Swimming

Take a dip in Victoria. Melbourne's location on Australia's largest bay offers swimmers calm waters at city beaches for a cool dip on a warm day. Year-round swimmers can make the most of great indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

Head east out of the city to the Mornington Peninsula where calm waters and golden sand beaches extend from Melbourne's doorstep along the peninsula to the bay’s entrance. On the ocean side of the peninsula, the surf rolls in relentlessly from Bass Strait to the sandy shores of Portsea, Sorrento, Rye and Gunnamatta beaches. Swim at sheltered beaches and coves on the north shores of Phillip Island, or catch a wave at one of the excellent surf beaches on the ocean side.

The Great Ocean Road Swim has something for swimmers of all ages and abilities, with sheltered foreshores and beaches with crashing ocean waves. Gippsland's extensive coastline offers great swimming. Stretching from Cape Paterson in the east to the beaches of Croajingolong National Park in the west are some of the finest beaches, surfing and swimming areas in Australia. Some of Victoria's most surprising sandy beaches are thousands of kilometres from the coast. Take a dip on one of the numerous pristine, sandy beaches along the Murray River that offer safe swimming.

Lifeguards and lifesavers patrol beaches during peak holiday times – swim only between the red and yellow flags. For further information on patrolled beaches contact the local visitor information centres.