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Aerial view of cars winding along Anthony Road surrounded by trees, West Coast Range, Tasmania

Anthony Road, West Coast Range

Emilie Ristevski

ROAD TRIPS AND TRAILS

Tasmania's road trips and trails guide visitors and locals through the state's diverse regions, to explore at their own pace.

The island is varied enough to keep things interesting and compact enough that you will not spend your whole trip behind the wheel. Follow a curving coastal drive, rainforest route or highland highway. Forage along a food themed trail or winery circuit, detour scenic backroads or make a beeline for Australia's southernmost point.

Discovering Tasmania by road

Five key drive journeys tap into the growing demand for road trips and position Tasmania as a leading touring holiday destination. Unlike traditional touring with rigid routes, these journeys are designed to be flexible frameworks for travellers to set their own itinerary, pace and overnight stops in multiple regional areas they might otherwise skip.

Aerial view of a vehicle on a coastal road approaching The Nut at Stanley, Tasmania

The Nut, Stanley

Roady

Key drive journeys

Northern Forage takes in the top of the state, from Marrawah in the west through to Derby in the east.

Southern Edge includes the Kingborough and Huon Valley municipalities. All roads end here, Cockle Creek is the southernmost point you can drive to in Australia.

Heartlands covers the centre of the state between the Highland Lakes, Meander Valley, Ben Lomond National Park, Avoca and Brighton.

Western Wilds starts just north of Hobart in New Norfolk, twisting through rainforest to the west coast. It includes Waratah, Wilmot and Cradle Mountain.

Great Eastern Drive takes in the east coast from Buckland in the south to Ansons Bay up north, also covering Weldborough and Fingal.

A Tasmanian road trip includes stopping overnight in multiple locations outside of Hobart or Launceston and is a way for operators to be part of the self drive tour offering in Tasmania. This approach helps with regional dispersal and encourages longer visitor stays, helping tourism operators across the state connect with self drive travellers.

We encourage visitors to improve their road trip experience by downloading the Discover Tasmania app. The app provides helpful real time geotargeted tips and updates. For travellers planning ahead, our interactive Trip Planner lets users save their favourite experiences and customise, share or build their own itineraries.

Themed trails

As well as drive journeys, Tasmania has themed road trip trails for history buffs, foodies, cyclists and other niche interests:

  • Tasting Trail Tasmania: Stretching across northern Tasmania from Launceston to Smithton, the Tasting Trail is dotted with more than 40 stops at artisanal producers. With so many growers and makers along the trail, it is often only a short drive from one food stop to the next.
  • Tasmanian Wine Trails: Tamar Valley Wine Trail, North West Wine Trail, East Coast Wine Trail and the Southern Wine Trail. The Tamar region is regarded as producing the best sparkling outside of Champagne in France, while the east coast is known for its pinot noir. See Wine Tasmania for more information.
  • Tasmanian Whisky and Spirits Trail: Some of the top single malt whiskies in the world are found in Tasmania's distilleries, from Australia's oldest whisky distiller Lark Distillery down south to Hellyers Road in the north west and Furneaux Distillery on Flinders Island. See the full trail here.
  • Tasmanian Beer Trail: Breweries steeped in history and pure local ingredients shape this beer trail. Travellers can sip brews from Hobart to New Norfolk, Bruny Island, Launceston and Ulverstone.
  • Convict Trail: Historic buildings, harrowing tales and preserved remnants are scattered from Hobart to Richmond.
  • Highlands Power Trail: Tasmania's Central Highlands host a century of energy engineering heritage and stories worth exploring.
  • Tasmanian Cider Trail: This agricultural state has long been nicknamed the Apple Isle for good reason. Cider hubs include the Huon Valley, Spreyton, Deloraine and the Tamar Valley.
  • Tasmania's Rail Trails: North East Rail Trail, Montezuma Falls, Railton to Sheffield, Hobart Intercity Cycleway and Kaoota Tramway. Tasmania, with its scenic hills and mountainsides, has a trail for every two wheeler.
  • Tasmanian Seafood Trails: Farm gates, markets, restaurants and floating fish punts abound in Tasmania, from Bruny Island to Hobart and Freycinet, and further afield on King Island, Flinders Island and Tasmania's north west coast.
  • Heritage Highway: Sandstone buildings in Oatlands, convict sites at Ross and an old bridge in Campbell Town: the historical Midland Hwy is the connecting thoroughfare between Tasmania's two major cities, Hobart and Launceston.
  • Golf in Tasmania: Epic views on courses across King Island, Bridport and more coastal Tasmanian sites.
A 4WD towing a caravan in the queue to board the Spirit of Tasmania II ferry, Devonport, Tasmania

Spirit of Tasmania, Devonport

Sean Scott Photography

Preparation for new Spirit of Tasmania vessels

Spirit of Tasmania tickets for selected sailings on the new vessels are now on sale. Keep up with the latest news on the vessels via the Spirit of Tasmania website.

The two new Spirit of Tasmania ferries will support expected growth in caravan and motorhome visitors. To understand the potential from this market, we commissioned ERA Planning to develop a Caravan and Motorhome Market Plan assessing demand potential and mapping relevant infrastructure and services.

Explore the research