Tasmania
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Why Tasmania ?
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Upcoming departures, new experiences, interviews, exploration or scouting stories... All brochures can be ordered or downloaded in digital format.
Discover the destination
See all cruises in Oceania
Upcoming departures, new experiences, interviews, exploration or scouting stories... All brochures can be ordered or downloaded in digital format.
Discover the destination
Here is everything you need to know about the ‘Tassies’ (Tasmanians) and their remarkable island. Forests with giant trees and animals found nowhere else, delicious cheeses and wines, a warm and relaxed atmosphere: welcome to Tasmania!
Best practices
To do In Tasmania, social interactions are typically laid-back. People enjoy a relaxed lifestyle and appreciate a good sense of humour. There’s no need to be too formal: just smile and keep it friendly! To avoid It is strictly forbidden to bring foodstuffs such as fresh fruit or vegetables into Tasmania, whether you arrive by air or sea. These firm biosafety rules are enforced to protect the island from external contamination.
Fast facts
Blood-curdling screams! When the first Europeans heard hideous cries in the bush, they attributed them to demons... But the culprit was in fact the Tasmanian devil, a small black marsupial with white stripes. A carnivorous scavenger, this creature inspired Taz, the wild cartoon character. The Aussie Ark organisation is currently working to reintroduce this endangered species to the Australian continent, where it disappeared around 3,000 years ago.
Essential vocabulary
Good morning / Good evening Goodbye Welcome Excuse me / Please Thank you Yes / No How are you? Fine, thank you, and you? My name is...
Gastronomy
Tasmania’s temperate, oceanic climate has made it Australia’s orchard. It exports a great deal of produce to mainland Australia: fruit, especially apples and berries; vegetables, including delicious tomatoes; and wine, notably the famous Pinot and Chardonnay from the Tamar and Derwent valleys. On your trip to Tasmania, be sure to sample some cheeses (like Tasmanian Camembert) and plenty of seafood for a real gourmet experience.
In the spotlight
Today, Tasmania is coming to terms with its past as a British colony chosen for its isolation and used as a penal colony. From 1832, with the creation of the Port Arthur penitentiary, until the 1850s, 74,000 prisoners were sent to a veritable hell, with no possibility of return. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2010, the prison sites are a place of remembrance of the mass deportation that led to the European settlement of the island.
Culture
Book Writer Richard Flanagan was born in Tasmania in 1961, and many of his novels are inspired by the island state. In ‘The Sound of One Hand Clapping’ (Pan Macmillan, 1997), we follow Sonja, the daughter of central European immigrants who came to Tasmania in the 1950s in the hope of a better life, on her return to her childhood home. Haunted by the unexplained disappearance of her mother, she tries to reconnect with her father. A moving tale of abandonment and exile. Film ‘Tasmania, Saving The Last Giants’: this 2017 documentary directed by Stéphane Jacques recounts the unprecedented mobilisation of people fighting to defend Tasmania’s great rainforest against ravenous logging companies. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the primary forest, with its tree ferns and giant eucalyptus trees, represents an extraordinary reservoir of biodiversity.
Key figures – 1876
In 1876, the last Aboriginal Tasmanian – a person of purely Aboriginal descent – passed away. This woman, named Truganini, knew the tragic fate of her people, exterminated by the colonial power. Her skeleton was even exhibited in a museum, and it was not until a century after her death that her ashes were scattered in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, in accordance with her wishes.
Discover the destination
With its forests and temperate climate, nature reigns supreme on any visit to Tasmania. Hikers are sure to appreciate Tasman National Park and the islands of Bass Strait, while wine connoisseurs will enjoy the famous vintages of the Tamar Valley. We have put together a few of Tasmania’s most beautiful ports of call.
Nestled between the River Derwent and Mount Wellington, Hobart is surrounded by ideal spots for hiking, kayaking, climbing and more. For a less physically demanding visit, head to the superb Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, before a gourmet stop at the Salamanca open-air market.
The highest cliffs in Australia: come and admire these spectacular walls battered by the waves and the rocky spires rising from the Tasman Sea like marine sentinels. While the Three Capes Track (Hauy, Pillar and Raoul) takes several days to complete, a multitude of coastal paths allow you to discover these magnificent landscapes in just a few hours.
On either side of the Freycinet Peninsula, in the heart of Freycinet National Park, Promise Bay and Wineglass Bay await you with pristine, white sandy beaches. At Hazards Beach, the water is so clear that you can make out every detail of the seabed! A pause for serenity and reconnection with nature...
Low altitude and cool sea breezes: the terroir of the Tamar Valley produces some of the finest wines in the world. Red, white, sparkling: some 30 wineries have cellars open for tastings accompanied by delicious local farm produce.
Melt-in-the-mouth crayfish pie, extra-tender beef, award-winning cheeses, all produced locally: on the food scene, King Island does indeed wear the crown! And with waves that are perfect for surfing and golf courses overlooking Bass Strait, it's no surprise that this island is such a popular Tasmanian destination.
Six hundred and twenty eight nautical miles, or just under 1,200 kilometres: the epic distance traversed by the competitors in the famous Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race every year since 1945. Each 26 December, the world's best crews set off for two to five days of sailing in the often difficult conditions of the South Pacific and Bass Strait. Truly legendary!