AAT Kings - Tassie’s Parks and Nature Itinerary

The Tasmanian capital packs a lot of punch into such a small perimeter, from restaurants that garner global praise to moody wine bars, eye-opening galleries, waterside walks and character-filled historic precincts. Explore at your leisure before meeting the adventurous souls over a Welcome Dinner.

Included Meals: Dinner with Wine

Flights to arrive prior to 3.00pm into Hobart Airport

Accommodation: Hobart - 2 Nights

This morning you’ll see what makes Hobart tick, from the leafy Botanical Gardens, to historic Battery Point and Cascade Brewery. It all fits neatly together when you get some perspective from the lofty Mt. Nelson Lookout, gazing over the River Derwent, and the state's capital. Three hundred – that’s the number of stalls you’ll navigate this afternoon at Hobart’s mighty Salamanca Market. Get your heart started sampling gin and whisky, or order a coffee while perusing made-in-Tasmania arts and crafts. The precinct, amid historic sandstone buildings, is almost as pretty as the produce.

Included Meals: Breakfast

The West Coast of Tassie is wild – in the best possible way. The air seems cleaner, the lakes cooler, the colours brighter, the waterfalls larger… as you’ll discover when the mist envelops you at tiered Russell Falls. This is part of Mt. Field National Park, the state’s most diverse nature reserve. Speaking of breaking records, Lake St. Clair is the deepest of its kind in Australia, carved by ice during glaciations over the last two million years. Pausing here puts life into perspective. Skirt the World Heritage listed Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park, before arriving in Strahan. Small in population but big in personality, the town overlooks the immense Macquarie Harbour. Did you know it’s seven times the size of Sydney Harbour?

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with Wine

Accommodation: Strahan Village - 1 Night

No day that involves a cruise is a bad day. Even better if it’s the deep, dark waters of the far-flung Tassie’s Gordon River. Soak up the silence of this untouched wilderness area on your Gordon River cruise en route to Sarah Island, the state’s oldest convict settlement. Today, the island’s haunting ruins have been reclaimed by nature, enveloped by forest and twisting vines. Your commute toward immense Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park sees you travel through tiny mining towns scattered amongst the mountainous wild terrain. Rest up – Cradle Mountain awaits.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner with Wine

Accommodation: Cradle Mountain - 2 Nights

Cradle Mountain has not always been pristine – it owes much of its protected status to early settlers Gustav and Kate Weindorfer, who were pivotal in championing the conservation of the area. Their efforts are remembered at Waldheim Chalet, their former home, set among myrtles and King Billy pines that gradually give way to moss covered ancient rainforests and deep river gorges, snow-tipped peaks and wild alpine moorlands. This is the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, carved by glacial waterways like Dove Lake. You can see why Bennetts wallabies, echidnas, wombats and pademelons live here – you, too, will find it hard to tear yourself away. If you’re a night person, consider enlisting to spot Tassie’s nocturnal animals, at a devil sanctuary.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with Wine

Tasmania has its fair share of award-winning gin and whisky distilleries, as well as small boutique breweries. Among them is a seaside tap house found in the petite town of Penguin. If there’s a place with a cuter name, we’re yet to locate it on a map. Sit back and enjoy a tasting paddle of local brew whilst taking in the views overlooking glorious Bass Strait. Steel yourself for the ciders fermented at Mount Gnomon Farm. Passionate farmer, Guy Robertson, will pour brews made from apples grown in his orchard, before you sit down to a paddock-to-plate lunch. Then you’re on your way to quirky Sheffield, the ‘Town of Murals’, before travelling through the Meander Valley to Launceston.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation: Launceston - 2 Nights

Your final day ends on a high in Cataract Gorge, a rare natural phenomenon on the outskirts of Launceston. There’s bushland on one side, and a Victorian garden replete with ferns and exotic plants on the other. Get a different perspective of the green cavern on the scenic chairlift, zipping you over the water to a lofty lookout. You can’t leave Tassie without sipping a few of its cool-climate wines, perhaps a pinot noir or flute of sparkling, enjoyed overlooking the manicured grounds of the Josef Chromy Estate. Sample the range, then settle in with your favourite drop enjoyed over lunch. This afternoon is yours: if you’re not heading home yet, we recommend extending your adventure with an optional cruise along the Tamar River. A fitting end to a week of wonderment.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Flights to depart after 5.00pm from Launceston Airport

Itinerary Variations:
The provider strives to improve trip itineraries. If improvements can be made, or if circumstances beyond their control make changes necessary, the provider reserves the right to vary itineraries and to make substitutions.