Parking
Use the Twelve Apostles visitor precinct car park and follow the path from the kiosk’s south side. From 16 October 2026, advance reservations are required for precinct visits.
Overview
About Twelve Apostles to Gibson Steps Walk
Why go
- An easy, short walk to a second coastal viewpoint.
- A pedestrian underpass keeps you off Great Ocean Road traffic.
Heads up
- The return follows the same path.
- The beach descent is a separate, condition-dependent add-on.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Great Ocean Road map
Full mapElevation32–57 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
7 active Great Ocean Road alerts
- ClosureLorne-area walking trails closed after flood and storm damageSeveral walking trails near Lorne remain closed; do not enter closed tracks. - Phantom Falls Walk is temporarily closed because flood and storm damage affected the trail and structures.Official details
- ClosureWye Road closed after storm and flood damageWye Road is closed until further notice for road maintenance and repairs following storm and flood damage; do not use the road. Check current Great Otway National Park conditions before travelling.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Ocean Road Tour Guide
Your drive to Twelve Apostles to Gibson Steps Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Ocean Road. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Great Ocean Road audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
The Twelve Apostles0:00 / 0:32
“You're coming up on the Twelve Apostles, the limestone towers standing offshore beside a long line of cliffs. If you're choosing just one big coastal lookout, this is the one I'd keep.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Great Ocean Road Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Gibson Steps
- The Missing Years in the Cliffs
- The Life in Washed-up Seaweed
- Loch Ard Gorge
- 181 audio storiesacross Great Ocean Road’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Koala, Kangaroo, Little Penguin, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 109 trails, 99 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Twelve Apostles to Gibson Steps Walk
A short coastal extensionThis is an easy 2.2 km return (1.
This is an easy 2.2 km return (1.37 miles) from the south side of the Twelve Apostles kiosk to the Gibson Steps carpark lookout, then back the same way. Allow about one hour on the gentle gravel clifftop path. If you want a second stretch of coastline after the main Apostles platforms, this is an easy add-on; the route is the walk between the visitor area and lookout, not a beach circuit.
On the pathThe walk begins along compacted gravel between open fields and coastal scrub.
The walk begins along compacted gravel between open fields and coastal scrub. Near Gibson Steps it passes beneath the Great Ocean Road through a sandy, shell-speckled underpass, so you never cross that busy road at grade. Ocean glimpses come and go, with the view opening more clearly as the scrub thins near the lookout. The return follows the same track and the gentle rise back toward the visitor area.
At Gibson StepsThe trail ends at the cliff-top lookout beside Gibson Steps carpark.
The trail ends at the cliff-top lookout beside Gibson Steps carpark. Two nearby stacks known as Gog and Magog sit off this stretch of coast; they are not counted among the Twelve Apostles. A stair-and-ramp descent to the beach is a separate extension below the lookout and is not included in the 2.2 km. It can close when conditions are unsafe, and closer views of the stacks from the beach depend on tide and surf.
Limestone at workThe sea stacks and cliffs are limestone.
The sea stacks and cliffs are limestone. Wind and waves batter the coast while rainwater wears away softer rock, gradually leaving isolated stacks offshore. From the lookout, you can see that ongoing erosion at work along the cliff line.
The story behind the stepsRegional accounts attribute Gibson Steps to local settler Hugh Gibson, who cut a route down the…
Regional accounts attribute Gibson Steps to local settler Hugh Gibson, who cut a route down the cliff. Kirrae Whurrong people of the Eastern Maar nation traditionally used an access route here before the steps were made. The mapped walk stays on the clifftop and does not descend that older beach route.
Start and accessUse the Twelve Apostles visitor precinct car park; the path begins on the kiosk’s south side.
Use the Twelve Apostles visitor precinct car park; the path begins on the kiosk’s south side. Toilets and a kiosk with food and drinks are at the visitor area. From 16 October 2026, visits to the precinct require an advance reservation, so book before you set out. Dogs are not allowed in Port Campbell National Park. Stay on the marked track and at designated lookouts: cliff edges and cliff bases can collapse without warning.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Great Ocean Road
900 sightingsKoalaMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
358 sightingsKangarooMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
49 sightingsLittle PenguinMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
155 sightingsEchidnaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
33 sightingsFur SealMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
59 sightingsRed-necked WallabyMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Ocean Road. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
