Updated on December 9, 2025
Dog Friendly Beaches Along The Great Ocean Road: Off-Lead, All-Year
Taking your dog on holiday to the coast or into National Parks can be difficult in Australia, as we have a lot of wildlife to consider and protect. The Great Ocean Road and Otway National Park have a lot of restrictions in place, but it is possible to find some fantastic dog friendly beaches to let your dog romp off-leash.
We have searched for all the dog-friendly beaches along the Great Ocean Road, without restrictions, all year round.
Many other beaches along the coast allow dogs during certain months or hours, but the list below informs owners that they can arrive at any time to go for an off-leash walk with their dogs (unless rules change, please let us know if they have).
Dogs are NOT permitted in the Port Campbell National Park, which is the location of the Twelve Apostles. They can be left in vehicles, though common sense and care need to be used during warm/hot weather to ensure they do not disturb other visitors.
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Dog Friendly Camping – Great Ocean Road
Some free campsites in the Otway Ranges and a number of paid camping and caravan parks are dog-friendly. Read the conditions for each park as some only accept dogs out of peak season.
Dog Friendly Accommodation
Booking.com is an excellent website to browse for deals, refine your search to include pet-friendly accommodation.
These are some of the best choices we have found from Aireys Inlet to Warrnambool.
- Airey’s Ocean View, Airey’s Inlet
- Loutit Views, Lorne
- Big 4 Holiday Park, Apollo Bay
- Muxy’s Place, Johanna
- The PC Cottage, Port Campbell
- Highview Family Cottages, Warrnambool
Dog Friendly Beaches starting in Torquay
The beaches below start in Torquay and are listed in order of towns along the Great Ocean Road. Please let us know if any beaches are missed from the list or are no longer accessible as all-year-round off-lead beaches.
Lots of other beaches are available at certain times of the year with strict regulations, but the beaches listed below allow dogs off-lead, all day, every day.
Torquay | Jan Juc Dog Friendly Beach
Famous for its nearby surfers’ mecca, Bells Beach (not dog-friendly), and home to the National Surfing Museum, Torquay offers two good beach romps for pooches to run free.
Get Directions to Whites Beach, Torquay
Get Directions to Rocky Point Beach
Anglesea Dog Friendly Beach
Anglesea is a lovely little town with great beaches, surf school, boat hire, and fab cafes. West of Point Roadknight, there is a good beach to take your dog to.
Get Directions to the Point Roadknight / Anglesea dog-friendly beach
Aireys Inlet Dog Friendly Beach
Well-known for the Split Point Lighthouse, coastal walks, plenty of places to eat, and an awesome beach for dogs (and humans).
The beach to run dogs on can be accessed from two locations, the best access is beside the Great Ocean Road near the Fairhaven Surf Clubhouse and not too far from the famous ‘Pole House’, which can be seen from the beach.
The other location is not far from the Split Point Lighthouse, but dogs do need to be on-lead until reaching the ocean beach by the cliffs and then turning right.
- Get Directions to the beach access near Fairhaven Surf Life Saving Club – To the west of the clubhouse and not far from the famous ‘Pole House’ is the off-lead area.
2. Get Directions to Airey’s Inlet Dog-friendly beach – Access West of Split Point Lighthouse.
Lorne Dog Friendly Beach
One of the most popular and busiest seaside towns in Victoria. Lorne has fabulous walks, plenty of places to eat, some dog-friendly accommodation, and a wonderful beach area that dogs are allowed to romp on.
This all-day, off-leash all-year-round, dog beach is close to the town of Lorne, coming from the Melbourne direction.
Get Directions to the dog-friendly beach in Lorne
Kennet River & Wye River
The tiny seaside townships of Kennet River and Wye River are lovely and offer a couple of beach areas for dogs to run.
Check signage at both locations for details on where to run your dogs.
Apollo Bay Beach
Another popular seaside town with plenty to keep people staying for a few days. There are some stunning Waterfalls to see (some pet-friendly), great places to eat and sleep, plus a fabulous beach.
The main beach in Apollo Bay has restrictions on when dogs can be there. Please read the signs. Around the corner in Marengo, there is a good dog beach; details are below.
Marengo Beach near Apollo Bay
Very close to Apollo Bay, Marengo has a gorgeous beach that does not tend to get as busy as the main beaches. From where Ocean Park Drive meets the Great Ocean Road, follow the direction sign on the beach for dogs off the lead.
For anyone camping or caravanning, the nearest dog-friendly campsite is very close to this beach, the Marengo Holiday Park is a good holiday base with your fur-baby.
Get Directions to the end of Ocean Park Drive at Marengo.
Between Apollo Bay and Port Campbell
We have not found any off-lead dog-friendly beaches between Apollo Bay and Port Campbell that are available all year round. This is often because of wild-life concerns, the Hooded Plover being one of the protected birds.
Johanna Beach is a good surf beach to walk on, though on-lead only, and visitors can camp down there as the site does allow dogs. The beach is quite remote and popular with surfers and people fishing. Not an ideal swimming beach though and not patrolled.
Warrnambool Beach
Famous for whale watching, Warrnambool is about an hour from Port Campbell and offers a super long sandy beach that dogs and owners will just love.
Get Directions to Point Ritchie dog-friendly beach, Warrnambool
Melbourne & Mornington Peninsula Beaches
Find 14 amazing all-year-round dog beaches around Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula. From Altona to Flinders, the dog-friendly beaches are incredible, and some are safe for families to swim in, too.
GREAT OCEAN ROAD FACEBOOK GROUP – Join our FB group to ask questions and share your knowledge about anything to do with travel along the Great Ocean Road. Bushwalks, waterfalls, trip planning, great camping sites, campfire recipes…
