Freycinet And The East Coast Guides Attractions Events in Tasmania

Bicheno, just north of the Freycinet Peninsula on Tasmania’s stunning east coast, is known for its laid-back lifestyle and outdoor activities.
If a holiday relaxing by white, sandy beaches, dining on fresh seafood and playing leisurely games of golf sounds appealing, you’ll love Bicheno.
More than 700 people live in the town, and water’s its lifeblood. Crayfish, abalone and Australian salmon are often brought ashore with the daily fishing catch.
You can explore the coast at your own pace in a sea kayak, or pick up some local knowledge on a guided boat trip. Marine life and sea birds abound in Governors Island Marine Reserve – stay dry in a glass-bottomed boat or scuba dive amid sheer rock walls, deep fissures, caves, sponges and sea whips. Tasmania is considered one of the best temperate water dive sites in the world.
There is plenty to do on dry land as well. Motor tricycle tours, a Grape Escape wine tour, and walks to Rocking Rock and the blowhole or along the sandbar to Diamond Island Nature Reserve are popular. Penguin tours are one of the town’s most popular attractions, while the local wildlife park has a wide array of fauna, including kangaroos, Tasmanian devils and pelicans.
Waterfalls tumble to tranquil lakes and river ravines in nearby Douglas–Apsley National Park, while to the south, in Freycinet National Park, you can take the famous walk to Wineglass Bay, one of the best beaches in the world.
Formerly known as Waubs Boat Harbour, Bicheno was established as a whaling centre in 1803. The town was named after James Ebenezer Bicheno and expanded in 1854 with the discovery of coal in the Denison River.
Bicheno has mild weather, with an average maximum of 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit) in January and 14.5 degrees Celsius (48 degrees Fahrenheit) in June.
The town is 182 kilometres (113 miles) north east of Hobart via the Tasman Highway.

The east coast village of Coles Bay sits beneath pink granite mountains at the entrance to Freycinet National Park. With a small permanent population of less than 200 people, the town caters to local and visitor needs.
The Coles Bay area is one of our Island’s most popular holiday spots for visitors and locals. It overlooks crystal clear Oyster Bay – ideal for swimming, snorkelling, kayaking, boating and fishing.
Prior to European settlement the Great Oyster Bay and Big River aboriginal tribes made the annual trek, in the cooler climate, for seafood and swan eggs.
European settlers arrived in the early 1800s, and the area was developed by sealers, whalers, miners and farmers. After Freycinet National Park was declared in 1916 the area became increasingly popular as a holiday destination.
Coles Bay is about 45 minutes’ drive from Swansea and around 30 minutes from Bicheno..

If there's a single keynote for Tasmania's north-east, it’s colour. As you travel through this part of the Island, the hues of the land, the sky and the sea change before your eyes.
Take romantic strolls on uncrowded beaches and linger over meals of the freshest seafood – the wines, the coffee and the views are superb. Or simply watch islands float on the horizon from your stylish waterside accommodation.
The picturesque fishing port of St Helens is the north-east coast's largest town. Beyond the sand bar, the ocean offers up game fish, while to the north are the exquisite beaches, wildlife and Aboriginal middens of the Bay of Fires and Mount William National Park.
If you love a tasty true farm cheese, head inland to Pyengana cheesery – the cloth-bound cheddar is in a class of its own. Or drive along a mountain pass to the Mt Elephant Pancake Barn, and then loop back through St Marys.
The Bay of Fires Walk, the Freycinet Experience and Maria Island Walk are just a few of the guided multi-day hikes that take you through some of the most breathtaking scenery in Australia. When you are not walking or cruising, you’ll be pampered in quality accommodation or standing camps. And there’ll be plenty of time to socialise and indulge yourself over a gourmet meal and a glass of wine.
Your adventurous spirit will be inspired at Freycinet National Park. Above the peninsula’s main settlement of Coles Bay, climbers and abseilers test their skills on The Hazards’ pink and grey granite rocks, while sea kayakers paddle in the waters below, and quad bikes head for Friendly Beaches.
If you prefer something more romantic, take the short walk across a saddle to the perfect half-moon of Wineglass Bay.
Near the beachside towns of Bicheno and Swansea are vineyards and berry farms – stop for berry ice cream or a boutique cool-climate wine. Or head for Triabunna to catch the ferry to Maria Island, a national park with a surprising history of convicts and industrious dreamers. Dive in the marine park, hike to fossil cliffs and make friends with the local menagerie.

A route that lets you explore fishing villages, penguin rookeries, vineyards, off-coast islands, National Parks, mountains and gorges. The renowned Freycinet Peninsula has Wineglass Bay, recognised as one of the world’s top beaches. Beyond Bicheno, the pristine beaches continue with names like Chain of Lagoons and Bay of Fires. Oysters, mussels, abalone and scallops are farmed in the clean waters, lobsters are retrieved from pots, and licensed divers seek out their fortune harvesting wild abalone along the unspoiled coast. The trip to Orford offers the chance to travel beside an original convict road - the stony remains of one of Australia’s first highways. Off-shore, the convict heritage continues on Maria Island, with evocative ruins and a restored penal settlement.

Tasmania’s east coast is a coast of contrast - sunshine and sea life, wine and wildlife, crags and beaches, history and adventure. It’s a coast of national parks - Douglas-Apsley, with its quietly flowing rivers, eucalypts and Oyster Bay pines; Freycinet, a bushwalkers’ and sea kayakers’ paradise; and Maria Island, with its history, walks and fauna. It’s a coast of fine food and wine - as you journey on, you’ll discover the flavours of the area’s fresh, natural produce.
Place names tell the region’s heritage: Dutch navigator Abel Tasman mapped Schouten and Maria; Frenchman Nicolas Baudin charted Freycinet; nostalgic Welsh settlers named the town of Swansea,Triabunna and Wielangta remember thousands of years of Aboriginal presence.
Islands float on the horizon - across Mercury Passage, Maria is an island rich in history, with beaches, cliffs and mountains to explore. You can reach it by ferry from Triabunna.
Further north is the craggy outline of Schouten Island and the graceful profile of the Freycinet Peninsula, with its sea cliffs and forests, tracks and beaches. The holiday town of Coles Bay nestles in a sheltered corner - from here it’s a short walk across a saddle to the perfect half-moon of Wineglass Bay, ranked as one of the world’s best beaches by US- based Outside magazine.
Above Coles Bay’s quiet beaches, The Hazards’ pink and grey granite rocks, daubed with orange lichen, rise steeply. Climbers and abseilers test their skills, relishing the perfect friction, dramatic exposure and exciting height of crags that plummet to the water below.

Spectacular views, miles of unspoiled white sand beaches, and low-key camping by the sea are the main features of The Friendly Beaches, which were added to the Freycinet National Park in 1992. Gravel roads lead to car parks overlooking the beaches.
Basic camping is permitted at Isaacs Point and Ridge Camp, though there is no fresh water. Isaacs Point also has pit toilets.

Maria Island National Park sits off the east coast of Tasmania just north of Orford. In 1982, the whole island was protected as a national park. While Tasmania has a colourful and dramatic history, Maria (pronounced Mariah) is in some ways a microcosm of Tasmania. It was a favoured winter hunting ground for the Oyster Bay Aboriginal tribe, and when French explorer, Nicholas Baudin, landed in 1802 he found an Aboriginal burial mound and established that the Island’s inhabitants cremated their dead. By 1825 the island was a convict prison and today you can stay in the former penitentiary and visit the Commissariat Store. In the late 1880s an exuberant Italian immigrant, Diego Bernacchi, convinced the government of the day he could grow Chateau Lafitte vines, and mulberry trees for silk worms. Over time he created the eponymous village of San Diego. He built a guesthouse and the Coffee Palace – which still stands today. After the collapse of the vineyards Bernacchi left Tasmania only to return in the early 1900s to establish a cement works. You will see remains of the cement silos still today.
Maria is one of the best places to observe wildlife, in the wild: Forester kangaroos, pademelons, Bennetts wallabies and Cape Barren geese. No cars are allowed and there are no shops, so bring all food and water for your visit. There are many wonderful walks: to the Fossil Cliffs, Painted Cliffs and Bishop & Clerk Mountain, or the longer walks to Chinamans Bay and beyond. Backpacker accommodation and campsites are available at Darlington. Ferry bookings are essential.

The holiday township of Orford lies at the mouth of the Prosser River at the end of Paradise Gorge on the east coast, just 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Hobart.
The town has a population of 500 and is opposite Maria Island, making it a perfect base for exploring the island national park and its surrounding marine reserve. There are number of great swimming beaches close to the town, including Raspins, Shelley and Spring beach. The latter two are linked by an easy two kilometre coastal walk that takes in the 19th-century sandstone quarry that provided the hand-hewn stone used for Melbourne’s General Post Office among other buildings.
Orford is a popular fishing destination, with Prosser Bay, the Mercury Passage, and the clean ocean waters off Maria Island yielding a bounty of fresh seafood such as flathead, abalone and southern rock lobster (crayfish).
In February 2007 an artificial reef and dive site was created from the scuttling of the ship the 590 tonne, 55 metre (181 foot) coastal trader, Troy D, in the Mercury Passage approximately one kilometre off Maria Island, to further bolster the area's reputation as a premier location for scuba diving.
The first European in the Orford area was Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, in 1642, but it wasn’t until 1825 that the township was permanently settled as a whaling station and local garrison supporting the penal settlement at Darlington on Maria Island. Today you can still see signs of Orford’s convict history: as you drive along the banks of the Prosser River look out for the remains of the original convict road built between 1841 and 1855. Just past the bridge over the river a stone entry takes you to a 40-minute walk along the Old Convict Road.
Despite its small size Orford is well serviced with two supermarkets, several cafes and eateries, a hotel and accommodation.
The weather on Tasmania’s east coast is typically settled and warm, with an average maximum temperature of 22.5 degrees Celsius (72.5 degrees Fahrenheit) in summer and 10-15 degrees Celsius (50-75 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter.

Destination information for town of Seymour

St Marys is a small township in Tasmania’s north east. Nestled beneath the impressive rocky outcrop, St Patrick’s Head (694 metres/2,277 feet), St Marys is a 240 kilometre/149 mile drive north east of Hobart, via Swansea and Bicheno or 130 kilometres/80 miles east of Launceston.
St Marys is just 10 kilometres (six miles) from the coast, but rises 600 metres (1,969 feet) above sea level. You can reach the town from the coast by crossing the mountains via St Marys Pass or Elephant Pass.
With a population of around 600 people the town offers a range of accommodation, a craft gallery, bakery, shops and supermarkets, and the St Marys Hotel, built in 1916, which dominates the town centre.
St Marys is close to many local attractions: you can try the challenging climb to the top of St Patrick’s Head, or the more accessible South Sister Peak, for stunning forest and coastal views. There are also spectacular views from Elephant Pass. Stop here for a plate of delicious, European–style crepes at Mt Elephant Pancakes—a quirky restaurant nestled in the mountains. The Coalminers’ Heritage Wall and Heritage Walk at the tiny settlement of Cornwall is a monument to the miners who hand-tunnelled a coal mine beneath the Mt. Nicholas Range. You can also visit nearby waterfalls, go fishing at Lake Leake or bushwalking in Douglas Apsley National Park.
St Patrick’s Head was sighted and named by Captain Tobias Furneaux from his ship, the Adventure, on St Patrick’s Day 1773. Settlement in the area began in the 1840s with the establishment of a convict probation station. Both St Mary’s Pass and Elephant Pass were carved out by a team of 300 convicts, connecting the area to the coast. A now-vanished railway line reached the town in 1866, but the original railway station can still be seen in the town. St Marys’ 150th anniversary was celebrated in 2007.
The weather on Tasmania’s east coast is typically settled and warm, with an average maximum temperature of 22.5 degrees Celsius (72.5 degrees Fahrenheit) in summer and 10-15 degrees Celsius (50-75 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter.

The historic township of Swansea is ideal for fishing, swimming and diving, or relaxing on the beach overlooking Great Oyster Bay and the beautiful Freycinet National Park.
Swansea has a population of 530, housed in colonial buildings, contemporary homes and classic beachside shacks.
Self-guided historic walks of Swansea pass Schouten House, Meredith House and Morris’s General Store. You can learn about leather staining at the Swansea Bark Mill and Tavern. Look out for the bizarre profile of Spiky Bridge, just outside town.
Swansea’s exquisite fresh harvests – from land and sea – are a part of the east coast experience. Enjoy wine tasting at the Wine and Wool Centre, then sample some of the area’s other local produce – walnuts, oysters, olives and, of course, fish.
There are many beaches and bays in and around Swansea, and lookouts over picturesque coastline. Shearwater (mutton bird) colonies are also common in the area.
Swansea was first explored by Captain Cox in 1798 and was settled as a military post in 1827. Local Aboriginal people moved further inland as European whalers explored the coast.
Swansea enjoys temperate weather all year round, with an average maximum of 22 degrees Celsius (71.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in January and 14 degrees Celsius (57 degrees Fahrenheit) in June.
Swansea is 134 kilometres (83.2 miles) from Hobart, along the A3.

Triabunna is a scenic port town on Tasmania’s east coast, 88 kilometres/55 miles north-east of Hobart. Triabunna is the major civic centre for the east coast, with a permanent population of over 700 people. Its main industries are fishing – try the succulent local scallops, mussels and abalone – and a major woodchip mill at Point Home.
The town is surrounded by inviting beaches, undulating hills and tracts of eucalypt forest. Here, you can cast off into the sheltered waters of Spring Bay, a harbour tucked away at the southern end of Great Oyster Bay, for a day’s fishing or sailing. Drift through kelp forests and over coral reefs on a scuba diving trip to nearby Maria Island - also a haven for bushwalking, cycling and wildlife.
Information on ferry services to the Island is available at Triabunna’s Visitor Information Centre (03 6257 4772). Make sure you see the Centre’s display of wall tapestries depicting the area’s rich Aboriginal and European history and visit the adjacent Tasmanian Seafarers Memorial.
The town has a range of accommodation and there are shops, galleries and tearooms perfect for lazing away a morning. You can enjoy some wonderful walks in Triabunna’s coastal reserves including the Pelican Walk, which begins near the marina. Other walks at nearby Orford include the Wielangta Forest and Old Convict Road.
Australia’s first rural municipality, Triabunna was established in the 1820s as a whaling station and garrison town servicing the Maria Island penal colony. Its colonial past is reflected in several historic buildings, including the sandstone St Mary’s Anglican Church (1880) and Spring Bay Hotel (1838).
Triabunna is an Aboriginal word meaning native hen – a fast-running, flightless bird found only in Tasmania. Many of these birds – which can reach speeds of up to 50 kilometres/31 miles an hour - can be seen foraging near streams and pastureland in the area.
Tasmania’s east coast experiences warmer temperatures and settled weather year round than other parts of the state. Triabunna averages a mild maximum temperature of 22.5 degrees Celsius (72.5 degrees Fahrenheit) in summer and 10-15 degrees Celsius (50-75 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter.