Exploring the best of Southern Tasmania: best things to do and tours

Experience the natural beauty of Bruny Island

A 362sqkm island located an hour’s drive and 30-minute ferry ride south of Hobart, Bruny Island is actually two islands connected by a narrow isthmus of land at its centre known as The Neck (pictured above). It's worth spending a few days taking in everything this relaxed and beautiful place has to offer. 

Best food experiences at Bruny Island

Savour the freshes Tasmanian seafood, including abalone, oysters and salmon, with the sensational Tasmanian Seafood Seduction Cruise, which departs from Hobart and includes a gourmet lunch while anchored off Bruny Island. If you're doing a self-drive tour, Bruny Island's food options include oysters hauled straight from the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, cheese and beer at the island’s brewery, honey, chocolate and even the island’s own vineyard and restaurant. You'll find Bruny’s only pub at Alonnah, although Bruny Island Cruises & Seafood Restaurant at Adventure Bay offers pub-style fare as well.

Best walks on Bruny Island

There are series of great walks on the island. The best known is Fluted Cape Walk that starts south of Adventure Bay and takes you to South Bruny National Park. Going anti-clockwise is easier, otherwise it’s a scramble up the cliffs, and not recommended if you suffer vertigo. 

There are plenty more walks worth checking out. The highest point on the island is Mount Mangana. The trek out to it is a challenging 45 minutes or more but the views are stunning.

Beach-side, try the Cape Queen Elizabeth Track that includes some marvellous rocky arches and seascapes. The brewery is down the road to quench a post-walk thirst. Further south, Bruny Island lighthouse is a short walk from the carpark and offers spectacular views, with tours available.

Best water activities at Bruny Island

The three-hour Bruny Island Wilderness Cruise from Adventure Bay will give you a fabulous view of the rocky and wild coastline, with the chance to see seals and dolphins. See the explosive breathing rock, enter sea caves and the point where the Tasman Sea meets the mighty Southern Ocean. Allow 45 minutes to drive yourself from Hobart to Kettering, where the Bruny Island Ferry departs, or enjoy a scenic bus tour from Hobart that includes a ferry crossing to Bruny Island and a three-hour wilderness cruise.

Best places to see wildlife on Bruny Island

Keep an eye out for white wallabies. They’re a genetic mutation of the Bennett’s Wallaby and more than 200 of these pink-eyed albinos live on the island. Without natural predators they thrive.

The Neck – which is worth visiting to climb the steps to the lookout and take in the view – also hosts a penguin colony. There’s a network of boardwalks that take you through their nesting area. Be prepared though, they come in late at night in the summer months when viewing is best.

Best beaches on Bruny Island

Adventure Bay is home to a beautiful swimming beach. It’s most protected at its very northern end and the water is clear enough to see the fish swimming around you. In summer the water can still feel cold, so you may want a wetsuit. There are shops close by if you need a snack or drink.

A lot of other beaches on Bruny are more remote and care must be taken. Cloudy Bay at the southern end of the road gains great reviews from surfers. There is also a camping ground on high ground at the far end of the beach, which is accessible by vehicle at low tide.

Best things to see and do in the Huon Valley

Still a quiet region despite being so close to Hobart, much of the drive follows the Huon River through towns such as Huonville, Franklin and Geeveston.

It then cruises alongside the Tasman Sea shore, through farmland and bush country to reach Cockle Creek, which is literally the end of the road. You can drive no further southward in Australia.

To get here from Hobart without stopping, takes less than two hours and a bit over 120km. But for the best road trip, you’ll want to stop along the way. 

Must-do foodie experiences in the Huon Valley

The Huon Valley is developing a reputation for its cool climate wines thanks to vineyards such as Elsewhere, Kate Hill Wines and Two Bud Spur. Being an apple growing region, there are some great cideries too. Food, cider and gin tours departing Hobart give you a chance to spend a day sampling some of the best produce in the region.

Like the wineries, the food scene in this region is developing quickly. Along with well-established places like Franks Cider House, Café in Franklin and Willie Smith’s Apple Shed in Huonville, there are new culinary experiences such as Home Hill winery and restaurant in Ranelagh and Osteria by Petty Sessions in Franklin.

Best place to see a platypus in the Huon Valley

Platypus are elusive creatures but Tasmania is deemed a top spot to see one. At Geeveston, about halfway between the RACV Hobart Hotel and Cockle Creek, they make it easy for you with a marked Platypus Walk.

Althought it's not guaranteed that you will see one our duckbilled friends, it’s a lovely stroll and a great way to stretch your legs and take a break from driving.

Most dramatic way to view the Huon River 

If you turn right off the highway at Geeveston, the Tahune Airwalk is only a short drive west into the Hartz Mountains. The Airwalk is 619m long and sits 30m above the forest floor. Its final 30m cantilevered section juts out 50m over the Huon River. It’s a beautiful and slightly heart palpitating place to take in the view.

Largest dolomite tourist cave in Australia 

About 100km into your trip from Hobart, you'll find Hastings Caves, a subterranean labyrinth with the centrepiece being Newdegate Cave - the largest dolomite tourist cave in Australia. Once you’ve completed the tour you can relax in a swimming pool fed by a thermal spring that remains at 28°C year-round.

Most southerly point you can drive to in Australia

Cockle Creek is a must-have entry in any Trivia Quiz because it’s the most southerly point you can drive to in Australia. It was also declared the third best beach in Tourism Australia’s annual list of the top 10. It wasn’t hard to see why. Located within Recherche Bay, it wraps around pearlescent water, with campers and caravanners parked just metres from the shore. There’s no shop or petrol station for many miles so it is a case of ‘feel the serenity’.

For the supremely adventurous, Cockle Creek is the start (or finish) point for the tough South Coast Track, a remote 85km six to eight day walk for which full self-sufficiency is required. It ends at Melaleuca, which is only accessible by sea or air.