Self Drive Tours

MELBOURNE - GRAMPIANS - GREAT OCEAN ROAD ~ 3 DAYS / 2 NIGHTS

Distances:
DAY 1 Melbourne to Grampians . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 km
DAY 2 Grampians to Great Ocean Road . . . . . 200 km
DAY 3 Great Ocean Road to Melbourne . . . . . 279 km
1 Mile = 1.6 km

DAY 1

MELBOURNE TO GRAMPIANS
Distance: 250 km
Depart: Melbourne and travel along the Western Highway to Ballarat

Description:
In Ballarat, strike gold at Sovereign Hill and experience the gold fever of the 1850s brought to life in this outdoor living museum. Discover the golden past at the Gold Museum.

Go wild at the Ballarat Wildlife Park and enjoy close contact with Australian native animals. Feed the free-roaming kangaroos. Watch crocodile and Tasmanian Devil feedings, participate in koala and wombat photo opportunities.

Explore the Eureka Centre. The centre stands at the very site of one of the most significant events in Australia’s history - The Eureka Rebellion, December 1854. Visit the oldest regional gallery in Australia, Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, established in 1884 and boasting one of the nation’s most significant collections of Australian art.

On the way to the Grampians, take a selfguided tour of the wine regions of Ballarat, the Pyrenees and Grampians and learn the intimate secrets of some of Australia’s best cool-climate wines along the Great Grape Touring Route.

Overnight: Halls Gap/Dunkeld.

DAY 2

GRAMPIANS TO GREAT OCEAN ROAD
Distance: 200 km
Depart: Halls Gap/Dunkeld

Description:
Enjoy one of the many walks in the magnificent Grampians National Park. See kangaroos and koalas in their natural habitat. Visit the Boroka and Reids lookouts and the wonderful MacKenzie Falls. Brambuk brings to life the history and culture of aboriginal communities in Victoria, and offers visitors information on Aboriginal cultural heritage and local rock art sites.

For the more adventurous, the Grampians offers rock climbing, abseiling, mountain biking, guided walks, canoeing and kayaking.

Depart the Grampians region and travel along the scenic route through the bushland of the Grampians to the township of Dunkeld, then onto the Great Ocean Road.

Along the way, Tower Hill offers the opportunity to intimately observe Australian wildlife in a dormant volcano and get an Aboriginal perspective on native animals, bush existence and culture.

Experience Flagstaff Hill, an interactive 1870s maritime village and museum.

Drive the spectacular Great Ocean Road. Nature’s beauty is revealed in the Bay of Islands Coastal Park. At Loch Ard Gorge visitors are treated to a beautiful vista of towering cliffs, sparkling blue-green sea and a small, sandy beach. The drama of one of the most tragic shipwrecks was played out at this very spot more than 125 years ago, giving a name to the gorge. Discover stunning coastal scenery and rock formations, including the world famous Twelve Apostles. These giant rock stacks soar from the swirling waters and are a central feature of the Port Campbell National Park. These formations are most spectacular at sunset.

Overnight: Port Campbell

DAY 3

GREAT OCEAN ROAD TO MELBOURNE
Distance: 279 km
Depart: Port Campbell

Description:
Before leaving Port Campbell, another way to experience the truly awe inspiring scenery of the Twelve Apostles is on one of Great Ocean Road Helicopters scenic helicopter flights. With commentary on the history of the coast, unparalleled viewing and breathtaking photo opportunities, these flights are an experience of a lifetime.

Continuing onto Apollo Bay, visit Cape Otway Lightstation and climb to the top of mainland Australia’s oldest lighthouse (1848).

Explore the Otway Fly Tree Top Walk through the rainforest. Experience the beauty and excitement 25 metres above the forest floor.

Arrive at Apollo Bay, ‘paradise by the sea’. Set into the picturesque green foothills of the Great Otway National Park, the village boasts long sandy beaches and deep-blue sea.

Experience the beauty of the Great Otway National Park with its mighty fern gullies, an isolated coast and beautiful waterfalls in a lush temperate rainforest.

At Kennett River take a moment to look up into the native gum trees where you are sure to spot a koala.

Continue the spectacular coastal journey along the Great Ocean Road, through Lorne, Aireys Inlet, Anglesea and Torquay. Visit Narana Creations and view the beauty of Aboriginal culture coming into Geelong.

Arrive at Geelong. Walk Geelong’s waterfront to the art deco sea-bathing complex of Eastern Beach. Don’t miss the bollards, the colourful way Geelong has chosen to tell its story using recycled timbers from the old port.

Visit the National Wool Museum to see working machinery and comprehensive galleries covering the story of wool and textiles.

Depart: Geelong for Melbourne.