lets go campervan hire Great Ocean Road: the self-drive plan

On paper, Melbourne to Warrnambool via the coast is about 300 km. In a campervan, that number is a trap. The road twists, lookouts multiply, and every second driver suddenly discovers the brake pedal near a cliff view.

Three days is the minimum for a sensible lets go motorhome great ocean road run. Four to five days is better, especially if you want the Otways, Cape Otway, Maits Rest and Tower Hill without packing up camp in the dark like a possum with deadlines.

• 2 days: possible, but it becomes a Twelve Apostles dash with very little actual living.
• 3 days: Torquay or Lorne, Apollo Bay or Cape Otway, Port Campbell or Warrnambool.
• 5 days: proper coastal pace, Otway rainforest walks, and less campsite roulette.
• 7 days: add Grampians or Bellarine Peninsula for a relaxed loop.

Do book your first and last nights early in summer and school holidays. Don't assume you can pull into a beach car park and call it camping; several councils patrol, and fines can sit around the $200-$300 mark.

The Great Ocean Road itself is sealed from Torquay through Lorne, Apollo Bay, Port Campbell and on to Allansford near Warrnambool. You do not need a 4WD for the main event, which is good news for hire-van contracts and anyone who has ever reversed a motorhome while being watched by six retirees in camp chairs.

Expect tight bends between Lorne and Apollo Bay, slow tourist traffic, cyclists, and the odd delivery truck taking up more scenery than you would like. You will not meet many road trains on the cliff section, but inland returns and the Princes Highway can bring B-doubles and log trucks, so keep left, use slow-vehicle turnouts, and let the locals get on with their day.

• Typical van height: about 2.7-3.2 m; watch low branches in Otway camps and older holiday parks.
• Great Ocean Road speed: often 50-80 km/h in reality, even where the sign looks optimistic.
• Dirt-road caution: Johanna Beach and some waterfall accesses use gravel; check your hire terms before committing.
• Parking: arrive at big lookouts before 10 am or after 4 pm for easier long-bay parking.

Do use engine braking on descents and pull over safely for photos. Don't stop half in a lane because the ocean looked dramatic; it always does that.

The Great Ocean Road is popular, beautiful and heavily regulated, which is bureaucrat-speak for: sleep in the wrong lay-by and someone may tap on the window. Holiday parks are the easiest first-night answer, with powered sites, showers, laundry, water and usually a dump point or one nearby.

National park and bush campgrounds are better for quiet nights, but they are not free-for-all paddocks. Parks Victoria sites generally need online booking, dogs are usually not allowed, generators may be restricted, and facilities can be as simple as drop toilets and no showers.

• Powered sites: common around Torquay, Lorne, Apollo Bay, Port Campbell and Warrnambool; expect higher demand in January.
• Unpowered sites: useful if your van has solar and house battery, but still book ahead in peak season.
• Free camping: limited close to the coast; look inland and obey local signage.
• Self-contained vans: still need to use dump points and legal grey-water disposal.

Do carry a 10 m power lead, levelling ramps and a torch that is not just your phone on 9% battery. Don't camp at Twelve Apostles, Gibson Steps, Loch Ard Gorge or beach access car parks unless signs specifically allow it, which they generally do not.

This is not the Nullarbor, but don't treat the coast like suburban Melbourne either. Servos exist at Torquay, Lorne, Apollo Bay, Port Campbell and Warrnambool, yet smaller-town hours can be shorter than your appetite after a windy beach walk.

Fuel gaps are modest by Big Lap standards: Torquay to Lorne is about 47 km, Lorne to Apollo Bay about 45 km, Apollo Bay to Port Campbell around 97 km, and Port Campbell to Warrnambool about 65 km. Many campervans carry roughly 70-90 L of diesel, but hills, headwinds and air-con can make the fuel gauge more dramatic than expected.

• Refuel rule: top up by half a tank, especially before detouring into the Otways.
• Fresh water: many vans carry 80-120 L; two careful adults may get 2-3 days.
• LPG: swaps and refills are easiest in larger towns; don't leave it until Sunday evening.
• Dump points: check current council or camping apps around Torquay, Apollo Bay, Port Campbell and Warrnambool before you arrive.

Do empty the toilet cassette before it becomes a family argument. Don't drain grey water onto the ground; even if nobody is watching, the next camper will know, and they will judge you.

A campervan changes how you sightsee. You are longer, taller and slower to park than a hatchback, but you also carry lunch, dry socks and a bed. That is a fair trade on a coast where weather changes its mind every 20 minutes.

Bells Beach, Aireys Inlet lighthouse, Kennett River, Maits Rest, Cape Otway, Gibson Steps, the Twelve Apostles, Loch Ard Gorge and Tower Hill all make sense on a campervan itinerary. The trick is spacing them so you are not trying to reverse out of a packed lookout with steamed-up mirrors and a queue of SUVs behind you.

• Bells Beach: easy first coastal stop, but not an overnight camp.
• Kennett River: good for koalas if you walk quietly and park considerately.
• Maits Rest: short rainforest loop near Apollo Bay; allow 30-45 minutes.
• Gibson Steps: steep stairs; check tide and wind before wandering down.
• Tower Hill: excellent wildlife stop near Warrnambool, with roomier parking than many cliff lookouts.

Do pack a rain jacket even in January. Don't feed wildlife, block caravan bays with your doors flung open, or assume a short lookout stop will stay short once the wind starts throwing sand into your sandwich.

Summer days often sit around 25-35°C, though a hot northerly can make the van feel like a pie warmer. Winter can be 8-15°C, damp and moody, which is excellent for waterfalls and less excellent for drying towels unless you manage airflow properly.

The Otways are wetter and cooler than the coast, while exposed cliff stops can be windy enough to make a camper door feel like a sail. In summer, total fire bans matter; in winter, condensation matters. Either way, a powered site every couple of nights is not weakness, it is laundry strategy.

• Best overall: March-May and September-November for milder weather and fewer crowds.
• Peak squeeze: late December, January, Easter and long weekends.
• Fire rules: check CFA and Parks Victoria alerts before lighting anything.
• Wet-weather plan: keep one sealed-road inland option ready if gravel access turns sloppy.

Do check availability online early if you need a specific berth layout, toilet/shower onboard, or automatic transmission. Don't leave campervan hire and coastal camps until the week before Christmas unless you enjoy character-building disappointment.