Lara is a country town just out of Geelong in the South West Coast region of Victoria, Australia. It is home to a few historic buildings, some nice restaurants and the splendid Serendip Sanctuary. It is also the site of Melbourne's second airport, Avalon Airport, and the home of the Avalon Airshow. With a booming population and new housing estates popping up along its outskirts, Lara is increasingly becoming a suburb of nearby Geelong.
Lara is accessible by rail, road, bus and even plane!
Lara train station is in the centre of town, with Geelong Line services operating every 20 minutes on weekdays and hourly on weekends. It's about 45 minutes to Melbourne Southern Cross Station and 15 minutes to Geelong's central station. Melbourne's myki zone 1+2 extends as far as Lara, so standard myki smartcard fares apply.
Lara is easily accessed from the Princes Freeway exit signed 'Lara'. It's just under an hour to Melbourne's city centre.
A small network of buses ply the town's roads. Route 11 serves the east side of town, Route 12 the west, and Route 10 the central area, travelling onward to Corio in Geelong. A map of Geelong and Lara's bus network is on the PTV website.
Lara Museum, 110–120 Forest Road South (Bus route 10: Saintfield St stop), -38.0338°, 144.3940°, +61 3 5282 1567, laramuseum@iprimus.com.au. W, Su 11AM-4PM. A small historical museum run by locals. It is housed in one of the town's oldest buildings, the former Lake Bank Hotel, built by a Scottish immigrant in the 19th century. 2016-11-07
Serendip Sanctuary, 100 Windermere Rd (Best reached from the Avalon Airport exit off the freeway; no public transport access), -38.0089°, 144.4121°, +61 131 963. 8AM-4PM daily. This peaceful sanctuary is abundant with native Australian wildlife amongst its grassy woodlands and wetlands. There are a number of walks which offer close encounters with wild kangaroos, emus and variety of magnificent bird species. A free map and guide is available for download on the Parks Victoria website. Free 2016-11-07
You Yangs Regional Park - The You Yangs is a regional park in Lara, named after a aboriginal word meaning mountain or hill, with a mountain chain of 4 mountains, the tallest being Point Flinders. Some things that you can do around the area is a walk to the top of the highest peak, or around Point Flinders.
The town has two post offices.