Day 2 Near Melbourne, Australia: Day Trip to The Great Ocean Road

A few weeks before my Melbourne trip, I researched online to check out the prices for a Great Ocean Road one day trip. From my research, Melbourne Australia tours offered the lowest price at AUD85 per person. However, on the day of my choice, they had no tours. Hence, I was linked up with Wildlife Tours, their partner, for the same package price. On the day of the tour, Patrick , our driver cum tour guide picked us up at 7.15 am. After a few more pickups, we were out of Melbourne by 8am.

To start off the tour, we reached Bells' Beach at about 9am. Here, we walked along the beach walkway and were awed by the surfers who were participating in a surfing competition despite the cold weather. Well, this place is after all the home of the Rip Curl Pro. Meantime, Patrick had set up morning tea or coffee, served with some biscuits. It was a simple meal but it was enough. After a short rest it was time to get back on the bus.

Soon, we reached Memorial Arch which is a historical part. This was a short photo stop and for those who felt like it, there is a path towards the beach where you can have a quick stroll. On the way towards Kennett River, we passed by Lorne, a seaside resort town. You can spot the unique houses built high up on the hills.

When we finally reached Kennett River, we quickly jumped out of the bus to spot the wildlife there. We were extremely lucky to see a koala in action as they are usually nocturnal. With this great chance, I took pictures and videos of the cute koala as if I was the paparazzi and the koala was a celebrity! Besides that, we spotted beautiful birds such as the lorikeet and the famous kookaburra.

After lunch at Apollo Bay Iluka Restaurant, we headed towards Mait's Rest, which is part of the Otway Rainforest Ranges. With Patrick leading the way, we had a refreshing bushwalk through this cool temperate rainforest. Here, you will feel really small as there are many tall trees which have existed since hundreds of years ago. Due to the ecology system too, you can see trees that have fallen being recycled and used by the other trees.

After another hour on the bus, we finaly reached the 12 Apostles, the highlight of this trip! We were greeted by good weather and clicked our cameras non stop to get great photos.

The twelve apostles are unfortunately not all there. Some have fallen over the years so do try to visit this natural attraction before it is all gone! At the 12 Apostles, you can also choose to take a short helicopter ride over the Twelve Apostles for an aerial view of the area. From here, it is a just a short drive over to Loch Ard Gorge . There are three different paths you can take. Each provides different views.For me, my favourite was the view of the "Razorback".

Our last stop for the day was London Bridge. In the past, it was actually a bridge. Now, you have to imagine the bridge... as London Bridge has indeed fallen down just like the lyrics of the song. The bridge portion fell down one day and you can read about this dramatic story related to it at the site. By now, it had started to rain so after a short photo stop, we hopped back into the warm comfort of the heated bus. Heading back to Melbourne, we stopped for takeaway as all of us were hungry. Finally, we reached Melbourne at about 9pm. All in all, it was an awesome tour with lots to see. And if you love the ocean, just like me, a tour of the Great Ocean Road is a must-do!