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Australia’s best festival town is hiding at the end of the Great Ocean Road

Emily Murphy Emily Murphy
Port Fairy is the festival town that has no off-season.

I’ll be honest: I didn’t think a town of 3000 people at the end of the Great Ocean Road could feel like a city that never sleeps. Then I started scrolling through Port Fairy’s events calendar and realised I’d need to book multiple trips to tick everything off. Jazz in February. Folk in March. A whole month of summer revelry over Christmas. Fireside warmth in June. Arts and blooms in spring. This is not a one-trip town – it’s a year-round obsession disguised as a sleepy Victorian fishing village.

Port Fairy was ranked fourth in Australian Traveller’s 100 best Aussie towns to visit list, but it also took the category win for the best town for festivals and events, too, as voted by an expert panel. For a place where whitewashed bluestone cottages line streets canopied by ancient moonah trees and the Moyne River meets the Southern Ocean in a blaze of gold, it’s the cultural heartbeat that truly sets it apart from its Great Ocean Road neighbours.

Meet the sleepy Victorian fishing village that never actually sleeps. Port Fairy has just been named Australia's number 4 best town and the best town for festivals and events in our 100 Best Aussie Towns! Once you see the events calendar, you'll understand why. Folk in March. Jazz in February. A whole month of summer revelry. Fireside warmth in June. Port Fairy is the festival town that has no off-season.

The event that put Port Fairy on the map

Streetscapes in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Pubs become stages during the Port Fairy Folk Festival. (Credit: Peter Foster)

Every conversation about Port Fairy eventually leads to the same place: the Port Fairy Folk Festival. Held over the Labour Day long weekend in March, it’s one of Australia’s most beloved and longest-running music events, drawing national and international folk, roots and blues artists to an intimate coastal setting that makes even headline talent feel like they’re playing just for you.

The magic isn’t just the lineup – though the lineup is consistently brilliant. It’s the way the whole town leans in. Pubs become stages. Parks fill with picnic blankets and the sound of banjos drifting on the sea breeze. Even if you’ve never considered yourself a folk person, you’ll leave a convert. Accommodation books out months in advance, so if the 2027 festival is on your radar, start planning now.

A festival for every season

Waterfront in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Port Fairy is the festival town that has no off-season.

What makes Port Fairy genuinely exceptional is that the Folk Festival isn’t an anomaly – it’s the headline act of a packed annual program. Here’s how to plan a year of visits around it.

Summer – Moyneyana Festival: The town transforms over the holiday season with this month-long celebration of community spirit. Daily activities, live music, markets and family-friendly entertainment make this the perfect time to bring the whole crew. Think long evenings by the river, local produce stalls, and that particular coastal-summer magic.

Autumn – Port Fairy Jazz Festival: Just before the folk crowds arrive, jazz fans descend for a weekend of traditional and mainstream performances across more than 100 acts at multiple venues. It’s a more intimate affair – and the restaurant bookings are a little easier to score.

Winter – Port Fairy Winter Weekends: Port Fairy in winter is a revelation. When the tourist crowds thin and the fire pits come out, the town’s personality shifts into something cosier and more local. Port Fairy Winter Weekends celebrate the season with food, warmth and community events that feel genuine rather than manufactured. If you want to see Port Fairy as the locals live it, this is your moment.

Spring – Port Fairy Spring Music Festival: As the weather turns and gardens bloom, the Port Fairy Spring Music Festival brings arts and community celebration to the fore. It’s a gentler pace – perfect for wandering over schedules – though with Port Fairy’s dining scene at its most vibrant in the run-up to summer, you’ll want to book dinner early regardless.

Need tips, more detail or itinerary ideas tailored to you? Ask AT.

AI Prompt

More than a festival town

Lighthouse in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Explore the lighthouse on Griffiths Island.
Drift House boutique accommodation in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
The heritage buildings bring character to the town.
Port Fairy Farmers Market on the Great Ocean Road
Visit the Port Fairy Farmers Market.
People surfing at sunrise in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Surfing is big in Port Fairy.

On any given weekend, you might stumble across the Port Fairy Farmers Market overflowing with local produce, an art and craft day, a community film screening, or a street event that has half the town out with a glass of something Victorian in hand.

Beyond the calendar, the town itself is stunning. Griffiths Island – a short walk from the centre – is home to a lighthouse and a colony of short-tailed shearwaters (muttonbirds) that put on one of nature’s great daily spectacles at dusk. East Beach is a long, dramatic stretch popular with surfers and walkers, and the working fishing fleet still comes in with the morning catch, keeping things real in the best possible way.

External shot of the Pinot Noir villa at Basalt Retreat near Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Basalt Retreat is the only vineyard accommodation on the Great Ocean Road.

For accommodation, forget the standard motel playbook – Port Fairy and its surrounds have options that are genuinely part of the experience. I stayed at Basalt Retreat, in the Pinot Noir villa. Set within a 24-year-old working vineyard just minutes from town, this adults-only escape is the only vineyard accommodation on the Great Ocean Road – and the detail is exceptional. Architect-designed, with soft tones, floor-to-ceiling light, a private deck facing the pinot rows, and a breakfast hamper of local produce waiting each morning (think organic yoghurt, fresh pastries and properly good coffee).

Why Port Fairy over its Great Ocean Road rivals?

Beach in Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road
Port Fairy has a genuine sense of place.
Port Fairy Riverside Walk on the Great Ocean Road
Walk along the Port Fairy Riverside Walk.

Lorne has its surf-town cool, and Warnambool has its hot springs and walks, but Port Fairy has something harder to engineer: a genuine sense of place. It sits at the end of the road – literally, where the Great Ocean Road officially concludes – and it has the feeling of a destination rather than a stopover. People don’t drive through Port Fairy; they come specifically for it.

The bluestone heritage buildings, the working waterfront, the community events that fill the calendar, not because tourism demands it but because the locals simply love to celebrate – these are things Port Fairy has earned over 200 years of coastal life. Add the festivals, and you have arguably Victoria’s most complete small-town experience.

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How we chose the winners

Australian Traveller’s 100 best Aussie towns to visit were selected by a voting panel of much-loved Australians, industry experts and category authorities from across the country. The expert panel consisting of 15 travel experts, including the likes of Accor’s Adrian Williams, Ernie Dingo and Catriona Rowntree. Port Fairy was voted ‘Best Festivals and Events Town’ and came fourth overall in ‘Best 100 towns’ in Australia.

Here is the shortlist of what to know about Port Fairy

Port Fairy Golf Course on the Great Ocean Road
Port Fairy is 3.5 hours from Melbourne.

Getting there

  • Port Fairy is approximately 3.5 hours from Melbourne via the Princes Highway, or around 2.5 hours via Geelong if joining the Great Ocean Road from Torquay.

Key events

  • Moyneyana Festival: December – January
  • Port Fairy Jazz Festival: February
  • Port Fairy Folk Festival: March (Labour Day long weekend)
  • Koroit Irish Festival: April
  • Port Fairy Winter Weekends: June
  • Port Fairy Literary Weekend: September
  • Port Fairy Spring Music Festival: October
  • Port Fairy Annual Show: November

Where to stay

  • Basalt Retreat: The Great Ocean Road’s only vineyard accommodation, set within 24-year-old vines.
  • Merrijig Inn: Victoria’s oldest inn (est. 1841), central and full of character.

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Emily Murphy
Emily Murphy is Australian Traveller's Email & Social Editor, and in her time at the company she has been instrumental in shaping its social media and email presence, and crafting compelling narratives that inspire others to explore Australia's vast landscapes. Her previous role was a journalist at Prime Creative Media and before that she was freelancing in publishing, content creation and digital marketing. When she's not creating scroll-stopping travel content, Em is a devoted 'bun mum' and enjoys spending her spare time by the sea, reading, binge-watching a good TV show and exploring Sydney's vibrant dining scene. Next on her Aussie travel wish list? South Australia and The Kimberley.
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8 incredible hikes just outside of Melbourne

    Australian Traveller Australian Traveller
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    Just over an hour from Melbourne, spectacular walking and hiking trails encompass ancient landscapes, forested ridgelines and volcanic peaks.

    Just a short drive from the city, the urban sprawl gives way to rolling hills, mineral springs, and lush forests that will have you feeling like you’re in the bucolic countryside of France. Encompassing Daylesford, the Macedon Ranges, Castlemaine and the Central Goldfields, this pocket of Victoria is a region where nature, art, and wellness intertwine. Heritage towns hum with creativity, good food and wine, and welcoming locals. While Daylesford hikes, and those nearby, offer the chance to take a pause and reconnect with nature.

    1. Hanging Rock Summit Walk

    Hanging Rock Summit Walk
    Take in views across the Macedon Ranges.

    Etched into folklore, few places in Australia carry as much mystique as Hanging Rock. Rising dramatically from the plains near Woodend, this volcanic mamelon offers a beautiful nature walk. The walk begins at a gentle pace, weaving through shaded woodland before it gets a little steeper as the path starts to climb and twist to the summit. From here, you’ll have views that stretch across the Macedon Ranges. The walk is roughly 1.8 kilometres return, but the real reward lies in standing among the weathered boulders, feeling the age and energy of the earth beneath your feet.

    2. Macedon Ranges Walking Trail

    Macedon Ranges Walking Trail camel's hump lookout
    Walk to Camel’s Hump. (Image: Clair Derwort)

    The Macedon Ranges Walking Trail traverses around 19 kilometres of forest and mountain landscapes. The full trail is a six-hour circuit, with most of the walk being a grade three; however, you don’t have to tackle it all at once. There are shorter walks that will take you through the tall mountain ash forests, to tranquil picnic areas, and sweeping views from Camels Hump and the Memorial Cross. The best times of year to head out are autumn, when the mountain turns into a tapestry of crimson and gold, and spring, when wildflowers brighten the trail.

    3. Mount Alexander Traverse

    Mount Alexander Traverse
    Take in the serenity.

    Towering above the goldfields near Castlemaine, Mount Alexander is a granite giant that offers some great bushwalking trails. The Mount Alexander Traverse winds along the mountain’s rocky spine through dry eucalypt forest that opens up in sections to reveal beautiful panoramas across Loddon Valley and all the way to the distant Grampians. Once a site of ancient volcanic activity (and later a gathering place for the Dja Dja Wurrung people), the mountain’s granite tors are now quiet and create a beautiful, serene atmosphere for a moment of reflection while walking.

    4. Murmuring Walk

    Murmuring Walk daylesford hikes
    Circle the picturesque Sanatorium Lake.

    Located an easy drive from Daylesford, Murmuring Walk offers something a little different. Circling Sanatorium Lake, this free audio-guided walk aims to immerse you in the rhythms of Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country by blending the sounds of nature with a multi-layered soundtrack. There are two routes to explore while you listen: a shorter loop around the lake itself and a longer circuit that extends deeper into the woodland.

    5. La Gerche Forest Walk

    La Gerche Forest Walk
    Walk into history on the La Gerche Forest trail.

    Located in Creswick, the La Gerche Forest Walk honours the legacy of John La Gerche, a 19th-century forester who championed the regeneration of the then gold-rush-ravaged land. Today, over 100 years later, his replanting efforts have grown into a living cathedral of towering pines, oaks, and native gums. As you meander along the 2.2-kilometre circuit, you’ll find interpretive panels along the way that help tell the story of La Gerche’s vision, so you can learn as you wander.

    6. Sailors Falls Loop

    Sailors Falls Loop
    See these spectacular falls. (Image: Visit Victoria)

    Just outside Daylesford, Sailors Falls tumbles through a fern-lined gorge, fed by mineral springs. Thought to be named after the sailors who jumped ship to seek gold in the area during the 1850s gold rush, the loop walk begins at the car park and descends through a cool, shaded gully to the base of the falls. From here, you’ll make the climb back via the mineral springs. It’s a short but enchanting walk – about 1.5 kilometres in total, so make a day of it by packing a picnic to sit by the springs; you’ll feel worlds away from the city.

    7. Paddys Ranges Loop Walk

    Further north, the Paddys Ranges State Park loop reveals a different side of Victoria’s Heartland – dry forest, golden light and hints of a gold-rush past. This protected reserve is a stronghold of box-ironbark woodland, providing vital refuge for endangered species. In spring, the forest floor is awash with the colour of over 230 species of wildflowers, so a springtime walk is a must-do. As you walk the 4.5-kilometre loop trail, keep an eye out for remnants of old mine shafts and rusted relics from the prospectors who once sought their fortunes here.

    8. Mount Franklin Summit Walk

    Mount Franklin Summit Walk
    Take in forests and waterfalls along the way to the top of Mount Franklin.

    An extinct volcano turned picnic ground, Mount Franklin (known as Lalgambook to the Dja Dja Wurrung people) is one of the region’s quiet marvels. The summit walk follows a narrow, winding path through native forest to the crater’s rim, where you’ll get glimpses of farmland and forest below. It’s a moderate climb – just over an hour return, so it can easily be done if you’re camping in the surrounding reserve for a weekend nature retreat.

    The trails of Victoria’s Heartland offer a chance to reconnect with the landscape, local history and yourself. Start planning your next adventure at daylesfordmacedonlife.com.au.