This article is sponsored by Tourism Tasmania
Friendly Beaches Lodge, home-base for the four-day Freycinet Experience Walk, is a true escape from day-to-day life. Guests arrive by foot along a near-empty white beach, and need a guide to point out the track to the lodge, so small is its footprint. It’s completely off the grid (yes, no mobile coverage) and after each day’s walk, dinners are eaten by candlelight, having been cooked in a kitchen with no electric appliances. The oysters are from Freycinet Marine Farm, the grass-fed beef is sourced by renowned Bicheno butcher Sirloin Breier, the flathead is caught by guests while boating off Schouten Island, and the wine is from nearby vineyards. This experience, along with Bay of Fires Walk and Maria Island Walk (all on the sunny east coast) and Cradle Mountain Huts Overland Walk, from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair, count among the world’s great guided walks. They share a philosophy of treading lightly, with minimal impact on the unique environments, but not at the expense of creature comforts.
Tasmanian Expeditions’ walks are more challenging but intensely rewarding, including a nine-day trek along Tasmania’s uninhabited south coast in the World Heritage-listed Southwest National Park. And if that sounds too long, Tasmania’s 60 Great Short Walks are detailed on Tasmania’s Parks & Wildlife Service’s website (parks.tas.gov.au).
Freycinet Experience Walk freycinet.com.au
Great Walks of Tasmania greatwalkstasmania.com
Go behind the scenery in Tasmania – Suggested Touring Itineraries
