Port Fairy.Port Fairy? Where's that you say, never heard of it...
Just 290 kilometres west of Melbourne via the Princes Highway if you're in a hurry or The great Ocean Road if you prefer a more leisurely scenic drive, Port Fairy is one of those delightful towns where you feel as though if you stay another day you suddenly find a whole extra world of things to see and do. There are historic walks, pleasant stretches of coastline, a fascinating harbour, museums, charming olde worlde cottages which gleam in the sun and the Port Fairy Folk Festival (in March) is recognised as the best of its kind in Australia.
Wide streets are lined by nineteenth century cottages, great Norfolk pines, old stone churches, boarding houses and inns. Many fine examples of the architecture of the 1800s remain intact, and more than 50 buildings are classified by the National Trust. And all this in a little town which has recently been voted the 5th best town in Australia. In the earliest years of the nineteenth century whalers and sealers worked along this stretch of rugged coastline. Seals were used for their leather and oil and whales were vital parts of the corset, perfume and soap industries. As early as 1810 Captain James Wishart, a sealer working the southern coast, anchored at Port Fairy. He explored the Moyne River and revisited the area regularly and by the mid-1820s the 'harbour' was known as Port Fairy, probably after Wishart's cutter 'The Fairy'. Today Port Fairy prospers on a combination of tourism and fishing. It still boasts one of Victoria's largest fishing fleets, the seas provide good catches of shark (it is a deep sea angler's delight), crayfish and abalone. When you visit Port Fairy you'll find a myriad of things to do.
As I mentioned above there are over 50 historic buildings in Port Fairy and it makes sense to get a map and a brochure before attempting to explore them. There is a brochure which nominates only 13 which is manageable for those who do not wish to see all the important buildings in town. Located in Gipps Street you'll find the History Centre which has a good display of memorabilia and photographs capturing a sense of what the town was like in the late 19th and early 20th century. It is located on the old Court House which dates from 1859, was built out of local bluestone and is a fine example of a design by the Public Works Department. It was once the home of sittings for the Supreme Court, Quarter Sessions and the Magistrates Court. It is huge and the ceilings are a reminder of the importance of the town when the building was completed. It is open Wednesdays and weekends 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.; daily during school holidays. Other times by appointment. If you continue south on Gipps Street you will reach a point where you can walk across a footbridge to Griffiths Island. This is a delightful way to spend a few hours; there is a track around the island which includes the Mutton Bird Viewing point and the lighthouse on the island's eastern extremity. Griffiths Island has an interesting history.
The island is home to a large colony of muttonbirds (short-tailed shearwaters). The birds arrive within three days of the 22 September each year, settle in last year's burrow, mate in early November, the eggs are laid around 25 November and take around a month to hatch which means that the young start to appear in mid-January. In mid-April the birds head off on their annual migration around the Pacific. They travel an estimated 15,000 km in two months. Viewing the birds from the platform on Griffiths Island is best at dusk between September and April. In many ways the greatest attraction of Port Fairy is simply to park your car down beside the Moyne River and go for a walk. The walk along the wharves is delightful and can take you up into the town (if you head north) or towards Griffiths Island if you head south. The wharves are used by casual anglers as well as the commercial anglers who bring their catch in from the Southern Ocean. In 1988 the local council developed a walk which was named the 'Shipwreck Walk' and which starts at the local Surf Club (travel north on Gipps Street, cross the Moyne River and turn into Hughes Avenue). The walk is 2.1 km and runs from the Surf Club to the mouth of the Moyne River. The shipwrecks along this short stretch of coastline include (from north to south) the Barque Socrates which was battered and finally destroyed by huge seas in 1843; the Barque Lydia which was wrecked off the coast in 1847; the Schooner Thistle which broke her anchor chain and was wrecked on the coast and the Brig. Essington which sank while moored at Port Fairy in 1852. Port Fairy is part of the shipwreck coast and as such has a number of good wrecks which are worth exploring. The wreck of the 'Thistle', which sank off Port Fairy's east beach in 1849, now lies in only 2 metres of water and is popular with scuba divers.
Well we've made that easy for you, just fill in the squares in the little box on the right and we'll take you to our page of Port Fairy hotels where you'll find a list of all the hotels in Port Fairy, their prices, facilities, pictures and just about eveything else you could want to know. Go there now and check it out. Port Fairy? Never heard of it you say? You're missing out on something good.........enjoy, John.
Discount Shopping | Discount Travel | Special Travel Deals | Discount Attractions Our RSS feed will be updated periodically with all the latest travel deals and special offers. Please subscribe by clicking the button to the left (XML/RSS) to receive notice of these updates without any risk or obligation. PLEASE NOTE: If you don't know what an RSS feed is just click this link. Click here to return from Port Fairy to The Discount Travel Guide home page. |
Discover history in every corner of this charming old fishing village on Victoria's Great Ocean Road. 
The Port Fairy Visitor Information Centre in Bank Street has extensive information about the town. Of particular interest are the brochures which outline suitable historic walks around the town. 
It was known as 'mallin' or 'mallone' by the local Aborigines but by 1836 there was a whaling station on the island and one of the partners running it was John Griffiths after whom the island is now named. 
