Travelling to and around Tasmania - best/cheapest?

[iceman (Mike)]

Hi guys

We're thinking of planning a family holiday to Tasmania, and need some advice.

We'll have 3 young kids (10, 8, 5) so keep that in mind.

1) What's the best time of year to go?

I know how cold Tasmania can get so we don't want to be there in the middle of winter. But if there's snow on some high mountains that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Spring? Summer? Autumn?

2) What's the best way to get there and get around?

Fly and hire a car or camper?
Drive our own car and take the ferry/cat across?
What are the costs/advantages of each?
Having our own car there would mean no car hire costs, but the extra travel time to get there, cost of the ferry etc?? vs cost of flights for a family of 5 and car hire costs?

3) Best things to see and do while we're there?

We'd love to do some walks and tours and stuff, and the kids are fine to walk up to 5-6 km's but wouldn't want to push them any much further than that in a given day.

What are the best tourist things to do for a family?

Thanks in advance.

[sheeny (Al)]

On the subjects of thing to see and do, one o the things on my todo list when I eventually get to Tassie is the train trip from Strahan to Queenstown. It's supposed to be spectacular wilderness it travels through, and apparently for a little extra you can get a car with a balcony so no glass to shoot through (photographically speaking).

A cruise up the Gordon below Franklin would be high on the list as well.

There are several spots with basalt columns to view, and plenty of waterfalls.

Haven't been there yet, but I'm hangin' to go, and it sounds like one trip just won't do it justice...

Al.

[acropolite (Phil)]

Mike, if you can get discount boat fares bringing your own car would be a good option (www.spiritoftasmania.com.au), at peak times the fares can be quite expensive. Don't forget there's also the cost of travelling from Newcastle to Melbourne and return.

The nice thing about having your own car and camper is that you can vary your plan as you travel, (we're just completing our 4th driving trip to Qld and return and we have had no set itinerary, just gone which ever way has taken our fancy.)

Probably the cheapest way to go would be to fly and hire, you may find a fly drive package at a good price, if not you can get discount air fares from Sydney via jetstar and Virgin (Be aware that excess baggage is obscenely expensive), Red spot rental has good prices on cars.

The best weather is generally from late January to April, from April to November is the forestry burn season, the Northern area of Tas is often smoked out during that time.

Temperatures vary but are usually in the mid 20's to low 30's in Feb/March with low humidity, by the end of April usually hovering around the 20's. Night time temps at are cool, less so than inland NSW.

The weather from November to February can be quite variable, ranging from warm to cold and windy, often nice but unrpedictable.

The old saying goes "if you don't like the weather come back in 30 minutes".

As for snow, it can snow at any time of the year, but usually snow only falls in the coldest months (July to October but I've seen snow on Christmas day).

There are countless walks you can do, in any surrounds that take your fancy, from Launceston it's only 30 minutes to the seaside, 30-45 minutes to the nearest mountain, 1.5 hours to Cradle mountain National park.

If you're a wine lover, Tasmania offers some of the best wines in the world, there are dozens of wineries within the Tamar valley alone.

Both the East and West coasts (Strahan and the Gordon River Cruise as Al mentioned) are worth a visit, the beaches are unspoiled and mostly deserted compared to the mainland. Hobart and surrounds are also quite spectacular.

When I get back to Tas I'll get together a bit of a list with some photos so you can get an idea of some of the areas that you may want to visit.

[kinetic (Steve)]

Mike,

One thing might be worth mentioning about the kids.
On our Flinders Ranges family trip the bushwalking was our biggest
letdown. I was selfish and wanted to do all the 'old favourites'
in the list of Trails to do. Relive a lot of childhood memories.
And show the kids the places I loved the best.

With a 5 y/o and 7 y/o in tow though it's just not possible.
We restricted ourselves to the 'Easy' 1-3hr walks first.
I'm glad we did!
We found that my wife and I would take turns carrying the 5 y/o
about half of it and the 7 y/o would struggle towards the end
of the way back. Even on a moderately easy walk.
We never got to show them places like St Mary's Peak for example
so we ended the 1 week holiday with some mixed feelings.
Still, we had a really wonderful time, kids thoroughly enjoyed it.

Steve

[leon]

Trust me ask (John and Anna) EXTREME, we met them there some months ago, they will have all the knowledge.

Leon

[Kindred Spirit (Luise)]

I've just noticed this thread and as I live in Tassie, I'm happy to supply you with info and assistance as needed. The advice you have so far is spot on and looking at all the options is sensible. For the Kids, there is Tasmazia, at Barrington, near Lake Barrington. Adults will get a kick here as well. Their pancacks are to die for! Then Mole Creek wild life park, at Mole Creek, near Deloraine, is worth a visit with feeding of the Devils a must see. Also Wing's wildlife park near Penguin, as well as Penguin, the town, itself. There's a giant, you guessed it, penguin! and play equipment and picnic and a great pastry shop, just next to the library in the main street. Clean beaches nearby in Sulphur Creek, where I grew up, with parking and free overnight camping. The North west has an amazing place called "Dismal Swamp"! It's a sink hole and has a great interpretation centre and cafe. The west coast is amazing, but wet most of the year. I recommend Marrawah Beach as its a free camp site and a wonderful strech of coastline. The Caves at Gunns Plains are spectacular. Our kids still remember their visit. Lake Pedder and Great Lakes, good for fishing, you will need an anglers license, available from Service Tas shops in most major towns. The East coast has milder weather and is our version of the French Rivierra, well close, anyway. Distances between major attractions are not great but with kids I'd drive a max. of 1-2 hours in the mornings and about 1 hour in the afternoons. This is where a camper comes in handy so you can stop anywhere and freshen up the kids with a bout of fresh air and exercise. I recommend the Rasberry Farm near Elisabeth Town. Latrobe- for a look at the platapuses, Bells Parade,has play equipment and picnic areas, and Ashgrove Cheeses between Elisabeth Town and Latrobe. I'd best stop there, as I don't really want a job as a tour guide!! I'll send more info later. The sun has just come out 1st time in days and there are lawns to mow Cheers!