Twelve Apostles Visitor Centre

Twelve Apostles Visitor Experience Centre

The $126m Twelve Apostles Precinct Redevelopment is funded by the Geelong City Deal, which delivers infrastructure projects in the Shipwreck Coast region.

The Project includes Visitor Centre (delivered by Development Victoria), and the Private Sector Business Enablement Fund (delivered by others).

Once complete, the Twelve Apostles Precinct will change how visitors experience the region. It will provide safer and easier access to nature’s greatest attractions, while protecting the environment and cultural history at this spectacular location.

The centrepiece of the project is a new Visitor Centre, thoughtfully designed to integrate with the natural landscape. It will feature retail, dining and exhibition spaces, a rooftop observation deck with breathtaking views, and a Welcome Garden celebrating Eastern Maar cultural heritage.

Additional upgrades include expanded car parking, improved road infrastructure and a focus on native landscaping to restore the coastal environment.

GORCAPA will take over management of the Visitor Centre when it is complete in 2026.

Twelve Apostles Visitor Centre: Stakeholder engagement on booking system and fees

The Victorian Government is protecting the iconic Great Ocean Road coast and parks for future generations by establishing an ongoing funding source for reinvestment straight back into this special place.

To deliver this, a booking and fee model will be introduced at the new world-class Twelve Apostles Visitor Centre when it opens in late 2026.

There will be targeted engagement to shape the implementation of the booking and fee system with key stakeholders across the tourism sector, local government, tour operators and with local communities.

What are the benefits?

Introducing fees will cover the costs of operating and maintaining the new world-class tourism precinct and provide an additional revenue source for ongoing reinvestment in much needed visitor infrastructure and environmental conservation right along the coast and parks of the Great Ocean Road.

It also gives the Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (GORCAPA) long-term certainty to deliver on its remit to protect and enhance the coast and parks while improving the visitor experience.

This includes upgrading beach accesses and visitor facilities, repairing historic landmarks and delivering coastal protection and environmental conservation projects that support community use and enjoyment of the coast.

It is things like repairing and restoring historic landmarks, upgrading, and improving caravan parks and campgrounds right along the Great Ocan Road that support families to enjoy affordable holidays at the beach.

It is repairs and upgrades to walkways, bushwalks, trails, lookouts, BBQs, and tables on foreshores that support local tourism and vibrant communities - ensuring that future generations can build wonderful memories of holidays at the beach.

What will the new Twelve Apostles Visitor Centre offer?

The new Visitor Centre will offer worldclass facilities, immersive interpretive experiences, new outdoor spaces, retail, food and beverage offerings and a rooftop garden.

Booking to visit the Twelve Apostles is about caring for what makes it special — reducing congest protecting the landscape, improving safety, and ensuring every visitor has the experience this iconic place deserves.

GORCAPA will operate the Visitor Centre when it opens in late 2026.

How will the new Visitor Centre support local communities and businesses?

The new visitor centre will provide local jobs and purchase its good and products from the region.

Local businesses will further benefit from the requirement to book a time for visiting the Twelve Apostles by encouraging people to stay longer and explore the region.

That means more people in local towns, visiting shops, local hospitality venues and needing accommodation.

Local producers and suppliers will also benefit, with the new restaurant/cafe and kiosk to have a regional focus and sourcing supplies.

How will bookings help manage visitation and overcrowding?

A booked experience ensures:

a parking spot at a specified time
a safer and more enjoyable visit with less crowding
protection of the nationally significant coastal environment
fair and predictable access for all visitors
reinvestment into conservation, infrastructure, and community

This change is about stewardship, safety, and delivering a world-class experience that matches the global significance of the site.

Booking helps manage crowding so visitors can enjoy the site without congestion:

Timed arrivals improve safety on walkways, viewing platforms, and roads – reduced peak time pressure
A booked experience allows the site to deliver improved facilities, interpretation, and amenities

The Twelve Apostles is the anchor location for most visitors to the region.

Slowing people down and spreading them out will also support sustainable visitation across the entire Great Ocean Road – taking pressure of local spots and communities that have historically seen overcrowding at peak periods as people or groups travel along the road all at the same time to the Twelve Apostles.

Who will run the new food and beverage outlets?

GORCAPA is running a competitive tender process to find an appropriate operator.

How will bookings impact tour operator licence holders?

GORCAPA will work with the tourism sector, industry partners and other land managers across the region to implement these changes and ensure a smooth transition from current arrangements.

Booking creates certainty, reliability, and higher-quality experience for tour operators and their guests, with a guaranteed parking bay for their bus.

Operators will know exactly when they can access the site, reducing delays and risk.

The new Visitor Centre will be a new draw card for the tourism industry, opening new commercial opportunities for the sector such as sunset or sunrise sessions.

This in turn will support local businesses and communities as people spend more time in the region and they see the benefit of the visitors to their part of the world.

Any changes for Gibson Steps or Loch Ard Gorge?

No. The changes only apply to the new Visitor Centre at the Twelve Apostles. Public access to Gibson Steps and Loch Ard Gorge is unchanged.

How much will tickets cost?

Fees will be consistent with other popular nature-based attractions across the country that have had entry fees for some time.

Fees are common practice across Australia and internationally, where people expect to contribute.

What makes this unique is that all revenue generated will be reinvested back into the coast and parks of the Great Ocean Road. This is a legislative requirement for GORCAPA.

Specific fee and booking information will be shaped by targeted stakeholder engagement prior to the opening of the new Visitor Centre in 2026.