Bairnsdale, 3875

Bairnsdale, 281km east of Melbourne, is the largest town in East Gippsland. This regional hub offers a fabulous, laid-back country lifestyle with great facilities and services.

From national parks to beautiful coastlines, lakes, and rivers, this stunning region has it all. Bairnsdale is located along the Mitchell River, which flows through town before entering the Gippsland Lakes. The lakes are a vast network of inland waterways and are home to popular tourist destinations such as Paynesville and Lakes Entrance.

Being surrounded by natural attractions promotes a healthy and active lifestyle. The snowfields of Mount Hotham can be accessed after a 2.5-hour drive along the Great Alpine Road. Keen bike riders, walkers and horse riders can enjoy the historic East Gippsland Rail Trail, which leaves Bairnsdale on a 100km journey north to Orbost.

Being a major regional hub, families have great education options here with 3 primary schools, 2 secondary schools, as well as early childhood centres and kindergartens. Families can enjoy a slower pace of life that Bairnsdale provides, with limited traffic, fresh air, and a country lifestyle in a tight-knit community.

Bairnsdale has a great selection of established sporting clubs and community clubs, so there are many opportunities to get involved in the community. The town has great facilities, parks and recreation reserves, particularly along the Mitchell River.

Due to its great transport connections, rail, road and sea, Bairnsdale has always been a successful trading town and remains the commercial centre of East Gippsland to this day. The strong local economy is driven by tourism, food manufacturing, agriculture, and fishing.

The Princes Highway travels through Bairnsdale, making a trip to Melbourne relatively easy with just one change onto the Monash Freeway. The approximate trip time is 3.5 hours. The V/Line train line travels from Bairnsdale, through Gippsland, to Melbourne. The trip takes approximately 3 hours and 50 minutes.