Geelong to Lorne road trip via the Great Ocean Road

Geelong to Lorne road trip via the Great Ocean Road

The best stops on a Geelong to Lorne road trip along the Great Ocean Road include Torquay, Anglesea and Aireys Inlet. By car, the distance from Geelong to Lorne is 67km, with a driving time of around 1h7m.

The Geelong to Lorne drive covers the first chunk of Victoria’s Great Ocean Road – one of Australia’s great drives.

Geelong is a surprisingly fun place, offer water-bikinghot air balloon flights and electric picnic boat rentals. For the best Geelong accommodation deals, head this way.

Lorne is primarily a beach town, but offers plenty of gorgeous waterfall walks, too. For the top Lorne accommodation deals, browse the options here.

This guide is aimed at travellers who are self-driving, and want to plot out the best stops on a Geelong to Lorne road trip itinerary. Click through on the links for more detailed information on the towns and attractions.

Geelong to Lorne distance and driving time

By car, the distance from Geelong to Lorne via the Great Ocean Road is 67km. You can expect a driving time of around one hour and seven minutes.

The best stops on the way from Geelong to Lorne include Torquay, Anglesea and Aireys Inlet.

There are plenty of things to do in Geelong. These include the National Wool Museum, helicopter rides, the Baywalk Bollards on Geelong Waterfront and the Boom Gallery.

3 Geelong experiences to book in advance

The best places to stay in Geelong

The top Geelong accommodation options are:

Geelong to Lorne road trip: Geelong to Torquay

It’s 20km from Geelong to Torquay. The quickest route heads along the Surf Coast Highway, past the GMHBA Stadium and Barwon Valley Golf Club.

Perhaps the best stop on the Geelong to Torquay drive, however, is the Narana Aboriginal Cultural Centre. This hosts an Indigenous art gallery, café, playground and native plants garden.

Things to do in Torquay include the Australian National Surfing Museumsurfing lessons, and aerobatic flights at Tiger Moth World.

Your Torquay checklist

Geelong to Lorne drive: Torquay to Anglesea

The drive from Torquay to Lorne is the first leg of Victoria’s Great Ocean Road. The official start of Australia’s most famous driving route is just south of Torquay.

Several of the Great Ocean Road’s highlights line up along this stretch of the journey, so plan your stops and you can make a day of it.

The Torquay to Lorne drive starts by skirting the Lorne-Queenscliff Coastal Reserve at Jan Juc before heading to Bells Beach. Perhaps the most famous surf beach in Australia, Bells was the fictional setting for the final scenes of Point Break. You need experience to attempt to surf the breaks at Bells Beach, but non-surfers can watch the action from the clifftop lookouts.

Before you come into Anglesea, you might want to make a stop at Point Addis Beach in the Point Addis National Marine Park. There are some great coastal lookouts at Point Addis – keep an eye open for whales in winter. The marine park is also renowned for good snorkelling and diving.

Otherwise, keep going until you reach the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie in Bellbrae.

Chocolate-tasting complete, you can move on towards Anglesea, which has lots of accommodation options, including the Anglesea Caravan Park. The Anglesea Golf Course is notorious for kangaroos on the fairways, and Anglesea Beach is relatively safe for swimming. It is protected from the swell somewhat by Point Roadknight.

Where to stay in Anglesea

The best Anglesea accommodation choices are:

kangaroo and joey on Anglesea Golf course, Victoria
Mother kangaroo and her joey at the Anglesea Golf Club on Victoria’s Great Ocean Road. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions.

Click through for the next section: Anglesea to Lorne.