4 Tips to Explore Tassie Off the Beaten Track

Rural Tasmania is beautiful, but it can be hard to spot the gems among the endless tourist traps. Follow our tips to finding local gems, as we explore Tassie off the beaten track. 

Having explored Hobart, Wineglass Bay, and a bit of the Great Eastern Drive, the next stop in our Tassie adventures was Weegena, a tiny town somewhat between Launceston and Cradle Mountain. I actually spoke with several Tassie-born locals from Hobart to Devonport, and not one of them, including a taxi driver, had ever heard of it.

Our host provided very specific instructions, including when we should expect to lose mobile phone signal.  It dropped with our first turn off Highway 1, when the tall crops made the black of night even darker. Fortunately, the directions were perfect, and we had no trouble finding our farm stay. We unloaded the car, put CZ to bed, and began to look through the wealth of local tourism information and guide books our host had on hand.  The number of leaflets alone should have clued us in to the high volume of tourist traps.

We saw a flyer about the Cradle to Coast Tasting Trail, and two stops immediately made our short-list, the salmon farm and the honey farm factory. The honey “farm” turned out to be more of a road-side stop than where honey is actually made.  They had ice cream, lotions, lots of honey varieties and every bee-themed tent, toy, percussion instrument, and souvenir you can imagine.  Fortunately, CZ was more keen on the tasting than the toys. While they had a working hive, a couple information plaques, and display video, it was just short enough to read before your child asked for a new set of bee rainboots.

Our tips for getting off the beaten path:

1. Have a true local experience with Airbnb accommodations.

In Weegena we stayed at a small cottage, located on several hectares of farmland. The house was quite bare in terms of amenities, but provided access to nature that we often miss living in the city. We pictured campfire nights and stargazing, but failed to account for our Southern location. The sky wasn’t dark until past 10pm, by which time we were all in bed. However, we did enjoy being several gravel roads from the nearest highway and steps away from secluded, grassy meadows and our own private pond.

The family farm grows a plethora of vegetables and fruits, in addition to caring for a cow, goat, and several chickens. The hosts generously provided us with fresh eggs, berries, cherries, apples, and homemade jam. We also received a tour of the farm and surrounding property. EZ and I excitedly spotted wallaby, pademelons, and an unconfirmed platypus splash. CZ loved running around the front porch, and even became brave enough to approach the chicken coop towards the end of our stay.

2. Talk to your airbnb host.

One of the reasons we love staying at Airbnb accommodations is because you have access to a person who generally loves to share their town. Many hosts will have binders with information and tourist brochures, but if possible, have a face-to-face conversation to get insight into what spots and activities meet your personal travel style. Also, don’t forget to read through the guestbook for information on what other travelers enjoyed.

Our host directed us to an epic view of the farmlands in the valley at sunset, a bridge with a family of platypus staying underneath, and gave us an interesting perspective on the salmon and honey farms.  Turns out they are both European immigrant stories, and it was impressive what they were able to build up for there new lives in Tassie.  It definitely made us a bit jealous, and we discussed buying Oatlands to revitalize its fading tourist attractions ;).

3. Ignore the published guides.

While I love reading travel books and scouring Trip Advisor for recommendations, in smaller towns, these sources have led us astray more than helped. As we mentioned above, we had some lackluster experiences at a honey farm, we had similar experiences at the “must-see” salmon farm, historic bridge, and restored mill. We would have much rather spent that time hiking, looking for platypus, or at a secluded beach.

For Christmas Day, we skipped the highly rated beaches and drove into Narawntapu National Park to Baker’s Beach. There were two other cars in the parking lot when we arrived, and we spoke to a couple from Queensland. Otherwise we were totally alone, aside from the lowland copperhead snake JZ encountered near the bathroom.

We enjoyed letting CZ play freely in the sand without worrying about her getting lost in the crowds or accidentally trampled by older children. However, we did make two crucial errors on that trip: 1) not bringing enough water – apparently, we did not learn from Freycinet and 2) not starting the GPS while we had service before departing. We eventually found our way, and it took us past and open petrol station with good selection of refreshing, cold beverages.

4. Talk to locals.

Talking to people at restaurants, cafes, and after church gave us much better ideas for worthwhile stops. Make sure you convey your interest in their favorite local spots instead of what is popular or heavily advertised. Mention any local wildlife you would be keen to see, as what excites you might be ordinary to them! We ate at an incredible deli that felt like a local haunt, learned where the local wildlife hung out, and were told about the special tours at local caves.

We had an excellent trip, and one of our favorite adventures was a short hike on neighboring farmland in Weegena. Our host suggested the nearby hill for its panoramic 360 degree views of the epic Tassie sunsets, and it was everything we hoped.

What travel gems have you found off the beaten path?