4
Introductory to Moderate

Traveller Rating

 

Activities
  • 4 days walking
Accommodation
  • 3 nights eco lodge
Meals
  • 3 Dinners
  • 4 Lunches
  • 3 Breakfasts

4 Days$2495AUD

View Inclusions
THIS TRIP IS
100% CARBON OFFSET
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Trip Code: GOW

Twelve Apostles Trip highlights

  • Twelve Apostles Walk is a trip of the Great Walks of Australia
  • Trek through Eucalypt forests with native rosemary, cushion plants and wild flowers in season
  • View the mighty limestone Apostles from the Gables Lookout, one of Australia’s highest cliff-top vistas
  • Spend your evenings at the Twelve Apostles Lodge, a stunning eco-lodge in Johanna with chef-inspired meals

Don't have time for a long trip away? This fully guided four day walking adventure takes in the rugged beauty of the world famous Twelve Apostles, allowing you to escape the hustle and bustle of life and fully rejuvinate your senses in just four short days. Departing from Melbourne, this trip will visit renowned destinations including Johanna Beach, Moonlight Head, The Gables, Wreck Beach and of course the stunning Twelve Apostles. Over four amazing days, you will sample the most picturesque stages of the trail, walking past dramatic coastal terrain. Chef-inspired meals, transfers from Melbourne, a stunning eco-lodge, daypacks and waterproof jackets are all provided. Your expert guides are with you every step of the way, teaching you about the history, flora and fauna of the breathtaking landscape you are walking through.

Activities:

Itinerary

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The group will meet at 7:45am at the Mercure Melbourne Southbank in Melbourne (9 Riverside Quay, Southbank VIC 3000). Our guide will introduce you to the other walkers before departing for our drive to Blanket Bay. Be dressed and ready to walk, with your daypack fully packed for the days' walk ahead. After a scenic drive from Melbourne, we start the first section of the walk at Blanket Bay, one of the highlights of the Great Ocean Walk. We follow the coast of Great Otway National Park, climb along cliff tops and walk barefoot on golden sand beaches, learning about the unique flora and fauna as you go from our expert guides. You are sure to see some local wildlife on this unique part of the trail, with koalas, kangaroos, and echidnas all scattered about. The Cape Otway Lighthouse makes for a great end to the walk, where our guides can teach you all about the naval history of the area. From the lighthouse, we transfer you to our private lodge in Johanna, where we welcome you with a glass of local sparkling and a spectacular long table dinner of fresh Apollo Bay seafood to celebrate your first day of walking.

Meals:  L,D

We drive 30 minutes this morning to the beginning of the most challenging day on the trail. It comes with great reward – the most visually spectacular and isolated sections of the Great Ocean Walk – known as ‘the wild side’ that gives the sense you’re at the world’s edge. We take a winding path that leads from Milanesia Track down through the forest to the beautiful Milanesia Beach. After a gentle beach stroll, we turn upwards for a short, but steep climb that sets the tone for the trail ahead. The trail is dissected by gullies before a gradual climb, which delivers fabulous views back over Milanesia. Rough tree ferns and towering remnant Eucalypts dot the path before an ascent of 138 steps. The trail continues in a westerly direction until a steady climb leads us out of the forest and into Ryans Den campsite. From here, coastal views stretch to both Cape Volney and Cape Otway, an ideal place to reflect on your journey so far. The walk from here rises and falls many times as it parallels the coastline before cutting along the ridge behind Cape Volney, providing breathtaking views to the west. A final seated lookout delivers a magnificent vantage point, just metres from the walk’s end.

Meals:  B,L,D

After breakfast it’s a 30 minute transfer to Moonlight Head. The first 4.5km gently meander through native stringybark forest providing a contrast to the coast, concluding with a rise to the Gables, one of mainland Australia’s highest cliff top lookouts. Tide-dependent, you will descend onto Wreck Beach and explore the historic shipwreck ruins before continuing through to Devil’s Kitchen for lunch and onto the historic Fiji shipwreck memorial. Wilder days will give an insight into the cauldron-like ocean at this part of the coast. After lunch, we follow the Devil’s Kitchen Track through fern gullies and over a ridge populated with grass trees to Wreck Beach carpark. On our way back to the lodge we divert for a short walk around Melba Gully, an enchanting rainforest gully with towering Mountain Ash and Beech Myrtle with an understory of tree ferns and waterfalls. After returning to the lodge we celebrate our last night together with a rejuvenating foot spa, a long table dinner and a glass of local wine.

Meals:  B,L,D

Enjoy your final morning at Twelve Apostles Walking Lodge. After another wholesome breakfast, there’s a final pack up, check out and lodge farewell before a 45 minute drive to Princetown. These fabulous natural wonders emerge on slow reveal as the trail rises and falls along the coastline. There is a viewing lookout exclusively for walkers before our final stretch of trail into the Twelve Apostles Visitors Centre. You’ve made it! We’ll then move on to the nearby town of Timboon where we visit our dairy supplier, Schulz Organic Dairy, for lunch before returning to Melbourne. We offer a drop off to the airport* and Melbourne CBD** after your walk. *Tullamarine drop-off time: 5:00pm, in time for domestic flights from 6:30pm and international flights after 7:30pm. **Melbourne CBD (Mercure Melbourne Southbank) drop-off time: 6:00pm.

Meals:  B,L

Map

Elevation

The map and elevation chart are for illustrative purposes only and meant to provide general guidelines.

Inclusions

What's included

  • 3 breakfasts, 4 lunches and 3 dinners
  • 3 nights eco-lodge accommodation twin share with linen and towels
  • Daily morning and afternoon tea
  • Non-alcoholic beverages and a selection of local beer and wine
  • Professional walking guide, driver and support staff
  • Use of a day pack, ankle gaiters, walking poles, and waterproof jacket during the trip
  • Fly nets, wet weather pants, dry bags and other weather dependent items are available and offered when required
  • All entrance and national park fees
  • Return transfers Melbourne/Twelve Apostles Walking Lodge/Melbourne
  • Daily foot baths including mineral salts
  • Emergency communications and group first aid kit

  • Travel to and from Melbourne
  • Accommodation in Melbourne before and after the trip
  • Items of a personal nature such as laundry and car parking
  • Travel insurance

Accommodation

Twelve Apostles Lodge

At the end of a day out on track, the Twelve Apostles Lodge is a forest-hugged refuge three hours from Melbourne. This is where the foot spa awaits, along with rainforest showers, kitchen garden, dining room stocked with local wines, and your king or twin share bedroom with spacious ensuite.

Suitability

Introductory to Moderate

4

The Great Ocean Walk is an Introductory to Moderate graded walk. It involves walking with a light day pack through undulating country for up to 7 hours a day at a moderate to steady pace. To enjoy this tour you will need a reasonable level of fitness. We suggest that at least 6 – 8 weeks prior to the walk, you begin walking for at least one hour each day at a reasonable pace. Speed is not the essence to bushwalking, rather stamina and confidence in your own abilities. Continuously walking at a steady pace is better than racing ahead and running out of steam before the end. We would strongly suggest that some hill walking be included in your preparation. To prepare, take every opportunity to walk instead of driving the car, and take the stairs where possible or walk up hills to build leg strength and fitness. Some may benefit from using walking poles to conserve energy along the way (these will be provided for your use).

Departure dates

Departs Tuesdays between September and May

Notes

HS
Holiday Season
H
High Season
DN1
A high season supplement applies from 1 October to 30 April.
DN2
In addition to the World Expeditions deposit, you will also be required to pay an additional deposit of AUD$500 (paid in your local currency at the current rate of exchange). The balance of the tour price is payable 90 days prior to departure.
DN3
A public holiday supplement applies on trips that overlap with a public holiday. This applies in addition to the high season supplement.

Priceper person from

$2495AUD

Options & Supplements*
  • Single Supplement September and May 2025/2026 seasonAUD$1870
  • Single Supplement September and May 2026/2027 seasonAUD$1950
  • Single Supplement October - April 2025/2026 seasonAUD$2095
  • Single Supplement October - April 2026/2027 seasonAUD$2170
*Prices listed are per person

Essential Information

Ready to book? Make sure you download and read the detailed Twelve Apostles Walk trip notes which contains all the essential information you need to know before booking. Once you’ve booked, we will supply you with a Pre-Departure document which contains a detailed gear list and other important information to help you prepare for your adventure ahead.

Frequently Asked Questions

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The Great Walks of Australia are an exclusive collection of the best multi-day walking experiences in Australia. Each walk is an independently owned guided walking experience that enables access to some of Australia’s most iconic landscapes. All of the Great Walks of Australia can be viewed on their website - www.greatwalksofaustralia.com.au

To qualify as a great walk, each walk provides exceptional guided walking experiences in high-value natural areas for small groups. These experiences include outstanding accommodation, food & wine.

We return to the lodge all 3 nights so all you need to carry is a daypack, containing a drink bottle, lunch, rain jacket and a camera. The guides carry the rest!

We recommend lace-up hiking shoes or boots that have sturdy, treaded soles (flexible material and Vibram soles recommended). If you haven’t worn your boots for awhile please dust them off, take them for a walk and make sure the soles are still firmly attached to the boot. There is nothing worse than your boot failing on day one.

Boots must be worn in prior to departure to minimize the risk of blisters.

Please note that elasticized footwear, runners, trainers, or similar styles are not acceptable and you will be unable to commence the walk without the appropriate footwear, so please feel free to contact us for more details or discuss footwear with you. Please note that the final decision will be made by your guide at the briefing if they assess that there is an increased risk of injury due to extreme weather/other conditions.

Twelve Apostles Lodge has mobile coverage with free WIFI.

Yes, there are 3-pin power outlets (Australian) in the communal spaces around the lodge for charging your electronic devices.

Yes - if you have a favourite day pack, Gore-tex jacket, walking poles, or gaiters, you are more than welcome to bring your own instead of using the ones provided.

For your convenience, you may like to stay at Mercure Melbourne Southbank the evening prior to your walk as this is where our shuttle departs from and returns to on the last day (unless you are flying in on Day 1 and out on Day 4 from Melbourne Tullamarine airport). You are more than welcome to choose alternate accommodation, however, please ensure you are ready to leave from Mercure Melbourne Southbank at 7:45am sharp (arrive 10-15min earlier).

Yes, you are welcome to self-drive to the start of the trip. Please advise your reservations consultant in advance if you will be self-driving instead. In this case, there are two meeting points you can choose from:

1. You will meet your guides and group at 9:15am at Cafe La Hoot. Address: 1 Willis Street, Winchelsea VIC 3241. From there you will follow the bus to the lodge.

2. You will meet the group at 10:45am, at the Apollo Bay Visitor Information Centre, and follow the bus from there.

No, hairdryers are not available at the lodge so you will need to pack your own if you need access to one.

Each trip requires a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 10 participants. All rooms are twin share and if the group is full, you will be sharing with another participant of the same gender.

Twelve Apostles Lodge is an environmentally sustainable, award-winning lodge - your hiking home base. This modern architecturally designed eco-development incorporates many best practices: self-sufficient water supply, on-site waste water treatment, low consumption electric and water fittings, and hydronic heating. That said, you will not be short of creature comforts: footbaths available for daily use, gear drying rooms, large communal spaces, and even a lodge library.

The bedrooms can be configured as king or twin share and all have access to an ensuite bathroom with flushing toilet and rainwater shower.

It is a condition of booking a tour with us, and your responsibility to ensure that you are adequately insured for the full duration of the tour in respect of illness, injury, pre-existing medical conditions, death, loss of baggage and personal items and cancellation and curtailment. You must provide evidence to AWH that you have obtained personal travel insurance. You must ensure that your personal travel insurance covers all of the activities you expect to participate in.

Twelve Apostles Trip reviews

Positive Impact Travel

By joining this trip you are directly supporting positive impact projects in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

We’ve offset the carbon emitted by this trip by purchasing credits that support important projects that address the UN’s seventeen SDGs, like reducing poverty, affordable and clean energy, reducing hunger, clean water and climate action.

Proceeds from this adventure purchase carbon credits through the world’s largest and most awarded carbon project developer, South Pole, which are invested into projects accelerating the transition to renewable energy sources in developing countries.

Supported projects are based on internationally recognised standards and are third-party audited. They entail a series of positive impacts on the ground, which benefit local communities and ecosystems, that are aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.