Self Drive Tours
MELBOURNE - BALLARAT - WARRNAMBOOL - GREAT OCEAN ROAD ~ 2 DAYS / 1 NIGHT
Distances:
DAY 1
Melbourne to Ballarat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 km
Ballarat to Warrnambool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276 km
DAY 2
Warrnambool to Port Campbell . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 km
Port Campbell to Melbourne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279 km
1 Mile = 1.6 km
DAY 1
MELBOURNE TO BALLARAT
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.
BALLARAT TO WARRNAMBOOL
Distance: 276 km
Description:
From Ballarat you head for the coastal city of Warrnambool. This picturesque city overlooks the deep blue of the Southern Ocean and has a long, fascinating maritime
history.
Visit the city’s major attraction, Flagstaff Hill, a recreated maritime village and port representative of 19th century Warrnambool. Flagstaff Hill also features a spectacular sound and laser light show ‘Shipwrecked’ recreating the tragic story of the Loch Ard disaster some 125 years ago.
Remnants of ancient volcanic activity can be seen at nearby Tower Hill. 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.
Overnight: Warrnambool.
DAY 2
WARRNAMBOOL TO PORT CAMPBELL
Distance: 279 km
Depart: Warrnambool
Description:
Travel 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 NP.
Another way to experience this truly aweinspiring scenery 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.
PORT CAMPBELL TO MELBOURNE
Distance: 279 km
Description:
Continuing onto Apollo Bay, visit the 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. Set into the picturesque green foothills of the Great Otway NP, the village boasts long sandy beaches and deep-blue sea. Experience the beauty of the Great Otway NP with its mighty fern gullies, an isolated coast and beautiful waterfalls in a lush rainforest.
Depart Apollo Bay and continue the spectacular coastal journey along the Great Ocean Road, through Lorne, Aireys Inlet, Anglesea and Torquay.
Arrive at Geelong. Walk along the waterfront to 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 story and textiles.
Depart: Geelong for Melbourne
