Pyramid Rock Lookout On Phillip Island: 2 Easy Ways To Visit

Pyramid Rock Lookout is one of the most accessible and easy-to-reach natural attractions on Phillip Island. This fascinating rock formation rises abruptly from the rough waters of the Bass Strait, easily recognised by its almost perfect cone shape and colourful exterior. It’s very simple to stop in and admire Pyramid Rock, as it is, after all, en route to the Penguin Parade. So, in this guide, we’ll tell you about two easy routes for marvelling at this incredible coastline from Pyramid Rock Lookout.

Read Mornington Peninsula Walks: 5 Wonderful Coastal Trails

About Pyramid Rock, Phillip Island

Pyramid Rock is a small cone-shaped sea stack off the coast of Phillip Island, Victoria. In fact, Pyramid Rock is just one of many interesting rock formations littering this coastline, formed by the thrashing of the Bass Strait. Other notable sea stacks include The Pinnacles and The Nobbies.

Black basalt columns make up most of the geology of Phillip Island’s Pyramid Rock. Indeed, you’ll see fantastic examples of basalt columns along the steep cliffs of the headland immediately in front of the Pyramid Rock Lookout. The basalt is the result of ancient lava flow. But, interestingly, it sits on top of pink granite, which would have formed much earlier. You can see more of the pink Woolamai granite along the Cape Woolamai Walk.

Where Is Pyramid Rock Lookout?

Pyramid Rock Lookout is located on the south coast of Phillip Island, between The Nobbies to the west and Cape Woolamai to the east. To help get your bearings, please click on the image below to access an interactive map of the area on Google Maps.

How to Get to Pyramid Rock Lookout

The easiest way to get to Pyramid Rock Lookout on Phillip Island is to walk from the Pyramid Rock Lookout Car Park. The car park is located at the end of Pyramid Rock Road, just off the C478 Back Beach Road and next to the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

Pyramid Rock Lookout Car Park is quite small, with room for maybe 15 vehicles. But, given the walk to the lookout is so short, the turnaround of visitors to Pyramid Rock is pretty quick.

Pyramid Rock Lookout Walk

• Type: Out & Back
• Distance: 800m
• Time: 15 minutes
• Accumulated elevation gain: 10m
• Difficulty: Easy
• Trailhead: Pyramid Rock Lookout Car Park
• Map: AllTrails

From the car park, follow the boardwalk to the first Pyramid Rock Lookout. The trail gently ascends, but it’s nothing challenging. Eventually, you’ll come to a wide viewing platform where you’ll find wonderful uninterrupted views of Pyramid Rock at Phillip Island. There are a couple of benches to sit and admire the view from also. This first Pyramid Rock Lookout is both wheelchair and pushchair-friendly.

To reach the second Pyramid Rock Lookout, continue along the boardwalk. This next section has stepped parts and so not suitable for those with mobility issues. The boardwalk continues to the end of the headland, where you’ll find views of Pyramid Rock from this lookout are quite spectacular.

Berrys Beach to Pyramid Rock Lookout

• Type: Out & Back
• Distance: 6.5km
• Time: 1.5 hours
• Accumulated elevation gain: 80m
• Difficulty: Easy
• Trailhead: Berrys Beach Car Park
• Map: AllTrails

If you fancy a longer walk to Pyramid Rock Lookout, then consider starting the walk from Berrys Beach, or vice versa. This out-and-back walk begins from Berrys Beach Car Park and follows a picturesque clifftop trail towards Pyramid Rock Lookout.

You’ll first pass Red Bluff Lookout, which offers another great vantage point of Pyramid Rock, which you wouldn’t see from the shorter car park walk described above. The trail eventually winds around to the Pyramid Rock Lookout Car Park, where you’ll follow the same boardwalks to the lookouts.

Although a longer route, the walk from Berrys Beach to Pyramid Rock is still a fairly easy walk, offering some stunning coastal views of Phillip Island.

Other Things to Do On Phillip Island

Pyramid Rock Lookout and the additional walk from Berrys Beach are just a fraction of the wonderful attractions on Phillip Island. Indeed, there’s plenty to see and do. So, below you’ll find a selection of some of our favourite natural attractions on Phillip Island.

• Cape Woolamai Walk: enjoy this fantastic coastal walk around the southern point of Phillip Island to the Pinnacles Lookout and beyond.
• George Bass Coastal Walk: an absolutely stunning coastal walk beginning in San Remo at the gateway to Phillip Island.
• Penguin Parade: certainly, don’t miss the Penguin Parade!
• The Nobbies: look for penguins and fur seals at the southwestern tip of Phillip Island.
• Forrest Caves: these remarkable orange sea caves should be timed with low tide for the best exploration.
• Churchill Island: there’s an even smaller island at Phillip Island, with an easy circular walk around it.

Read more: Phillip Island Walks: 6 Wonderful Coastal Attractions Not to Miss

How to Get to Phillip Island

Certainly, the easiest way to get to Phillip Island is with your own set of wheels. From Melbourne, the drive will take a little under two hours.

But, if you don’t want to drive, then it’s possible to take public transport to Phillip Island from Melbourne. The simplest route is to take a coach from Melbourne’s Southern Cross Coach Terminal on Spencer Street to Cowes or Inverloch on Phillip Island, via Dandenong and Koo Wee Rup Interchange. You can check bus timetables here. Expect the journey to take around three hours.

However, once you arrive at Phillip Island, there’s no public transport going directly to Pyramid Rock Lookout Car Park or Berrys Beach. So, to that end, we recommend driving yourself, especially if you want to explore a few other attractions on Phillip Island.

To find out more about renting a car with Discover Cars, read our Discover Cars review and Discover Cars Insurance review.

Where to Stay Near Pyramid Rock Lookout

As Phillip Island is so close to Melbourne, it’s a very popular place to visit for a quick overnight stay or a long weekend getaway. As such, there’s plenty of accommodation to choose from. Below are some of the most highly rated accommodation options on Phillip Island, and not far from Pyramid Rock Lookout.

Gear Essentials

Below are our top gear essentials for visiting Phillip Island and Pyramid Rock Lookout. You should also pack a hat, snacks and sunscreen.

To find out more about all of the gear that we use and recommend, read our guides about our favourite hiking gear, travel gear and camera gear. Otherwise, read our comprehensive travel packing checklist.

Bonus Tips

• Facilities: there are toilets at both the Pyramid Rock Car Park and Berrys Beach Car Park.
• Accessibility: the boardwalk from the Pyramid Rock Car Park is wheelchair accessible up to the first lookout spot, after that there are steps to the second Pyramid Rock vantage point.
• Best time to visit: visiting at sunrise or sunset is particularly nice for photography. Additionally, weekdays and outside of school holidays are quieter times to visit. Also, Pyramid Rock looks amazing all year round. Dan and I visited in winter and it looked spectacular.
• Dogs: no dogs are allowed at or on the walk to Pyramid Rock Lookout.

Have you visited Pyramid Rock Lookout on Phillip Island? Let us know in the comments below.

We acknowledge and respect the First Nations people as the Traditional Custodians of the land/water that we visited and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.