A Great Ocean Road Supercar Weekend: The Itinerary

The Great Ocean Road is one of the most famous driving roads on earth: 243km of coastal bends, cliff-top views and a road surface that rewards a car built for it. It's also the drive that most often gets squeezed into a single day, and a single day is the wrong way to do it.

This is the itinerary we suggest to clients booking a Great Ocean Road weekend from our Melbourne fleet, along with the cars that suit it and the kilometre maths you need to get right before you book.

A Great Ocean Road trip from Melbourne covers several hundred kilometres, with the total depending on your starting point, accommodation, stops and return route. Map the complete itinerary, including the Twelve Apostles and the return to Melbourne, before booking. Try to do that in one day and you spend the whole time watching the clock instead of the coast. Spread over a weekend, the same road becomes a relaxed run with long lunches, sunset stops and a proper night's sleep on the coast.

It also makes the kilometre allowance work in your favour, because it stacks with each day you book.

Friday evening. Collect the car in Melbourne and head down the highway towards Geelong or straight to your coast accommodation. The traffic is behind you and the good driving starts in the morning.

Saturday. Torquay to Lorne to Apollo Bay. This is the classic stretch, where the road hugs the coastline and the bends start to earn their reputation. Take it slowly enough to stop at the lookouts.

Sunday. Apollo Bay to the Twelve Apostles, then return through the inland Otways. Swapping the coast for the hinterland on the way back gives you a completely different drive and avoids retracing the same road.

Monday. Return the car.

If comfort over distance matters most, it's the McLaren GT: a genuine supercar with a usable boot and suspension that works on Australian roads. If it's the photos and the sound, the Huracán or the 488. If you want the most kilometres per dollar, the Corvette.

This is the part to get right before you pay a deposit. Collect Friday evening and return Monday evening, and you've booked three 24-hour windows.

The 480km comparison above is an allowance example, not a distance estimate for the full itinerary. Excess kilometres are charged at the vehicle-specific rate confirmed at booking. For a 480km booking, four days at 150km per day provide 600km, while four days at 100km per day provide only 400km. Check your mapped route against your total allowance, and confirm any extra kilometres before paying a deposit. A shorter coastal itinerary uses fewer kilometres than the full loop.

Most of our fleet runs on 98 octane only, and premium 95 isn't a substitute. Fuel isn't included, and the car goes back at the level you collected it, so plan your fuel stops in the bigger towns along the route rather than hoping for 98 at a small servo.

Leave room at both ends of the day. The Great Ocean Road is a tourist road as well as a driving road, and on a summer weekend you'll share it with caravans and coaches. The best runs are early morning and late afternoon.

Finally, parking. A low supercar and a coastal car park full of kerbs is how most first-time clients scuff a wheel. Park at the far end, give yourself room, and use the time to take the photo you came for.

Deposits and booking payments are non-refundable, so lock your dates and your car before paying. Phone 0423 300 901 or email bookings@prestigeluxuryrentals.com.au, and see our guide to the best supercar drives in Melbourne for more routes.