Driving Along The Great Ocean Road

Finally, the real start to our great adventure! Now that we were on wheels we raced out of the city, watching the landscape drastically change as we moved towards the open air. We weren’t really sure what to expect other than what the road name suggests, so when we got to see the beauty that this route offers, we almost couldn’t believe it.

Along the winding roads, we passed through quaint little towns such as Lorne, Apollo Bay, and Port Campbell (where we stopped for a quick bite to eat). After lunch we drove through Cape Otway National Park, stopping plenty of times along the way at the various lookout points, each one more stunning than the next.

We didn’t want to rush our Great Ocean Road-trip, so we decided to camp overnight. Somehow we managed to stumble across a campsite called ‘Bimbi Park‘, one of our happier accidents.

This was the cheapest and the best campsite that we stayed throughout our whole time in Australia, mainly because it was so stunning and untouched. As we made our way down the long driveway we were enveloped by a vast canopy of trees and if we looked closely enough, we could see wild Koala Bears nestled away in the branches. Need I say more?!

Bimbi itself is very simple but very beautiful. It’s all about wild horses and unspoilt nature – heaven. My only advice would be to take firewood as it is freezing at night. You can buy firewood at the reception but as we unfortunately discovered, it is rather expensive.

Another thing to bear in mind is that it costs a dollar per minute to shower as water is scarce in the area – so wash your hair beforehand!

Revived and ready to go the following morning, we wound our way to the famous Twelve Apostles. This landmark does not disappoint, it is breathtaking. However, it is hugely overcrowded which detracted our attention away from the natural wonder somewhat. Believe it or not, elbows were involved in taking the picture below!

As per the advice of the lovely receptionist at Bimbi, we continued driving a short while further to a place called ‘The Grotto’. The Grotto was much quieter tourist-wise, and it was simply stunning. An absolute must-see if you are planning on doing this journey yourself. We also stopped at a few other places such as the Bay of Islands, but nothing really compared to The Grotto, it was definitely our favourite!

After months of travelling, the Great Ocean Road is still one of our highlights, though being able to drive independently definitely contributed to this. I’m not sure a guided tour would have quite the same impact and might be a little restrictive.

If you are even considering this road trip, I would highly recommend that you go for it!