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Great Ocean Road
Destination guide

Australia

A 7-day trip to Great Ocean Road

A windswept coastal drive from roaring surf breaks through temperate rainforest to limestone sea stacks

Stretching 243 kilometers from Torquay to Allansford along Victoria's southern edge, the Great Ocean Road is the world's largest war memorial and one of its most dramatic coastal corridors. Carved into sheer cliffs by returned WWI soldiers, it winds through world-class surf breaks, dense fern gullies, and towering eucalyptus forests before opening onto the wild Southern Ocean and the eroded sea stacks of Port Campbell National Park.

Trip length

7 days

Best time to go

March to May (early to mid-autumn) for stable weather, lighter winds, and manageable coastal crowds.

What your 7-day plan includes

  • A day-by-day itinerary with neighborhoods clustered so you spend less time in transit.
  • Real budget awareness — a target, an estimate, and a status you can dial up or down.
  • Recommendations shaped by your pace, food priorities, group, and must-dos.
  • Swap anything, improve any day, refine in any direction without starting over.

See what a trip to Australia actually costs. Travel Budget Co.

How to plan 7 days in Great Ocean Road

  • Base yourself in Apollo Bay for night one to split the drive evenly and explore the Great Otway National Park without backtracking.
  • Sleep in Port Campbell for night two so you can visit the Twelve Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge at sunrise before tour buses arrive from Melbourne at 11:00 AM.
  • Return to Melbourne via the inland Princes Highway (A1) through Colac to cut 90 minutes off the return drive rather than repeating the slow coastal bends.
  • Pack windproof layers and rain gear regardless of the season; Southern Ocean squalls can drop temperatures by 10°C in an hour.
  • If prone to motion sickness, pack medication before tackling the tight switchbacks between Lorne and Apollo Bay.

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