If you’ve been following our Great Ocean Road Itinerary, you will see that we had purposely stopped over at Princetown and not the popular towns like Apollo Bay and Port Campbell. That’s because we wanted to try Glamping at Pebble Point! It was our first time hearing of such a word or experience: glam + camping = glamping. So here’s our review of Pebble Point.

Pebble Point is the accommodation for our first night on the Great Ocean Road (“GOR”). We stayed one night in October 2013, in Tent 2, for A$140. According to TripAdvisor’s room tips, it’s best to get Tent 1, 2 and 5 for good views.

pebblepoint.com.au

Review of Pebble Point: Our Experience

Perhaps it’s the season we travel in, but when we reached about evening, there was no one around–no other campers, no staff, no one. It was kind of scary for city kids like us, just the 2 of us in the wilderness. I was afraid of the danger lurking behind darkness, be it wild animals or psychotic person. No staff was there to help if anything happen.

So how did we enter our tent? Upon online reservation and payment, we received a keycode to enter on the key safe that’s outside our tent. Then we can open the safe to retrieve the key to unlock our tent. However, it took us a while to figure out the safe mechanics and we were panicking because it was turning dark fast.

✓ PROS 

 Luxury: Love, love, love the soft and comfy bed. One of the best bed while travelling in Perth and Melbourne! We slept through the night like babies, unlike the nights on the bed at our Melbourne Airbnb. The “room” and the bathroom were of 4-star hotel standard.

Good View: We woke up to a superb good view (see the last photo). You can also pull up the blinds in the bathroom to have the same view of the wild while you shower or poop.

Attentiveness: I mentioned in our reservation email that I’m afraid of the cold. And they cared enough to provide us with hot water bottles and electric blankets.

Location: We wanted to stay near the 12 Apostles so that we could enjoy the attraction at dawn or dusk when there are only a few other visitors. Also at these times, penguins can sometimes be seen along the shoreline. We were uncomfortable to drive for too long in the night, and hence picked somewhere near to stay. However, we didn’t manage to see the penguins because of the rainy weather.

WOKE UP IN THE MORNING TO THIS AWESOME  VIEW.

✘ CONS 

No Heater: We went during Spring, but the weather was made colder by the rain. The tent didn’t have a heater, and so we could only snuggle under the electric blanket and hold tight to the hot water bottles.

Outdoor Bathroom: Pebble Point would be perfect if it had an indoor instead of an outdoor bathroom. We had to walk through an open stretch to get to the bathroom. The cold attacked me and the wild animals hidden in the dark threatened to pounce on me. So I had to rush between the room and the toilet.

Wildlife: In the night, we could hear the animals’ sounds all around and it got worse when we woke up in the morning. Or rather a loud rustling sound woke us up. It was as if some animal was scratching our tent. Kangaroos? For quite a while, we were hesitant to open our tent and walk to the bathroom to wash up.

No Wifi: It’s good to have a tech detox. However, it’s not good when we had to do online research, booking and liaising on WhatsApp for the next few days of our trip.

Dining: Princetown is very small and thus we only found a few shops nearby at Old Post office Road. There were the post office, Princetown General Store and Cafe and The 12 Apostles Inn. The 12 Apostles Inn had a typical country pub feel, and the food served was average. So try to settle your dinner elsewhere. We ate at the 12 Apostles Inn because it was near to Pebble Point and we were uncomfortable driving in the dark to venture far.

Recommended? 

I will still recommend this place to stay. 

It was a novel and interesting experience for us. Other than the cold and scare from the wildlife, the bed was comfortable and the view was awesome. It was nice to catch the sunrise over the vast land from our bed. Remember to get Tent 1, 2 or 5 is recommended for great views. Pebble Point’s location is also great if you want to catch the penguins coming to land at the 12 Apostles. But do go when the weather is a bit warmer! 

Do you have other questions over our review of Pebble Point? Ask us below or on our Facebook Page or Instagram.

Related Posts:
Great Ocean Road Self Drive Itinerary (1/2)
Drive to 12 Apostles from Melbourne (2/2) 
Car Rental in Melbourne

Updated in 16 July 2016 | Travel During October 2013 

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