Tower Hill is a wildlife reserve on an island you can drive on within a lake inside a dormant volcano. Not only is it naturally gorgeous, but it's one of the best places in the country to spot wild koalas. It's just past the official end of the Great Ocean Road and very much worth driving a bit further to visit.
→ Check out my complete guide to driving the Great Ocean Road!
We're currently living full-time in our campervan, a 2018 Mercedes Sprinter, and exploring Australia, with a plan of "driving the lap" (completing the entire perimeter of the country). I first visited Australia in 2019, following the classic backpacker route, mostly visiting big cities, staying in hostels and traveling by public transport. This time, with the freedom of our campervan, we're trying to hit the lesser known spots and go slower.
For over 34,000 years, the Gunditjmara people lived on this land, long before any Europeans arrived.
The first Europeans arrived in the area to clear the land for logging. Reforestation began in the 1960s based on an 1800s painting by Eugene Von Guerard showing the original vegetation around the volcanic crater. Today, Tower Hill is a sanctuary for Australian wildlife including koalas, kangaroos, echidnas, possums and many bird species.
Only about 200,000 koalas remain in the wild in all of Australia so spotting one is extremely rare. At Tower Hill, we managed to see 18! Incredibly special and absolutely a stop you have to make.
Every single spot (and more) that I mention in all my blog posts about Australia can be found in my Australia | Ultimate Map!
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Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve is an island in a lake inside a dormant volcano just off the Princes Highway near Warrnambool.
By car: The best way to reach Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve is with your own wheels. It's just half an hour from Allansford, the official end of the Great Ocean Road, so a perfect add-on for any coastal roadtrip. There is free parking at the Visitor Centre in the heart of the wildlife reserve.
By bus: From Allansford, take bus 9 to the Lava Street Interchange and transfer to bus 8. This bus will drop you off on Princes Highway at the entrance to Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve from where you can walk down into the reserve. It's about half an hour on foot from the highway entrance down to the main parking lot.
By guided tour: Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve is included in a number of guided day and multi-day tours of the Great Ocean Road.
→ Book a guided tour of the Great Ocean Road, including Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve.
You can also join a half-day tour of Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve from Warrnambool. This is a great option if you don't have a vehicle or simply want to go the guided route.
Many people will visit the Tower Hill Reserve as an extension of their Great Ocean Road roadtrip or as a day trip from nearby Portland, Port Fairy or Warrnambool. There are plenty of options for accommodation in all of these areas.
Hotel: Not traveling by campervan? Driving in a car? Whatever your reason for needing a place to stay, there are some great accommodation options near Tower Hill to suit any budget.
→ Check out all the accommodation options near Tower Hill.
Camping: We are driving "the lap" around Australia, exploring the country in our campervan. The best way to find camping spots is to use an app. We use Wikicamps Australia, a cheap app that has every single amenity listed (both free and paid) that you might need on the road. This includes things like where to fill up fresh water, where to dump grey water, where to empty toilets, where to stay, gas stations, information points and also has suggestions for things to do as you go.
→ Download the Wikicamps Australia app.
Panmure Campground is a great free camping spot just ten minutes from Allansford, the official end of the Great Ocean Road, and about 40 minutes from Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve. This spot is just off the Princes Highway with loads of places to park up and, best of all, a beautiful swimming hole to jump into on hot days!
Portland RV Reserve is a lovely free camp located right on the waterfront at Portland Harbour, about an hour and 15 minutes from Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve. You must be fully self-contained and can then park in the grass along Lee Breakwater Road. It's peaceful and you can go to sleep and wake up with an ocean view. There is even free town WiFi available, big win!
Before we visited Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve, we stopped for lunch in nearby Warrnambool. Tower Hill was actually a recommendation from the lady working in Day Kitty and ended up being one of the best things we ended up doing in the country!
We had sushi for lunch at Shiraya, some of the best sushi we've had in Australia so far! Be sure to grab a few rolls; I also really recommend the inari and my partner loved the sashimi.
After, we grabbed coffees and vegetarian sushi to go for our dinner later across the road at Day Kitty, an all-vegetarian lunch spot and cafe. They have some mouthwatering salads and soups on the menu and the owner is just a delight.
Shiraya Sushi
Day Kitty
Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve is located on an island within a dormant volcanic lake.
When: year-round
Where: there are four hikes at Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve, all starting from the Visitor Centre; we chose the Lava Tongue Boardwalk Track
Difficulty: Lava Tongue Boardwalk Track is the easiest and flattest route along the lake; the others are ranging in difficulty and length
Length: from the Visitor Centre parking, which is actually where most of the wild koalas and emus can be spotted, the Lava Tongue Boardwalk Track was a 1.6km loop which took us about half an hour
Bathrooms: yes, near the Visitor Centre
Starting the Lava Tongue Boardwalk Track
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Hi! I’m Jana, a Dutch-German-British-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.
