Mornington Peninsula

Introduction

Cape Schanck

© dyakhnov

The Mornington Peninsula is a popular beach getaway located just an hour to the south east of Melbourne. Beaches with calm waters, quaint seaside towns, gourmet food experiences and a good taste of Victoria's indigenous flora and fauna make it a good place to escape the bustle of Melbourne. A population of about 150,000 live on the Peninsula, but this number swells to over 250,000 during the summer months.

Geography

The Peninsula stretches for some 40kms in a southerly direction from Frankston in Melbourne's south-east and is about 15-20 kilometres wide. It is sandwiched between Port Philip bay on the west, Western Port Bay on the east and has the Bass Strait to the south.

Towns

Some of the popular towns on the Peninsula are listed below.

• Balnarring
• Dromana
• Flinders
• Frankston
• Mornington
• Mt Eliza
• Mt Martha
• Portsea
• Red Hill/Main Ridge
• Sorrento
• Tyabb

Sights and Activities

• Swimming along the sandy beaches of Port Phillip bay.
• The lookout at Arthurs Seat (305m) offers some great views of the bay.
• Mornington Peninsula National Park
• Golf is a popular activity with over a dozen courses to choose from.
• HMAS Cerberus incorporates a military base, historical buildings, museum and a decommissioned Oberon class submarine.
• Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park allows you to get up close to some of the native nocturnal animals.
• Dromana Drive-in Theatre is one only few remaining drive-in theatres in the state.
• Whilst not traditionally thought of for scuba diving, Port Phillip Bay is actually one of the world's best locations for wreck scuba diving, home to over 600 wrecks. One of the most popular departure points for scuba diving in Victoria is Portsea on the Mornington Peninsula.

Events and Festivals

• Red Hill Market

Getting There

By Train

You can catch the regular suburban train from Melbourne to Frankston. From Frankston, there is also a V/Line train to Hastings and Stony Point on the eastern side of the Peninsula.

By Car

From the center of Melbourne drive along the Monash Freeway (partially toll roads), then onto Eastlink (a toll road). At the end of Eastlink, merge onto the Frankston Freeway briefly, then continue along the Mooroduc highway and Mornington Peninsula Freeway.

By Bus

From Melbourne, you can catch the train to Frankston. Bus number 788 services the peninsula right down to Portsea, leaving from the Frankston train station. Several other bus services (781, 784, 785) service parts of the peninsula along the Nepean Highway.

By Boat

Two vehicle/passenger ferries operated by the Searoad Ferry Service run between the Bellarine Peninsula and Mornington Peninsula. They depart from Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula and arrive at Sorrento.

Getting Around

By Bus

Bus number 788 services the peninsula right down to Portsea, leaving from the Frankston train station. Several other bus services (781, 784, 785) service parts of the peninsula along the Nepean Highway.

Sleep