Geelong sits on the south shore of Corio Bay. The waterfront runs along the bay from Rippleside to Eastern Beach, the CBD lies directly behind it, and the station is on its west edge. The Bellarine Peninsula spreads east, Torquay and the Surf Coast are about 25 minutes south, and Melbourne is about 75 km north-east.
Map data and tiles © OpenStreetMapcontributors. Some points (such as the two ends of the bollard trail) are approximate.
Geelong sits on the south shore of Corio Bay, the western arm of Port Phillip. The waterfront follows the bay from Rippleside in the north-west to Eastern Beach and Limeburners Point in the east. The CBD is the grid of streets directly behind it, with Geelong station on its western edge. Go east and you reach the Bellarine Peninsula; go south and you reach Torquay and the Surf Coast; head north-east up the M1 and you reach Melbourne, about 75 km away.
The map on this page plots 40 places from our research, each with its source. Below it, a plain list gives the same points for anyone who prefers text.
Picture a strip of bay with the city stacked behind it. Almost everything a visitor wants in town is within about a kilometre of the Carousel pavilion at the foot of Cunningham Pier, which makes it a good place to measure from.
Straight-line distance from the ferry stop beside the Carousel, with our walking estimate (distance x 1.3 at 5 km/h). Checked October 2026.
| Place | Direction | Distance | Walk, about |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cunningham Pier | North | 0.1 km | 2 min |
| Steampacket Gardens | Beside the Carousel | 0.2 km | 3 min |
| National Wool Museum | South-west | 0.3 km | 4 min |
| Crowne Plaza Geelong | West | 0.3 km | 4 min |
| Westfield Geelong car park | South | 0.4 km | 6 min |
| Visitor centre, City Hall | South-west | 0.6 km | 10 min |
| Geelong Gallery | South-west | 0.6 km | 10 min |
| Geelong station | West | 0.6 km | 10 min |
| Geelong Arts Centre | South-west | 0.7 km | 11 min |
| Eastern Beach swimming enclosure | East | 1.1 km | 16 min |
| Geelong Botanic Gardens | South-east | 1.6 km | 24 min |
| GMHBA Stadium | South | 1.8 km | 28 min |
| Rippleside Park (bollard trail, west end) | North-west | 1.9 km | 30 min |
| Limeburners Point (bollard trail, east end) | East | 2.0 km | 31 min |
| Spirit of Tasmania terminal | North | 4.1 km | Drive or taxi |
Road distances and free-flow driving times from central Geelong, from the OpenStreetMap routing engine. Add 10 to 20% for traffic, more on summer weekends.
| Place | Direction | Road distance | Drive, about |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serendip Sanctuary | North | 20 km | 25 min |
| Avalon Airport | North-east | 25 km | 30 min |
| You Yangs | North | 28 km | 35 min |
| Torquay | South | 22 km | 25 min |
| Barwon Heads | South-east | 22 km | 25 min |
| Ocean Grove | South-east | 23 km | 25 min |
| Bells Beach | South | 29 km | 35 min |
| Point Lonsdale | South-east | 29 km | 30 min |
| Portarlington | East | 31 km | 30 min |
| Queenscliff | South-east | 31 km | 35 min |
| Anglesea | South-west | 36 km | 40 min |
| Lorne | South-west | 66 km | 1 h 10 min |
| Melbourne CBD | North-east | 75 km | 1 h 5 min |
| Apollo Bay | South-west | 120 km | 1 h 50 min |
| Twelve Apostles, inland via Colac | West | 150 km | 2 h 25 min |
The Bellarine Peninsula is the thumb of land east of Geelong that closes off Port Phillip from the west. Its bay side faces Melbourne: Portarlington, with its pier and weekend ferry, and St Leonards. The ocean side runs from Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove to Point Lonsdale and Queenscliff, where the Searoad ferry crosses to Sorrento in about 40 minutes. The Bellarine Rail Trail follows the old railway from South Geelong to Queenscliff.
The whole peninsula fits in a day by car. Buses do reach it: route 56 runs to Queenscliff via Ocean Grove and Point Lonsdale, route 60 to Portarlington and St Leonards, route 55 to Ocean Grove via Barwon Heads. Regional bus fares are half price until 1 January 2027.
Torquay is 22 km south, and that is where the Great Ocean Road officially begins. From there it runs about 240 km west past Anglesea, Lorne and Apollo Bay. Our Great Ocean Road map covers the coast in detail. The fastest road from Geelong to the Twelve Apostles goes inland via Colac (about 150 km); the coast road via Apollo Bay is about 205 km and three hours or more.
Two places hand out maps and advice. The main Geelong Visitor Information Centre is in City Hall at 30 Gheringhap St, open 10 am to 4 pm daily; it moved there from the National Wool Museum in late 2023. A second point at the Carousel covers the waterfront. The phone number is 1800 755 611. This site is independent and has no link to either.
A note on the pins. The bollard trail ends, the ferry stop, the Busport and Western Beach car parks are approximate, and town pins for places like Torquay or Lorne mark the town label, not an exact centre. Close enough to plan a day, not to navigate a car park.
Inside town, walk. For the wider map, a car is simplest. Without one, take the train from Melbourne, use bus 53 to Torquay, and lean on the Bellarine buses or the weekend ferries. Where you sleep changes the walking times above, so our where to stay in Geelong guide lists them hotel by hotel.
10 hours
Starts with a walk past the Baywalk Bollards on the Geelong waterfront, then Point Lonsdale lighthouse, lunch in Queenscliff and the car ferry across the bay to Sorrento and the Mornington Peninsula.
fromA$199
Check availability3.5 hours
Snorkel at Popes Eye and with the young fur seals at Chinaman's Hat, then go looking for dolphins in Port Phillip Heads, with an optional bus transfer from Geelong Station.
fromA$210
Check availability3-6 hours
A five-course lunch or dinner on The Q Train's heritage carriages, running from Drysdale past Swan Bay to Queenscliff and back.
fromA$150
Check availability13.5 hours
The most-reviewed Great Ocean Road day trip, run by a family business: Torquay surf beach with a look at Bells Beach, wild koalas, a tall-forest walk and the Twelve Apostles.
fromA$125
Check availabilityPrices and ratings were taken from GetYourGuide and can change. Booking through these links supports this site at no extra cost to you.
Updated
The centre is. From the Carousel on the waterfront, the National Wool Museum is about 4 minutes' walk, Geelong Gallery and the station about 10, and the Eastern Beach swimming enclosure about 16. The Botanic Gardens are about 24 minutes and GMHBA Stadium about 28. These are our estimates from straight-line distance, so allow a little longer on the street.
About 75 km by road from central Geelong to Flinders Street, roughly 1 hour 5 minutes by car on the Princes Freeway (M1) in free-flowing traffic. The V/Line train from Southern Cross takes about an hour, and regional fares are half price until 1 January 2027. The weekend ferry from Docklands takes 2 hours 10 minutes because it stops at Portarlington.
Directly east. The peninsula runs from the edge of the city out to Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale at the mouth of Port Phillip. By road from central Geelong, Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove are about 25 minutes away, Portarlington about 30, and Queenscliff about 35. Buses 55, 56, 60 and 61 run out from Geelong, but a car is easier.
At Spirit of Tasmania Quay, 136 Corio Quay Road, North Geelong, on the bay north of the city. It is about 4 km in a straight line from the Carousel and the station, and the operator calls it about 10 minutes' drive from the CBD. The nearest stations are North Shore and North Geelong, not Geelong station itself.
About 22 km by road, roughly 25 minutes by car from central Geelong. Torquay is where the Great Ocean Road officially starts, and Bells Beach is about 7 km further on. Bus 53 runs from Geelong station to Torquay via Belmont and Armstrong Creek. Lorne is about 66 km from Geelong, around 1 hour 10 minutes by car.
The Geelong Waterfront is the walkable bayfront on Corio Bay, from Rippleside Park past Cunningham Pier and the Carousel to Eastern Beach.
The Bellarine Peninsula is the stretch of coast between Geelong and the entrance to Port Phillip, 22 to 34 km from the city.
The Great Ocean Road starts in Torquay, 21 km south of Geelong, and runs about 240 km west to Allansford near Warrnambool.
Stay on the waterfront at the Crowne Plaza or Novotel if you have no car and want the bay at the door.