Tasmania is a remote island state south of Australia known for its rugged wilderness, historic towns, and gourmet food and drink scene. Hobart, the waterfront capital city, sits beneath Mount Wellington and along the River Derwent, featuring colonial architecture, the MONA art museum, and ports departing for Antarctica. The island's vast and diverse landscapes include temperate rainforests, alpine heaths, and Jurassic coastlines, punctuated by historic towns like Richmond. Tasmania offers opportunities for hiking, camping, and exploring its national parks, beaches, and forests, which make up 40% of the island.

1. It is hard not to fall in love with somewhere nicknamed
‘Tassie’ isn’t it? Even after you’ve heard the guttural grumble
of a Tasmanian devil through your tent wall, or toured the
poignant yet chilling grounds of Port Arthur, an ex-convict
penitentiary. This vast and isolated island state is located 240
km (150 mi) south of Australia, separated from the mainland
by the navy-blue waters of the Bass Strait. It is the dollop of ice-
cream falling from Australia’s cone; however, unlike lost blobs
of summertime puddings, it is not so easily forgotten.
Tasmania is vast, rugged and remote; it is also quaint, quirky
and curious. Its history is stamped with harrowing tales of
unforgiving penal colonies and a long and bloody war between
British colonists and aboriginals. Among its wild, raw and
dizzyingly diverse landscape, temperate rainforests house
mossy waterfalls, alpine heaths are scarred with icy streams,
and Jurassic coastlines tower like fortress walls above sapphire
waters. Puncturing these panoramas are a smattering of towns
and cities – some historic, some eccentric, but all uniquely
charming and inhabited by a wonderfully laid-back population.
Tasmania may be a popular spot for vacationing Kiwi’s and
mainland Aussie’s, however, it is relatively absent from the rest
of the world’s radar – understandable given its geographical
isolation, though nevertheless inconceivable considering its
epic, unparalleled beauty. More than once it has been dismissed
as old-fashioned and inconveniently remote, yet those who
write it off will do so regrettably because its antiquity and
seclusion is its asset, and its capital is transforming with every
passing moment into a sophisticated and desirable hotspot.
Cascade Brewery, Hobart
Tasmania
Tap into

2. Tasmania’s wilderness is its draw, but if tents and trekking
poles aren’t your thing then set up camp in one of the island’s
charismatic cities or towns. Hobart is its waterfront capital,
sitting snug within the pressing walls of the Tassie backwoods
and Mount Wellington. Its downtown is an eclectic jumble of
hip cafés, nautical eateries and colonial cottages, scattered along
the granite waters of the River Derwent. Here, locals bustle
through Salamanca Market on sunny Saturday’s filling their
baskets with sweet treats and native blooms, boats awaiting
departure to Antarctica bob patiently in line in the sleepy
harbour, and intrigued tourists trundle to the MONA to gawp
at the subversive antiquities adorning this ‘adult Disneyland’.
Hobart hums with promise and prospect, so pack your raincoat
and prepare to lose yourself among the titillating tastes, sounds
and sights of Tasmania’s cool capital.
Hobart’s history is something of a highlight. As Australia’s
second oldest capital, it bursts with memories of convicts and
colonisation. Simply wandering the gas-lit streets of Battery
Point which heave with colossal, colonial mansions, will evoke
the essence of this bygone era. Meanwhile, in Salamanca Place
where jam and metal was once churned out by the crate-load,
the old sandstone warehouses still stand to attention at the
street side, drawing visitors with their newfound function as
bookshops and art galleries. Perhaps the best place to immerse
yourself in Tasmania’s past is Richmond. Colonial curiosities
tumble around every corner in this picture-perfect town
which is home to Australia’s oldest gaol, and a model village
replicating life in Hobart in 1820. For an even larger helping
of history, complete with a drive along Tasmania’s dramatic
coastline, head to the infamous ex-convict settlement at Port
Arthur. This is the Alcatraz of Tasmania: once the site of the
island’s most notorious convicts and still clouded in tales of
hardship and loss.
Don’t be fooled into thinking the Tasmanian Museum and Art
Gallery is just a relic of the city’s cultural scene; decorative arts,
fossils, Antarctic artwork, and native flora give a fascinating
and encompassing insight into this wild isle. Newer on Hobart’s
historic scene is Mawson’s Huts Replica Museum where visitors
should prepare to be plunged into the history of Tasmania’s
lengthy relationship with Antarctica. Considered one of the
city’s finest cultural spots, this museum exposes the history of
the Australasian-Antarctic Expedition of 1911-1914 through
detailed replica huts. Also a fresh face on Hobart’s cultural
circuit is MONA (the Museum of Old and New Art).
Hugging the banks of the river in the city’s northern suburbs,
MONA is a humorous and utterly outrageous collection of
ancient antiques and shocking contemporary works, opened
by the Australian gambler and businessman David Walsh.
Along with a collection named, ‘Stuff David bought when he
was drunk’, MONA sees astonished visitors goggling at white
porcelain moulds of female genitalia that hang boldly alongside
1,500 year old Egyptian sarcophagi.
If you have even the faintest form of an appetite after visiting
MONA, then get ready to booze and devour your way through
the rest of the city. Hobart bloats with gourmet eateries, and
its drinking scene is anything but drowsy. From unexpected
roadside stalls and wholesome farmers markets, to high-end
bars and fine dining restaurants, there is plenty for travellers
to get their teeth stuck into. The unconventional thrives
in Hobart, and at the restaurant Ethos (a converted 1830s
chemist), don’t expect to catch sight of a menu, but do expect to
dine beneath chandeliers made from glass bottles. Along with
defying convention, Ethos embraces all that is local, serving
native wines and artisan-sourced food. For a plate of the city’s
signature seafood head to Mures, a harbour front, family-
owned establishment with bags of character and gourmet
delicacies dragged straight from the sea, including Tasmanian
oysters and ocean trout.
Working up a thirst? Combine a healthy dose of culture with
a hearty array of pale ales at the Cascade Brewery. Rising in all
its 19th Century gothic glory from the forested-foot of Mount
Wellington, Australia’s oldest beer awaits the touch of your
taste buds. If a pint of the golden stuff isn’t your tipple, try one
of Hobart’s renowned whiskey distilleries. Sullivan’s Cove is
one of the world’s finest single malt whiskies, and its distillery –
with a brimming trophy cabinet and an aura of convict history
– is ready to be toured by travellers who have a penchant for
the finer things in life.
1) Mount Wellington
2) River Derwent
3) Port Arthur
4) Cascade Brewery.
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Hobart
History, Culture & Gourmet Eats in

3. Tasmania isn’t all museums and malt whisky. With 40% of the
island made up of national parks and reserves, expect to be
clambering over the odd peak and wading across the occasional
river at some point on your travels. Maps spilling with names
like Cockle Creek, Wineglass Bay, Cradle Mountain, and Dove
Lake fill travellers with zealous anticipation, so it won’t be long
before your inner adventurer is calling out for a gallivant across
grassland and glaciers.
Hobart is the gateway to the southern wilderness where rolling
wine valleys and majestic national parks are flanked by a
chiselled coastline. Join the Southern Wine Trail through the
Coal River Valley for a hearty taste of Tasmanian food, drink,
culture and countryside, or don your walking boots and trek
into the south’s UNESCO World Heritage-listed wilderness.
The Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park is an ancient
landscape, shaped by glaciers and 3,000 year old pines and
boasting dramatic changes in vegetation. Monolithic peaks fall
away into teeming rainforest, deep valleys and plummeting
gorges, but most famous are the pristine rivers which weave
through the park and can be rafted with a guide. Peppering
this other-worldly landscape are steaming waterfalls and the
magnificent peak of Frenchman’s Cap so be sure to allocate
enough time to explore this supreme national park.
The island’s North West is a picture of sweeping coastal drives
and undulating, patchwork countryside. In this region, the
peak of adventure is Cradle Mountain whose soaring mass
is best explored by helicopter. Alternatively, plunge into the
Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park and join a walk
through ancient pines and around lakes of silver, keeping
your eyes peeled for a platypus or a Tasmanian devil. In the
Tarkine Forest Reserve, descend into thick temperate rainforest
in what is one of Tasmania’s most spine-tingling wilderness
experiences. Hidden among the gnarled, copper trunks and
the laced canopies of leaves are meandering forest trails to be
walked, lazy waterways to be kayaked, and unique aboriginal
sites to be explored. Foodies, meanwhile, will have a field day
feasting on the farm produce of this region. The Cradle to Coast
Tasting Trail takes travellers across small towns brimming with
artisan delights, past road stalls caving under the weight of
fruits, pies and cheeses, and through farms swelling with ice-
cream, chutneys, vegetables and local wine.
A rich mining history meets remote rainforests in Tasmania’s
West Coast region. Considered one of the nation’s final
frontiers, travellers to this area can visit its largest coastal town
of Strahan for artisan eateries, arching beaches skirted with
silky dunes, and departure on the West Coast Wilderness
Railway. This antiquated steamer will chug deep into the
ancient pine forest and through the region’s most sublime
landscapes to Queenstown – a ‘moonscape’ mining town deep
in the mountains. Alternatively, visit the ruins of a penal colony
on Sarah Island for an unnerving insight into the realities of
convict life.
Crossing to Tasmania’s eastern shores, the highlight is the
Freycinet National Park. A drive through this virgin wilderness
will whisk you past azure bays, icing-sugar beaches and granite
splashed with pink-orange lichen at the renowned Bay of Fires.
Bird watchers will be astonished with the species that thrive
here, including the white-bellied sea eagle and the Australasian
gannet, whilst those looking to relax should cruise to Wineglass
Bay where a flawless crescent of sand meets indigo waters. This
is edge-of-the-earth road-tripping like no other.
Continuing into Tasmania’s northern region the landscape is
mottled with grand heritage-listed estates, fragrant splashes
of lavender and strawberry farms, and the historic city of
Launceston. A thriving boutique-style food and wine scene
zigzags through the city’s Georgian streetscapes, which are
broken with exquisite parks and gardens. Here, travellers can
browse markets bursting with handmade crafts, dip into the
city’s hefty slice of wilderness at Cataract Gorge, or bag front
row seats at a Tassie Hawks game. Alternatively, Woolmers
Estate to the south of the city is a striking pioneer farm with a
rich architectural heritage and a National Rose Garden where
over 5,000 roses fill the country air with a sweet scent; it is a
charming change from the vast, monumental vistas of the
national parks. Tasmania’s northern shores are also the gateway
to the microcosmic beauty of King Island and Flinders Island,
where the freshest of air fills a landscape of world-class golf
courses, offshore shipwrecks, lone lighthouses and deserted
beaches.
To say a destination has everything is a terrible cliché, however,
given this is a truism with regards to Tasmania, it is utterly
necessary to employ such a phrase. This isolated Australian
island state is not a location given much attention in the
northern hemisphere, yet its past is captivating and moving; its
wilderness is unmatched and unspoiled; its cities are historic
and avant-garde. It may lie in the shadow of the Australian
mainland, but Tasmania thoroughly deserves the spotlight
shone on all its wilds and its wonders.
Wild at Heart
1) Cradle Mountain, Dove Lake
2) Freycinet National Park
3) National Rose Garden
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