Mornington Peninsula

It's been a while since we've done any traveling, thanks to Covid and the state of the world. Not only have the international borders been shut from most people coming and going freely to and from Australia, but Australia itself has been pretty strict about hard lockdowns and state border closures - mostly in Victoria where we live, lucky us! The process of booking a trip even an hour away is risky, as some accomodation and transportation services won't offer refunds or rainchecks for lockdown cancellations. And now that we're in yet another hard lockdown, we are even more grateful that our trip was somehow right in between lockdowns #4 and #5.

We decided to explore the Mornington Peninsula for five days, renting a cozy little house in the small town of Dromana. There was a children's room with two bunk beds, which the kids loved playing in, and they did really well sharing a room at bedtime. The house also had a really cool view of the city of Melbourne, tiny in the distance on the other side of the Port Phillip Bay.

our home for five days

Arden loved hanging out in the top bunk

the view from the porch - Melbourne at sunset

For me and the kids, it was our first time being in a car since early January of 2020 (Ben used a car last year for a few work trips, but even that was probably a year ago!), which was exciting especially for car-obsessed Logan. The kids did great during the car ride (although to be fair, Mornington is only about an hour away from where we live in Melbourne...) and it was nice to travel on the road, listening to Ben's playlists and seeing cool landmarks pass by.

the Kortlevers in an actual car!

Travelling with small children is always a challenge, but we were able to see a few really nice spots. And despite it being the rainy winter season here, the weather was mostly sunny and beautiful. Here's what we saw during our sightseeing adventures:

Dromana Beach is a nice spot, with a fun collection of colourful bathing boxes (where people store their beach and boating supplies). Arden loved picking up unique shells, Logan practiced walking on sand (he was slightly terrified) and we saw the cutest Totoro-themed bathing box.

Ashcombe Maze and Lavender Gardens is proclaimed as "Australia's oldest and most famous hedge maze" and was really quite impressive. There were a few different activities for kids, such as a gnome hunt for hidden gnome figures in trees, as well as a similar fairy-themed hunt. It rained a bit the day we went, so some of the areas were a bit muddy, but the kids loved running through the maze and splashing in the puddles with their rainboots.

a view of the maze from the lookout tower

trying to avoid dead ends

London Bridge is a beautiful rock formation in Portsea (not to be confused with another London Bridge along the Great Ocean Road, which is also beautiful!). There's a lookout walkway where you can see nice views of the formation, but you can also walk right up to it and explore the cave-like inside. We visited on a gorgeous day, and due to the winter season it wasn't too crowded.

viewing London Bridge from the lookout

inside the formation

Cape Schanck Lighthouse Reserve is located at the southernmost tip of Mornington Peninsula. Built in 1859, the lighthouse is made of limestone and stands at 69 feet tall (21 meters). It was built as the second coastal lighthouse in Victoria, and is Australia's first lighthouse tower with stairs. It's also a beautiful spot with some cool lookout areas.

Arthur's Seat Eagle is a fun gondola ride that takes you up to the highest point of Mornington Peninsula. We went on a beautiful sunny day - although maybe a bit too sunny for my taste (I prefer a few puffy clouds here and there), but I can't complain about the weather and vitamin D! The kids enjoyed the ride, and Logan still talks lovingly about the gondola.

At the summit are some walking trails that lead to beautiful lookouts of the bay and surrounding areas. It took a while to get the kids to walk along the trails (lots of bribery in the form of snacks...), but we were able to see a few of the gorgeous lookout spots.

enjoying the sunny view

We got extremely lucky and visited the attraction first thing in the morning, bypassing the long line we saw later as we were heading to the car. All in all, it was definitely a fun highlight of our trip!

what's a tourist attraction without a green screen photo op?

Ben also had a birthday during the trip, which was fun. All of our birthdays post-March 2020 have all been simple celebrations at home - even though this was technically still a small celebration in a rental home, it was nice to take a fun trip to mark the occasion.

happy 37th, Ben!

We're not sure what the future holds for travel of any sort, but hopefully it won’t be too long before we take a nice little family vacation again. Since international travel sadly seems to be on hold for the next few years, we might as well explore more of Australia (and most likely more of Victoria, if state borders continue to close swiftly and abruptly...!). At least it's a beautiful place, and we're all safely together.

CK