Eastern Beach Reserve is a 1930s sea bath with a boardwalk, diving towers and a children's pool. There's a playground, barbecues and terraced lawns for a picnic. Lifeguards patrol the swimming areas in summer.

The Carousel is a hand-carved, steam-driven wooden carousel built around 1892, about 1km along the waterfront from Eastern Beach. Kids choose from 36 horses and two chariots while a replica band organ plays. It opens from 10.30am every day.

The Geelong Botanic Gardens date from 1851 and are free to enter. Level, paved paths make it easy with a pram, and painted Geelong bollards stand among the sculptures. Gates open at 8am and close at 7pm in daylight saving.

Serendip Sanctuary sits at the base of the You Yangs, 22km north of Geelong. Kangaroos, wallabies and emus live here, and more than 150 bird species have been recorded. Until the end of October, works close the Nature (Wildlife) Walk and the barbecues, but the other walks stay open.

Volunteers run steam and diesel trains from Queenscliff Station on most Sundays and public holidays, plus extra days in the school holidays. The Swan Bay Express is a short 45-minute ride. Watch for family days such as Day Out With Thomas.

Fort Queenscliff is still a Defence site, so the only way in is a guided tour. Tours start at 11am on Mondays and Fridays, and at 11am and 1.45pm on weekends; a family ticket is $55. Adults need photo ID, and there are no public toilets inside.

Every Sunday from 9.30am to 1pm, the Queenscliffe Maritime Museum runs 30-minute tours up to the lantern. From the top you look over the entrance to Port Phillip and along the coast to Ocean Grove. Children must be at least five years old and 90cm tall to climb.

The Queenscliffe Maritime Museum tells the stories of shipwrecks, sea pilots and the lifeboat Queenscliffe, which rescued people for fifty years. Kids can try the diving bell helmet and see inside a lighthouse lens. It opens 11am to 4pm every day, so it works on a wet afternoon.

Barwon Bluff Marine Sanctuary protects 17 hectares of reef at the mouth of the Barwon River. At low tide, kids can find limpets, whelks and barnacles in the rock pools. A trail with lookouts circles the top, but stay off and away from the fragile cliffs.

Ocean Grove Main Beach has 2km of wide sand and rolling waves, popular with families and learner surfers. The Ocean Grove Surf Life Saving Club patrols it in summer. Swim between the red and yellow flags, and check patrol times before you go.