Jan Juc Surf Beach

Jan Juc Surf Beach welcomes surfers that ready to battle against powerful waves that average almost one-and-a-half metres. The beach attracts the more experienced surfers from the area, leaving the groms and beginners to head to Torquay, which is just hundreds of metes from the eastern end of Jan Juc Beach.

The beach stretches for over a kilometre sitting between Rocky Point that’s to the east and Bird Rock to the west.

At some spots, the waves dump right onto the beach and a strong rip is often present, so it’s not the safest place for tourists to go swimming and is better left for the locals, however, Life Guards do patrol this beach for part of the day the summer months.

You’ve got a couple of different options to get to Jan Juc Beach.

If you’re driving straight to the beach from Melbourne or Geelong, head past Torquay and take the round about to the right, you’ll see a massive grey building, that’s the RACV Club and you’ll need to turn left on the next street after this building. From here, just follow the road to the end, where you’ll find the Jan Juc Beach car park.

Walking from Torquay is an easy option, especially if you’re renting a surf board. You can rent a surf board on Bell Street at the Torquay Surf Academy and walk down to the Torquay Surf Beach, then head west over Rocky Point and you’ll then be at the eastern point of the Jan Juc Surf Beach.

Jan Juc is just near the start of the Surf Coast, there are loads of beaches in either directions that are perfects for surfing all-year-round.

A short walk to the east of Jan Juc Beach is the Torquay Surf Beach where the waves are smaller and softer, making it more suitable for beginner surfers. Beginners could also take a drive to the north-east and try out Ocean Grove if Torquay is too busy. You can also rent a surf board and wet suit in Ocean Grove and the beach goes for miles with gentle waves. Just to the west of Ocean Grove at Barwon Heads is 13th Beach, which has much bigger waves and is better for surfers that know what they’re doing.

Although there are surf beaches to the east of Jan Juc, it’s more common for surfers to head west along the Great Ocean Road. Only a few kilometres from Jan Juc Surf Beach is Bells Beach and South Side, which are two of the most famous surf spots in the country. Bells is where the Rip Curl World Pro’s is held each year and the waves are usually way to big for anyone but decent surfers, although it doesn’t stop beginners from trying their luck.

If you continue west, you’ll come across dozens of incredible surfing spots over the next 100 kilometres or so. Popular spots near by are Urquhart Bluff, Fairhaven Beach and Lorne, but there are so many more in between!