How to plan the ultimate road trip through Tasmania
How to plan the ultimate road trip through Tasmania, from beach to bush
A five-day drive from sandy bays to lake-rimmed mountains is ample time to get the measure of Australia’s smallest state — a land of bounty, both on the plate and in the wilderness.
Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park can be discovered on foot via the Overland Track.Alana DimouByJustin MeneguzziPublished June 19, 2026Home to the Aboriginal Palawa people for 40,000 years, Tasmania was settled by Europeans from 1803. They found a maritime climate, volcanic soils and some of the cleanest air in the world. These bountiful conditions have since helped the apple-shaped island build its reputation for producing superlative wine, whisky and cheese.
On a road trip across Australia’s smallest state, preserved colonial-era towns and farms seem to appear around every corner, while mountains and valleys knitted together by walking trails provide chances to stretch your legs. Meanwhile, after centuries of oppression, the Palawa people invite visitors to connect with their ancestral homelands through the sights, sounds and flavours of the bush.
You could easily drive coast to coast in six hours, but why rush? Tasmanians know that having patience and adopting a slower pace are key to enjoying the finer things in life. Plan up to a week for a road trip from the coast to the high country, starting in the historic southeastern port city of Hobart, Tasmania’s state capital, and finishing in the northerly hub of Launceston. Along the way, make time to savour a drop of local whisky, perhaps sample oysters from a coastal farm fringed by white sand, head into the backcountry for a day’s wilderness walk, or spend time foraging with Aboriginal guides. It’s the simple, wholesome pleasures that make the biggest impression in this island state.
Day 1: Experience a nighttime safari in Hobart
Starting point: Hobart
The harbourside capital of Tasmania, Hobart has built a reputation for fine dining and edgy art thanks to institutions such as MONA (the Museum of Old and New Art) and its neon-lit winter solstice festival, Dark Mofo. But a UV torch reveals mother nature has her own art gallery here, too. Start your journey through Tasmania with an urban nocturnal tour unlike anything else in Australia.
Join Dr Lisa Gershwin, biologist and owner of Glow Show Tours, as she heads out into the city’s parks in search of possums, owls, pademelons (cousins of wallabies) and other critters that glow in the dark thanks to fluorescent pigment in their fur and feathers. Under the right torchlight, you’ll find an otherworldly ecosystem invisible to humans.
Stay
The Macq01 Hotel, a 114-room property overlooking the Old Wharf, has an impressive collection of artefacts from Hobart’s past — as well as a T-rex skull cast in the lobby. From A$360 (£190).(Tasmania's wildlife turns bioluminescent after dark—and you can see it on this night safari.)
Day 2: Taste the sea with Freycinet’s salt sommelier
Hobart to Swansea
Distance: 83 miles
After a night exploring Tasmania’s state capital, recharge with a coffee from Hobart’s Farm Gate Market then point your tyres east towards the coast and Freycinet National Park. This idyllic peninsula, cutting south into the Tasman Sea, is popular with hikers thanks to its sprawling ocean views and white-sand beaches. Break up the drive with a stop at Tasman Sea Salt, an artisanal salt farm offering factory tours that culminate in a guided tasting led by a salt sommelier.
While pairing the salts with foods such as raw cherry tomatoes and tuna gravlax, your guide will teach you about Tasmanian salt’s unique mineral signature and how to use it to enhance your own cooking. Before leaving the area, make sure there’s time for the steep, mile-long hike from the car park in Freycinet National Park to Wineglass Bay Lookout for spectacular views.
Stay
Piermont Retreat is a 187-year-old homestead with 26 cosy cottages scattered along a private beach. From A$410 (£215), B&B.
Day 3: Enter Tasmania’s rural whisky lands
Swansea to Oatlands
Distance: 71 miles
Swap the coast for Tasmania’s rural midlands. A winding 90-minute drive past grassy woodlands — occasionally interrupted by sheep farms — will eventually bring you to Callington Mill Distillery in Oatlands. Distilling spirits was illegal in Tasmania for over 150 years but that didn’t stop mill owner John Vincent, who built Oatlands’ historic mill in 1837 as a cover for his clandestine whisky operation.
Despite its long and colourful history, the site lay dormant for decades until the mill and homestead were sold to Callington Mill Distillery and reopened in 2010 after a significant restoration. The heritage buildings have now been upgraded with video displays that bring the site’s history to life.
Today, the historic mill stands opposite a sleek, state-of-the-art distillery where you can settle in for a whisky tasting at the bar or join a distiller to craft your own single malt.
Stay
At Ratho Farm, convict-built barns, stables and cottages have been converted into one- and two-bedroom suites. From A$199 (£105), B&B.
Day 4: Explore the face of Cradle Mountain
Oatlands to Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park
Distance: 160 miles
Departing Oatlands, the road climbs then corkscrews upwards towards Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, a 623sq-mile reserve two hours from Launceston. The national park is famously known as the starting point for the Overland Track, one of Australia’s premier multi-day hikes, but it’s also laced with various other day hikes, including the lesser-known — and challenging — Face Track. It’s so named because it cuts straight across the face of craggy Cradle Mountain — Tasmania’s most famed peak.
The eight-mile trail leads hikers beneath vertigo-inducing spires and requires you to scramble up and down sheer rock walls. Your efforts are well rewarded with sweeping views of the mountain’s hidden lakes and waterfalls, all but invisible from the viewing shelter most visitors head to at Dove Lake far below. After eight hours of hiking, the trail eventually descends to Dove Lake, where a shuttle bus waits to take you back to your car.
Stay
Enclosed by woodland, Cradle Mountain Hotel is a cosy alpine retreat with easy access to walks. From A$272 (£143), B&B.
Day 5: Enter Cataract Gorge with an Aboriginal guide
Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park to Launceston
Distance: 88 miles
Allow time for pit stops at small-town bakeries, including Frank and Lotti in Deloraine, during your two-hour drive to Launceston. Your road trip ends on the city’s western edge at Cataract Gorge Reserve, a serene three-square-mile slice of urban wilderness. It’s where the South Esk River flows out from a narrow gorge and pools just long enough to form a lake, then tumbles out to join the Tamar River.
Indigenous-owned Kooparoona Niara runs cultural tours here, exploring how for thousands of years before European settlement, the gorge was a bountiful stopping point for the Aboriginal people of the Stoney Creek Nation during their seasonal transits from the central highlands to the coast. During a wooded walk, your guide will share how Aboriginal people used the gorge like an outdoor supermarket, finding medicine, tools and food among the foliage.
Stay
Seated where Cataract Gorge meets the Tamar River, Stillwater Seven is a luxury hotel inside a converted 1840s flour mill. The cosy waterfront restaurant is a local favourite, so book ahead for a table. From A$402 (£211), B&B.How to do it
Audley Travel offers a 13-day self-drive itinerary with stays in Hobart, Launceston, Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park and Freycinet National Park. The package includes accommodation, seven days’ fully insured car hire and return flights from multiple UK airports to Hobart. From £7,200 per person.Getting there & around
The closest mainland Australian gateway to Tasmania is Melbourne. Qantas, Singapore Airlines and Etihad fly from Heathrow to Melbourne via Perth, Singapore and Abu Dhabi respectively. From there, domestic airlines fly to Hobart and Launceston.
Average flight time: 19-23h.
Launceston and Hobart airports have multiple car rental desks. Drivers must be over 21.
When to go
As the most southerly state, Tasmania’s climate is generally cooler compared to the rest of Australia. Average temperatures in summer, from December to February, hover around 22C in the cities. From April, the thermostat drops; average winter highs from June to August hit around 12C in the cities and 6C around Cradle Mountain. Locals heartily embrace the winter months, with solstice-inspired festivals, floating saunas and increased chances to see the Aurora Australis.
More info:
discovertasmania.com.au
This story was created with the support of Tourism Tasmania.Published in the June 2026 issue by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
