Warrnambool is a city along the Great Ocean Road, in Victoria, Australia. Its main beach, the sandy Bathing Beach, runs in front of vast Lake Pertobe Adventure Park. The nearby Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village explores the area’s seafaring history through a large shipwreck collection. Thunder Point Coastal Reserve, with its rocky ocean scenery, encompasses Shelly Beach.  The coast around Warrnambool and down to Cape Otway is known as the Shipwreck Coast, due to the large number of water vessels that ran aground in the 1800s and early 1900s due to ferocious weather conditions and the rocky coastline.  These days, Warrnambool is a popular tourist destination with an extensive commercial centre, separated from the ocean by coastal reserves and parkland. Historic buildings within the city centre include the post office (built in 1870), courthouse (1871) and Western Hotel (1869).