Australia · Coastal · Scenic · Bucket list
Great Ocean Road
B100 · Torquay to Allansford, Victoria
- Length
- 243 km151 miles
- Driving time
- A full day, or two with stops
- Season
- Year-round (best March to May)
- Toll
- Free
- Country
- Australia
Built by returned servicemen between 1919 and 1932 as a memorial to those killed in the First World War, the Great Ocean Road runs 243 km along the coast of Victoria. The section from Anglesea through Lorne to Apollo Bay is the driver's part, cut into the cliffs just above the surf.
The drive
Between Lorne and Apollo Bay the road follows every fold of the coast for 45 km, with tight corners, short straights and the sea a few metres below. Beyond Apollo Bay it turns inland through the rainforest of the Otways, then returns to the coast at the Twelve Apostles.
The hinterland roads are the local secret. Skenes Creek Road, the road from Lorne to Deans Marsh, and Turtons Track are twisty, quiet and far less policed.
In your Lotus
Victoria has the largest concentration of Lotus owners in Australia, and club runs along here are a fixture. The speed limit on the coastal section is mostly 80 km/h, dropping lower in places, and it is strictly enforced. Go early on a weekday in autumn for the best of it.
Watch out for
- Low limits and frequent camera enforcement.
- Tourist drivers unused to driving on the left; the road has reminder signs for them.
- Kangaroos and koalas on the road in the Otways at dusk.
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