Things to do in Sorrento
At the very end of the peninsula, about ten minutes’ drive from the village through Portsea, the land narrows to a point where the bay meets the open sea at The Rip. Point Nepean National Park is where Sorrento’s history gets serious.
This is Bunurong Country. The park was created in 1988 and grew in 2009 to take in the Quarantine Station, and today it holds more than 150 years of defence, quarantine and coastal history within an easy day out.
Last updated October 2026
More than 50 heritage-listed buildings tell over 150 years of arrivals, isolation and recovery, from nineteenth-century migrant ships to the site’s later lives as an army base and school. Walk the grounds at your own pace and read the stories told in its old wards, offices and bathing blocks.
Tunnels, gun emplacements and barracks make this one of Australia’s finest surviving examples of military fortification. In August 1914, a gun here fired across the bows of the German steamer Pfalz as it tried to leave the bay: the first Allied shot of the First World War. Allow at least an hour to explore the tunnels and lookouts.
On the ocean side of the point is Cheviot Beach, where Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared while swimming in December 1967. A lookout and memorial plaque face the water. The beach itself is closed to the public: the currents here are among the most dangerous on the coast.
The Bay Beach Walk follows the shoreline to Observatory Point and its historic cattle jetty, and the Walter Pisterman Heritage Walk begins at Gunners Cottage. For a longer day, walk or cycle the 2.3 kilometre shared track from the entrance car park to the Quarantine Station, then continue on foot to the fort.
Drive through Portsea to the park entrance, or take the bus from Frankston (route 788). Inside the park, a hop-on, hop-off shuttle runs between the Quarantine Station and Fort Nepean, and takes standard wheelchairs. Pedestrians and cyclists can come and go at any time. Check Parks Victoria for shuttle times and fares before you go.
Keep exploring
Getting here
Drive from Melbourne in about 90 minutes, cross on the ferry from Queenscliff, or take the train to Frankston and bus route 788 down the peninsula. Once you arrive, the visitor information centre on the foreshore has maps and local advice. Find where to stay, and read more about getting here and around.