9 days · Wildlife
Kangaroo Island & the Fleurieu
ADLKANGAROO ISLANDMCLAREN VALE
12 days · Coast + Wine
Southern Wine Coast
MELGT OCEAN RDADL
One coastal drive, two wine regions, and a single fly-in/fly-out pair of cities — the most straightforward route on this page to actually execute.
- Length
- 12 days
- Gateway
- Fly in Melbourne · fly out Adelaide
- Best time
- Mar – May or Sep – Nov
- Pace
- Moderate — one long coastal drive
This route also runs as a small-group trip — next departure Oct 3, 2026. See group size, price and the full 2026 schedule →
Planning a Great Ocean Road and wine coast itinerary
The Great Ocean Road is one of the most searched drives in Australia, and one of the easiest to get wrong — try to fit all of it plus two wine regions into a rushed few days and you'll spend more time behind the wheel than at a cellar door.
Best time to drive the Great Ocean Road
March–May and September–November bring milder weather and thinner crowds at the Twelve Apostles than the December–February peak, when the main viewing platform is genuinely busy by mid-morning.
Melbourne to Adelaide: how the drive breaks down
This route isn't one long drive — it's the coast road broken into several shorter days, then a turn inland through the Limestone Coast wine region before finishing in Adelaide. Rushing the coastal section to save time for wine country defeats the point of either half.
Wine touring along the way
Coonawarra, on the Limestone Coast leg, is a quieter and less crowded alternative to the Barossa — and it sits directly on this route rather than requiring a detour, which is why it's here instead of the more famous region.
Day by day
The full route
West along the coast, then inland to wine country — one direction, no doubling back.
Days 1–2
Melbourne
Laneway coffee culture, Fitzroy on foot, an easy couple of days to settle in before the driving starts.
Days 3–6
The Great Ocean Road
Torquay's surf beaches to the Twelve Apostles, taken slowly over several days rather than rushed in one — the Otway rainforest detour inland is easy to skip if you're short on time, worth it if you're not.
Days 7–9
The Limestone Coast
Coonawarra's cellar doors on the way through — a quieter, less-visited wine region than the Barossa, and directly on the route rather than a detour.
Days 10–12
Adelaide & the Barossa
The Adelaide Hills for a change of scenery, a day in the Barossa itself, then fly out of Adelaide.
Worth knowing
Before you go on this one
- Twelve Apostles timing
- Same rule as everywhere on this coast — first light beats midday, both for the crowds and the photos.
- Wine touring
- Book a driver or stay walkable to cellar doors for the Barossa leg specifically — distances between doors are bigger than the Hunter Valley or Margaret River.
- The drive itself
- Budget real time for the coast road — it's slow and winding by design, not a road to make up time on.
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