Introduction
Year 2018 was for us the year of epic road trips – starting with New Zealand, continuing with Iceland and Tasmania was about to be the cherry on top! Well, to be honest, Tasmania is charming, but still a little bit ‘sleepy’. The main tourist areas are well maintained, but if you wander through the middle, you won’t see many people or pretty towns, just gravel road, many road kills and shabby houses (really none of the blogs will tell you this, they all sing about how perfect Tasmania is, but every coin has 2 sides I guess).
Anyway, we had a great time in Tassie. No wonder that 45% of its surface is protected national park and world heritage area, because the nature is really stunning, food is also good and there’s so much to do and see that the 5 days we spent there weren’t enough!
During the 5 days we managed to cover all the main areas of Tassie.
Day 1 - Arrival to Launceston
Flying to Launceston instead of Hobart saved us approximately $80 AUD, which covered car hire for 2 days. I think it was totally worth it. We picked up our car at the airport and went to see the city and have dinner in supposedly one of the best burger places in Australia – Burger Got Soul. Launceston is pretty, but the burger joint made me confused because it was far from “one of the best”… Well, I guess it’s kind of nice to see that locals are generous with their reviews for restaurants. tasmania road trip itinerary
Because we arrived to Tasmania in the afternoon, we just drove to our first Airbnb in Cradle Mountain. I really liked the house we were staying in, it was located at the edge of the forest and it really felt like in the middle of nowhere.
Day 2 - Hiking in the Cradle Mountain NP
We didn’t climb the Cradle Mountain, because well, it’s really hard and I’m not such a good hiker. We did Marion’s Lookout instead that gives you amazing view on the Cradle Mountain and the Dove Lake from above. It still wasn’t easy and it required climbing many stairs!
I heard many stories from people who’ve been to Tasmania before, read many blogs, and all of them mostly said: “It’s going to be cold and cloudy.” We didn’t have a great luck with weather past year but guess what? It was beautiful and sunny! It was so hot I wish I had shorts. I packed a hoodie, but should have packed a sunscreen because I burnt on the mountain’s sun. Don’t underestimate any kind of weather and be ready for everything! Because it can also snow, even in summer.
The national park is really highly maintained which I loved, but if you’re expecting toilets or a place to buy water, I have to disappoint you. Once you leave the visitor center, there’s just nature around you and fellow hikers.
After the hike, we still had 5 hour drive to Hobart. Because we felt adventurous, we opted for what we expected to be a more scenic route, through the middle of the Central Plateau and the Great Lake. I loved the lakes in New Zealand and I though this will be something similar. Ehm, no! I don’t recommend taking this route, use old good highway instead. It took us much longer, because 20 km were just gravel, there’s no nice view of the lake, nor the plateau, there’s no town just random houses and no people anywhere. I think this part of Tasmania has potential, but it needs lots of work. Well at least I am bringing new piece of information to all the blogs about Tassie that doesn’t mention this part. tasmania road trip itinerary
Day 3 - Exploring Hobart, Port Arthur and Tasman NP
We started our 3rd day on Mount Wellington, only about 20 km from the city center. Earlier you get there, less people you’ll meet. The best thing about Mount Wellington is, that you can drive all the way up and it gives you the most stunning views over Hobart.
After Mount Wellington we headed to the Salamanca place for their weekly market. Salamanca market is held every Saturday and you can find here really everything from unique food to traditional souvenirs. Salamanca market was really busy, so we didn’t stay for too long and around noon we decided to leave Hobart and drive to Port Arthur to explore one of the most significant historic sites of Australia. Along the way we stopped at the Port Arthur Lavender farm to have a lunch consisting only of Tasmanian fresh produce, which was really delicious. tasmania road trip itinerary
Port Arthur Historic Site is about 100 km away from Hobart located on the Tasman Peninsula. It’s one of the best examples of convict transportation and European colonial expansion and important part of Australian history. The adult 2-day pass is $39 AUD and it includes guided tour and a 25-minute cruise (you cannot buy a daily ticket, which I think is shame. We definitely didn’t spend there so much time). tasmania road trip itinerary
The history of Port Arthur and the first European settlements is very interesting. There wasn’t only a prison, but the whole community of soldiers with their families and many free men lived on the premises. What surprised me, however, was the fact that the prison was running only for 47 years, closing its doors in 1877. Three month later the same year they were opened again, but only as a tourist attraction. So yes, the tourists have been visiting this former prison for over 141 years now.
On our way back to Hobart we made few stops in the Tasman National Park – Tasman Arch, Devil’s Kitchen, Blow Hole, Fossil Bay Lookout and Tessellated Pavement. All of them are accessible by car and just couple of km within each other.
For dinner we went to a Japanese restaurant – Bar Wa Izakaya in Hobart, that actually deserves its great ratings. The best food we’ve had in Tassie!
Day 4 - Mona Museum and Coles Bay
Travelling to Tasmania without visiting MONA museum would be a sin! This museum is one of the coolest I’ve ever visited. Located almost entirely under-ground, it offers you the best (and the most extravagant) of new and old art.
The interesting thing is, that there are no signs with the artists’ names and descriptions of each piece. You’ll get an iPhone which will locate where in the building you are and it will give you all the info about every piece of art around you. You can mark what you’ve seen and what you’ve missed and how much time you need to see it all. Very cool!
Mona has several bars and restaurants, café, shop, library, winery and cellar door. There are also trampolines and other attractions for the children. Every weekend, there’s live music outside on the lawns “if the weather is nice. If it’s crap, it’s inside the museum.” I really enjoyed MONA and could stay there full day and wouldn’t get bored.
Eventually we had to leave because it was our last day in Hobart and we were going to Coles Bay. On our way there, we stopped in Richmond to have a lunch in Stone and Barrow. I would recommend visiting Richmond, it’s such a cute historical village. If you are driving from Hobart to Coles Bay, don’t miss this spot!
Our last accommodation was in a little town called Swansea in Coles Bay. We came a little bit late and weather wasn’t great so we just did a quick walk on the Loontitetermairrelehoiner track. Lovely word, isn’t it? Loontitetermairrelehoiner was the name of aboriginal tribe that lived in this area. The walk is about 2 km long and it’s lined with rocks covered in orange lichen, which is typical for Tassie. The very same orange rocks can be found in the Bay of Fires, another amazing spot to visit in Tasmania but for which we didn’t have time unfortunately.
For dinner we went to a restaurant next to our hostel – Bark Mill Tavern and Bakery, which is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and there’s also a museum (it was closed at the time of our visit) and a bottle shop. The portions were massive, hearty and great! I kind of felt like being a part of the Swansea community.
Day 5 - Freycinet NP, Bicheno and back to Launceston
We started our last morning in Tassie with the best eggs Benedict in my life in Geographe Restaurant and Espresso Bar in Coles Bay, with amazing views over the mountains of Freycinet National park. Really one of my favorite places to eat in Tasmania and coffee was just as delicious.
After the ‘breakky‘ we went to burn the calories on a hike to Wineglass Bay lookout. When we parked our car, cute little wallaby came to say hi and wish us good luck! The hike isn’t difficult, even though it’s uphill and it was very busy as the school holidays just started but the views were simply amazing! The water in Wineglass Bay is so clear and has such a rich blue color that it’s almost unbelievable.
Because we had some time to spare, we prolonged our hike and went down to the Wineglass Beach. The sign told us it’s about 1 – 1.5 hours return trip, but it doesn’t tell you that you have to survive 600 steps each direction. In 35 degrees Celsius it’s not a piece of cake but the beach had soft white sand, it spreads wide and far and it was (almost) empty!
On our way back to Launceston airport, we made a quick stop in the “jewel of the Tasmanian East coast” – little charming town called Bicheno. Bicheno doesn’t even have 1000 inhabitants but during school holidays the population triples, as it is popular vacation destination. The water and the air here are the cleanest on Earth and it has mild climate with the highest amount of sunny days during the year. The fogs basically don’t exist here! Bicheno is also famous for its Blowhole which creates an effect of a geyser, and a penguin colony. Penguins usually go out at sunrise or at dusk, but we were lucky enough to find one hiding in the rocks.
We stopped for a late lunch/early dinner in The Pondering Frog Café, a family owned business with honest home-made food, great ice cream, fresh produce of jams, honeys and sauces and the biggest collection of ceramic frogs I’ve ever seen. It’s a great stop for everyone travelling on the Tasman Highway along the East Coast.
As we were on our way to Launceston, we were passing through many cute towns, meadows and fields… And I wished we could spend here little bit more time, wander around the Bay of Fires, visit Bridestowe Lavender Farm, hike in Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park, explore Strahan and Queenstown, visit Bruny Island. Tasmania, even though not always perfect is truly special place to visit!
Have you been to Tassie? What was your favorite part? During which season did you visit? Let me know!
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