This is the 7 days in Tasmania itinerary I actually did, Launceston to Hobart, one way, no backtracking. It is not the only way to see the island, and if you have longer, I have included an honest section on what I would add rather than pretend a week covers everything. But if you have seven days and want to see the real range of what this island does, this is the route.

Every stop below links to a full write-up. Where I have not personally been somewhere, I have said so plainly rather than filling the gap with borrowed confidence.

The quick answer

Before you plan around it

Salamanca Market only runs on Saturdays. If Day 7 does not land on a Saturday for you, swap that piece of the day for more time in the CBD, still covered fully in the Hobart posts linked below.

The day-by-day breakdown

Day 1: Arrive in Launceston

QantasLink also serves Launceston alongside Jetstar and Virgin Australia

Fly into Launceston rather than Hobart if your route allows it, this itinerary is built one way, north to south, which avoids doubling back on the same roads. Sydney to Launceston Flight covers the route if that is where you are starting from. Settle into your accommodation, there is not much to do the first evening beyond getting your bearings and an early night before Day 2.

Day 2: Cradle Mountain, then Cataract Gorge

The view that stops people mid-sentence

Start early. Cradle Mountain is about 90 minutes from Launceston, properly close compared to the four-hour haul from Hobart, which is exactly why this itinerary puts it here rather than trying to bolt it onto the southern leg of the trip. Dove Lake is the classic photo, and private vehicles are restricted past the visitor centre, a shuttle bus handles the rest. Full details, including how the shuttle system actually works, are in Cradle Mountain Day Trip from Launceston.

The natural gorge – colder than the pool, and far more memorable

Back in Launceston by mid-afternoon, close the day at Cataract Gorge, a proper gorge walk minutes from the city centre, chairlift optional. Full route in Cataract Gorge, Launceston.

Day 3: Launceston to Hobart, via Ross Village

The Salvation corner – the Catholic Church at the Four Corners crossroads

The drive south takes around two and a half hours direct, but break it at Ross, a properly intact nineteenth-century village roughly halfway between the two cities, its convict-built bridge and heritage bakery are worth the stop even if you only give it an hour. Full details in Ross Village, Tasmania.

A rainbow over Hobart’s waterfront fishing boats at Victoria Dock, appearing after a rain shower cleared into sun.

Once you reach Hobart and check in, spend the evening walking the waterfront and CBD heritage stretch, Constitution Dock, St David’s Cathedral, the GPO clock tower, no fixed plan needed, just getting oriented before the busier days ahead. The full city rundown, including practical details like public toilets and bus cards, is in Things to Do in Hobart.

Day 4: Bruny Island

The view from The Neck lookout, the narrow sandy isthmus joining North and South Bruny Island.

Of everything in this itinerary, Bruny is the day I would protect above almost anything else if your schedule gets tight. Sea cliffs, a clifftop lighthouse, and some of the best food in Tasmania, oysters, cheese, honey, chocolate, all in a single day trip from Hobart. Full stop-by-stop account in Bruny Island Day Trip from Hobart.

Ferry queues are real in summer

The SeaLink ferry from Kettering runs on a queue system rather than fixed bookings, and 8 to 10am departing Kettering, and 4 to 5pm returning from the island, are the two windows most likely to back up. Arrive 20 to 30 minutes before the sailing you want, especially in peak season.

Day 5: TMAG, kunanyi/Mount Wellington, and sunset at Bellerive

Two centuries of Tasmanian faces, stacked floor to ceiling

Start at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, free, and properly worth the three or four hours it can quietly absorb, the Thylacine Gallery alone justifies the visit. Full details in TMAG: Four Hours I Did Not Plan For.

On a clear day the view runs out past the city to the open sea.

By early afternoon, head up kunanyi/Mount Wellington, the Explorer Bus is the easiest option without a car. The summit runs noticeably colder than the city below, bring a real jacket regardless of season. Full guide in Mount Wellington from Hobart.

Bellerive Beach in the late afternoon with the Derwent River curving south

Close the day at Bellerive, across the Tasman Bridge, a proper walk past the marina and Kangaroo Bluff Battery rather than a five-minute lookout stop. Full case for Bellerive versus Rosny Hill in Best Sunset in Hobart.

Day 6: Freycinet and Wineglass Bay

The view from the Wineglass Bay Lookout, the photo that sells Tasmania.

The one day trip worth extending your whole southern leg for if you need to choose. Freycinet sits 2.5 to 3 hours up the east coast, too far to pair with anything else, which is exactly why it gets its own full day here. Wineglass Bay Lookout is the main event, about 1.5 hours return, and the view at the top is one of the best in Australia. Full breakdown in Hobart to Freycinet & Wineglass Bay Day Trip.

Proper shoes matter here. The track is granite steps and rock rather than a sealed path, and it gets properly slick if a coastal shower catches you partway up, sandals are the wrong call regardless of how warm the day starts.

Day 7: Salamanca Market, Battery Point, and sunset at Rosny Hill

Salamanca Market stalls in Hobart, Tasmania, showing market tents, shoppers, and the historic sandstone warehouses along Salamanca Place.

Close the trip the way Hobart is best known: Salamanca Market, 300-plus stalls, then up Kelly’s Steps into Battery Point, one of the best-preserved colonial suburbs in Australia. Full route in Salamanca to Battery Point.

Tasman Bridge and the Derwent River viewed from the Rosny Hill Circuit Track through wild fennel and summer grass, on the walk down from Rosny Hill Lookout in Hobart.

For your last evening, Rosny Hill gives you the classic Hobart skyline view without needing the longer walk Bellerive asked for on Day 5, a fitting way to close a trip that started 300 kilometres north. If you have an early flight out the next morning, this is covered in the same Best Sunset in Hobart post.

Where to eat and stay along the way

For Hobart specifically, Where to Eat in Hobart covers restaurants, cafes, and a whisky trail in real depth, and Where to Stay in Hobart breaks the city down by area. I based myself in the northern suburbs near Glenorchy for value, which cost me a bus or drive most days, worth reading before you book if walkability matters to your plans.

Sorting accommodation for both legs?

Compare current rates across Launceston and Hobart on Trip.com

Extend to 10 to 14 days: the West Coast and Bay of Fires

Seven days gets you the real range of Tasmania, mountains, coast, cities, wilderness, but it leaves out two regions that come up constantly in longer Tasmania itineraries. I have not been to either myself, so this section is researched rather than personally walked, and I want to say that plainly rather than write it as if I had.

Strahan and the West Coast, roughly four hours from Hobart or three from Cradle Mountain, centres on the Gordon River Cruise, a half-day trip into the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area aboard a purpose-built vessel that switches to quiet electric motors once inside the World Heritage boundary. The cruise crosses Macquarie Harbour to Hell’s Gates, then into the Gordon River itself, with a stop at Heritage Landing to walk among ancient Huon pines, and a stop at Sarah Island, a nineteenth-century penal colony with its own dark history. Nearby Queenstown is connected to Strahan by the West Coast Wilderness Railway, a heritage rail journey through rainforest gorges that once carried the region’s mining industry. If a 7-day trip stretches toward 10, this is the natural place to add two or three days, most itineraries I found treat 1.5 to 2 days as the minimum to do the West Coast justice.

Booking the Gordon River

The Gordon River Cruise Tour covers Hell’s Gates, Heritage Landing, and Sarah Island in a single half-day trip from Strahan.

Bay of Fires, on the opposite side of the island from Strahan, up the northeast coast from St Helens, is a 50-kilometre stretch of white sand and orange lichen-covered granite boulders, the colour comes from the lichen itself rather than the bay’s name, which actually comes from fires an early explorer saw burning along the coast. Binalong Bay is the usual base, with Jeanneret Beach and Cosy Corner beach among the quieter spots further along. It pairs naturally with the drive between Launceston and the east coast, worth considering as a detour on Day 2 or 3 if you extend this itinerary rather than a separate leg entirely.

Between these two additions, a 7-day core comfortably becomes 10 to 12 days without feeling stretched, closer to the loop most dedicated Tasmania road trip guides actually recommend.

If you would rather not self-drive

This whole itinerary assumes you are planning and driving it yourself. If that is not your idea of a holiday, all-inclusive guided tours cover the same ground with someone else doing the navigating, the accommodation, and most of the meals. They range from a tight 5-day version to a full 10-day loop through every region.

A practical detail that catches people out: the Parks Pass

Nearly every stop in this itinerary, Cradle Mountain, Freycinet, Mount Field if you add it, Maria Island, sits inside a Tasmanian national park, and national parks here require a Parks Pass, purchased separately from any tour or accommodation. For a trip covering more than one park, the Holiday Pass, currently $95.50 AUD, covers every national park in Tasmania for up to two months and up to two vehicles registered at the same address, better value than paying day rates at each park individually once you are visiting two or more. Cradle Mountain has its own added wrinkle: private vehicles cannot drive past the visitor centre, a separate shuttle bus ticket is required regardless of which parks pass you hold. Buy the pass online before you go rather than assuming every visitor centre will be staffed when you arrive.

Best time to do this trip

I did this in summer, and the long daylight hours really helped, several of these days, TMAG plus the mountain plus Bellerive especially, need the light. Spring and autumn are the seasons most Tasmania guides point to for a better balance, milder driving conditions than the icy Midlands winter mornings, fewer crowds than peak summer, still enough daylight to fit a full day trip in. Whatever season you go, pack proper layers, Tasmania’s weather shifts fast enough that a warm morning and a cold, windy summit in the same afternoon is normal rather than unlucky.

Getting between Launceston and Hobart

The direct drive is about 2.5 to 3 hours via the Midlands Highway, longer if you stop at Ross or detour toward the coast. The Kinetic bus service also runs the route if you are travelling without a car, though it will not stop at every small town along the way the way a self-drive can. If you are renting, DiscoverCars is what I use to compare rates across operators.

FAQ

Is 7 days enough for Tasmania?

Enough to see both major cities and the best of the east coast and central highlands properly, yes. Not enough to add the West Coast or Bay of Fires without feeling rushed. If either matters to you, plan for 10 to 12 days instead.

Should I start in Launceston or Hobart?

Either works, but starting in Launceston and finishing in Hobart, as this itinerary does, avoids backtracking over the same roads, since Cradle Mountain sits much closer to Launceston than to Hobart.

Do I need a car for this itinerary?

Strongly recommended. Public transport connects the two cities, but Cradle Mountain, Bruny Island, and Freycinet are all far easier with your own vehicle or a guided tour than relying on buses.

What is the Tasmania Parks Pass and do I need one?

Yes, if you are visiting any national park, which this itinerary does repeatedly. A Holiday Pass at $95.50 AUD covers every park for up to two months and is better value than paying separately at each one.

Can I do this itinerary without visiting both Bruny Island and Freycinet?

Yes, if time is tight, Bruny is the one I would keep. It is closer, easier, and does not require the long exposed drive Freycinet does.

Is Tasmania walkable, or do I need to drive everywhere?

Both cities themselves are highly walkable once you are there, Hobart especially. It is the distances between destinations, Launceston to Cradle Mountain, Hobart to Freycinet, that make a car close to essential for this specific route.

Final thoughts

By the time I was standing at Rosny Hill on the last evening, watching the sun go down over a city I had reached by way of a glacial lake, a convict village, and two very different coastlines, the shape of the whole week made sense. Seven days in Tasmania done this way is not the only route through the island, but it never once asks you to drive the same stretch of road twice, and that turned out to matter more than I expected going in.

If you have the extra time, the West Coast and Bay of Fires are the two additions worth making. If you do not, this route still gives you the real range of the island, mountains, coast, and both major cities, without cutting anything that actually matters.

Everything else the site covers in Tasmania builds out from here: Things to Do in Launceston and Things to Do in Hobart if you want more time in either city, and Best Day Trips from Hobart if Bruny and Freycinet leave you wanting more once you are there.

Every guide on A Walk in the World is written to help you have the best possible trip. I only recommend hotels, tours, and experiences I’d genuinely choose myself, and I don’t accept payments or sponsorships from operators in exchange for positive coverage. Some of the booking links on this site are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. Thanks for trusting my guides and supporting the blog!

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