Traveller safety information

Quarantine Station
Explore the historic Quarantine Station/ former Officer Cadet School that has been essentially closed to the public for the last 150 years. Visitors can take a self guided walk and walk through the Boiler House. Quarantine Station photo gallery

Point Nepean Cemetery and Observatory Point
Visit the Point Nepean Cemetery or walk to the remnants of the former quarantine cattle jetty.
There is also a picnic area.

Cheviot Hill
Cheviot Hill contains World War II fortifications and overlooks Cheviot Beach the site of where former Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared in 1967.

Fort Pearce
Lookouts from the fortifications with stunning views of Bass Strait. Explore Pearce Barracks and see the site of Australia's largest Disappearing Gun at Eagles Nest.

Fort Nepean
A series of military fortifications dating back to the 1880s with stunning views of Port Phillip Bay and Bass Strait. Explore the gun emplacements where the first shots were fired in World War I and the first allied shots in World War II.

Guided Tours of the Quarantine Station

With the Friends of the Quarantine Station:
Sundays: 10am
Duration: 2 hours
$5 per person plus admission
Pre-booking via (03) 5984 4276

Cycling at Point Nepean

Point Nepean has a number of shared walking paths for cyclists which include:

• Defence Road between the Visitor Centre and Fort Pearce
• The Quarantine Station can be explored by bike
• Coles Track from the Quarantine Station to Cheviot Hill

• Self guided tours
• Interpretative displays
• Transporter service (The Point Explorer)
• Bike Hire
• BBQ and picnic facilities
• Refreshments

Enhance you experience of Point Nepean by downloading the audio guides for one of the four self-guided walks or one of the five audio guides on the history of the area.

Either listen before you make your way to the park or download them onto your MP3 player and listen to them as you enjoy the park.

Point Nepean entry fees

Bookings are essential for groups. Call the Point Nepean Park Office on (03) 5984 4276 to book. Bike Hire $16.50 (three hours).

Management Planning

On 8 June 2009 the Federal Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, the Hon. Peter Garrett AM MP transferred the 90 hectares of Commonwealth land featuring the former Quarantine Station to the State of Victoria. Parks Victoria has been charged with the management of the Quarantine Station.

The site has been included in the Point Nepean National Park, fulfilling the long-term aspirations of the community to establish a single national park at Point Nepean which would be preserved for future generations.

The Australian Heritage Commission has listed the historic values on Point Nepean on the Register of National Estate. The area is also classified by the National Trust for its landscape values, including the western extremity of the Nepean Peninsula.

Further information:
Point Nepean National Park management plan (7.2mb)
Future Directions Statement (June 2009) (348kb)

Over the years, including the last 40,000 years of Aboriginal occupation, the area known as Point Nepean has become enriched with environmental and cultural history. The Quarantine Station was established on the shores of Port Phillip Bay in 1852. It was used to protect the colony of Melbourne from ship borne diseases. While the site is yet to be opened to the public check out the Quarantine Station photo gallery for a sneak preview.

The Point Nepean Cemetery contains burials from the 1850s and are historically linked to early European settlement, quarantine, shipwrecks and defence.

Fort Nepean contains an extensive system of fortifications built from the 1880s through to the World War 1 and World War 2. Interpretive displays and audiovisuals are located in several areas and tell the story of defence.

The Australian Heritage Commission has listed the historic values on Point Nepean on the Register of National Estate. The area is also classified by the National Trust for its landscape values, including the western extremity of the Nepean Peninsula.

Aboriginal Traditional Owners

Parks Victoria acknowledges the Aboriginal Traditional Owners of Victoria - including its parks and reserves. Through their cultural traditions, Aboriginal people maintain their connection to their ancestral lands and waters.
Further information is available from Aboriginal Affairs Victoria AAV and Native Title Services Victoria

A remote and protected location, Point Nepean is a home to animals including bandicoots and the New Holland Mouse, and its intertidal zone is a habitat for a wide variety of shellfish and marine invertebrates.

Regionally important species include the White-footed Dunnart, Long-nosed Bandicoot, Black Wallaby, Singing Honeyeater, Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Blue-winged Parrot and Hooded Plover.

Native vegetation communities include coastal dune scrub and grassy forests, banksia woodlands, coastal heathlands, heathy woodlands, riparian forests, and swamps.

A number of vegetation communities, particularly coastal grassy forests, banksia woodlands and sand heathlands, have been greatly depleted since European settlement and are of particular conservation significance.

• To protect soils and vegetation, please keep to walking tracks.
• Firearms, and dogs and other pets, are not permitted.
• No motorised cycles are permitted. A bicycle lock is recommended when leaving your bicycle for a walk. Parks Victoria and the Licensed Operator take no responsibility for loss, theft or damage to bicycles.
• Fires and camping are not permitted.
• Please take all rubbish away with you for recycling or disposal.
• Don't disturb or remove any plants or animals.

• No swimming
• Some cliffs are unstable. Observe warning signs.
• Ocean beaches can have dangerous undertows and unexpected large waves.
• There may still be unexploded ordnance in the Point Nepean area. Keep to roads and tracks and observe signs.
• Emergency markers points are located in this park to help pinpoint your exact location in the case of an emergency. In an emergency call 000 and quote the emergency marker code. Further information about emergency markers is available here.

Point Nepean National Park is open every day from 10am-5pm except Christmas Day.
Opening hours are extended during peak periods.

Point Nepean Section
Walter Pisterman Heritage Walk from Gunners Cottage to the Bay is promoted as being an accessible feature of this site. It is generally accessible, but lacks hand rails and is steep in parts. The most accessible route near the historic fort building leads from the shuttle-bus stop to the Old Barracks site via a tunnel, and back again via Gun Emplacement No.1. Other paths in this area have isolated obstacles such as steps and uneven surfaces limiting their accessibility.

• Arthurs Seat State Park
• Collins Historic Settlement Site
• Coolart Wetlands and Homestead
• Mornington Peninsula National Park
• Mushroom Reef Marine Sanctuary
• Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park