Day trips from Melbourne

We're looking for some ideas for day trips from Melbourne. We want them to be no more than 2 hour drive from Bayside Melbourne. This is part of DH & I having some healing time together. We like the idea of having a holiday from home, so want to do a few day trips over Summer.

We've done the wineries at Yarra Valley & Mornington. We've also done Sovereign Hill, Maldon & Castlemaine. We like the sea/ocean but don't like sand, so don't go to beaches to swim. DH isn't a fan of shopping, though I love trawling antique shops, lace shops & markets. I love rivers & going bush but we're not confident hikers.

I thought the Queenscliff-Sorrento ferry might be good. I've not done it. Is it much of a drive?

Any ideas?

I was about to suggest Queenscliff or Sorrento when I read your last sentence lol! Both places you don't have to go onto the beach, there are lots of cute shops there for you. I have never caught the ferry between the two places, but I'm sure it would be great for you guys :). It takes about 2 hours to drive to Queenscliff and perhaps just under 2 hours to drive to Sorrento from where I live (Melb eastern 'burbs).

Phillip Island has lots of interesting places, although the shops are pretty tacky. It's only about 1 1/2 hours for us to drive there. The Nobbies are great to walk along the boardwalk and spot penguins. There's lots of cafes in Cowes, although if you want a really special lunch or dinner with stunning ocean views, go to Shearwater Restaurant. It's gorgeous! There is a ferry that tours around and you can spot seals that leaves from the jetty in Cowes. If you are keen to stay until later in the day you can go to the penguin parade at sunset.

If I think of more I'll come back :)

Queenscliff to Sorrento is great - should take you no more than 2 hours to get to Sorrento, stroll and explore then get on the ferry to head over to Queenscliff - if you take your car it would be around 2 hours to come back as well. Queenscliff is a typical sleepy seaside village!!

How about Phillip Island? Wilsons Prom has awesome simple walks but might be stretching the 2 hour limit - so worth it though!
Hepburn Springs, Kyneton and Daylesford, massages and lots of antiques and cafes, etc. Puffing Billy is fun - very relaxing and gorgeous surrounds!! You could also follow all the markets on White Hat in little country towns! Good luck - sounds like a great idea :hug:

I forgot to mention Inverloch (sorry for all the seaside towns, can you tell I'm a beach lover?!). It's a gorgeous town with lots of lovely walks and drives with stunning ocean views. The town has lots of cute shops and some cafes. I had my first ever surf at Eagles Nest there and my DH and I got married at Inverloch, nawww...

ETA - It's about a 2 hour drive to Inverloch :). And yes, Wilson's Prom is sensational, but it's a 4 hour drive there. If you ever get the chance, make sure you go!!

Sorrento has awesome little shops! DH and I have been there a few times (as FIL lives near there) and I love just strolling along.
And, I agree, the Nobbies on Phillip Island are really cool!!

what about daylesford? not too many shops but you could pick a market day, there are some nice, gentle walks in the area & the overall vibe is quite peaceful.

or somewhere in the dandenongs.

i haven't done the queenscliff-sorrento ferry in many years but it was good.

lunch at the portsea (or sorrento) pub & look over the water while you have lunch - although kinda busy during the holiday season.

i've always wanted to go to the royal mail hotel in dunkeld for a meal - but i think that's probably well over a 2 hour drive (food is meant to be amazing though!)

Anywhere along The Great Ocean Road is lovely. Yep it's all beaches, not necessarily swimming beaches. Nice walk beaches :)
All around Daylesford is great.
If you like driving, the Strzeleckies are nice and you can come along some nice towns with little Antique shops in them. You will need a good map as now with the freeways bypassing alot of these small towns, you may need to get off the beaten track :lol:
Around Gippsland has the gourmet cheese trail I think, I have seen signage for it just past Darnham. Not sure if it's an official trail.
Lakes Entrance and Walhalla are nice. Alot of exploring through Gippsland in general. Yarragon is nice as well, very small.

You could head to Inverloch via Loch - Loch has antique shops and good little cafes. The other way is to go to Loch and then head to Koonwarra (next town from Leongatha), where there is a great eatery, more shops and you can strike out from there to Inverloch and go through the antique and quirky shops there without having to feel sand :) In Inverloch there's a shop in the main drag called Books and Massage and the practitioners in there can give you a lovely treatment. Otherwise, there's a day spa in Koonwarra and you can bypass Inverloch all together and just do some wineries, starting with Lyrebird Hill, also in Koonwarra, where there are sculpture exhibitions to soothe the soul. If you go next Saturday you'll also head home with Farmers Market goodies - the Port Franklin fish man, the goats cheese man, the preserves, fresh local fruit and veg, goat soap, the handmade apple strudel man, local berries...I could go on ;)
And, for your efforts, you'll drive through some of the most heavenly hills farming scenery that you expect from South Island NZ or in southern Ireland :) For antiques browsing, though, Loch is almost mandatory and you'll get a great coffee there, too!

Marysville, went up recently and it's gorgeous!! Up past Healesville.

Portarlington, just outside Geelong.

Anglesea, just at the end of the Princes Fwy and the start of the Great Ocean Rd.

Lorne, Torquey, Appollo bay all nice to walk around and sit and enjoy a picnic but dont need to swim. Otway fly is apollo bay area its a lovely walk.

Daylesford is pretty and had shops and day spas.

Marysville is a beautiful town and can go up lake mountain for a walk very nice we did it recently.

Bendigo lovely town lots to see and do.

Shepparton

Mount Macedon very pretty.

Queenscliff and sorento are nice places to but I must say ferry is crazy $$.

Korumburra has coal creek its a pretty place to wander then could drive to inverloch which a stunning little place.

Yarragon is a sweet place on way to sale.

Coal Creek is really something, these days :) Just read the write up in Coast magazine!
Plus, if you wanted to see a friendly face, I'm a short drive from there, in the hills to the north of the highway between Korumburra and Leongatha ;)

Another option is that there is a few bus trips from city that go to various places as well might be worth looking into. My cousin did a great ocean road one when she was visiting from UK and loved it.

Maybe a but further afield is Echuca. Gorgeous shops, sensational bakery (it's the Beechworth one) and the paddlesteamers on the Murray.

Also bushwalking or horseriding up around Mansfield and Merrijig, up to Mt Sterling and Craig's Hut. Beautiful spot.

What about Main Ridge - there are winerys there you could have lunch at then pop over to Main Ridge Strawberry farm & pick your own/buy strawberries. They also have a cafe' and a shop.

Thanks everyone for such great ideas! That should keep us busy for a while :) I forgot to mention we've also done Philip Island.

Mayaness- the Inverloch area sounds lovely. If we're not house hunting next Saturday we might try the Farmers' market.

RCC - is Main Ridge on the Mornington Peninsula?

Sloane - I've not heard of Dunkeld. I'll look it up.

We might do the Queenscliff - Sorrento thing next week, though with the West Gate being partially closed that might not be a great idea. We're watching the weather. I ain't going anywhere on 38 degree day, but later in the week should be fun.

Healsville has Beechworth bakery, Winerys and lots of small shops including a fudge shop and Queens Park to relax in.
Badger Weir
Sherbroke Forest in the Dandenongs
Marysville
A day in the city exploring, taking the free tram, Docklands etc
San Remo to feed the pelicans
Walhalla
Not much to do in Sale apart from the wetlands with the boardwalk.
Hire a bike and ride along the Yarra

The ottway fly is really nice and interesting. Inland (just) on the great ocean road.

There is also Hanging Rock. The races are on tomorrow and Aus day, and are really lovely.

Malmsbury, daylesford, Hamilton, warrnabool, port fairy.

The otway fly is great but more of an overnight trip as its closer to 4 hrs to get there.

My recommendations would be Marysville, Wilsons Prom, Sorrento, Lorne. Pretty much what everyone said, they are awesome places to visit & chill out.

In weather like today, a drive to Lakes Entrance and visit the Buchan Caves, should be nice and cool down in those caves :)

Winchelsea just outside of Geelong has some awesome junk/collectors shops to trawl through. You could browse them while on the way to the most amazing of all lunch experiences at Sunnybrae in Birregurra, so you get your fix of trash and treasure then your DH gets the benefit of a beautiful lunch with your company - win/win! ;)

Sunnybrae is a farm/restaurant in Birregurra where they only do one sitting for lunch with a set menu (few little options) using local ingredients and their courtyard brick oven. It is a 12pm to 5pm sort of thing, eat all day and take a wander around the property, vegi garden etc between courses or browse their amazing collection of food/cookbooks while enjoying the serenity. It is my Number 1 choice for a day trip at the moment.

I wouldn't do East Gippsland as a day trip - too much to see and do and it takes a good 3 hours at least to get there from Melbourne. I don't visit my parents unless I can get in two nights minimum. It's such a mindnumbingly boring drive that I have to have that break in between!
Meanwhile, once you're there, that whole region is a goldmine :)
I've just been reading my copy of Gippsland magazine and I've got some ideas for heading out for one of the nights with just DP and I, so that the kids stay with my folks till bedtime. Bruthen is a town I have been dying to explore (we only ever drove past it to get to Buchan as kids). Metung is a nice place but a bit overrated, I feel (and my parents lived there and still have a vacant block there). Rail Trail, wineries, kayaking, boat hire on the lakes, fresh seafood at Lakes Entrance...I do love that area :) Not a day trip, though.