6 Day – All of Tasmania Tour

Tasmania – How to do it without a car!

Cradle Mountain, Freycinet, Wineglass Bay, Hobart, Port Arthur, West Coast & Strahan.

Even if you are a single traveler, this trip is a great way to see how beautiful Tasmania really is while you are tasting some of its excellent food products and walking in its famous wilderness.

If you are not driving, it is often very difficult to get to the coasts with single tours.  This NEW 6 DAY Tasmania Tour takes all the guesswork out of the trip.  Accommodation is included (dormitory or private) and a local driver/guide makes sure you get to see the sights and take part in the activities and food tastings.  All this from about A$110. per day per person, depending on accommodation level.

The trip leaves Hobart each Sunday and is going to be very popular.  Make sure you book early here. 

The schedule is really fun!  After visiting Port Arthur Historic Convict Site and the Tasman Peninsula  for the fabulous ocean views and history on the first day, it is up the Derwent Valley to Russell Falls and the beginning of the western mountains.

On Day 3, head for Tasmania’s West Coast to Strahan via Montezuma Falls and climb some of the world’s best sand dunes at Henty Dunes.

Day 4 takes you to Cradle Mountain and then on to Sheffield and honey and salmon tasting.   The next day takes in the East Coast, Wineglass Bay and Freycinet.  The Bay of Fires has some of the most amazing cool temperate beaches in the world and here is your chance to go on the beach.  The finale is a visit to Kate’s Berry Farm to taste Tasmania fruit products and even fruit wine.
The tour finishes in Hobart…and you have seen it all!

Again, book early here. 

Perth

Perth, the capital of Western Australia, is the fourth most populous city in the country.  It is an oasis of green between the jewelled blue tones of the Indian and Southern Oceans and the reds and browns of the desert and plains.

Speaking of a green oasis, Kings Park is the world's largest inner-city park - even bigger than famous Central Park in New York City!  At just over 4 square kilometers and located next to the Perth CBD, there's no reason to get that 'enclosed big city' feeling.

Perth

One of the most important things to keep in mind when planning a trip that includes a visit to Perth is the relative isolation.  You will need to pay attention to the distances and travel times between points of interest.  Perth is actually closer to Singapore than it is to Sydney!  Click on the link to get a better idea of the general area, not just the city surrounds.

A must-see destination is Rottnest Island, located just off the coast from Fremantle.  It's a major tourist attraction, so you'll definitely want to book your hotel in advance.  You'll probably hear the locals refer to it as 'Rotto'.  You know us Aussies, we love to shorten the names for everything!  The best way to get there is by ferry from either Fremantle or Perth.  There's plenty to keep you busy on the island.  It's one of the few areas where you can find a quokka.  For those not in the know, a quokka is a small, mostly nocturnal marsupial.  It looks like a cross between a wallaby and a rat (which is how the island got its name - it means Rat Nest in Dutch).

Quokka

Diving is another reason to visit the island and there's even a snorkel trail to follow at Parker Point.  I highly recommend a glass bottom boat tour to see some of the shipwrecks in the area.  Cycling enthusiasts will also love this place, as that is the most common mode of transport (there are no hire cars on the island).

Back on the mainland, wine connoisseurs will want to travel southwest to the Margaret River wine region.  You won't be disappointed by the coastal scenery on the way.  There are plenty of hotels in Margaret River so that you can spend a few days enjoying the vineyards and surrounds.

Margaret River Vineyard

Have a look at the Perth Activities and Tours page on our website to get more details on different types of full day and multi-day trips that are available.

If you have the time, continue southeast to Albany, a historic port city surrounded by national park lands.  From here you are truly looking towards the bottom of the earth, as there's nothing between you and Antarctica.

There are a lot of other places to see if using Perth as your 'jumping off point' so to speak, but I'll cover those in another post.

I hope you get a chance to discover this great, isolated gem of a destination.

Throw Another Shrimp on the Barbie

OK, most people have probably heard this now famous line bandied about at one time or another.  For some, it might bring to mind a gathering of mates around a BBQ, beers in hand, laughing and having a good time.  For the foodies out there, it would be the thought of succulent prawns (most Aussies don't call them shrimp) - ones that are SO big they're worth the effort of shelling, like the king prawns.

Australia has a wide variety of seafood available, including some very unique characters like the Moreton Bay Bug.  I know, it sounds pretty nasty, doesn't it?  But I promise you, it's not an insect, it's actually a type of lobster.  They're found along the northern coast of Australia all the way from Western Australia and over down the coast of Queensland to Moreton Bay (near Brisbane).

You might hear some strange words when people are talking about seafood.  Yabbies, for example, are a type of freshwater crayfish (or crawfish or crawdads, depending on where you live).  Barra, short for Barramundi, is a sweet tasting white fish that is also very popular for sport fishing.  The most common areas for this type of fishing are in the Northern Territory and Queensland.