Launceston is a city North of Tasmania, Australia. Unfortunately this city tends to generally be overlooked by tourists. With such beautiful scenery to be seen, and much exploring to be done, only less than 2% of tourists go visit while on vacation. Launceston has many beautiful, well-preserved colonial and Victorian architecture, so it shouldn’t be difficult to find a Launceston resort hotel accomodation for your next visit..
Best Time To Visit Tasmania
The best time to visit Tasmania is during the shoulder season period which is between March-May and September-November. Visiting during these times, you’ll be able to avoid the cold winter months with snowfall in the Tasmanian highlands. Some places will be closed during the winter, you have better luck to explore all the beauty during the summer. October-December are popular times to go visit as well, which happens to be peak season for tourists and becomes crowded by everyone. This is a great time of the year to have the chance to enjoy the beautiful Tasmanian beaches.
How Much Time Do You Need For A Tasmanian Road Trip?
There is so much scenery to be seen and history to learn and enjoy so you definitely don’t want to cut this trip short, the recommended time for a road trip in Tasmania is more than 8 days, 10-14 days is ideal. Giving yourself at least 2 weeks allows you to be able to see all of Tasmania’s beauty without being rushed.
How To Get Around In Tasmania
The best way to get around is by car. A lot of people prefer to rent cars in Hobart and drive along the coast. Hertz Tasmania and Europcar are recommended; they provide drop off at other cities in Tasmania so you travel one way rather than a return trip. Larger cities are more likely to have buses that will take you to and from.
What To Pack
You could easily be surprised by the weather change in Launceston compared to Australia’s arid deserts and beachy coasts. There is a difference in weather due to cool temperate rainforests, you want to make sure you pack plenty of layers to keep you warm but can easily be removed later on in the afternoon after exploring and hiking for a couple hours. A good raincoat and windbreaker jacket along with an umbrella because it gets pretty wet.
Jumpstart Your Morning
In case you didn’t know, Australia is known for the coffee culture and Tasmania is no different. Start your day off and go get a delicious cup of coffee from Sweetbrew. This delicious coffee shop is the local hangout spot the hipster and tourists love, where they say every cup of coffee is perfection and their Summer Berry Cake is absolutely amazing.
Explore Cataract Gorge
Cataract Gorge is a gorgeous park in the center of Launceston. Crazy fact, this park is only 1.5 kilometers from the state’s 2nd largest city. You can take a beautiful walk down the trail that will lead you down to the gorge and you’ll be brought to the main area of First Basin. Along with the beautiful large reservoir of water, there is a swimming pool people like to go swimming in. On the far side of First Basin is a gorgeous Victorian garden. There are walking trails that follow the gorge back to Launceston and also up the South Esk River. If you want to explore more you can cross the water, there is a picturesque Alexandra Suspension bridge and cable car.
Tamar Valley
Australia has also become popular for their wine regions. Tasmania is known more for their commercial beer and whisky. Tamar Valley goes from Launceston along the beautiful coast. A beautiful site to see that you will be sure to never forget is all of the wineries that go along Tamar Valley Wine Trail, and of course all of the beautiful scenery. All of the viewpoints with beautiful vistas of vineyards, hills and gorgeous rivers is a site you will for sure want to see on your vacation.