5 must-do weekend activities in Geelong

Geelong's waterfront reinvention has changed how Victorians think about the city. What was once an industrial stopover on the way to the Great Ocean Road is now a destination in its own right, with a dining scene, cultural program, and the surfing coast beginning at Torquay that make it a genuinely rewarding weekend.

Geelong waterfront

The Eastern Beach waterfront precinct, with its Art Deco bathing pavilion, the carousel, the string of restaurants and bars, is the heart of Geelong's weekend social life. The painted bollard walk along the foreshore, the views across Corio Bay, and the quality of the dining options have made this one of Victoria's most improved public spaces in the past decade.

Bells Beach

Twenty minutes south at Torquay, Bells Beach is the most famous surf break in Australia, the site of the Rip Curl Pro since 1973 and the spiritual home of the global surfing industry that grew from the factory floors of Torquay. Walk the cliff path to the lookout above the break, watch whoever's in the water, and understand why surfers travel from every continent to stand on this clifftop.

Geelong Art Gallery

The Geelong Gallery on Little Malop Street houses a permanent collection of more than 5,000 works with particular strength in Australian colonial and Heidelberg School painting. The Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin pieces alone justify the visit. Entry is free for the permanent collection.

Queenscliff

The historic ferry port at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay is 35 minutes from Geelong and offers the Victorian-era architecture, the marine biology centre, and the combination of calm bay swimming and ocean beach access that makes it a near-perfect day trip. The Queenscliff to Sorrento ferry opens the Mornington Peninsula as a destination if you want to extend the outing.

Great Ocean Road start

From Torquay, the Great Ocean Road begins at the arch near Jan Juc and delivers the first 50 kilometres of the world's most scenic coastal drive, Anglesea, Aireys Inlet, and Lorne all within an hour of Geelong, each with its own character and its own reason to stop.