TASMANIA WITH MELBOURNE
Tasmania, separated from mainland Australia during the last Ice Age, is a beautiful, dramatic island, where the rugged terrain nurtures a vast collection of Australian mammals: Tasmanian devils, wombats, kangaroos, wallabies, quolls and pademelons – not to mention the bizarre platypus and the spine-covered echidna. The island’s distinctive bird-life fascinates in equal measure, from fairy wrens and fairy penguins to cockatoos, rosellas and scarlet robins.
Our circuit around and through Tasmania will celebrate the island’s landscape in all its diversity: Mt Field National Park, with its wondrous mountain scenery and striking alpine plant communities; Lake St Clair, where we will stroll through forests of black peppermint; Ben Lomond, surrounded on all sides by precipitous escarpments; and Mt Wellington, “massive and noble like his brother Etna”, in the words of Mark Twain. Macquarie Harbour in the west and Freycinet National Park in the east match these splendours: at Freycinet, as on jagged Cradle Mountain, luxurious lodges will encourage us to savour the natural environment to the full.
As well as acquainting ourselves with the Tasmanian countryside and coast, we will gain insight into the shaping of Tasmania’s colonial history with visits to Port Arthur, Richmond, Saltwater River and the sheep station at historic Woolnorth.
Our tour includes a handful of cities of great cultural interest: Hobart, site of a wonderful botanic garden and an impressive array of Georgian buildings; and Launceston, Tasmania’s “garden city” situated on the Tamar River, noted for its attractive 19th century architecture. Our programme comes to an end with two days in Melbourne, a cosmopolitan city of Victorian arcades, revitalised docks, scenic rivers and formal gardens. A day excursion will take us to the Yuyang and Brisbane Ranges, where we will spot koala, grey kangaroo, emu and a host of water-birds and raptors.
Travel is by comfortable small coach equipped with an excellent reference library. Accommodation is in small hotels and motor lodges with private facilities. The group size will be restricted to 16 participants.
This tour will be led by Mark Hanger, MA, one of New Zealand’s leading natural history guides. A botanist and ornithologist, Mark worked for a number of years for the New Zealand National Parks Service and has been offering his own distinctive tours of New Zealand and Australia for nearly twenty years.
Itinerary
Day 1Depart Heathrow 2215 on Qantas for Melbourne.
Day 2In flight.
Day 3Arrive Melbourne 0630 and connect by domestic flight to Hobart. Transfer to hotel in central Hobart for three nights.
Day 4Whole-day excursion to Mt Field National Park (echidnas and wallabies, stunning richeas, ewartias, Tasmanian celmisias, sub-alpine flora), alpine moorlands, spectacular peaks, Russell Falls, rainforests, Styx Valley.
Day 5Penal colony sites around Hobart: Port Arthur, Saltwater River, Richmond. Afternoon: Tasman National Park (spectacular coastal scenery).
Day 6Cross central Tasmania to Lake St Clair National Park (lake-side black peppermint forests) then through Cradle Mountain region to King William Saddle (billardiera, Tasmanian bottlebrush, diplarrena), mining town of Queenstown before continuing to beautiful Macquarie Harbour for overnight in picturesque fishing village of Strahan.
Day 7Cruise around Macquarie Harbour and into Gordon River (UNESCO World Heritage site): shag, osprey, snakes; pencil pines. Afternoon: Cradle Valley, Cradle Mountain National Park. Stay in Cradle Mountain for two nights.
Day 8Walks in vicinity of Lake Dove, Crater Lake and Cradle Mountain (boronias, argentipallium, helichrysum). Evening excursion for wombats, pademelons, Bennett’s wallabies, quolls and Tasmanian devils.
Day 9Historic Woolnorth sheep and cattle station, Cape Grim. Two nights stay in Stanley with visit to seabird colony on The Nut.
Day 10Delightful village of Stanley, chairlift to The Nut, study Tasmanian giant freshwater lobster, (largest freshwater invertebrate) with evening visit to see Little Penguins at Parsonage Point, Burnie.
Day 11Dawn visit to see wild platypus in nearby creeks followed by Narawntapu National Park: abundant marsupial wildlife, variety of waterfowl, estuarine and scrub birds. Stay overnight in Launceston.
Day 12Ben Lomond National Park (magnificent rockscapes, unsurpassed alpine flora) then continue south to coastal Freycinet National Park (dramatic coastline) for two nights at luxurious ocean-side Freycinet Lodge.
Day 13Relaxing morning in Coles Bay then walk to Wineglass Bay (granite outcrops, rugged peaks, crystal-clear waters, stunning orchids, Oyster Bay pines). Evening walk for possums and quolls.
Day 14Ross (former inland garrison town, historic architecture, convict-built Ross Bridge, female convict work house, barracks) then continue to Hobart (botanic gardens) for overnight.
Day 15Morning at leisure in Hobart followed by flight to Melbourne (guided historic walking tour) with two nights at the Holiday Inn on Flinders.
Day 16Whole-day excursion to Serendip Sanctuary (grey kangaroo, emu), Brisbane Ranges (koala research centre).
Day 17Depart Melbourne 1700.
Day 18Arrive Heathrow 0525.
Cost includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, all meals except two dinners, excursions & admissions.
Not included: visa, travel insurance, single room supplement £600.
