Overview

Pack your appetite and settle for nothing less than the best. It's time for a Geelong and Bellarine culinary adventure, a journey that takes in big names and as-yet-unknowns, urban back streets, historic edifices and ocean vistas. And then there's the food – so local and so fresh you can practically have a conversation with it.

Dining scene on fire

Ignite the appetite in the back streets of Geelong. Awarded two hats by the Good Food Guide 2020, Aaron Turner's Igni has set the city's dining scene alight since opening in early 2016, and the sparks have quickly blown further afield. Get a reservation while you still can and savour the taste of the region in the creative vegetable-driven tasting menu.

Over in West Geelong, Tulip provides a floral interlude in Pakington Street's cafe society. Tulip is as bright, elegant and yes, pretty, as the name suggests. The kitchen team works wonders with the region's bountiful produce, and the wine list spans Victoria.

Merne at Lighthouse is the place of choice for those who love a meal to be an occasion. Located in the heart of the Bellarine Peninsula, the restaurant offers panoramic views of the surrounding farms, dairies, orchards and vineyards, and menus featuring the freshest local produce.

Food and wine sublime amid landscapes so fine

Leave the big smoke behind and wander into winery country. This part of your foodscapade is best tackled at a leisurely pace to allow for maximum grazing and generous watering. Not content with making impeccable wines, the wineries have pulled out all stops when it comes to food. Book some fabulous local accommodation, select a designated driver and go to town. Or country.

Hop on over to Jack Rabbit Vineyard, where the ocean views vie with the wine and food for hero status. Oakdene Vineyards Restaurant and Cellar Door is unapologetically eclectic, but the wines and food are elegant and complex – and undeniably moreish. Detour to the Bellarine Taste Trail and treat your tastebuds to the best of the Bellarine Peninsula. Pack an Esky and load up on fresh seafood, gourmet cheese, farm-fresh vegetables and succulent seasonal berries.

Just desserts

Digestifs, should they be required, can be sourced from the cafes and bars sprouting up in Geelong's burgeoning laneway scene. And if your idea of the perfect end to a meal is a refreshing ale, Geelong's craft breweries have you covered.

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Experience

Flying Brick Cider Co, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Australia

Breweries and distilleries

Eat & drink
In Geelong and the Bellarine, craft breweries, cideries and distilleries are popping up and drawing legions of fans. A craft beer revolution is brewing.
Jack Rabbit Vineyard, Bellarine, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Australia

Geelong wine region

Eat & drink
Explore the Geelong wine region's diverse sub-regions from surf coast to volcanic plains making its food, wine and landscape resist any label.
Berry picking, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Austalia

Local produce

Eat & drink
Pat goats and learn about cheese production, feast on the sea's bounty or visit a peninsula market for local honey, olive oil, berries and tomatoes.
The Whiskery, Bellarine Distillery, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Australia

Restaurants

Eat & drink
Get your tastebuds going in restaurants that celebrate the region's excellent local produce, diverse cultural mix and natural beauty.

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Go ride a wave Ocean Grove. Photo by Cameron Murray Photography / Assemble Agency. Credit Tourism Australia Image Library

Family activities

See & do
Waterslides and mysterious islands, wildlife-watching and mazes – there's no end of fun for kids and grownups alike.
Seals in Port Phillip Bay, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Australia

Nature and wildlife

See & do
From wetlands to coastal woodlands, the Geelong and Bellarine region is the feeding ground for many native animals, marine life and migratory birds.
Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, Geelong and the Bellarine, Victoria, Australia

What's on

Geelong & the Bellarine
Get out and about and enjoy everything from world-class cycling races and rock festivals to fine wines, local delicacies and aerial acrobatics.
Bellarine Taste Trail, Geelong and Ballarine,Victoria, Australia

Bellarine Taste Trail

Eat & drink
Treat your tastebuds to the best of the Bellarine Peninsula. Savour the local flavours at wineries, farmgates, provedores, restaurants, cafes and more.