Great Ocean Road
A hundred and fifty miles of coast and the Twelve Apostles, limestone stacks standing in the sea.
Duration
10 hrs – 12 hrs
Best time
Early start, driving west to east
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
The road was built between 1919 and 1932 by three thousand soldiers returned from the First World War, with picks and shovels: it is the largest war memorial in the world, dedicated to those who did not come back.
It runs two hundred and forty-three kilometres. The Twelve Apostles are limestone stacks cut off from the cliff by erosion — there were never twelve, there were nine when they were named and seven today, one having collapsed in 2005. The coast retreats about two centimetres a year, and new stacks will form.
Getting there
Starts at Torquay, an hour and a half from Melbourne. Allow a full day: the Twelve Apostles are four hours' drive from the city.
Rules on site
Driving west to east puts the lookouts on the driver's side and saves crossing the road at every stop. The cliff edge collapses regularly: stay on the platforms. Driving is on the left, and the road is winding and tiring.