One-way tours between Melbourne and Adelaide , via the Great Ocean Road, are a good way to take in the scenery. The backpackers' busline Oz Experience (tel 1300/300 028, www.ozexperience.com ) covers this route in four days, taking in the Great Ocean Road, the Grampians and the Coonawarra wine region in South Australia ($240 all inclusive), while Wayward Bus (free call 1800 882 823, www.waywardbus.com.au ) sticks to the coast all the way to the Coorong in South Australia on its three-day tour ($265 all inclusive). With both you can get off the bus and continue your trip a few days later (booking required). The small and friendly Groovy Grape (free call 1800 661 177, www.groovygrape.com.au ) cover the route in an all-inclusive three-day tour ($245) with overnight stops at the Aboriginal-run Brambuk Hostel in the Grampians and Port Campbell.

 

A few other reliable tour operators do one- or two-day round-trips from Melbourne to the Great Ocean Road, some with an extra Grampians option and/or possible transfer to Adelaide - note that prices given below do not include food and accommodation costs. Autopia Tours (tel 03/9326 5536 or free call 1800 000 507, www.autopiatours.com.au ) does one-day (daily; $54) and two-day tours (Tues & Sat; $82); their three-day tour adds on a visit to the Grampians (Mon, Wed, Fri & Sun; $140 or $150 with connection to Adelaide); there's also a two-day combination of the Great Ocean Road and Phillip Island (Mon, Wed & Fri; $108). Let's Go Bush Tours (tel 03/9662 3969) is a smaller, long-established tour operator that offers a two-day tour of the Great Ocean Road where you stay overnight at their own house near Lavers Hill in the Otway Ranges (Wed & Sat, plus extra trip Mon Nov-May; $99 half board). A similar outfit, Eco Platypus Tours (free call 1800 819 091), offer a two-day tour including a full day in the Grampians ($99), with a choice of tent or shared accommodation at their own lodge between Warrnambool and the Grampians. Some more recent tour operators on the market include Princetown Tours (tel 0407 090 800; two-day tour departs Mon & Sat; $85); Go West (tel 03/9828 2008; one-day tour departs daily; $54); and Otway Discovery (tel 03/9654 5432 or free call 1800 444 432; one-day hop-on, hop-off tour departs daily; $50).