Marine National Parks
Marine national parks and marine sanctuaries are areas established to protect a sample of Victoria’s marine plants and animals and their habitats. They are the strongest form of legal protection we can give. A system of these parks and sanctuaries will ensure samples of Victoria’s diverse, unique and amazing marine environment are protected for future generations.
Some 5.3% of Victoria’s marine waters are included and complement Victoria’s land-based parks and reserves system which is now an undisputed part of our way of life and our economy, and which all Victorians have come to treasure.
Victoria’s marine plants, animals and habitats have been described by marine scientists. This vast knowledge gathered over decades helped identify the areas included in the marine national parks system. Using underwater videos, sampling and data analysis they are continually adding to what we know about our marine environment.
A description and location of Victoria's thirteen Marine National Parks are listed below.
1. Discovery Bay Marine National Park - Gateway to the Southern Ocean
20 km west of Portland – this park is Victoria’s marine gateway to the Great Australian Bight and the immense seas of the Southern Ocean. Further information on the Discovery Bay Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
2. Twelve Apostles Marine National Park - An icon above, a paradise below
7 km east of Port Campbell – this park is a submarine labyrinth of towering canyons, caves, arches and walls festooned with colourful seaweed and sponge ‘gardens’, and resident schools of reef fish. Further information on the Twelve Apostles Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
3. Point Addis Marine National Park - Life beyond the surf
East of Anglesea and including Australia’s famous surf spot, Bells Beach, the park includes sandy beaches and rocky reefs that are home to marine life including the weedy sea dragon. Further information on the Discovery Bay Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
4. Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park - The jewel of the bay
Located at the southern end of Port Phillip Bay, the park comprises six separate areas that contain some of Victoria’s most treasured marine environments. Further information on the Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
5,6,7. Western Port Bay Marine National Parks - Life between the tides
Three separate marine national parks together represent the essence of the Bay – its mangroves, mudflats and seagrass meadows. Further information on Churchill Island, French Island and Yaringa Marine National Parks is available.
8. Bunurong Marine National Park - South Gippsland’s underwater ‘garden’
6 km south- west of Inverloch – this park features extensive reefs and an unusually rich array of marine plants including seaweeds and seagrass. Further information on the Bunurong Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
9. Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park - Victoria’s blue wilderness
Bordering the southern coastline of Wilsons Promontory, this park is a combination of sheltered bays, plunging underwater cliffs and clear deep waters. Further information on the Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
10. Corner Inlet Marine National Park - A world class wetland
North of Wilsons Promontory and 6 km east of Yanakie this park features a complex network of mangroves, saltmarsh, mudbanks, seagrass beds and deep channels. Further information on the Corner Inlet Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
11. Ninety Mile Beach Marine National Park - Splendour in the sands
South- west of Seaspray – this park features a sandy seafloor that is home to more animals in a given area than most marine habitats in the world. Further information on the Ninety Mile Beach National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
12. Point Hicks Marine National Park - Awaiting discovery
Located at Point Hicks the park’s clear waters, massive granite boulders and tall seaweeds are home to marine life, some of which are not found in the cooler waters of central and western Victoria. Further information on the Point Hicks Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.
13. Cape Howe Marine National Park - Victoria’s Pacific gem
Adjoining the New South Wales border, marine life thrives in the warm waters from the north. Migrating Humpback Whales can be seen. Further information on the Cape Howe Marine National Park is available from the Parks Victoria website.