Portarlington, VIC 3223

This is a fantastic place to live, we once lived in St Leonardsand it is a hole , a lot of bad eggs and nothing at all to see or do.
Portarlingtonis so much better with great shops and Hotel and the ferry to take you to Melbourne or Geelong.
Great veiws and a Lovely atmosphere,wineries and rollinghills it just ticks all the boxes.

Love living in Portarlington
Great community
Great beach for the children

I dislike living here but have reluctantly been doing so for several years now because I had no other options. My family did move away from Keilor in Melbourne where they (my parents) were renting. I don't care how refreshing the sea air is. There's nothing to do here really. Furthermore, there's an abject lack of footpaths. If you like fishing then it's different. Neighbours are alright but some are quite quirky. One joked how unless you're born under the pier, you're not a Port local. Only an inbred would say that. The plovers often scream at night, but I try to smile through their noise. I do not like the two story house I live in, for it gets quite hot in summer. I will move out when I have enough money and stable
work. Want fast food from a restaurant such as either Red Rooster, Dominoes or KFC? You will have to travel (unless you're prepared to eat what the locals offer) because the closest locations with them are respectively South Geelong, Newcomb and Drysdale. Gotta visit a hospital? You'd better go to Geelong Central - or further.

We puchased a 1970's home in Feb this year (2010) as that's all we could afford. It's old, but we don't mind (as we had no choice anyhow). It's 350mtre's from the water and @600 mtre's from the golf club. Town is exactly 1.2 klm. Our neighbor's are fantastic!!!!. Not in our faces, just very nice people. Everyone is very friendly whereever you go, and the shopping strip has all you need.
The resturants are quite nice, vast majority to choose from and once again, very friendly.
Not overpriced, which is good.
So many places to visit, in and around the Penninsula and the beauty of it is that you are not far away, it's just a short drive.
There are so many walking and leisure activities, I don't know where to start.
Having local markets held every Sunday around the Bay is wonderful. Also, having the fresh fish/mussels etc at your doorstep is great as well. You cannot get the freshness in Melb unless you go to the market.
Golf club is great, even if you don't play golf. Good meals, raffles etc.
The Grand hotel have very nice meals at extremely reasonable prices, but you will need to obviously pay more for the bistro.
Wineries are supurb. Festivals are days that you don't want to miss. You don't need to spend money but just enjoy the atmosphere.
The cafe's and bakery are very enjoyable, everything is fresh and you have the view f the Bay whlie you sit back.
The only thing that concerns our family, is that it will all be taken away, due to change.
But, change is mean't to be good and as Julia Gillard would say (even though we can't stand it).
YOU MUST MOVE FORWARD.
Come down and enjoy one of the most truly unique, left alone places around our Bay.
As a family, we have travelled to many places around the world and our heart stays in Portarlington, although we have spent all our lives in suburbia, Melbourne.
Come down and check t out for yourself!!!!!!!!!!

We have lived here for 9 years and we love it so much that my husband commutes on the train every day to Melbourne. We are 660 metres walking distance from the beach and town and in the morning around 8.30 am I go walking down the hills with the magnificent vista of Port Phillip Bay and the Portarlington Pier in front of me. I walk in the middle of the road forgetting sometimes to stay more to the left as there are no cars or many people about. Everyone is friendly and it dosent take you long to get to know people, just hang out at Mavi Yunis for a coffee or join one of the classes at the Portalington Neighbourhood Centre. There are no traffic lights here!!
In the summer I grab my towel, jump in the car and in 2 minutes I am swimming in the sparkling waters off the Port Pier. We have no queues to worry about when we put our power boat in at Pt Richards and we also sail in the summer at the St Leonards Yacht Club. Our 15 year old daughter catches the bus to school in Geelong and I work in Geelong also. We can see the tall buildings and lights of Melbourne in the distance from our deck and that's just the way we like it!! Cathy

Perfect place to holiday or retire. I have found that a lot of our family friends have gone there to retire. Perfect beach. people are all so nice and welcoming. I love the shops specially over Summer. There are a few nice restaurants and lots to do with the kids. Great place to holiday as there are heaps of nice places to visit there

Portarlington is a gorgeous coastal town on the Bellarine Peninsula. In summer it is a hive of activity with its pristine beaches a very popular spot. You can hire a boat, or go on a chartered fishing trip or visit the miniature railway. This town has something for everyone with a number of a family owned vineyard and restaurant well worth a visit and a popular 18-hole golf course. The town also hosts a mussel festival, which combines seafood, live entertainment and children's activities. If you visit Portarlington, you'll want to go back.