Things to do in Sorrento
Sorrento has always faced the bay. Paddle steamers brought the first holidaymakers here in the 1870s, and the water is still the best way to understand where you are: a calm inland sea on one side, the fierce channel of The Rip on the other.
Last updated October 2026
The Searoad ferry crosses to Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula in about 40 minutes, leaving on the hour from 7am to 6pm every day of the year. Take the car, a bike (it travels free; the rider pays a foot fare) or the dog on a lead on the outside decks. There is a licensed café on board and viewing decks for the crossing. Lunch in Queenscliff and be back in Sorrento for a swim before dinner.
From October to April, local operators including Polperro Dolphin Swims and Moonraker Dolphin Swims take small groups out from Sorrento to swim with the bay’s wild bottlenose dolphins and the seals of the marine park. Wetsuits and snorkels are supplied, and there are cruise options for those who would rather watch from the deck. Book ahead in January.
The waters around the heads are protected as Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park, and the piers at Portsea and Rye are known snorkelling spots, with sponges, seagrass and schools of fish around the pylons. Go on a calm day near slack tide, and only with local knowledge: the current at The Rip is among the strongest anywhere on the coast. Local dive operators run guided trips.
The Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club on Point Nepean Road keeps alive the wooden couta boats once used to fish these waters for barracouta. The sight of them racing on a summer afternoon, gaff sails full, is pure Sorrento.
On calm mornings the front beach is ideal for stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking, with clear, shallow water over the sand. The Sorrento pier has drawn patient fishers for well over a century; check Victorian fishing rules and licence requirements before you cast a line.
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.