YOUR GUIDE TO THE GREAT OCEAN ROAD

After spending 5 nights in Melbourne, we hit the road and headed for our next destination; The Great Ocean Road. We were told that there were several nice towns in which you could stop at along the way from Melbourne to Port Campbell (which was where we were staying). These included Lorne, Apollo Bay and Lavers Hill. However, many of these seemed out of our way. We actually accidentally took the inland route opposed to the coastal route because we naively followed the GPS. Had we taken the longer coastal route perhaps we would have stopped at one of these towns. Nonetheless, they weren't on our top priority list to see.

Where did we stay?

As many of the towns along The Great Ocean Road are quite small and have limited population, there wasn't much choice in regards to accommodation. I was also trying to find a location that was rather central to the sites we wanted to see. When I came across Port Campbell, it seemed to be the perfect location. With it being only a 10 minute drive to all the main sites plus having decently priced accommodation, it ticked almost all of our boxes. So we booked a studio cabin at Port Campbell Holiday Park. What I wish I had known earlier, was how small of a town it really is. When we checked into our room I asked the receptionist, "Is there a Coles or Woolworths around here?" She smiled and told me there was a little grocer up the road (the closest Coles/ Woolworths was almost an hour away at Warrnambool). Had we known this before we left Melbourne, I would have stocked up on some things.

How Long did we Stay?

I chose to book 3 nights in Port Campbell because I really didn't want to rush the sightseeing and wanted to enjoy our time there. However, after arriving and realising there really wasn't much else to do in the town, two nights would have been enough.

Where did we eat?

There was not a huge range of choice in regards to places to eat however there was a pub, a few restaurants and a few cafes. We ate at an Italian restaurant for one night, another restaurant for the second and then cooked one meal in the camp kitchen at our park.

What did we do?

The Great Ocean Road is known for it's gorgeous natural cliff formations. I have listed below each place we visited. In order to make the most out of your experience, I'd recommend visiting these sites out of peak hours eg early morning. This way you will be able to walk around the site easily and capture your photos without everyone else in them!

Lorch Arch Gorge

The London Arch

The 12 Apostles

Gibson Steps

Unfortunately we visited Gibson Steps at the wrong time of day. When it is low tide you are able to walk onto the beach and have a closer look at the huge rock formations that are in the water (similar to the 12 apostles). We however, visited at high tide and the steps were closed off by a gate.

Cheese World

After visiting the above sites, we were left with little to do on our last day. So we decided to travel an hour out of Port Campbell to a cheese factory named 'Cheese World' in Warrnambool. We tasted various kinds of cheese, visited their museum and had 'world-famous milkshakes'. It was definitely worth the trip.

Would we travel there again?

The Great Ocean Road is the kind of trip that you do once and once only. Hence we would not return just the two of us. It is however, a trip I would love to take our future kids on some day!