Travelling southwest through Geelong, our first stop is at Anglesea to meet some Kangaroos. In picturesque Lorne where we stop for some morning tea. Further along, at Kennet River, we take a detour and look for Koalas in their natural environment.
After lunch at Apollo Bay we continue our drive through the Otway National Parks majestic Mountain Ash forest. While walking in the National Park you will have an opportunity to discover the peace and tranquility of a secluded tree fern gully. We then arrive at your 4 star accommodation close to Apollo Bay. This property offers stunning views of the Southern Ocean. Following dinner, we take you on a 'Rainforest by Night' walk to see the magical glow worms (weather permitting).
DAY 2 - Enjoy a continental breakfast before we continue our journey along Great Ocean Road and our first stop, the famous Twelve Apostles. A short drive further along the coast takes us to Loch Ard Gorge, where your guide will tell you the story of the Loch Ard shipwreck with extracts read out from the journal of the two survivors and original artifacts from the shipwreck handed around. London Bridge,Bay of Martyrs and Bay of Islands are discovered before we turn north to Dunkeld at the foot of the Grampians.
DAY 3 - This morning we make our way through the Grampians N.P. Our first stop, Brambuk Aboriginal Cultural Centre where the Aboriginal communities share their knowledge of the culture, both past and present, through display, exhibitions and bush tucker. We then retrace the footsteps of explorer Major Thomas Mitchell, reading extracts from his diary as he led an expedition through the region in the 1830's. We visit some astonishing lookouts where you will discover the extraordinary and dramatic formations created here 400 million years ago. Eighty percent of Aboriginal art sites in Victoria occur here in the Grampians; we visit a site which is dated at over 5,000 years old. Our route back to Melbourne takes us through historic Ballarat.