Driving Holidays
Regional Food and Wine - Tasmania
Drive your taste buds wild! Follow gourmet food and fine Tasmanian wine from Launceston and the Tamar Valley to Hobart, via the east coast. You'll even meet makers and growers.
Nights 1-3 are at Rosevears Estate, near Launceston, with continental breakfast provided daily; nights 4-5, Piermont Retreat, Swansea; nights 6-8, Salamanca Inn, Hobart or Zero Davey, Hobart.
Featured price is per person twin share for 8 nights for travel until 31 August 2008, subject to availability. Featured price does not include entry or products within the suggested itinerary below. Further details and prices for travel beyond September see Conditions and Additional Information.
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Day 1
Arrive Launceston airport. Visit the Tasmanian Gourmet Sauce Company near historic Evandale, try wilderness honey at the Tasmanian Honey Company at Perth, or fruit wines at Hillwood Strawberry Farm. Dine at one of the many Launceston restaurants commended in the Australian Gourmet Traveller 2007 Australian Restaurant Guide, including Stillwater, Luck’s, Fee & Me, Restaurant Synergy or Mud Bar & Restaurant. Overnight at Rosevears.
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Day 2
It’s a day for the Tamar’s best sparkling wines: Pirie, Janz, Clover Hill and Hardy’s Arras. Sweeping river views are a side serve for an amazing lunch at West Tamar restaurants like Daniel Alps at Strathlynn or Estelle Rosevears. In Launceston, stroll the cliffgrounds at Cataract Gorge or chill out at the Aquarius Roman Baths. Overnight at Rosevears.
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Day 3
Take to the valley again – after all, there are 45 boutique vineyards or wineries to explore. Or go for a different brew at the Boag’s Centre for Beer Lovers. Wonderful treats await at the Swiss Chocolatier or a short drive away, at Ashgrove Farm Cheese. Overnight at Rosevears.
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Day 4
Cellar doors with stunning coastal scenery are a feature on the east coast. Don’t miss the view of Wineglass Bay at Freycinet National Park or a beach stroll at Swansea or Bicheno. Inland, the Pyengana Dairy Company owner still makes cloth-bound cheddar the way his grandfather did. Overnight at Piermont Retreat.
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Day 5
Taste delightful varieties at cellar doors of Freycinet and Spring Vale, with Apsley Gorge and Craigie Know open by appointment. Next door to Freycinet Vineyard, Coombend Estate offers premium olive oil alongside its wines. Shuck your own oysters on a tour of Freycinet Marine Farm, then stop at a café in Swansea for coffee. Overnight at Piermont Retreat.
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Day 6
Head south, stopping at Kate’s Berry Farm for luscious home-made berry ice-creams, strawberry Riesling and jams. Visit Darlington Vineyard at Orford, overlooking the Maria Island National Park. Overnight at either Zero Davey, or Salamanca Inn, Hobart.
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Day 7
Not one but three wine-growing valleys near Hobart to explore – Coal River Valley, the Derwent, and the Huon, all with their own specialties. The historic town of Richmond and the Barilla Bay Oysters farm, restaurant and tour are a bonus! Check the Wine South Tasmania brochure for vineyard details. Overnight at Zero Davey, or Salamanca Inn, Hobart.
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Day 8
This is a leisurely loop from Hobart to the superb architecture, food and wine of Moorilla Estate, then Stefano Lubiana Wines. Continue on to one of Tasmania’s best-loved national parks, Mt Field, or follow the Derwent River to its source at Lake St Clair. Back in Hobart, don’t miss the delights of the Wursthaus Kitchen, Lark Distillery and its whisky, gin and liqueurs, and a Cascade brewery tour and tasting. For dinner, try Lebrina, Restaurant Gondwana, Marque IV, Prossers on the Beach, or Orizuru Sushi Bar, all recommended by Australian Gourmet Traveller 2007 Australian Restaurant Guide. Overnight at Zero Davey, or Salamanca Inn, Hobart.
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Day 9
Huon Valley highlights are many, from Hartzview Wine Centre to the rammed earth Home Hill Winery, regional food centre of Peppermint Bay, and nearby Grandvewe Farm Cheesery producing superb cheeses and yoghurt from organic sheep’s milk. Further south, see forests in a new way on the Tahune Forest AirWalk or from two exciting swinging bridges. En route to Hobart, visit Huon Valley Mushrooms to see honey brown, oyster and shiitake mushroom production.
