Weekend Getaways in Tasmania: Freycinet, the Overland Track and Cradle Mountain

Tasmania's compact size means that virtually the entire island is accessible for a weekend escape from Hobart or Launceston, with the state's extraordinary diversity of wilderness, wine regions and heritage towns all within 3 hours. Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, 3 hours northwest of Hobart or 1.5 hours south of Devonport, is Tasmania's most iconic wilderness destination, with the Dove Lake circuit walk (6 km, 2-3 hours) providing outstanding views of the glacially carved mountain landscape. The Overland Track, a 65 km multi-day walk from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair, is one of Australia's great long-distance walks and requires advance booking during the peak season from October to May. Freycinet National Park and Wineglass Bay on the East Coast, 2.5 hours north of Hobart, offer the island's most photographed natural scene, a perfect arc of white sand visible from the Wineglass Bay lookout above the park entrance. The Huon Valley, 90 minutes south of Hobart, produces Tasmania's best apples, cherries and cool-climate wines in an orchard landscape. The Tasman Peninsula's Port Arthur Historic Site, 90 minutes southeast, is Australia's most significant convict heritage site.