The Geelong line

The Geelong line is the shortest hop out of the city and still the most transformative. In just over an hour the western basalt plains give way to Corio Bay, and you step off the platform into a working waterfront of bathing boxes, bollard sculptures and cold-water swimmers.

Geelong and South Geelong stations both sit inside an easy walk of the harbour, the Barwon River, the Little Malop laneways and the Geelong Gallery — which means you never need a car, only a decent pair of shoes and an appetite.

• Eastern Beach sea baths and the waterfront promenade

  A restored art deco swimming enclosure right on Corio Bay, where locals swim laps before work and the promenade delivers a flat, pram-friendly stroll from the station to the pier.

• Little Malop Street dining and Geelong Gallery

  Geelong's best eating is packed into two walkable blocks, with a free regional gallery of national standing at the end of them — an easy rainy-afternoon plan.

• Barwon River walking trails from South Geelong

  Step off at South Geelong and you're minutes from a riverside loop of red gums, rowing sheds and morning mist that runs for kilometres without crossing a road.

• Bus and ferry connections to the Bellarine and Queenscliff

  The train is only the first leg: buses and the bay ferry carry you on to Queenscliff, Point Lonsdale and the Bellarine's beaches without ever needing a car.