Victoria is one of the most jam-packed states in Australia, for charming towns, lovely beaches, wine regions & national parks. Most travellers come to Victoria to visit Melbourne, the state capital and one of Australia’s most beautiful cities. While Melbourne is a must-visit destination on any trip to Australia there is so much to explore beyond the city limits! The best places to visit in Victoria are Melbourne, The Great Ocean Road, the Mornington Peninsula, the Yarra Valley & the Goldfields, just to name a few!

Victoria is bursting at the seams with vibrant cities, charming historic country towns, more than 2000 miles of coastline, 12 mountain ranges, hot springs and elegant spa towns, 45 national parks and 2800 other protected areas and 21 wine regions (more than any other state in the country). Whether you’re interested in eating & drinking, wineries, hiking, sport, shopping or wildlife, Victoria has somewhere beautiful to explore.

PS. Planning a trip to Australia? Check out my itinerary for two weeks in Australia for first time visitors.

Melbourne

Melbourne is Australia’s second-largest city, but it is the nation’s the undisputed capital of food, culture and sport (just don’t ask a Sydneysider to agree). I lived in Melbourne for four years, until I moved to New York in early 2019, and it’s a very hard city to leave. There are world-class sporting & cultural events year round, more bars, cafes & restaurants per capita than any other city in the world, great shopping, lively markets all over town and plenty of parks, gardens and beaches perfect for picnic-ing.

Explore More: Itinerary for 3 Days in Melbourne

Best Things To Do in Melbourne

• Explore Melbourne’s laneways in the Melbourne CBD
• Visit the NGV, the best art gallery in Australia (in my opinion!)
• Have a grazing breakfast at the South Melbourne Market
• Explore Carlton, Fitzroy & Collingwood, some of Melbourne’s coolest neighbourhoods

Great Ocean Road

The Great Ocean Road is the #1 scenic drive in Australia, and one of the best places to visit in Victoria. The Great Ocean Road is along the coastline of southwest Victoria, and starts in Torquay, which is 90 minutes’ drive from Melbourne. Torquay is a beach town famous for the surf beach Bell’s Beach and the annual RipCurl Pro surfing competition.

The major sights along the Great Ocean Road include the famous 12 Apostles rock formations, Loch Ard Gorge, Apollo Bay and Port Campbell. Head inland to explore the lush Great Otway National Park, and hike to see one of several beautiful waterfalls.

You can book a day trip from Melbourne with a tour bus along the Great Ocean Road, but I don’t recommend it. Take 3 or 4 days if you can, so you have time to enjoy the stops along the way.

Explore More: Great Ocean Road Travel Guide

Best Things to Do on the Great Ocean Road

• Admire the 12 Apostles in Port Phillip National Park
• Hang out in lovely Lorne, the best beach town on the Great Ocean Road
• Spot koalas in Kennett River
• Chase waterfalls in the Otways

Yarra Valley

The Yarra Valley is one of the best places to visit in Victoria for winelovers. Victoria is blessed with dozens of excellent wine regions, but the Yarra Valley is one of the very best, and is an easy day trip or weekend from Melbourne.

Most of the wineries are clustered around Coldstream, Healesville, Seville and Yarra Glen. It’s an easy day trip from Melbourne, and there are plenty of bus tours from Melbourne that take you to 3-4 wineries and include lunch.

My favourite wineries in the Yarra Valley are Dominique Portet, Tarrawarra Estate, DeBortoli, Coombe Estate and Domaine Chandon. If you’re self-driving, also stop in at Yarra Valley Dairy for a cheese tasting or Four Pillars Gin distillery.

Explore More: The 8 Best Wineries in the Yarra Valley

Best Things to Do

• Take a winery tour, let someone else drive! I’d recommend no more than 4 wineries in a day
• Visit the Four Pillars Distillery
• Cheese tasting & lunch at Yarra Valley Dairy
• Dinner at Jayden Ong in Healesville

Mornington Peninsula

The Mornington Peninsula is one of the best places to visit in Victoria from Melbourne, with white sandy beaches, dozens of world class wineries, two geothermal hot spring spas and miles of hiking trails. The Mornington Peninsula is one of Victoria’s top wine regions and is known for cool climate wines, particularly pinot noir.

Safety Beach in Dromana is one of the prettiest swimming beaches in Victoria, with sparkling turquoise water, bright white sand and colourful beach huts wedged along the sand. The water will be very cold though!

Explore More: The 15 Best Wineries on the Mornington Peninsula

Best Things to Do

• Visit the best wineries on the Mornington Peninsula like Pt Leo Estate, Ten Minutes by Tractor & Port Philip Estate
• Stay at luxury digs like Jackalope or Intercontinental Sorrento
• Spend a day at Alba Geothermal Hot Springs & Spa
• Hike the short but steep, and very rewarding, Cape Schanck hike

The Grampians

The Grampians is one of the best places to visit in Victoria for hiking and national parks. It’s also one of the most popular long weekend destinations for Victorians, so reserve your accommodation well in advance! The Grampians is a beautiful region in western Victoria, named for Grampians National Park, and is a four-hour drive from Melbourne.

Highlights that you can access with short hikes include the Boroka Lookout, which overlooks Wonderland Range and Lake Bellfield, Mackenzie Falls and The Balconies, although there are several overnight hikes you can do to explore deeper into the park.

On your way out from The Grampians, stop by the cellar door at Mt Langhi Ghiran Estate to try their award-winning shiraz or get a takeaway coffee from cute cafe Sede in Ararat and take it up to the top of One Tree Hill for coffee with a view.

Explore more: A weekend in the Grampians

Best Things to Do

• Hike to Mackenzie Falls
• Hike to the Boroka Lookout
• Wine tasting at Mt Langhi Ghiran Estate
• Visit the fine dining Royal Mail Hotel at Dunkeld in the Southern Grampians

Wilsons Promontory

Wilson’s Promontory is a national park in Gippsland, in Victoria’s southeast. It’s a 3 hour drive from Melbourne, and is the largest coastal wilderness area in the state. It feels like one of the most pristine and rugged areas of Victoria, making it one of the best places in Victoria for getting back to nature.

There are a seemingly endless number of hikes and natural sights to see. Don’t miss the hike to the summit of Mt Oberon for other-worldly views over the coast and the famous bright white Squeaky Beach. Make time for the picturesque Picnic Bay and Whiskey Bay, which are connected by a short trail. 

Explore More: A Weekend in Wilsons Prom

Best Things to Do

• Hike to the summit of Mt Oberon
• Hike between Squeaky Beach, Picnic Bay and Whisky Bay
• Keep your eyes peeled for kangaroos, koalas, emus and wombats in the national park
• Visit Waratah Hills Vineyard on the way back home

The Goldfields

The Goldfields is one of the best places in Victoria for a charming country getaway from Melbourne. The Victorian Gold Rush in the late 19th century made Melbourne the richest city in the world (for a time). Around the goldfields, towns like Bendigo and Ballarat sprang up as wealth poured out of the ground. Today, the Goldfields region is peppered with beautiful historic towns.

Check out the well-regarded Bendigo Art Gallery’s latest exhibition after lunch at Masons Of Bendigo, one of my favourite restaurants in Victoria. Step back in time to the Victorian gold rush era at Sovereign Hill, an open-air museum just outside Ballarat, and unwind with a local wine and woodfired pizza afterwards, at Mitchell Harris Wines. If you’re staying overnight, stay at Balgownie Estate & Spa, a winery with cottage accommodation just outside of Bendigo.

There are plenty of charming small towns to stop by in too. Some of my favourites are Kyneton, Castlemaine and Heathcote. Every June, during the Queen’s Birthday Long Weekend, winemakers and winos flock to Heathcote for Heathcote On Show – one of the best wine weekends in the state. Wineries open their doors all weekend, and those that don’t have a great set up for wine tasting at their vineyards open pop up tasting rooms in Heathcote’s main street. I went to Heathcote on Show with my friend Liv nearly ever year that I lived in Melbourne, and I was very sad to miss it in 2019!

Best Things to Do

• Explore the historic town centres of Bendigo & Ballarat
• Dine at Masons of Bendigo
• Check out the latest exhibition at Bendigo Art Gallery
• Stay at Balgownie Estate & Spa, a winery with cottage & glamping accommodation
• Step back in time at Sovereign Hill, an open air museum that takes visitors back to the Victorian Gold Rush

High Country Victoria & King Valley

I absolutely love High Country Victoria. It’s one of the best places to visit in Victoria for a weekend in the country, for skiing and for exploring Italian wine varietals in the King Valley wine region. High Country is in Victoria’s northeast, and is a 3 hour drive from Melbourne. I spent a weekend in the King Valley and was blown away by the beautiful natural scenery, historic Beechworth and the vibrant food scene that has grown around the many remarkable wineries in the area.

Explore More: A Weekend High Country & The King Valley

The Best Things to Do

• Visit beautiful Beechworth, one of the most charming country towns in Australia
• Have a classic pub lunch at the historic Tanswells Hotel
• Visit King Valley wineries like Red Feet & Dal Zotto

Geelong & The Bellarine Peninsula

Victoria’s second city, Geelong, is often overlooked by visitors coming to Melbourne, but I think the Bellarine Peninsula’s small beach towns and wineries might be one of Victoria’s best kept secrets. My favourite wineries with cellar doors (tasting rooms) are Bellarine Estate, Terindah Estate, Jack Rabbit & Bennetts on the Bellarine.

Best Things to Do

• Catch the latest exhibition at Geelong Gallery
• Enjoy fish & chips along the Geelong waterfront
• Wine tasting at Bellarine Estate & Jack Rabbit

Daylesford & The Macedon Ranges

Daylesford & the Macedon Ranges is one of the best places in Victoria for a charming country weekend getaway, with hikes, wineries & hot springs. Head to Daylesford for a pampered getaway at the hot springs, for a hike in the beautiful Macedon Ranges or for wine tasting at one of the many wineries in the region. My favourites are Hanging Rock & Passing Clouds for wine, and Daylesford Cider Co for cider & snacks at their beautiful cellar door.

Read about exploring Daylesford & The Macedon Ranges

The Best Things to Do

• Hike the Hanging Rock Summit Walk, famous for the classic book & film adaptation, Picnic at Hanging Rock
• Wine tasting at Hanging Rock Winery or cider tasting at Daylesford Cider Co
• Explore charming Daylesford, stop for brunch or lunch
• Unwind at Hepburn Springs Bath House & Spa

The Dandenongs

The Dandenongs are the mountain ranges behind the Yarra Valley, and is a popular day trip for hikers and weekenders from Melbourne. The main attractions are hiking trails and the mountain villages of Sassafrass, Olinda and Kallista. You’ll need your own wheels to explore The Dandenongs, and make sure not to confuse the region with the town of Dandenong itself which is not particularly exciting.

The 1000 Steps is a popular hiking trail in the Dandenongs, with lots of steps, no particular view at the top so while it’s a challenging hike, don’t go into this one expecting a panoramic reward at the top. For something more scenic, take a stroll around the beautiful Sir Alfred Nicholas Memorial Gardens, which is particularly beautiful in spring and Autumn.

Best Things to Do

• Get your heart rate up & your step count in at the 1000 Steps
• Explore the beautiful Sir Alfred Nicholas Memorial Gardens, especially in spring & autumn
• Have brunch or lunch at the charming King Henry Cafe & Restaurant

Have you visited Victoria? Would you like to? What’s your favourite spot?

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