A resort town, known for its surfing beach, sea fishing, sporting facilities. Torquay has laid claim to being the surfing capital of Australia and some of the finest boardriders in the world flock to Bells Beach every year for the annual Easter Classic.
Location: 99 km from Melbourne on Great Ocean Road; 22km south of Geelong. Map
Origin of name: when the first land was sold in the mid-1880s the locality was known to Europeans as Spring Creek, after the rivulet which demarcates its south-western edge. Its seaside resort associations caused its name to be changed in 1892 to that of a British resort town in Devonshire.
Brief history: it is thought that the Wathaurung Aborigines occupied the area prior to European settlement. Picnickers began to frequent the spot from the 1860s. The location soon became a popular holiday spot for residents of Geelong and Melbourne who initially travelled here by Cobb & Co. coach.
Natural features: Southern Ocean; Bass Strait; Thirteenth Beach; Bramlea beach; Bells Beach; Jan Juc Beach; Bell's Beach; Point Danger Marine Sanctuary; Point Addis Marine National Park
Built features: Surfworld Museum (Australia's only surfing museum and Hall of Fame)
Heritage features: Bellbrae Horse-drawn Carriage Museum.