We’re so excited to share our 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary! It was the highlight of our Australia trip and an awesome place to go on a road trip from Melbourne.
The Great Ocean Road is an incredibly scenic drive running 240-kilometres from Torquay to Allansford. We saw koalas, kangaroos, turquoise ocean water, stunning cliffside views and spent the night under the Milky Way. Honestly, it was an amazing trip and now we can show you how to spend 2 days on the Great Ocean!
Alongside the beautiful coastal drive, you can experience some of Victoria’s best beaches and viewpoints. Plus, we ticked off a lot of animals on our wildlife bucket list.
Although 1 night on The Great Ocean road is enough, if you want to relax on the beaches, go surfing or base yourself in different areas, we recommend adding another night and still following our plan. Our Great Ocean Road route is fast paced but with enough time to enjoy each sight and not feel too rushed.
We highly recommend staying at Bimbi Park in Cape Otway. It was an incredible experience spending the night in a retro caravan with wild koalas in the trees. We’ll explain more in our Great Ocean Road Itinerary!
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As for how to get around, we rented a car from Simba in Melbourne and they were perfect! As Simba only operates from the airport, we had to make a trip back to the airport area by local bus and then we just drove ourselves back to the airport on the final day.
However, you can book a day tour from Melbourne or a 2 day Great Ocean Road trip but we highly recommend renting a car!
The weather can be very unpredictable, even in the summer months, so prepare yourself for rainy or sunny days. We experienced one beautiful sunny day and one extremely rainy day, so you’ll need to pack a raincoat and sun cream for your trip.
2 Day Great Ocean Road Itinerary: Best Places To Visit
We have packed our 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary with the best things to do on a road trip! We’ll take you through our carefully planned, tried and tested itinerary, with lots of tips along the way!
Day 1 – Beaches, Waterfalls, Viewpoints & Koalas
The first day of this Great Ocean Road itinerary is the longest one! So make sure you get a good nights sleep. If you’re hiring a rental car, we recommend picking it up the night before. We rented from Simba (find them on Discover Cars) and picked it up at 7pm so we could leave as early as we wanted.
Our goal was to leave before 8am but we were a little late on the day and it did make our day a little rushed so we urge you to try leave as early!
Explore the shops in Torquay
Torquay is a lovely little Victorian coastal town and the official start of the Great Ocean Road. It only takes 1 hour to drive from Melbourne to Torquay. Plus, it’s the perfect first stop to stretch your legs!
It may seem a little weird to start your day with shopping, so you can skip it if you don’t need anything. This also means that you can leave even earlier, as you don’t have to wait for the shops to open at 9 am. But, as it was our first few days in Australia, we were mesmerised by the Aussie surf brands!
➤ Take a 2 hour surf lesson in Torquay on Torquay Beach!
Rip Curl, Quiksilver and Ghanda were all founded in Torquay. You’ll find outlets offering big discounts on clothes, accessories and surf boards! The Australian National Surfing Museum is also in Torquay but we only had time to view the little shop and visitor centre here.
Don’t forget to visit Torquay Front Beach for a short stroll which is different to the next beach we’ll share with you!
Visit Bells Beach
Bells Beach is one of the most famous destinations on the Great Ocean Road. It’s an iconic surfing spot in Australia and holds the world’s longest-running surfing competition, Rip Curl Pro (held in April)!
The beach is known to have amazing surf breaks and attracts surfers from all over the world!
There’s a viewpoint at the top of the beach which is perfect for viewing the surfers! You can also walk down to the bottom and have a quick walk on the beach.
It’s best to drive to Bells Beach as it’s not in Torquay centre, but this will only take a few minutes. It’s a great place to start your 2 days on the Great Ocean Road.
Spot Kangaroos at Anglesea Golf Club
Now it’s time to hit the road again on this 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary. Our next stop was a bit of a surprise but so worth it! We saw signs for a Kangaroo Tour at a nearby golf club and although we didn’t want to do a tour, we figured we might as well check it out!
After driving into the golf club’s car park, we spotted our first few kangaroos in the distance, taking shade under a tree! It was super exciting, and we recommend checking out Anglesea Golf Club if you have time.
Take in the views at Split Point Lookout
A lovely stop on our Great Ocean Road trip was Split Point Lookout! You can see Eagle Rock, the lighthouse and grab a drink at The Lighthouse Tea Rooms. There’s an entry fee to enter the lighthouse, but you can admire it from the outside and look at the impressive coastal views.
See the Great Ocean Road Sign
Did you even drive the Great Ocean Road if you didn’t take a photo with the sign? It’s a simple and easy stop with a little beach and safe photo opportunities! It will be called Memorial Arch at Eastern View on Google Maps, as the road was built as a memorial for the Australian soldiers after the war.
Stroll around Lorne
The next spot on our Great Ocean Road itinerary is Lorne, another cosy Victorian coastal town. If you didn’t bring a packed lunch with you, now is your chance to find a cafe or restaurant. We recommend HAH (Lorne Beach).
Lorne has another beautiful beach to explore, but we didn’t get to spend too much time here as we wanted to visit more destinations!
Hike to Erskine Falls
A short 12-minute drive from Lorne is Erskine Falls! There’s a viewpoint for the upper falls close to the beginning, and you can also continue walking to the base of the waterfall. There’s quite a few steps to come back up though, so if you’re really short on time, you can simply see it from the top! Our visit to the falls didn’t take too long, but it’s the perfect spot to have a snack and enjoy nature.
As we drove the Great Ocean Road in March (which is the end of the summer season in Australia), we knew the waterfalls wouldn’t be too impressive at this time of year. The falls were still good to visit, but definitely not as strong as they could be.
Visit Teddy’s Lookout
After the falls, drive back to Lorne and visit Teddy’s Lookout before continuing your Great Ocean Road route. Teddy’s Lookout has amazing views of the coastal road and incredible blue ocean colours. We were so lucky with the weather!
We also saw our first Kookaburra here, which was very memorable!
If you have more time in the day, visit Kennett River Nature Walk. We had to skip it due to the time of sunset, but check it out if you fancy a lovely stroll in nature!
➤ Book your 1 Day Great Ocean Road Tour here if you don’t want to drive!
Walk around Apollo Bay
One of the last stops of day 1 on our 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary is Apollo Bay.
Apollo Bay is where most travellers spend the night and have dinner on a one-night trip from Melbourne. We’ve chosen an even more unique place to stay and eat, so we only had a quick visit to the town.
Like most coastal towns on this itinerary, Apollo Bay has a lovely beach with seaside shops and plenty of restaurants to choose from. We also visited Foodworks here, which was the last chance to visit a grocery store for a while on the Great Ocean Road.
Camp in Great Otway National Park
When researching where to stay for our Great Ocean Road trip, we came across a retro caravan on Airbnb that made us book the trip straight away! Staying in Bimbi Park, Cape Otway, was one of the highlights of our time in Australia, and we’re so excited to recommend it to you!
Since we were in a rental car with no camping gear, we booked a fully equipped retro caravan that had a small kitchen, a comfy bed and electricity! It was perfect and the park gets better from here. Bimbi Park is known for having wild koalas in the trees and we spotted so many!
When we arrived, we walked around the campsite chatting to Aussie campers and spotting sleepy koalas before frying up some veggie hot dogs for dinner! It was the best way to spend the evening on our Great Ocean Road trip.
Perks of staying at Bimbi Park in Cape Otway:
- Spot the Koalas – look up in the trees!
- Go Stargazing – one of the best spots for seeing the Milky Way in Australia.
- Stay in a cosy retro caravan – a unique place to stay!
- See more wildlife – we also saw kangaroos, kookaburras and more birds!
- Morning beach walks – the campsite has a path to reach Station Beach.
You can book a caravan, campsites or luxury lodges on Bimbi Park’s website here! You can also find some of Bimbi Park’s lodges on Booking.com.
It’s popular to drive to the Twelve Apostles for sunset, but we recommend saving it for the next day, as it’s around 1 hour from Cape Otway and Apollo Bay.
Day 2 – Lighthouse, Coastlines & the Twelve Apostles
After a cosy night’s sleep in our retro caravan, we woke up for sunrise and spotted two kangaroos in the field next to the campsite. It was magical. We then ate cereal and fruit for breakfast before hitting the road to our first destination!
It’s best to bring your own breakfast if you’re staying at Bimbi Park. If you stayed at Apollo Bay, you can grab a bite to eat from RAW Bar.
Visit Cape Otway Lighthouse
The first stop of the day on our Great Ocean Road itinerary is the Cape Otway Lighthouse. Perched on the rocky cliffs, Cape Otway Lighthouse is an iconic lighthouse for Australia as it’s their oldest surviving lighthouse on mainland Australia.
The lighthouse grounds cost $11 to enter, which includes coastline views, a visit inside the lighthouse, access to a cosy cafe and a look inside some old control buildings! It’s like an open museum with views of the ocean!
We almost skipped this spot on our itinerary due to the price, but it’s worth it!
Go on a Rainforest Walk
On the way to Cape Otway from Apollo Bay, you would have driven past Maits Rest Rainforest. Luckily, it’s only a short detour back this way to visit it in the daytime! So head to the car park of the beautiful forest for a lovely 30-minute walk.
The rainforest walk is on a wooden boardwalk surrounded by tropical trees, mushrooms, large tree trunks and more! You may even spot another koala amongst the eucalyptus trees! At night, you can also spot glowworms.
The giant ferns and really old trees were enough to impress us, and we recommend you add this rainforest walk to your Great Ocean Road itinerary!
If you’re staying longer than 2 days on the Great Ocean Road, here’s a few extra stops you might be interested in: Hopetoun Falls, Triplet Falls and Otway Fly Treetop Adventures.
Go down Gibson Steps
From Cape Otway, it’s a 1-hour car journey to Gibson Steps. Sadly, we were hit with a lot of rain for the rest of our day and you’ll definitely notice it in our photos. Rain is very unpredictable on the Great Ocean Road, so we were thankful for having a beautiful first day!
Anyway, Gibson Steps are worth a visit on the way to the Twelve Apostles. The steps take you from the cliffside down to a beautiful stretch of golden beach! There’s less than 100 steps, so it’s not too strenuous getting back up again. We saw people writing messages in the sand for the people looking down from the cliffs!
Visit the Iconic Twelve Apostles
The Twelve Apostles are one of the most famous natural landmarks in Australia and they’re the highlight of this Great Ocean Road itinerary!
There are actually only 7 rock stacks in the water (two collapsed in 2005 and 2009), but the natural attraction was named after the religious Twelve Apostles to attract tourists!
The pointy stacks are made from eroded limestone that was once a part of the cliffs over 10 million years ago.
After parking in the big car park, it’s a short walk to the Twelve Apostles viewpoint where you can see the rocks and the beautiful limestone cliffs. It’s also possible to see penguins on the beach and rocks.
View Loch Ard Gorge
Another natural wonder on our Great Ocean Road itinerary is the Loch Ard Gorge.
Loch Ard Gorge is located in Port Campbell National Park and isn’t just a beach and cliffs! There’s lots of history to learn from this spot! In 1878, a huge ship named Loch Ard hit shallow water nearby and out of 54 passengers, only 2 survived (Tom and Eva).
You can follow the Shipwreck Walk to learn more about this tragic day! There’s also a Geology walk for lovely views of the coastline.
There’s also a few more rock formations to see, such as the London Bridge, Thunder Cave and Island Archway if you want to drive a bit longer!
Long drive back to Melbourne
Sadly, our 2 days on the Great Ocean Road came to an end as we had to head back to Melbourne for the night! The drive takes around 3 hours to Melbourne if you take in the inland route (use Google Maps) or it can take 4-5 hours if you head back on the Great Ocean Road.
There’s not many stops to take on the way back and the drive felt very similar to the UK, especially because it was raining! Although the drive is long, it’s totally worth it in order to have the best 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary!
If you want to stay another night, you may find some accommodation in Port Campbell or Peterborough. Personally, we recommend heading back to Bimbi Park for another beautiful night sleeping under the koalas!
More things to do on the Great Ocean Road
That’s the end of our 2 day Great Ocean Road trip! With only 2 days on the road, we had to skip out on a lot of lesser-known spots, so we wrote them all down for you to discover if you have the time! Here’s a few more things to do on the Great Ocean Road:
- Melba Gully – Stop here to look for glowworms at night
- Johanna Beach – another beautiful, less-visited beach on the Great Ocean Road
- Dusk Discovery Great Ocean Road Wildlife Tour – find more koalas!
- Warrnambool Hot Springs – drive further on the Great Ocean Road to a hot spring!
Once you get back to Melbourne, jump on a Yarra River Cruise or take a penguin eco tour!
Where to stay on the Great Ocean Road
The most popular area to stay for a 2 day Great Ocean Road trip is in Apollo Bay. We did a little more research and found a caravan in Cape Otway Park so there’s definitely other options!
Apollo Bay is perfect for restaurants, things to do in the evening and good guesthouses and hotels. If you fancy spending the night at a campsite, see our links for Bimbi Park below!
Apollo Bay Waterfront Motor Inn – stay on the waterfront with air con for the summer, free parking for your road trip and beautifully decorated rooms – Find it on Booking.com here!
Apollo Dream Suites – a slightly more affordable option, just a little further inland, still in Apollo Bay. Dream Suites is well-rated and well-decorated – Find it on Booking.com here!
Bimbi Park Lodges – we can recommend this place forever! Stay in luxury lodges or your own tent under the stars, surrounded by koala-filled trees – Find the lodges on Booking.com here!
Bimbi Park Retro Aussie Caravan – at the same camping resort, you can find retro caravans. This is what we stayed in during our Great Ocean Road itinerary and loved it! Book directly on the website here.
Car Rentals in Melbourne for the Great Ocean Road
If you’re planning on doing this 2 day Great Ocean Road itinerary, you’ll need a car! This can be a rental car, your own car or even a campervan. We’ve mentioned that you can book tours if you can’t drive. They won’t take you to all the destinations in our itinerary, but you’ll see the highlights! Book your 2 Day Great Ocean Road Tour here!
We rented our car from Simba (find them on Discover Cars) and they were great! We picked the car up at the airport the night before our Great Ocean Road trip, and then we had the option to leave as early as we wanted.
We usually take out full coverage on our rental cars, but the decision is completely up to you! There aren’t any dirt roads on our Great Ocean Road route, so you can simply get any car that is comfortable.
➤ Find other rental companies on Discover Cars!
Best Time To Visit the Great Ocean Road
The best time to visit the Great Ocean Road is from February to April (summer into fall) and September to November (spring).
We drove the Great Ocean Road in March and the weather was warm but not too hot. We had one fully sunny day and one very rainy day, so it was pretty mixed for us. Victoria has very unpredictable weather, so it’s hard to plan your trip in advance and have perfect sunny days.
The summer months are the most popular time to plan a Great Ocean Road itinerary, so it may be best to go late summer or spring if you want to avoid extra traffic or people. March wasn’t too busy, except the Twelve Apostles.
How many days to spend driving the Great Ocean Road
Generally, it takes between 2 to 3 days to drive and sightsee on the Great Ocean Road as it’s 240 kilometres long. We didn’t drive the whole road as we wanted to return to Melbourne within 2 days on the Great Ocean Road. This is quite common as most of the highlights are on the eastern and central part of the iconic road.
You can definitely see a lot in one day, however, you’ll probably be driving back to Melbourne in the dark if you don’t stay overnight. We think 2 days on the Great Ocean Road is a great amount of time if you only have a weekend free or are visiting Australia on a short time frame (like us).
Great Ocean Road Wildlife Bucket List
Before we set off on our 2 Day Great Ocean Road trip, we tried to research all the wildlife we wanted to spot. The best time to spot wildlife is dawn and dusk! Here’s everything we saw and wanted to see:
- Kookaburra – you can find them anywhere! we saw them at Bimbi Park, Lorne & Teddy’s Lookout.
- Kangaroo – we saw them at Cape Otway and Anglesea Golf Club
- Koala – the best place to see Koalas is Bimbi Park and Kennet River.
- Australian Magpie – they are everywhere!
- Yellow-Crested cockatoo – they are also everywhere, including Melbourne.
More wildlife to add to your Great Ocean Road Bucket List (that we didn’t see):
- Penguins – you can sometimes see them at the Twelve Apostles!
- Glow Worms – try to see them on rainforest walks or Melba Gully
- Echidnas – try to find them in shrubs in Port Campbell National Park
- Wallabies – similar to kangaroos, you can find them early morning or at dusk in grasslands.
- Platypus – you may see one if you’re really lucky
- Whales – head to Cape Otway Lighthouse in the Australian winter season.
- Seals – find them near Warrnambool, but technically not on the Great Ocean Road.
Is the Great Ocean Road worth visiting?
YES! As we mentioned before, the Great Ocean Road was one of the highlights of our Australia trip! We love a good coastal drive and the Great Ocean Road didn’t disappoint. It also helps if you can plan your trip on a sunny day, but as we had to book everything in advance, we were going to do the road trip no matter what.
We highly recommend renting a car to drive the famous road yourself, but it’s also possible by tour for those who still want to complete the adventure. Bimbi Park was one of our favourite places to visit on the Great Ocean Road for the wildlife, camping experience and unique atmosphere!
Definitely add the Great Ocean Road to your Australia bucket list – you won’t regret it!
That’s the end of our 2 Day Great Ocean Road Itinerary! If you need any more help planning – send us a message on Instagram (@thesunrisedreamers).
We’re currently writing more Australia travel guides! For now, check out how to save money for travel and our 3 month Southeast Asia itinerary!
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