Touring Tasmania

Where to begin? Tasmania is such a small island, such a minute part of Australia's land mass, yet packed with more experiences than you can get enough of in one lifetime.

Tasmania quite literally offers holidays to suit every taste: from thrillseekers to beachlovers, from fine food and wine enthusiasts to history buffs, from lovers of the great outdoors to those wanting to enjoy the lifestyles of the rich and famous. There are resources dedicated to tourism information about Tasmania, so we won't reinvent that particular wheel here, on our specialist hosted B & B accommodation site, but we will do our best to point you in the right direction.

Tasmania's Tourist Trails

Tourism Tasmania adopted the approach of dividing the State into 11 'themed' touring regions or trails, most linking to one or more other trails to conduct visitors around the island. Map showing Tasmania's Tourist Trails

This is probably as good a way as any of breaking Tasmania down into manageable bites, so we have outlined these themed Tourist Trails below, with links to more information about each.

The Convict Trail

Tasmania's Convict Trail leads from Hobart, through the Coal River Valley and Richmond, then on to Sorell, through Dunalley and Eaglehawk Neck to the Tasman Peninsula and the iconic Port Arthur Historic Site. This route links with the East Coast Escape to the north.
More information about The Convict Trail
The Convict Trail itinerary (pdf)

Cradle Country

A loop from the north coast town of Devonport to Cradle Mountain and back to the coast at Burnie, taking in Latrobe, Sheffield and Mt Roland. Links with the Great Nature Trail at Devonport and Burnie, and also connects to the Great Western Tiers Trail (via Mole Creek) to the east.
More information about the Cradle Country Trail
Cradle Country itinerary (pdf)

East Coast Escape

Continue your journey north from The Convict Trail, taking in Triabunna, where you can catch the ferry to Maria Island National Park, Swansea, the Freycinet National Park and Wineglass Bay, then on to Bicheno and St Helens, the Bay of Fires and Binalong Bay. Links to the North East Trail at St Helens.
More information about the East Coast Escape
East Coast Escape itinerary (pdf)

The Great Nature Trail

Starts at Narawntapu National Park on Tasmania's central north coast and takes you west to Devonport, Ulverstone, Penguin, Burnie, Wynyard and Stanley, and from there on via Smithton and Dismal Swamp to the rugged north west coast at Arthur River. Links to the Cradle Country Trail at Devonport and Burnie.
More information about the Great Nature Trail
Great Nature Trail itinerary (pdf)

The Great Western Tiers

Starting from Launceston, this route takes in historic towns in the shadow of the Great Western Tiers, through Hadspen, Carrick and Westbury, on to Deloraine and beyond to Mole Creek and its celebrated caves, where a winding, scenic route across Mt Roland joins up with the Cradle Country Trail.
More information about the Great Western Tiers
Great Western Tiers itinerary (pdf)

Heritage Highway

This route links Hobart and Launceston and passes through the heart of Tasmania and historic towns such as Longford, Campbell Town, Ross and Oatlands.
More information about the Heritage Highway
Heritage Highway itinerary (pdf)

The Huon Trail

This trail will take you south from Hobart to Huonville, Geeveston and on, as far south as you can go in Tasmania, to Recherche Bay and Cockle Creek. Features the D'Entrecasteaus Channel, Bruny Island and the Tahune Forest Airwalk.
More information about The Huon Trail
The Huon Trail itinerary (pdf)

The North East Trail

This route will take you eastwards from Launceston, via Lilydale to Scottsdale, where you can branch off to the north coast at Bridport, then continue eastwards to St Helens, where the trail links up with the East Coast Escape.
More information about The North East Trail
The North East Trail itinerary (pdf)

The Rivers Run Trail

Explore the path of the Derwent River from its mouth at Hobart to where it rises in the ranges near lake St Clair, at the end of the Overland Track from Cradle Mountain, and Derwent Bridge where the trail joins the West Coast Wilderness Way.
More information about The Rivers Run Trail
The Rivers Run itinerary (pdf)

Tamar Valley Wine Route

A route which takes you from Launceston along both banks of the Tamar River to George Town and Low Head on the east side, and Beaconsfield, Beauty Point and Greens Beach on the west side, crossing the river at the Batman Bridge, then back to Launceston.
More information about the Tamar Valley Wine Route
The Tamar Valley Wine Route itinerary (pdf)

West Coast Wilderness Way

Takes you from Cradle Mountain via the historic mining towns of Tullah, Rosebery and Zeehan to Strahan and the Gordon River. Then on through Queenstown to Lake St Clair and Derwent Bridge, where you meet up with the Rivers Run trail.
More information about the West Coast Wilderness Way
The West Coast Wilderness Way itinerary (pdf)

Tasmania road maps and travel time map

See also our Tasmania Maps for more information about Tasmania's road network and estimated travel time between destinations, taking into account local conditions.