Exclusive Great Ocean Road Eco Tour From Melbourne
Exclusive Great Ocean Road Eco Tour from Melbourne
Departing from Melbourne, your Great Ocean Road tour begins with panoramic views of the city and Port Phillip Bay as you cross the Westgate Bridge, Australia's longest at just under 2.6 kilometers in length.
Pass by and learn a little about Victoria's second largest city, Geelong, as you make your way down towards the Surf Coast, with its enchanting beach side towns and powerful swells. Just outside the town of Torquay, you'll stop for your first opportunity to visit the beach and to enjoy a complimentary morning tea. Departing Torquay, you'll set out along the Great Ocean Road itself, as your experienced driver-guide provides an informative commentary about the road's history and its place in Australian folklore.
The scenic journey along the Great Ocean Road is a highlight in itself. You'll see some truly amazing coastal scenery, with new views being revealed around every bend. There will be plenty of scenic stops, including of course a photo opportunity at the Great Ocean Road Memorial Arch at Eastern View.
At the township of Kennet River, you will make a brief side trip into the sweetly-scented eucalyptus forest to locate some of the local koalas in the native habitat. The koala population here is particularly strong and numerous sightings are almost guaranteed! You will also have an opportunity here to feed the colorful local bird life, with Crimson Rosellas and King Parrots always keen for a handful of sunflower seeds. Then continue on towards a stop in Apollo Bay, with another photo stop at Cape Patten on the way.
After, follow the Great Ocean Road away from the ocean and into the mountains. The tour proceeds through the spectacular Otway Ranges, where you will stop to enjoy a stroll in the cool temperate rainforest at Maits Rest. Here your guide will accompany you through the forest, where you will stop to learn a little about the world's tallest flowering trees and the ancient rainforest species.
And then it's onwards to the world famous Port Campbell National Park and its iconic array of rock formations. You'll be awestruck by the majestic monoliths of the Twelve Apostles, a collection of limestone stacks off the shore of the park. These limestone stacks are a very popular attraction because of their proximity to each other.
Just down the road is the heart of the Shipwreck Coast, the Loch Ard Gorge where 52 lives were lost and only 2 souls survived the wreck of the Loch Ard in 1878. Your guide will recount the legend of the Loch Ard, bringing the gorge to life in a way you never imagined. Nearly 700 ships are believed to have been wrecked along the Victorian coast, but fewer than a third of them have been discovered. The Loch Ard Gorge is named from the Loch Ard, which went down in 1878. There will be time to explore here, with more rock formations to see, including the Razorback, the Dumpling Pots and the delightful Island Archway. A stop is made for dinner on your own on the journey back to Melbourne, before enjoying a stunning view of the illuminated city as you cross the Westgate Bridge again on the way home. For a day full of natural beauty guided by an expert guide, skip the larger tours and join this small group adventure.
Please Note: If you are arriving by cruise ship, please select the Crown Metropol Hotel, which is the closest pick up location from the cruise pier. A taxi from the cruise pier to the hotel should cost approximately 15 AUD (not included) each way. A tram is also available and should cost approximately 4.10 AUD (not included) each way. This tour does not pick up from the cruise pier. There is complimentary WiFi on board tour vehicle.
Shore Excursions Group was created with one goal in mind: to provide exceptional travel experiences to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world. To accomplish this, we have compiled an exceptional array of tours delivered by local experts with decades of experience serving travelers and delivering excellent tours. Our owners and management team are comprised of seasoned travel industry executives who leverage their considerable experience to deliver memories of a lifetime.
We are experts in providing exceptional shore excursions. We understand that in today's fast paced world, vacations have become an increasingly important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and experience new and interesting places. With this in mind, we provide the highest quality tours by performing extensive research, and detailed reviews. While other companies also offer excursions, we strongly believe our expertise and approach set us apart. The large cruise lines sell shore excursions - typically in very large groups visiting high traffic sites. We focus on smaller groups visiting more interesting and authentic locations using more personalized local operators. While the cruise lines are experts in delivering cruises, we are experts in delivering shore excursions.
Our Approach
We believe quality service is not only highly valued by customers, but ultimately leads to better experiences and higher satisfaction. Unlike the cruise lines and other tour companies that rely almost entirely on websites, we encourage customers to call us. We want to invest our time answering your questions, providing input, and selecting the excursions that best meet your needs.
Our Tours
Our goal is to provide customers a wide array of exciting, appealing, and enriching tours. For those customers who prefer to travel in smaller groups with more personalized service, we offer a wide variety of small group tours around the world. These tours generally range in size from 2-12 people compared to larger tours which can number up to 50 people. While exploring the destinations and ports on this website, feel free to search for these "Small Group Tours". For those customers interested in private tours, we offer many outstanding excursions that allow you to travel with your party alone and, in many cases, to fully customize your tour. Search for "Private Tours" if you are interested in this experience. Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean. Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece. Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Our customers can kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France. Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.
Our People
In our experience, exceptional travel experiences are almost always delivered by exceptional people. With that in mind, we utilize a comprehensive approach to select and employ the leading tour guides and tour providers around the globe. We hold our people to very high standards which we measure by our comprehensive Quality Control process and, most importantly, by our customer feedback, which we will actively seek from each of our customers.
Our Owners
Shore Excursions Group is owned by seasoned travel executives possessing extensive experience across many sectors within the travel industry.
Bradford J. Miller
Mr. Miller is the former Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer for Abercrombie & Kent, the World's leading luxury travel company. In that role, Mr. Miller was responsible for contributing to Abercrombie & Kent's international growth through the development and acquisition of tour products and travel experiences around the world with a specific focus on cruising and land based experiences. Prior to joining Abercrombie & Kent, Mr. Miller held a variety of executive positions with Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises for more than a decade. These positions included Vice President of Guest Sales & Service, Vice President of Brand Development, and Vice President of Onboard Revenue (which included shore excursions). Mr. Miller also led Celebrity Expeditions, a collection of outstanding and unique tours around the World.
Michael Bonner
Mr. Bonner has over a decade of experience working in the cruise industry in a variety of roles for both Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. and Viking River Cruises. Most recently, Mr. Bonner was the Chief Operating Officer for The Scholar Ship, a Royal Caribbean program aimed at providing college students onboard educational programs in conjunction with enriching shore excursions around the world. Mr. Bonner also helped co-manage Viking River Cruises U.S. Operations, and he ran the corporate, strategic, and deployment planning functions at Royal Caribbean. While at Royal Caribbean, Mr. Bonner was responsible for forming Royal Celebrity Tours, Royal Caribbean's land-based tour operation in Alaska, which takes cruise passengers on multiple day tours through the interior of Alaska either before or after their cruises. Prior to working at Royal Caribbean, Mr. Bonner was a consultant for Booz Allen & Hamilton.
$165.00 USD
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