Campground · Great Otway National Park
Twenty-five unpowered sites behind dunes near Johanna Beach.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Otway Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Otway National Park. 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 Otway audio tourRecorded for this place
Johanna Beach: Surf and Open Coast“You're approaching the Johanna Beach access, for a long, open shore with rolling green hills behind the surf. Follow the marked beach path by the drive-in campground for a walk on the sand.”
Plays as you drive up to Johanna Beach Campground in the Parkwolf Great Otway Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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!!!!”
Guide
Johanna Beach Campground is a campground reached by car, tucked behind coastal dunes and open grassland near Glenaire, just off the Great Ocean Road. Its 25 unpowered sites take tents, camper trailers and caravans, with up to six people per site. It suits a stay close to the coast: Johanna Beach is reached on foot by a track from camp. Book through Parks Victoria before you go.
The campground map marks toilets that don't flush, including an accessible toilet, and a water point that's not for drinking, so bring your drinking water. All sites are unpowered. Campfires aren't allowed, visitors must take their rubbish away, and dogs are allowed on a lead.
A walking track connects the camp with the beach. Johanna faces west and is known for powerful surf and a break that suits experienced surfers; this is an exposed shore rather than a sheltered bay. Wind can make pitches feel exposed, and shelter and privacy vary around the grounds.
The beach takes its name from the brig Johanna, wrecked at the mouth of Johanna River on 22 September 1843.
Johanna hosted the World Surfing Championships in 1970 and Rip Curl Pro events in 2007 and 2010, when Bells Beach had average surf. Humpback and southern right whales may be seen offshore from July to September.
Wildlife
204 sightingsKoalaMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
35 sightingsGrey KangarooMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
109 sightingsEchidnaMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
58 sightingsKookaburraMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
97 sightingsSwamp WallabyMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
20 sightingsBrushtail PossumMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Otway. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateJohanna Beach to Milanesia Beach10.4 km · 3.5 hr · At the trailheadA hilltop sea view and a remote beach reached on foot.ChallengingJohanna Beach to Ryans Den14 km · 5.5 hr · 0.1 km awayA long coastal traverse with a river lookout and hike-in finish.
ModerateCastle Cove to Johanna Beach6.3 km · 2.5 hr · 4.8 km awayClifftop heath gives way to Johanna’s tide-dependent beach finish.
ChallengingMilanesia Beach to Ryan’s Den6.4 km · 2.5 hr · 5.2 km awayA hard coastal walk from Milanesia Beach to Ryan’s DenModerateMilanesia Beach Walk3.4 km · 1.5 hr · 5.2 km awayA steep coastal track drops to a quiet beach, then climbs back.
ModerateMadsen’s Track Nature Walk1.4 km · 35 min · 7.1 km awayA ferny rainforest circuit past Anne’s Cascades and the Big Tree.
Campground · 0.9 km awayJohanna Beach Hike-in CampgroundA booked ridge camp with a broad Johanna Beach outlook.
Beach · 1.2 km awayJohanna BeachA west-facing surf coast for long views, with rips to respect.
Sight · 4.8 km awayCastle Cove LookoutPause above the cove, then take the stairs for the beach.Beach · 5.7 km awayMilanesia BeachA long, tide-timed beach crossing on the Great Ocean Walk.
Picnic area · 7.1 km awayMelba Gully Day Visitor AreaA short rainforest loop doubles as a glow-worm walk after dark.Parkwolf’s Great Otway ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
