Johanna Beach, Victoria: Great Ocean Road surfing and camping

Surfers and walkers known Johanna Beach, Victoria, but most of the world drives past unaware it exists. This 3.6km beach might be the best secret beach on the Great Ocean Road.

The Great Ocean Road in Victoria is known for having several amazing beaches. Bells Beach near Torquay is one of the world’s great surfing beaches, while Loch Ard Gorge near Port Campbell offers dramatic rock formations. Meanwhile, beach towns such as Lorne, Apollo Bay and Warrnambool will fight over who has the best stretch of sand.

Take the Great Ocean Road slowly, however, and there are some stunning beaches that most visitors never come across. Johanna Beach is a classic example of this. It comes just after the Great Ocean Road has hit the coast again after cutting across Cape Otway on the Apollo Bay to Warnnambool section. But once the Great Ocean Road hits the coast at Glenaire, it jags back in again towards Johanna and Lavers Hill.

7 fantastic Great Ocean Road experiences
1. Crowd-beating reverse direction tour. 2. Surfing lessons in Anglesea. 3. Split Point Lighthouse climb. 4. Shockwave Zip-Coaster. 5. Guided wildlife walk. 6. Budj Bim National Park tour. 7. Great Ocean Road by motorbike.

How to get to Johanna Beach, Victoria

Once you hit Johanna, branch left down the Red Johanna Road for one the best secret Great Ocean Road beaches. The track follows the Johanna River down to Johanna Beach, where you’ve got good odds on not encountering another soul.

Johanna Beach on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria — Johanna Beach is a Great Ocean Road secret only surfers and walkers tend to know about. Photo courtesy of Visit Victoria.

If you do see someone, it’ll probably be a hardy walker.

One of the campgrounds on the Great Ocean Walk is at Johanna Beach.

Camping at Johanna Beach

The Johanna Beach Campground, run by Parks Victoria, is basic. There are no showers or flushing toilets. But this sort of simple Johanna Beach accommodation is a key part of the Great Ocean Walk experience.

Johanna Beach is a beautiful, wild beach, with sand bluffs climbing up to 100 metres high behind it. The Johanna River empties into the southern ocean through the middle of the beach, and the surf crashes in from the south-west.

Great Ocean Road surfing beach

The 3.6km long beach is frankly dangerous for swimming. There are several rips, and there are no lifeguard patrols. But Johanna Beach is famous for surfing. The World Surfing Championships have been held here in the past, and there are left and right hand breaks to tackle.

The swell is consistently big here – expect 1.5 metre waves and hope for up to three metres. They break at the beach, too, rather than further out. Johanna Beach is one of Australia’s great beach breaks.

If you’re not a surfer, you may have to be content with paddling and admiring the view. Either way, if you want a beach that feels like a special find away from the herd, Johanna Beach in Victoria is it.

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