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The Island of Originals: Unique Experiences You Can Only Find in Tasmania
From gourmet delights to ghostly adventures, which of these unique experiences in Tasmania is calling your name?
Tasmania is an island apart — wild, cultured, and impossibly beautiful. From glacier-carved highlands to glass-clear bays, convict histories to culinary reinventions, this southern wonder balances raw nature with refined creativity. Every journey here is both escape and encounter — where ancient forests breathe, fires crackle in design-led lodges, and locals serve stories as rich as the food.
Below, the moments that define Tasmania — experiences found nowhere else on Earth.
The National Penny Farthing Championships, Evandale
Once a year, Evandale swaps sedate village charm for big-wheel theatre. High riders in waistcoats and goggles tilt into corners, moustaches bristle, crowds cheer, and suddenly you’re in a live-action sepia postcard with festival energy. Market stalls, brass, and a joyous dash of absurdity turn pedal power into pure pageantry. It’s gloriously Tasmanian: quirky, stylish, and a tiny bit unhinged — the way great memories are made. Bring your camera, your sense of fun, and shoes fit for cobbles and confetti.
February 2026
Evandale, Tasmania
The Wall in the Wilderness
In a quiet hall scented with Huon pine, an epic unfurls in carved relief. Greg Duncan’s Wall in the Wilderness stretches like a forest hymn: horses mid-stride, sawyers and pioneers, thylacines almost breathing. Each panel is chiselled time — grain, shadow, and the hush of old stories — turning timber into theatre. Step along its 100-metre sweep and feel Tasmania’s spine: wild, industrious, tender. It’s spine-tingling craft meets cathedral calm; a pilgrimage for design lovers and daydreamers alike.
15352 Lyell Highway, Derwent Bridge
Spot a White Wallaby on Bruny Island
Bruny’s rare white wallabies look lifted from folklore — snow-pale coats, curious eyes, and a serenity that matches the island’s pace. Most often seen near Adventure Bay, they thrive without predators, padding through eucalypt clearings as if time forgot them. Keep your camera ready but tread quietly; encounters here feel less like sightseeing, more like stumbling into a fairytale.
Bruny Island, Tasmania
Glamp Beneath the Stars in the Bay of Fires
Here, the light itself feels otherworldly — silver dawns, tangerine sunsets, and granite boulders dusted in orange lichen. The Bay of Fires redefines the art of glamping: linen-draped beds, open-air tubs, and ocean air perfumed with salt and tea tree. Stay at Numie for starlit soaks, Bay of Fires Bush Retreat for campfire elegance, or Glamping 148° for bell-tent chic. This isn’t camping — it’s slow-living with style.
Dine at a Tiny Restaurant That Only Serves What’s Grown Onsite
Trade supermarket aisles for soil-to-plate dining at places that grow almost everything they serve. At The Agrarian Kitchen in New Norfolk, a walled garden feeds the menu—seasonal vegetables, heritage meats, and ferments crafted metres from your table. Over on the east coast, OIRTHIR at Bream Creek is equally devoted to provenance: coastal herbs, wood-fired bread, and lamb raised within sight of the sea. Together they capture Tasmania’s deep connection between land, labour, and flavour—meals that nourish as much as they move you.
The Agrarian Kitchen & Eatery, 11a The Avenue, New Norfolk
OIRTHIR, 357 Marion Bay Road, Bream Creek
Celebrate Winter at Dark Mofo
Dark Mofo is Tasmania’s wildest, most primal festival, where fire, art, nudity, and ritual come together in an unforgettable celebration of winter’s darkest days. Held annually in Hobart, it’s a whirlwind of art installations, massive bonfires, and a sense of mysticism that fills the air. There’s a raw energy, a reckoning with the elements, as the cold bites and the flames crackle. It’s unfiltered, untamed, and undeniably Tasmanian. Whether it’s the midnight feasts, the dark art, or the rituals, Dark Mofo invites you to embrace the chill and dive deep into the heart of winter.
June 2026
Hobart, Tasmania
Discover Tasmania’s Rich Heritage at MACq 01 and Henry Jones Art Hotel
In Hobart, history checks in at MACq 01 and Henry Jones Art Hotel. At MACq 01, every suite tells a Tasmanian story — convicts, explorers, visionaries — all revealed through the “114 Doors” tour. Next door, Henry Jones transforms an 1800s jam factory into an art hotel alive with more than 400 Tasmanian works. Between them lies a city’s past rewritten in luxury.
MACq 01 Hotel, 18 Hunter Street, Hobart
The Henry Jones Art Hotel, 25 Hunter Street, Hobart
Kayaking in Coles Bay with Freycinet Adventures
If you want to see Freycinet’s beauty from a whole new angle (and earn your post-paddle wine), join Freycinet Adventures for a kayak across Coles Bay. Glide through glassy water as the Hazards rise ahead like a postcard brought to life, and listen as your guide dishes up tales of the park’s history, wildlife, and a few local secrets. Dolphins might tag along, seals might pop up to say hi — it’s nature’s version of a meet-cute. Beginners welcome, bragging rights guaranteed.
2 Freycinet Drive, Coles Bay
Beekeeping Class at Saffire Freycinet
Step inside the sweet world of beekeeping at Saffire Freycinet, where nature’s tiniest overachievers steal the spotlight. Suit up and step into a live apiary to get up close with a humming hive, guided by experts who know their bees (and their honey). You’ll learn how these little pollinators keep the planet buzzing, taste honey straight from the comb, and gain a new respect for teamwork that actually works. It’s sticky, scenic, and deliciously Tasmanian — the perfect mix of education, adventure, and brag-worthy content.
2352 Coles Bay Road, Coles Bay
Wineglass Bay Cruise with Pennicott Wilderness Journeys
See Freycinet from the water’s edge on a Wineglass Bay Cruise with Pennicott Wilderness Journeys — four and a half hours of sea spray, sunshine, and pure Tasmanian magic. Glide past the pink granite peaks of the Hazards and remote coves like Cooks and Bryans, where the only other way in is a serious hike. Keep your camera handy for seals sunbathing, penguins waddling, and dolphins putting on a show. With sea caves, blowholes, and that iconic curve of Wineglass Bay ahead, it’s coastal escapism done right.
Oyster Shucking at Oyster Bay Tours
Wade into the good life with Oyster Bay Tours on the Freycinet Peninsula — where adventure meets aperitivo hour. Guided by local pros, you’ll slip on waders, step into the cool shallows of Freycinet Marine Farm, and pluck oysters straight from the bay before learning the fine art of shucking like a local. Then comes the best part: tasting your handiwork with a glass of Tasmanian wine in hand. It’s fresh, salty, and outrageously satisfying — the ultimate sea-to-sip experience.
1784 Coles Bay Road, Coles Bay
Scenic Helicopter Flight Over Wineglass Bay
Take your Freycinet adventure sky-high with Freycinet Air, the family-run outfit turning scenic flights into something truly personal. Led by locals Greg and Gabby, these intimate helicopter tours sweep you over Wineglass Bay, the Hazards, and stretches of untouched coastline you’ll want to pinch yourself over. Between the warm welcome, easygoing banter, and jaw-dropping views, it’s less like a tour and more like flying with friends who know every curve of the coast. We’ve got one word to say to you, Kim: unforgettable.
109 Friendly Beaches Road, Friendly Beaches
MONA – Museum of Old and New Art
Forget everything you know about museums — MONA in Hobart is part gallery, part fever dream, and entirely iconic. Dubbed a “subversive Disneyland for adults,” it’s a labyrinth of ancient artefacts, mind-bending installations, and art that delights as much as it shocks. Getting there is half the fun — take the scenic ferry, sip local wine on deck, and sail straight into creative chaos. Set on the banks of the Derwent River, MONA fuses Tasmania’s wild landscape with fearless innovation. It’s bold, brilliant, and gloriously unpredictable — an unforgettable Tasmanian experience that rewires your idea of art.
655 Main Road, Berriedale
Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park
Cradle Mountain doesn’t do ordinary — and neither should you. Go all in with the Overland Track by Tasmanian Walking Company, a seven-day trek through ancient forests, alpine meadows, and glacier-carved peaks. By night, swap hiking boots for headlamps on a wildlife tour to spot wombats and Tasmanian devils under a galaxy-bright sky. Between stargazing sessions and stories shared fireside, you’ll find Tasmania at its wildest and most magical — equal parts grounding, otherworldly, and totally bucket-list-worthy.
Bruny Island Gourmet Food and Scenic Tour
Bruny Island is where wild beauty meets seriously good eating, and Bruny Island Safaris serves it up in style. Think fresh-shucked oysters, gooey artisan cheese, and golden honey tastings before climbing to The Neck Lookout for those cinematic coastal views. Keep your eyes peeled for the island’s celebrity residents — rare white wallabies that call this slice of Tasmania home.
Sitchu Tip: Don’t skip the island’s cult-famous bread fridge — a self-serve stash of freshly baked loaves that’s pure small-town magic.
Unearth the Haunting Secrets of Port Arthur
For those who like their history with a side of goosebumps, the Port Arthur Ghost Tour is Tasmania’s most chilling after-dark experience. By lantern light, you’ll wander the convict site’s shadowy corridors as your guide unpacks tales of tragedy, mystery, and the spirits said to still roam its halls. It’s eerie, fascinating, and just the right amount of spine-tingling. With limited spots and exclusive access to off-limits areas, this 90-minute tour (Thursday to Saturday) turns colonial history into a haunting you won’t forget.
Visit Lovers Falls
Hidden deep within Tasmania’s wild west, Lovers Falls rewards the romantics and the adventurers alike. Reachable only by canoe, kayak, or a local river cruise, the journey along the glassy Pieman River is half the magic — mist rising, forest closing in, silence stretching wide. After a gentle 4km paddle, a short climb reveals the falls themselves: veiled, quiet, and impossibly serene. It’s an off-grid moment that feels borrowed from another world — pure Tasmanian tranquillity at its most cinematic.
Corinna, Tasmania
Train Ride on the West Coast Wilderness Railway
All aboard the West Coast Wilderness Railway, where steam, story, and scenery collide in true Tasmanian style. This 35-kilometre journey from Queenstown to Strahan winds through misty rainforest and rugged gorges, tracing the same path miners once took to haul copper to the coast. Built with the ingenious Abt Rack and Pinion system, it’s an engineering feat that conquered wild terrain long before roads existed. Today, it’s pure slow-travel magic — vintage carriages, rich history, and views so lush they feel straight out of another century.
Tasmania is a treasure trove of extraordinary experiences that can’t be replicated anywhere else. From hands-on activities like beekeeping and oyster shucking to adventures in the wilderness and fine dining in breathtaking locales, the island offers something for everyone. Check out these creative classes in Hobart and stunning nature trails for more unique ways to embrace this beautiful state.
