Lakes Entrance: Views, Beach and Discoveries

Lakes Entrance is shaped by a remarkable meeting of waters: this is where the Gippsland Lakes meet the Southern Ocean. Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park stretches along Ninety Mile Beach from Seaspray to Lakes Entrance; Lakes Entrance Main Beach lies at the eastern end of this beach. This brings the lake district, coast and beach together in your travel plans, without limiting you to just one kind of outing.

Beach and waterside paths

Activities at Lakes Entrance Main Beach include swimming, kayaking, surfing, fishing and walking. From town, you can reach the beach via a 400 m footpath that crosses the pedestrian bridge. This distance gives you a useful guide for planning your day if you want to combine a beach visit with other activities. When choosing your holiday accommodation, you could first consider how much of your stay you want to devote to beach days.

The Hummocks Walk, also known as The Entrance Walk, offers another perspective on the water. The trail is 4.6 km long and takes 1.5 hours. It follows the lakeshore and offers views of where the Gippsland Lakes and the Southern Ocean meet. If you want to plan a clearly defined walk, you can compare these details directly with the time you have available. The Lakes Entrance Foreshore Cycling Track follows the Esplanade along the waterfront, adding a waterside cycling route to the options.

By canoe, boat or mountain bike

Entrance Bay is a picturesque picnic spot in Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park and is a short canoe, kayak or boat ride from Lakes Entrance. It makes for a distinct outing for anyone wanting to combine time on the water with a break on the shore. Near Lakes Entrance, Lakes Explorer also offers a water taxi service for up to four people to remote jetties and beaches on the lakes.

There is also a specific route to consider for a mountain bike ride: between Lakes Entrance and Log Crossing, the Gippsland Lakes Discovery Mountain Biking Trail includes a 13.7 km return section. If you want to include a range of activities in your trip, you can choose between the beach, a waterfront path, an outing on the lake and a mountain bike trail, rather than planning the same kind of day every day.

Sculptures, shells and wine

Carved wooden sculptures stand along the Esplanade waterfront in Lakes Entrance. Also on the Esplanade is the Griffiths Sea Shell Museum, which displays more than 90,000 shells. A museum visit offers a cultural counterpoint to activities at the beach and on the water; the large number of shells on display makes the collection’s subject immediately tangible.

For a wine-related discovery, look to Wyanga Park Winery in Lakes Entrance. It is the oldest winery in Gippsland and serves award-winning wines at its cellar door, including frozen Muscat. This adds a culinary touch to your travel plans. Your interests can also play a part when searching for holiday accommodation: decide whether you would prefer to focus on beach and water activities, exercise, or cultural and culinary experiences.

A local market day

The Lakes Entrance Surf Club Foreshore Market is held on the first Sunday of the month on the waterfront beside the rotunda. If your stay coincides with this date, you can include the market in your plans for the day. Along with the Foreshore Cycling Track, the sculptures and the museum, it shows how different discoveries are connected to the Esplanade.

Discover more places

Other destinations to discover include Tarrawarra, Mornington, Seaford, Nichols Point, Patchewollock, Garfield, Barnawartha and Caveat.

For the overview of the wider region, see: Victoria.