Melbourne Tours
Great Ocean Road Small-Group Ecotour from Melbourne
5

Great Ocean Road Small-Group Ecotour from Melbourne

By Go West Tours
Recommended by 98% of travellers
98% of reviewers gave this product a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
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No visit to Melbourne is complete without traveling the Great Ocean Road, home to some of Australia’s most dramatic scenery. Eliminate the hassle of car rental on this tour, which includes stops at Port Campbell and Great Otway National Park. Receive personalized attention from your guide, and access more of the Great Ocean Road than larger bus tours do. Convenient hotel pickup and drop-off are included from most Melbourne hotels.
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation

Ages 0-99, max of 24 per group
Duration: 14h
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
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Audio guide: Arabic, German, Chinese, Russian, Korean, Portuguese, Japanese, Italian, French, Spanish
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Highlights
  • Avoid the hassle of car rental on a Great Ocean Road day trip from Melbourne
  • Discover some of Australia's most dramatic coastal scenery with ease
  • Hit Great Ocean Road highlights such as the Twelve Apostles and Gibson’s Steps
  • In a minivan equipped with Wi-Fi, access places that larger tour buses can’t

  • Coffee and/or Tea
  • Friendly & Informative Guide
  • Pickup from Selected Hotels
  • National Park fees
  • WiFi on board
  • Air-conditioned vehicle
  • Entry/Admission - Twelve Apostles
  • Entry/Admission - Loch Ard Gorge
What's not included
  • Meals other than as stated
  • Gratuities

Your Great Ocean Road adventure begins with pickup from central Melbourne hotels, where you board a Wi-Fi-equipped minivan. Travel through the beautiful beach town of Torquay, the official start of the Great Ocean Road. Exploring the semitropical forest of Great Otway National Park. Gaze at the dramatic Twelve Apostles, undoubtedly the region’s most famous natural landmark, during a stop at Port Campbell National Park. Visit Loch Ard Gorge, the site of a notorious 19th-century shipwreck, and marvel at the dramatic result of erosion at Gibson’s Steps. Stop for dinner (at your own expense) before relaxing during the journey back to your departure point.

Start:Multiple pickup locations offered.
    Pickup details
    • Pickup is only available from the list of hotels provided upon checkout. Your pickup will be between 7am-8am depending on which hotel you selected. Your exact meeting time will be provided after a booking is placed. This tour returns to Melbourne at approximately 8:30pm-9:30pm.
    Hotel pickup offered
    During checkout you will be able to select from the list of included hotels.
      End:This activity ends back at the meeting point.

        • Not wheelchair accessible
        • Service animals allowed
        • Near public transportation
        • Infant seats available
        If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 3181GOWEST1

        • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
        • Most travellers can participate
        • Large bags, strollers, prams, baby capsules, luggage & walkers cannot be brought on board
        • This experience requires good weather. If it’s cancelled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
        • This experience requires a minimum number of travellers. If it’s cancelled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
        • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travellers

        • For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.

        If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 3181GOWEST1

        From
        ₹8,895.72
        per adult
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        About the operator
        Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
        • Go West Tours
          10,199
          Australia
          Joined in December 2008
        • T1712ILandreab
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Amazing
          Today's tour to Brighton, Moonlit Sanctuary and Phillip Island was really beautiful, the Penguin Parade is unbelievable and thank you to oir guide Zoe for the wonderful experience! Highly recommended
          Written 8 November 2024
        • A1lady
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Melbourne tours
          We had 3 different tours with Go West Tours. All guides were friendly and had indepth knowledge of local history and were excellent with time keeping.
          Written 7 November 2024
        • W190FSjoeld
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Great afternoon/evening
          Israel the tour guide was great. Knowledgeable, bubbly. And funny. We got to look at a few different sites on the island.
          Written 7 November 2024
        • meghar874
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Great experience
          Amazing views and with the penguins. Israel was the perfect tour guide! This trip is for folks who don’t want to spend a whole day on the penguin parade. We left at 2:45 p and drove to penguin parade with 2 stops (Nobbies center and Cawes). Then onward to the parade.
          Written 7 November 2024
        • 817alaao
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Great ocean road tour
          The tour was great with a nice tour guid - Frank, rich in knowledge, funny, good music, careful driving with a good air conditioning. Took us to great places viewing nature at its best with breathtaking landscapes and views.
          Written 6 November 2024
        • S8283ZHjudyh
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Amazing, Highly Recommend.
          Highly recommend. Well worth it. Saw thousand of beautiful Penguins. Also saw Echidnas , Geese, Wallaby, and even a Bunny. Jools and her off sider Gumnut are truly an assett to Go West and made the day so unforgettable. Do yourself a favour.
          Written 6 November 2024
        • GrandTour63913638615
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Great hiking experience
          I joined the day tour to Grampian national park and it was great. The overall arrangements was good in which we started by going to see the Wonderland and then to the balcony and McKenzie waterfall with finally a small walk to see a great scenic view of the whole place. Our your guide was Bree and she was so nice to help us to took a lot of pictures. She also had a good sense of humor which made the whole day always with loads of laughter. Bree also accompanied us to do the hiking so we won't get lost.
          Written 6 November 2024
        • lindacharest
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Go west Penguin Parade
          Great day with Rhys Go West Tours. Highly recommend any of their tours. Penguin parade was epic not to be missed. Good day all round
          Written 6 November 2024
        • triciat745
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Amazing Tour Experience
          My family and I had such an amazing and memorable experience with this tour! So much beauty in every place we went to and seen. Our tour guide, Chris H, was incredibly wonderful! He's so friendly, professional, patient, helpful and passionate about what he does! I would highly recommend this tour for anyone who's keen to explore these lovely places! :)
          Written 6 November 2024
        • asuwanis2023
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Amazing and fun
          Amazing tour guide, Miss Bree! Made ride smooth and uplifting! Fun young lady and catered to needs for all age group. Great tour
          Written 5 November 2024
        • 755gerryl
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Grampians National Park day tour
          Bree was a professional guide and led us along the way to lots of attractions with picturesque scenery. Would definitely recommend the tour to my future friends visiting Melbourne.
          Written 5 November 2024
        • TravelCaptureRepeat
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Nice experience and a good drive
          Nice experience and was a good drive. Super cool tour guide (Cloe) made sure we had a great day. Weather was great at this time so could enjoy everything.
          Written 5 November 2024
        • jakeo787
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Phenomenal Penguin Parade
          This was an unbelievable tour and experience with my tour guides Jools and Gumnut. She was brilliant, so kind and so positive! I had an amazing tour as a solo traveller but didn’t feel solo once. Made me feel very welcome! The sites we saw were amazing! Saw so many swamp wallabies, 3 echidnas, and of course the penguins. Truly once in a lifetime experiance! Thanks again to Jools !!
          Written 5 November 2024
        • SwatiJ259
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Awesome
          Everything was amazing.A special thanks to our tour guide Jools for the warmest hospitality ever.Would love to have more tours with her.
          Written 5 November 2024
        • Sapnavijay
          0 contributions
          5.0 of 5 bubbles
          Jools and Gumnut
          Jools was amazing through out the trip. She went above and beyond to show us wild life. She also gave us a small tour and ride to the Cowes with recommendations.
          Written 5 November 2024
        See all 10,199 reviews
        These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

        Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

        Popular mentions

        5.0
        5.0 of 5 bubbles3,283 reviews
        Excellent
        3,043
        Very good
        197
        Average
        23
        Poor
        10
        Terrible
        10

        sumgom
        Adelaide, Australia9 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        I compared the facilities with other tour companies in groupon and realised that this will be value for money. Some other companies offering the same with cheaper price, however didn't impress me as found gowest reviews are great beacaue of great customer experiences. Daniel T was great tour guide who has great knowledge as well as impressed us with his humour while guiding us. You won't get bored with him and best part is he recalls your name. The trip was well planned which help us to see everything on time and enjoyed the best experience. The phone operator was nice and informative.
        Written 23 February 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        River Wong
        4 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        Feb 2020
        The locations were absolutely amazing. I would recommend it even if the weather isn't perfect because the scenery is breathtaking even if the sky is covered with clouds. I wish we could stay longer at each destination but there's only so much time in a single day trip.
        Our bus driver, Jonathan, did a great job driving through and told interesting stories about each of our destinations and some spots that we drove by, even pointing out any points of interest whether it's a building or an animal that we pass by. We're here to have fun, and it's evident that he was here to help us enjoy the trip.
        Written 25 February 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        Carlos T
        6 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        The Great Ocean Tour which I took on 4/1/20 is highly recommended.
        This tour left Mebourne at 8am after the efficient and timely pick-up of about 20 passengers and wound up at 8.30pm with drop off at the relevant hotels back in Melbourne.
        The tea/coffee & cake stop at a beach at Geelong at 9am was as thoughtful as was the venue selection.
        The driver/guide/butler/para-medic Jonathan truly deserves appreciation.
        The manner in which he went about his numerous roles was simply stupifying.
        No guide I have come across this far has shown the same amount of concern, passion,attention to detail whilst also being so informative as he handled the bus very deftly.
        I wish Jonathan and Go West Tours all the very bear I future.
        Will return to Melbourne for the other tours soon.
        Carlos Tavora.

        Written 4 January 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        Bella m
        1 contribution
        4.0 of 5 bubbles
        Feb 2020 • Friends
        On Sunday 16. Feb we joined a Group of 23 different nationalities for the Great Ocean Road tour. The bus was old and uncomfortable with small seats placed too close together for a 14 hour day trip. The driver/guide, Tim, however, was just perfect for the job. He was cheerful and helpful and very informative and did his best to create a friendly atmosphere, encouraging us to express wishes and preferences throughout the day even though the group was unresponsive. Our compliments to his knowledge, excellent driving and diplomatic skills.
        Written 17 February 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
        We're sorry to hear that the reviewer found our bus too old for their tour. This vehicle was added (brand new) to our fleet in the last months of 2018, so is less than 18 months old! Nonetheless, it's great to hear that our guide, Tim, did a great job & was as cheerful & helpful as described. Thanks very much for joining us on tour, and very best wishes for your onward journey!
        Written 18 February 2020
        This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

        Jenni Dee
        Chania, Greece54 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        Had a lovely day out on this trip. Regular stops and opportunities to take photos and learn things. Our guide was interesting and entertaining, kept us awake and let us sleep at the appropriate times and provided enough guidance to allow us to build our own experience.

        A few things to point out that are out of the companies control if you are planning to take this trip.
        The stops are long enough but don’t feel like it cos of the overwhelming number of tourists everywhere.
        There are up and downhill parts to most of the walks so be prepared to be out of breath and sweat a bit on hot days.
        Bring water with you.
        It’s a very long day

        The only thing I did not like was the last stop for dinner. Not many quality options and too short for a meal. I think that this could instead be a five minute stretch walk and then arrive back in Melbourne on time for a late meal.

        Overall a great day with many photos taken and much to talk about 😁
        Written 30 January 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        Dave C
        Houston, TX10 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        Jan 2020 • Friends
        I think you can pretty much expect the same experience from any Great Ocean road tour: the sights are spectacular. What made this one stand out for my friends and I was our tour guide, Yazmin. She was definitely the most engaged tour guide I've ever had: she started off by telling us about the history of Australia, had planned specific songs to play all throughout the trip based on our stops, and she was extremely funny! I think it's hard to be engaged with any tour group given how diverse each group likely is and English not being everyone's first language so most of the time there are a lot of blank stares. You're also on a bus for a LONG time. Yazmin made the time fly by with her stories and sense of humor. I imagine it's easy to want to just give up and drive when you're trying to be funny and not receiving any feedback. I was amazed at her tenacity and truly appreciated all stories and one-liners. My wife and I chuckled at each one.

        In addition to all this,the bus was clean and had surprisingly strong wifi. Yazmin set time expectations early in the tour and had the group well organized to be able to enjoy each stop and return at a reasonable hour.
        Written 26 January 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        SY Lee
        Singapore, Singapore4 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        May 2022
        It was a really enjoyable day. The day started at 730AM and it took a little while to pick up all the people in our tour before we started the journey. Our guide, Chris, was very experienced and friendly. The itinerary was very well-planned and the sights were amazing. Coupled with Chris' storytelling along the way/at lookout points, it was really entertaining and insightful. We signed up with the expectations to view the 12 Apostles on our holiday but we received so much more, including knowing more about the history of Great Ocean Road. The only rush was dinner time, which is understandable because the priority was to visit all the promised destinations, and also to send us back to our accommodations safely and punctually. I really recommend this tour to those that are interested in visiting the Great Ocean Road!
        Written 17 May 2022
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
        Thanks, lsy345! We're really grateful that you trusted us with your booking and that you enjoyed your tour so much.
        Written 18 May 2022
        This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

        Angela k
        Singapore148 contributions
        3.0 of 5 bubbles
        The tour to various places was good. We had a guide/driver, Paul for this trip. The feedback :
        1. Paul seemed to rush us for everything
        2. Bus seats were a bit too cramp for big sized guest. I am petite so it didn’t bother me but some of the other guests could be affected
        3. Stops to the attractions were a bit too short for proper photo taking and exploration
        4. 12 apostles/Gibson Steps stop could be longer. We were given 40 mins. We had to walk 15 mins of the pathway to see the apostles and walk back another 15 mins to the bus and that took 30 mins. We had only 10 mins to take pictures and for a toilet break. The Lorch Arc Gorge stop was 45 mins which was good time
        4. Lunch was a rush (slightly longer) as compared to dinner. Dinner was 30 mins and there wasn’t enough time to eat
        5. There wasn’t a guided tour to the eco walk. It seems that go west website said it was a guided tour to see the water fall at Great Otway National Park. We walked inside the path by ourselves and ended up at the end of the path and saw a stream of water falling from some rocks. That was obviously not a waterfall

        I am not sure if I would recommend this tour. Read most of the reviews and thought it was a good one. I would say the itinerary was acceptable but perhaps it was the guide?
        Written 17 February 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
        We're sorry to hear that the reviewer found this tour "average". Ironically, the 5-bubble review immediately below this one (entitled "Great one day tour!") travelled on exactly the same touring vehicle with exactly the same guide (Paul), on exactly the same day! We guess this goes to show it's pretty difficult to please all the people all the time. It long been our experience that some of our guests would prefer us to shorten the meal breaks in order to spend more time at the sightseeing destinations, while some guests' preference is for longer meal breaks, with fewer sightseeing destinations, or less time spent at each. Likewise, so guests will be back at the bus 15 minutes before the scheduled departure time, while some guests complain the stopping time is not long enough, or return 10 or more minutes after we're scheduled to move on. We recognise that it's very much a case of "different strokes for different folks", and we try to schedule our stops for a time duration that satisfies the vast majority of our guests. While some people take 15 minutes to walk (or perhaps meander, saunter, amble or mosey) to the 12 Apostles viewing lookouts, others will be there comfortably within 2 minutes of departing the touring vehicle. Thanks all the same for taking the time to review us!
        Written 17 February 2020
        This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

        imf119
        Bedfordshire, Englnd54 contributions
        5.0 of 5 bubbles
        Feb 2020
        Whilst in Melbourne took both the Phillip Island and Great Ocean Road tours with Go West tours. Both were great tours, pick up's spot on, guides (Corey and Adrian) that were attentive, knowledageable and fun, and an itinerary that was good for the day.

        Overall I highly recommend this organisation, during a multi city visit of Australia these were 2 of the best tours we went on.
        Written 6 March 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

        Michele K
        6 contributions
        4.0 of 5 bubbles
        Feb 2020 • Friends
        I’m writing this review after my second Go West tour, which I almost cancelled after this Great Ocean Road Tour.

        The sights you see are world class! We saw a koala in the wild, did a rainforest walk and I would 100 percent recommend taking the time to drive this road to see the 12 Apostles.

        My complaints were with our guide. I didn’t feel like he shared any interesting information, talking much more about our food options and his mandatory break schedule and log book than the sights we were visiting. People on our bus were scolded for being a few minutes late, followed by a patronizing lecture on timeliness. He peer pressured us to shorten our dinner break and remove stops from our final drop-off by saying everyone on the bus had already agreed that these decisions were best, when clearly our entire group would have preferred a dinner and a convenient drop off.

        The tour guide for our second tour was amazing and we are so glad we didn’t cancel, but honestly it was close after our first experience.
        Written 24 February 2020
        This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
        We couldn't be more disappointed to hear about the lacklustre efforts described above. What is described here is well short of what we expect from our on-road team and we will be following up with the reviewer to determine their date of travel and to identify which of our team needs a swift kick up the Khyber. It is not at all acceptable to us when any of our guides fails to make a reasonable effort for our guests. All we can ask of our team is that they do their level best for our guests, and it sounds like this individual just couldn't be bothered. It's great to hear that the guide on this guest's second tour was "amazing" which is exactly what we expect from our team. Thanks so much for letting us know about this issue, and giving us the opportunity to address it!
        Written 27 February 2020
        This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

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