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Before I even set foot in Australia, friends and colleagues suggested that I see and experience the Great Ocean Road. Locals further recommended it when I arrived. After I was in the country for some time, I began to be chastised for not visiting! I finally managed to see what all the fuss was about and I sure am glad I did. The Great Ocean Road is around 285 kilometers and covers the southwest coast of Victoria. It starts at the town of Torquay and extends toward Warrnambool. The main winding road (which is not for those who get car sick easily!) is said to be a memorial to the soldiers who passed away during World War I. It was also a way to employ those soldiers who returned from the war and later those who needed work during the Great Depression. You can take your own car or hire/rent a car or caravan for a trip to the Great Ocean Road. One-way rentals are available from major companies in Melbourne. You can also take a bus or train to certain destinations. There are guided tours from Melbourne, too. Tours can last from a few hours or one day to several days depending on your schedule and budget. Tours may include transportation only or transportation, accommodation, and meals as well. Check with tour operators online or in downtown Melbourne offices for details. The main towns along this coastal route are Torquay, Anglesea, Aireys Inlet, Lorne, Apollo Bay, Lavers Hill, Princetown, Port Campbell, and Warrnambool. As a side note, if you want to reach a particular town or attraction faster and you’re coming from Melbourne, you can take the Princes Highway instead of the Great Ocean Road to save some time. You’ll still see plenty of farms, cows, sheep, and then forests along the way, so it’s not a highway in the sense that we are usually used to in larger cities. Each town – whether along the Great Ocean Road or the Princes Highway – has a select number of cafes or restaurants, gas/petrol stations, souvenir shops, accommodation, and touristy must-sees (e.g., little museums, wildlife, outdoor adventures). From a city slicker’s perspective, the towns are teeny-tiny and limited in terms of choice, but the whole point of visiting the towns along the Great Ocean Road is to take in the quaintness and charm of country living mixed with beach or forest pleasures. Highlights of the Great Ocean Road include checking out the lovely cafes in the small towns, surfing or dipping your toes into the ocean, horseback riding on the beach or in the forests, hiking and walking (e.g., Triplet Falls – rainforest and waterfall walk, Gibson Steps – takes you to beautiful views of the ocean and coast), cycling, visiting the Cape Otway Lightstation, braving the heights at the Otway Fly Tree Top Walk (the tallest tree-top walk in the world), taking in the spectacular Twelve Apostles (special rock formations jutting out of the sea), camping or caravanning, taking pictures of local wildlife like koalas and kangaroos, people-watching, hanging out at a festival, fishing, eating and drinking to your heart’s content, and breathing in loads of fresh air. Pitfalls include planning your town stops according to your gas/petrol needs as stations can be closed, not functioning, or distant from one another, possible carsickness for passengers, totally breaking the budget because of entry and activity (e.g., scenic flights) fees as well as expensive housing or food, limited internet access, getting lost because of poor or non-existent signs, finding something other to eat than fish & chips, meat pies, or pasties, and being chilly or cold when you least expect it. Whether you are in Australia and Victoria in particular for a short or long amount of time, I really recommend the Great Ocean Road. You’ll be sure to get stunning photographs, good roadtrip laughs, and cool stories to tell folks back home. Tags for this Travel Tip: wildlife beaches rockformations nationalparks hiking camping cafes roadtrip |
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Comments (8)
2008-03-29 10:54:05
from ftuley
Great Tip, I love the pictures and how you describe it so well.
wow! that looks - and sounds - amazing. Actually, could be worth going to Australia just for this.
Nice review - never been to Australia....but I am definitely coming!!
Let me know if someone finds the Mahogany ship...in some lost beach of Victoria... :-) Sinbad
Sounds amazing...there is a similar attraction on the coast of California called the 17-Mile Drive that I have traveled down.
This is one of the best tips on Cosmotourist. I have wanted to drive the Great Ocean Road since I was about 15. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to do it someday :-)
... makes me dream to go back there and do the trip once more! Cheers and all the best, Sven
Yeah! You covered it all, from the winding motion sick producing roads to the spectacular scenery. It's great! Thanks for the tips.
Cynthia |
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