The Great Ocean Road stretches from Torquay - one of Melbourne's little suburban seaside resorts - 200kms [125mls] west to Portland, though some drivers turn off a little earlier at Warrnambool, heading back to Melbourne via the Grampian Highlands and Ballarat, while others continue on to Adelaide, though the distance there is considerable and views en route few.
The Great Ocean Road was deliberately designed by the Victoria state government to be one of the world's greatest driving experiences and is certainly a successful marketing exercise though many would argue that GOR doesn't make it into the world's top roads, not compared to, for example, the US's Pacific Coast Highway, South Africa's Cape Town to Cape Horn drive, the Scottish Highlands or a dozen other classic routes around the world.
The problem is mainly that the road doesn't actually spend that much time cruising attractively beside the ocean and even the famous Twelve Apostles sea stacks are barely visible without a walk [not that there's anything wrong with a good leg stretch after hours at the wheel].
Fundamentally, to enjoy The Great Ocean Road you need to plan interesting diversions on the way, park and walk, park and surf, whatever. Just don't expect the road itself to provide endless entertainment, it ain't going to happen that way.
A hire car or a tour bus is probably the best way to travel this road as some parts are lengthy, hilly, and/or dull, making biking, for example, butt-grinding work, while public transport does not provide buses running the whole route and changes can be big time wasters.
Personal transport also allows the visitor more freedom to stop and take the necessary pictures as well as get in a bit of surfing, hill-walking, forest trekking, whale watching [in season] or animal tracking.
The early section of GOR offers some spectacularly good surf beaches, including perhaps Australia's best waves at Bell's Beach, near Torquay, while kangaroos can be spotted on Anglesea's golf course.
Koalas can be seen in the trees beside the road between Lorne and Apollo Bay, and Great Otway National Park provides some great hikes, treetop walkways and animal viewing.
The Twelve Apostles viewing platforms and walkways will be busy with tourists and may be less stunning than expected - unless you take time to walk down to the beach and see the stacks from sea level.
The Great Ocean Walk is also available to dedicated hikers, running from Apollo Bay to the Twelve Apostles and taking about a week for the whole length, though just walking smaller sections is also an option. There are camp sites en route.
Also on offer are the Surf Coast Walk and Great South West Walk.
These Great Ocean Rd Photos later divide into two parts, one section showing the route back to Melbourne, the other continuing on to Adelaide.
