rooms, or on the quaint porch or fairy lawn. There's a secret wellness paradise at the back of the hotel: the Corner Sauna, where you can soak in an ice bath, work up a sweat in the cedar wood sauna, and have your system rocked by an icy-cold copper shower. An equally tempting delicacy is the nearby famous scallop pie Apollo Bay Bakery.
Stop 8: Metz Rest Rainforest Track in Great Otway National Park
Driving time: 20 minutes
This is perhaps our favorite section of the Great Ocean Road – where you wake up to dewy mornings, intricate 300-year-old rainforest and the occasional koala: great oteway national park. from Metz Rest Rainforest WalkThere's a shoe-friendly boardwalk that takes you through a mossy forest and allows you to pose inside giant hollow tree trunks. It’s worth veering off the standard road trip route at this point and heading into the Otway Redwoods: a misty forest of dizzyingly tall California redwoods. Along the winding trail, you may discover the most spectacular set of waterfalls in the area: Hopetoun Falls and Beauchamp Falls. The latter is undoubtedly the best wild swimming location in all of the Otways.
Stop 9: The Twelve Apostles and the sculpted coastline of Port Campbell National Park
Driving time: 90 minutes
The Twelve Apostles, a series of seven limestone sea stacks (actually nine) that jut out from the waves, may be what draws you to the trail, but it also attracts legions of Melbourne day-trippers. Still, you can find a parking spot at the visitor center and wander the maze of observation decks. Yes, you'll have company, but you'd be a fool to miss it. As you continue to explore Port Campbell's coastline, these roadside wonders – including giant razorbacks and the Thunder Hole rock formation – become less crowded. Hopefully you can enjoy the Grotto (a sea cave fit for mermaids) without too much crowding.
Stop 10: Food town Timboon
Driving time: 25 minutes
Timboon is a 25-minute drive north on the B100 and offers the most delicious detour. among the producers that make up Twelve Apostles Gourmet Artisan TrailTimboon is home to seven of them, including the famous Timbourne ice cream parlorthis Timbourne Railway Shed DistilleryBouchiers Timboon Butcher and berry world — the home of delicious pick-your-own strawberries. Before you reach the main town, be sure to grab a glass of unhomogenized milk at the Star of the Food Route: Schultz Organic Dairy Shop and Cafe.
Final stop: Port Fairy Drift House Hotel
Driving time: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Drift house
Technically, the Great Ocean Road ends just before Port Fairy, but this beautiful little fishing town is not to be missed. Go there for small boutiques and famous folk festivalwindswept walks and Wes Anderson-esque facades; but most importantly, go to the Drift House. This cozy guest house is as woven into the fabric of Port Fairy as the giant Norfolk pines outside. Housed in three buildings – the original Victorian bluestone, a modern extension and a neighboring Edwardian villa – its six suites are super stylish, filled with books and almost more inviting than their surroundings.
However, all rooms come with free use of bicycles so you can cycle to nearby Griffiths Island; there's also a farmer's breakfast of jammed eggs, cold cuts and pickles. Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, the restaurant transforms into a salon, where owner and Spanish food connoisseur John dons his chef's hat and serves exquisite tapas, steaks and famous Basque cheesecakes. Sitting on the hotel’s sunken sofa—a modernist masterpiece that’s also the perfect spot to play board games—toast the road traveled.
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