Flinders, Balnarring, Somers, Bittern, Hastings, Tyabb

The Western Port side of the Peninsula is a bit of a secret compared with the busier Port Phillip side. From the southern Peninsula, take Boneo Rd at Rosebud to Flinders. It’s only 25km and 25 minutes if you rush, but Western Port is a world away.

Start at Flinders, famous for surfing, hang-gliding, beach walks, its jetty and historic links golf course (very Scottish) as well as a main street full of art galleries, cafes and restaurants, and quirky shops. For dog owners, there’s a huge leash-free beach open year-round, accessed from a track at 1 The Esplanade near Dodds Creek.

Balnarring has a bustling but welcoming shopping centre with a good supermarket, food shops, post office, medical centre and more. Nearby, Somers on the coast has a general store, yacht club and Lord Somers Camp, which since 1931 has hosted thousands of children each summer.

Bittern has a weekly Sunday market and the one-way road to Crib Point (home of HMAS Cerberus) and Stony Point, end of the train line from Frankston 31km away and terminal for the pedestrian ferry to French and Phillip islands (one-way $15, kids $7).

Hastings has a large shopping area. It began life as a fishing village in the 1840s and then, together with nearby Tyabb and Somerville, became a fruit-growing and farming area. Attractions include a jetty and marina, huge foreshore (with a dog off-lead section), aquatic centre and boat launching ramps. Tyabb has several antique shops and an airfield while Somerville is growing rapidly and has several busy retail precincts.