Races Lakes Entrance Festival Volunteer Contact
East Gippsland, Victoria

Welcome to Lakes Entrance.

Where the Gippsland Lakes meet the ocean — and the finish line for every distance on race weekend.

About Lakes Entrance Getting There
The town

Where the lakes meet the sea.

Lakes Entrance sits where the Gippsland Lakes spill into Bass Strait, about 3.5 hours east of Melbourne in East Gippsland. It's Victoria's largest coastal lakes system and a genuine holiday town — fishing boats on the wharf, a long ocean beach just over the dunes, and a foreshore that runs the length of the town.

Race weekend brings it to life: Saturday's short-course runners and families filling the Esplanade cafes, the foreshore path taken over for Sunday's start, and the festival taking over once the last finishers are through.

The footbridge over the Lakes Entrance channel

Why we race here

The Esplanade Foreshore

The spine of every distance — lake views on one side, the town on the other, flat and fast underfoot.

Lake to ocean

Courses trace the edge where the Gippsland Lakes system meets the open coast — one of Victoria's most distinctive stretches of water.

Lakes Entrance foreshore finish

Every distance finishes here, right where the finish-line festival kicks off — live music, food trucks and a pop-up brewery.

Ninety Mile Beach

Just over the dunes — the ocean side of town, and worth the walk before or after your race.

East Gippsland, Victoria

Getting there.

Lakes Entrance is around 3.5 hours east of Melbourne — plan for a full day's drive, or make a weekend of it.

Driving from Melbourne

Lakes Entrance is approximately 320km east of Melbourne CBD via the Princes Highway/Freeway. It's a longer drive than our other events, so plenty of runners make a full weekend of it. Arrive early on race mornings as foreshore road closures start ahead of the gun.

Parking & road closures

Park legally along the Princes Highway and side streets. Kalimna Jetty Road is closed for the event — other roads nearby may have temporary closures on the day, so follow event signage and volunteer directions on the morning.

Staying overnight

Lakes Entrance is a well-established holiday town, so book early for race weekend. For accommodation options, Visit East Gippsland is the best place to start.

Getting around on the day

The foreshore and the finish precinct are an easy walk from most accommodation in town — Lakes Entrance has a compact, walkable centre.

Looking for public transport options? V/Line coaches connect to Lakes Entrance via Bairnsdale — check ptv.vic.gov.au for current timetables closer to race weekend.