This year we thought we would take this opportunity of being State bound to explore this wonderful place we live. It is always our goal each year to go to places that we have never been. We have two dogs and for us they are part of our family. Where possible we love to take Paddy and Eva on our travels. We decided to take a doggie road trip around Victoria!
One evening we sat down with the laptop and set about planning our road trip around Victoria. It wasn’t until we started planning that we realised that arranging a trip with dog friendly accommodation is surprisingly not as easy as you would think. We have owned and managed pet-friendly accommodation for many years now and let me tell you any issues that may happen are very rarely anything to do with our four legged guests.
We set ourselves the challenge of seeking out some great pet-friendly accommodation in Victoria and as Victoria is quite a big area, splitting them in to manageable dog friendly road trips.
Doggie Road Trip Around Victoria No. 1
Melbourne – The Gippsland Lakes – Phillip Island – Mornington Peninsula
Day 1 Mornington Peninsula – Metung – 3hrs 30 mins
Pit Stop – Badger & Hare
We often stop at Newman Park in Traralgon where we walk the dogs and have our packed lunch.
A little further on, in the town of Stratford, there is a great cafe, Badger and Hare. This cafe has seating outside where we would sit with our dogs. You can also visit Apex Park a couple of streets away, where there are toilets and you can walk the dog.
Arrive Metung
Metung is one of the prettiest villages in Australia. Positioned on a small spit of land, it sits on Bancroft Bay, with Lake King at its back. It is a photographers paradise, a natural environmental home to amazing birdlife, dolphins and fish and a wide variety of native animals.
The Gippsland Lakes also offers sailing, boating and fishing in sheltered inland waterways free from rocks, reefs and tides. Even if you don’t sail or have a boat licence you can hire a boat locally and explore these safe waters. Just contact our friends at Riviera Nautic to help you out with all things boats and fishing.
The place to stay
The Oar House – 3 nights
We love the uniqueness of this beautiful lake house. It’s a three-storey weatherboard cottage painted a striking Ironstone Blue with white trim, reminiscent of the houses in the Hamptons.
We love to spend the time in the cosy lounge in winter with the log fire and a good book. In the morning we take our dogs for a walk through the garden and a private walkway through native bushland (the property is on 1 acre) to the lake and Cantrills Jetty. Throwing a tennis ball into the water the dogs love to swim out to catch it.
PAWfect (very nearly)
What fun! a new house to visit that lets four-legged friends like me sleep inside.
Yay! a garden and courtyard with fences to keep me safe (although if you are a tiny tacker then you might fit under the front fence which has big gaps, you need mum and dad to keep an eye on you then). Love the trees, bushes and the walking tracks the wombats have made, there are lots of interesting smells. Are those possums in the trees?
Paddington & Eva enjoying The Oar House, Metung
See & Do Gippsland
Afternoons are for fishing. Choose any lake location but we wander down the pathway again to the Jetty to catch something for dinner (you will need a fishing licence but you can pick that up from Riviera Nautic too).
For the best food, head to the Metung Hotel (locally known as the Pub) and book a table with a view. It’s always bustling so you have to book. Bancroft Bites is our choice for breakfast or coffee. For a little more action head into Lakes Entrance and buy fresh prawns off the boats. We sit outside undercover in the late afternoon with local wine and feast on our seafood delights.
For more things to See & Do in Gippsland follow this link
Day 4 – Metung to Phillip Island – 3 hours 40 mins
Arrive Phillip Island
The place to stay
Verandah Retreat – Cowes, Phillip Island – 2 nights
On the northern coast of Phillip Island, you will find Verandah Retreat, privately positioned just a 200m walk from the foreshore of Cowes bay Beach, a beach with panoramic ocean views of Westernport Bay towards the Mornington Peninsula and French Island. At low tide, the sand becomes the perfect place for a walk or a picnic and at dusk the magnificent sunset is something you must make time to sit and experience.
And yes, pets are welcome!
See + Do Phillip Island
Phillip Island lies just off Australia’s southern coast. At Summerland Beach, spectators gather daily at sunset to watch the Penguin Parade, when Little penguins come ashore in groups. The Nobbies outcrop is the viewing site for Seal Rocks, home to a large colony of Australian fur seals. The Phillip Island Circuit is a well-known track for motorcycle and car racing.
Day 7 – Phillip Island – Mornington Peninsula – 1 hour 45mins
Pit Stop
Olive at Loch
Just off the the most direct route from Phillip Island to the Mornington is the small village of Loch. This picturesque village is worth the diversion in our opinion. Olive at Loch is a destination cafe for us. Next door to an antique store and a few local gift shops, you will be sure to enjoy this break in your journey.
Arrive in Rye
The place to stay
Glen Mor – 3 nights
Glen Mor is everything you want a beach house to be.
We stay here because we love to bring friends and family together where everyone gets a bit of luxury. Each of the double rooms has beautiful linen and a TV which makes it feel like a hotel.
We congregate in the open plan living and kitchen with doors opening to the sunny deck and sparkling swimming pool. We take a sunlounger, grab a book and a hat and never want to move.
The kids love the dedicated pool room with their own bar fridge and lounge, they hang out all day or they walk the few hundred metres to the bayside beach. This stunning stretch of Rye beach is perfect for little kids too as the water is shallow.
In winter we light the fire pit and sit around toasting marshmallows and spinning yarns.
See + Do Mornington Peninsula
This is a region famous for its breathtaking coastal scenery, world-class food and wine, national parks, and wildlife sanctuaries, historic villages, aquatic adventure, arts and culture, shopping and Peninsula hot springs, not to mention world-class golf courses. You can’t come here for less than 3 days to appreciate even a taste of what is on offer.
As locals, we have tried and tested all there is to see and do down on the Mornington Peninsula. Take a look, there is something for everyone
