A Geelong to Melbourne campervan route with a proper first-night plan

Geelong to central Melbourne via the M1 is only about 75 km and, outside peak traffic, takes roughly 1 hr 10 min. Useful? Yes. Memorable? About as thrilling as a servo sausage roll under heat lamps.

The campervan-friendly version heads down the Bellarine Peninsula to Barwon Heads and Queenscliff, crosses Port Phillip Bay by vehicle ferry to Sorrento, then follows the Mornington Peninsula north towards Melbourne. It is around 160–180 km of driving plus a 40-minute ferry crossing, depending on where you sleep and how often you detour for bakeries.

• Best pace: 3 days / 2 nights if you want beach time and civilised check-ins.
• Fast pace: 1 long day if you pre-book the ferry and skip the lazy bits.
• Do: book holiday park sites ahead from December to late January and over Easter.
• Don’t: assume “waterfront” means legal overnight parking — most foreshore car parks are day-use only.

Geelong is the sensible place to get organised before you roll south. Supermarkets, servos, bottle-os, LPG swaps, laundries and last-minute camping bits are all easier here than in the beach towns where every second parking bay has a surfboard in it.

From Geelong Waterfront to Barwon Heads is about 23 km, then another 35 km or so to Queenscliff. Fuel range is not a drama on this route — there are servos in Geelong, Ocean Grove, Drysdale, Queenscliff, Sorrento, Rosebud, Mornington and the Melbourne suburbs — but don’t run a hired motorhome down to fumes just because the map looks suburban. Summer traffic can turn short hops into hot, thirsty crawls.

• Water: fill at your holiday park or confirmed public potable tap; do not use signed non-potable taps.
• Waste: use a proper dump point; public toilets are not a cassette disposal plan.
• Parking: Geelong and coastal towns have tight bays — a 6 m campervan needs patience, not heroics.
• Do: buy groceries before Barwon Heads if travelling in school holidays.

The Queenscliff–Sorrento ferry is the trick that makes this route feel like a trip rather than a commute. The crossing takes about 40 minutes and runs across the mouth of Port Phillip Bay, with enough sea breeze to wake up even the passenger who “just rested their eyes” after Geelong.

For campervans and motorhomes, the important bit is vehicle size. Fares are based on vehicle length categories, and high-roof vans are normal on this service, but you still need to enter the correct length when booking. If your hire paperwork says 6.3 m, don’t call it 5.9 m and hope the ferry marshal has left their tape measure at home.

• Book ahead: especially weekends, school holidays and public holidays.
• Arrive early: allow at least 20–30 minutes before sailing.
• Gas: follow crew instructions for LPG appliances and cylinders before boarding.
• Do: check wind and schedule updates on rough-weather days.

This corner of Victoria is not the outback where you tuck in behind a gravel pit and call it home. The Bellarine, Mornington Peninsula and bayside Melbourne councils are busy, built-up and well-signed. Free camping is limited, and illegal overnight stays near beaches can attract fines that ruin the smug glow of “saving” a campsite fee.

Powered holiday park sites are the practical choice for most self-drivers here, especially with a hired motorhome. You get showers, water, bins, dump facilities or directions to one, and a level site that won’t have your fridge beeping at 2 am. National park camping exists in parts of the Mornington Peninsula, but not every campground suits larger motorhomes, and many require online booking before you arrive.

• Typical powered site: often around $45–$90 per night depending on season and location; check live availability online.
• Peak season: December–January and Easter book out early.
• Self-contained helps: toilet, grey-water control and house battery give you more options.
• Don’t: overnight in beach car parks unless signs explicitly allow it.

Rolling into Melbourne in a campervan is straightforward if you respect the city’s two enemies: peak traffic and low-clearance car parks. The West Gate Bridge and main arterials handle trucks and high vehicles, but CBD multi-storeys are commonly around 2.0–2.2 m clearance. Many campervans and motorhomes are 2.6–3.4 m high, which is a costly way to learn about roof vents.

If you are finishing the route in Melbourne, aim for a holiday park or depot area on the outer/suburban fringe, then use public transport or rideshare into the city. Driving a long-wheelbase van through hook turns, tram lanes and impatient delivery utes is not character-building; it is just unnecessary.

• Tolls: parts of Melbourne’s freeway network are tolled; check your hire agreement for toll processing.
• Fuel: fill before inner-city prices and awkward forecourts become annoying.
• Timing: avoid 7–9:30 am and 4–6:30 pm if you can.
• Do: check availability online for Melbourne-area campervan sites before you commit to the final leg.