Best Sunday Sessions in Geelong

About This Guide

The Sunday session is an Australian institution — the arvo drink that earns its place as a weekly ritual rather than an occasion. Geelong does it well. The waterfront has two strong options. The Bellarine Peninsula gives you three coastal venues within 45 minutes of the city. Pakington Street has an all-weather beer garden that runs through the afternoon. This guide covers five venues we can confirm are genuinely set up for a Sunday session in 2026: specific opening hours, outdoor spaces, and in two cases, DJ programming verified for every Sunday.

Sunday hours can shift seasonally, especially at coastal venues during the summer peak or winter quiet. If you're making a special trip, a quick call before you leave is always worth the 30 seconds. Know of a great Sunday session pub we've missed? Let us know.

Geelong Sunday Sessions at a Glance

1. Sailors' Rest — Geelong's Best Waterfront Sunday Session

Sailors' Rest is the Sunday session pick on the Geelong waterfront for one concrete reason: DJs run every Saturday and Sunday from 3pm in the second-floor lounge bar. That's a consistent, recurring event — not a "check socials" situation — which makes it the most reliable Sunday afternoon destination in the city. The multi-level venue at the foot of Moorabool Street gives you several ways to spend the day: start with lunch in the bayside dining room, catch views from the beer garden or al fresco terrace, then move upstairs to the lounge for the afternoon DJ set as the waterfront comes alive.

The first Friday of each month also features free tastings from local Geelong distillers and brewers plus live acoustic music — worth flagging if you're flexible on which day you come. But for a pure Sunday arvo ritual, the waterfront location and the consistent DJ programming make Sailors' Rest the anchor of any Geelong Sunday plan. Cocktails, craft beer, a globally inspired menu with locally sourced seafood — and Corio Bay in the background.

2. Edge Geelong — All-Day Sunday from Brunch to DJ

Edge Geelong is the all-day option on the Geelong waterfront. While Sailors' Rest is the afternoon DJ specialist, Edge Geelong opens at 8am on Sundays — the only venue on this list that genuinely works as a Sunday brunch destination before pivoting to an afternoon drinks session. The panoramic views across Corio Bay from the outdoor deck are the best on this stretch of Eastern Beach Road, and DJs run every weekend year-round, which means Sunday afternoon at Edge Geelong is a reliable proposition in any weather — the deck is enclosed.

The cocktail list is hand-crafted and changes seasonally. The food menu runs all day — breakfast through to dinner — and the wine list is extensive. It sits closer to the restaurant end of the venue spectrum than a traditional pub, which is actually an asset on a Sunday: the kitchen stays open, the pace is relaxed, and the outdoor deck means you can move between meals and drinks across the full day. For a long Sunday that starts at brunch and ends with a cocktail watching the sun go down over the bay, Edge Geelong is the Geelong waterfront's best all-day option.

3. Blackman's Brewery — Torquay Craft Beer Sunday Session

Blackman's Brewery is the Sunday session answer if you're heading to the Surf Coast. Open from noon on Sundays, the Bell Street beer garden sits 500 metres from Torquay surf beach — the combination of a morning beach or surf session followed by an afternoon at a craft brewery is a genuinely good Surf Coast Sunday. Tank-fresh craft beer (poured direct from the brewery tanks), wood-fired pizza, and the relaxed beach-town atmosphere that makes Torquay worth the 25-minute drive from Geelong.

In summer, Blackman's transforms the garden into the Spritzville & Euro Beer Garden concept — spritzes, local wines, and extended summer garden programming. Year-round it's a brewery that takes its beer seriously: core range plus rotating seasonal taps, all brewed on site. The Sunday crowd skews toward people who've already done something physical — surfers, cyclists, walkers — which gives it a different energy to a city pub. More relaxed, less performative. The ideal Sunday session for people who don't need the session to be an event.

4. Queen of the West — Geelong's Biggest Beer Garden, Open from Noon

The Queen of the West on Pakington Street, Geelong West, has the largest beer garden on this list — 700 square metres of all-weather courtyard with a wood-fired pizza oven, 12 taps, and live music programming on weekends. Open from noon on Sundays through to 11pm, it's the city's best in-town Sunday session option if you want scale: a big outdoor space, a full food menu from the wood-fired oven, and a venue with the depth to keep a group settled for the afternoon.

The Queen of the West has a heritage that goes back to 1856 — the building was originally the Queen of the South Hotel before being renamed as the local suburb boundaries shifted. After decades as The Barking Dog, the recent renovation returned it to its heritage name in August 2023 and added the beer garden. The front sports bar is separate from the garden, so you can be in the all-weather courtyard without the noise of the TAB and screens. Pakington Street gives you options for before or after — coffee, a walk, and back for another round.

5. Barwon Heads Hotel — Coastal Beer Garden, Open from 10am Sunday

Barwon Heads Hotel opens at 10am on Sundays — earlier than any other venue on this list — which makes it the right choice for the Sunday session that starts at brunch and doesn't feel like it needs to rush. The coastal setting at the mouth of the Barwon River gives it a distinct atmosphere: small village, heritage streetscape, and a beer garden that gets afternoon light. Four spaces in the venue — bistro, bridge bar and cocktail lounge, sports bar, and function room — mean the pub can accommodate any mood, from a quiet Sunday roast to a fuller arvo session.

The kitchen runs a full seasonal menu with genuine depth for a coastal hotel: vegetarian and gluten-free options, vegan alternatives, fresh coastal produce. Weekend live music programs run through summer. The accommodation option (if you're making a weekend of the Bellarine) and the proximity to the Barwon River mouth walking path make Barwon Heads a practical choice for a longer weekend plan rather than just a Sunday arvo drink.

Also Worth Knowing

These venues are worth including in a Sunday plan — slightly different format or earlier closing, but worth a look depending on what you're after.

Two Sunday Plans That Actually Work

The best Sunday sessions in Geelong have a shape to them — they're not just "go to a pub," they're a full afternoon with a beginning, middle and a natural close. Here are two itineraries that use the geography:

Know a better Sunday session option in Geelong or on the Bellarine? Tell us and we'll add it.