We were still in fascination of last year’s road trip in WA so much that we craved for another one very soon. So we quickly picked Tasmania based on a few good reasons like we still got our visa on and it was going to be summers in Tasmania from December to February. Just perfect for a trip!!

Tasmania is an outlying island state, 240 km below the southernmost coast of Australia, separated by the Bass Strait. It is known for its vast, rugged wilderness areas, largely protected within parks and reserves.

The island is one of the biggest islands in the world with rich history, picturesque scenery as well as great food and wine. A list of major lures here includes watching wildlife, caves, historical places, museums, beaches and national parks.

Tasmania is the closest urban island to Antarctica which makes its ecology special. We saw very different wildlife and birdlife, caves and natural formations unlike rest of the world making it an important destination for tourists. Tourism began here in late 1800s giving boost to its economy so far.

Tasmania has an international airport in Hobart. An overnight flight from Singapore takes 7+ hours to reach Melbourne. Both Melbourne & Tasmania are 3 hours ahead of Singapore time.

There are no direct flights to Hobart from Singapore, all flights hop in Melbourne. We hadn’t seen Melbourne either so we took a flight to Melbourne, spent 2 nights there, then took an early flight to Launceston in northern Tasmania. Certainly it was worthy saving us from jet lag. Launceston was the nearest airport for us as we had planned a round trip of Tasmania. It takes only an hour to fly there from Melbourne.

Let us tell you that summers in Tasmania doesn’t mean straw-hat attire, you will still need your woollies as the temperatures vary between 22°c daytime to 8°c in the night.

Summers, from December to February is the peak season for vacations in Tasmania, as during summers there is better accessibility to wilderness and remote areas. The weather changes frequently numerous times a day. It is very windy (strong winds) and cloudy mostly even in summers, there may be frequent rain showers too. We kept checking weather app on our mobiles to remain alert and travel prepared.

Major tourist activities in summers include coastal walks, multiple day hikes and tracks along mountainous parts, camping, day tours.

Swims and luxury lodging around eastern shorelines of Freycinet National Park and Bays of fire, watching colorful marine life plus calming at tranquil white sandy beaches, visiting breweries, rainforests and wildlife encounters are popular.

From April onwards winter arrives and it starts freezing especially on highlands, inspires people for snow activities like skiing at Ben Lomond national park, enchanted walks at snowy rainforests of Cradle mountain, Dove lake, bushlands and rivers. Winter season also brings striking beauty to the island along with famous midwinter festivals like MOFO, (hosted by MONA (the Museum of Old and New Art) every year in June) and Huon Valley winter festival.

Tasmania is an isolated garden of Australia which has been advanced for tourism in the past few decades. On the contrary, it yet has myriad gravel roads, no signs of gas stations or public amenities around mountainous ranges crossing which might take longer than 2-4 hours.

In summers, Tasmania gets its average days lengthier by 2 hours than usual, sunrises around 6:30 am and sunsets around 8:30 pm. To explore more places in a day, this extra 2-hour time appeared rewarding, but all grocery stores, shops and restaurants close between 4 pm to 5 pm. Unlike Asia, a number of eateries here open in the evening around 4 pm and are closed by 9 pm. So it’s a good idea to start your day early and finish early.

These facets are to be considered being on a road trip. Since we included more than 3 places or lookouts to explore in a day, we chose to use that extra slot of 2 hours before sunsets. Sometimes we were hitting towns after everything was closed, so we stocked up some meal supplies on the way with us always. It is important to keep yourself light on meals as you will be driving, spending a lot of time sitting in the car, so heavy meals must be avoided.

We drove entirely during the days and slept like babies during the nights, it is very important to get ample sleep and rest every single night while on a road trip. Driving consumes a lot of energy especially on tough terrains, and desolate areas. Not allowing yourself a goodnight sleep is making a big mistake as it leads to fatigue, headache and drowsiness the next day. Booking room in advance will be a great option unless you choose to go camping.

We advance booked our accommodations. It is crucial to get best value in peak season. In Melbourne, hostels were ranged from AUD 30- AUD 80 per night however hotel prices varied from AUD 120 to AUD 400+ per night based on ratings as well as availability.

We spent 2 nights in hotel while in Melbourne and then further in Tasmania, we chose staying in houses through Airbnb. These rooms ranged under AUD 200 approx., however staying in Bruny Island for 2 nights costed us more than AUD 400 approx. as this was peak season and Bruny Island has limited accommodation options.