Explore Tasmania's Wilderness Coast in depth with an unforgettable small ship expedition!
Tasmania’s pristine World Heritage wilderness and national parks teem with native wildlife, where rugged mountain ranges meet the sea with soaring coastal cliffs and crescent-shaped beaches carved by the elements.
Amidst this pristine, natural backdrop, Tasmania’s intriguing colonial history is underpinned by a compelling convict heritage and historic sites. Follow in the pioneering footsteps of intrepid colonial explorers to far-flung reaches of the island where tales of maritime adventures abound, preserved streetscapes are virtual living museums and world-class artists find inspiration at every turn.
Shaped by a climate straddling the Roaring Forties latitudes, the Apple Isle’s verdant valleys and rolling hills are clad in fertile pastures, vineyards and orchards bathed in crisp clean air and warm summer sunshine. Emerging from centuries-old cellar doors and farm gates are award-winning cheeses, premium wines, craft beers and artisanal spirits inspired by Tasmania’s ample natural assets.
Cruise to the edge of the world on a Tasmanian expedition cruise that teams wombats with wine, beaches with brie and convict ruins with craft beer in a palate-pleasing adventure cruise into Tasmania’s wild heart.
Expedition highlights:
- Spend two full days exploring wilderness areas of Port Davey and Bathurst Harbour
- Hike to Wineglass Bay and The Hazards in Freycinet National Park
- Learn about Maria Island’s history as a penal colony
- Visit Port Arthur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
- Admire dramatic 300m tall coastal cliffs of the Tasman Peninsula
- Taste Tasmania’s fresh farm-gate produce and world-class cool-climate wines at an onboard event
- Spot fur seals, wombats and wallabies in Tasmania’s national parks
- Visit the Wooden Boat Centre and learn about Tasmania’s proud maritime heritage
- Hike the Fluted Cape Track at Bruny Island
- Kayak from the back of the ship at Fortescue Bay
YOUR CRUISE PRICE INCLUDES:
- Expedition voyage aboard Coral Discoverer
- Expert Expedition Team including a Guest Lecturer and a Tasmanian Specialist
- Daily guided excursions on the Xplorer and Zodiac tender vessels and kayaks where conditions allow
- Small batch local dining prepared fresh onboard: breakfasts, lunches and table d’hote dinners
- Showcase wines, selected beers and soft drinks with lunch and dinner service
- 24 hour coffee and selection of teas
- Captain’s Welcome and Farewell Events and Open Bridge Access with the Captain
- Comprehensive and fully guided sightseeing in each destination
- All entrance fees to National Parks and Ports
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED:
- Travel insurance
- Alcoholic drinks (including beer and wine) outside of lunch and dinner service
- Internet services (available at a cost)
- Laundry service (available at a cost)
- Australian entry visas or travel permits
- Items of a personal nature including but not limited to phone and internet communications and bar charges (outside of the included drinks package as highlighted) laundry charges and souvenir purchases
Tipping not required:
On Coral Discoverer, the crew has no other agenda than your delight.
- Embark: Board at Hobart’s Princes Wharf at 4:00pm for 5:00pm departure
- Disembark: Arrive and disembark at Hobart’s Princes Wharf at 08:00am
The Captain and Expedition Team will make daily itinerary decisions to maximise the guest experience and take advantage of opportunities opened up by weather. There will be a daily briefing onboard to advise guests on the upcoming day’s activities. The expedition will visit Port Davey and Bathurst Harbour conditions permitting. We always aim to visit these beautiful destinations, but if we are not able to enter, an alternative destination more appropriate to the weather conditions will be chosen by the Captain. Note the summer temperature can still be very cool especially with the wind chill so warm layered clothing is essential.
DAY 1: DEPART HOBART
Board your Coral Expeditions small ship at Hobart’s Princes Wharf at 4:00pm where there is time to settle into your stateroom before our 5:00pm departure. Take the time to become acquainted with all the facilities onboard before meeting your fellow travellers, the Captain and crew for the Captain’s Welcome Drinks.
WOODBRIDGE & HUON RIVER
Where the mouth of the Huon River meets D’Entrecasteaux Channel lays Port Huon, a small community at the heart of the fertile Huon Valley with its Hartz Mountains backdrop. The sheltered waters of the Huon River allow us to visit the Wooden Boat Centre at Franklin, where Tasmania’s maritime heritage is kept alive through the production of hand-crafted timber boats.
Grandvewe Cheeses is an organic sheep dairy farm and there will be time to learn about the cheesemaking process as well as taste their ‘ewenique’ sheep’s whey vodka at the Cellar Door overlooking the D’Entrecasteaux Channel.
PORT DAVEY & BATHURST HARBOUR
On the edge of the world in southwest Tasmania, the landscape here is about as wild as it gets. Raw, craggy-peaked mountains and drowned river valleys. Wild rivers and rivulets carved by an eternity. Where tannin-rich freshwater sits atop saltwater, tinting the ocean the colour of tea. With no road access, the logical way to explore this wilderness is by small expedition ship.
Sheltered from Roaring Forties winds that buffet this coast is the protected haven of Port Davey and Bathurst Harbour. A marine reserve and part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, we spend two whole days (weather permitting) enjoying this rare opportunity to hike, kayak and take in this pristine natural environment. We explore by Xplorer tender vessels and learn about intrepid European explorers and Indigenous Australians, who once walked this land and keep a lookout for the rare and endangered Orange Bellied Parrot amongst other wildlife.
BRUNY ISLAND & ADVENTURE BAY
At Adventure Bay on the east coast of Bruny Island, we walk along the dramatic coastal cliffs of Fluted Cape and hope to see Bennett’s Wallabies, which are endemic to Bruny Island. Cruising the base of these near-vertical dolerite cliffs in our Xplorer tender vessels, we take a close look at Penguin Island, which is connected to Fluted Cape at low tide.
Learn about how southern right whales were almost hunted to extinction and Adventure Bay housed four whaling stations before the industry’s decline in the mid-1840s. The ruins can be seen on a walk to Grassy Point.
MARIA ISLAND NATIONAL PARK
Walk amongst the ruins and beautifully restored buildings of the convict penal settlement of Darlington. Much of Maria Island is protected as the Maria Island National Park, and you can expect to see endemic wildlife such as Forester Kangaroos, Bennett’s Wallabies and wombats.
There is time to take a walk to the ruins of the former Probation Station, which are set against a dramatic coastal backdrop whose grasslands attract wombats to feed, as well as the striking formations of the Painted Cliffs. Rich iron deposits have leeched through the soil staining the sandstone cliffs on the waters’ edge with coloured streaks of red, purple and orange, creating surreal art which is revealed at low tide.
FREYCINET NATIONAL PARK AND SCHOUTEN ISLAND
The Freycinet Peninsula is a dramatic headland dominated by a pink-hued granite mountain range called The Hazards. Blessed with picturesque sweeping bays with white sand beaches like famed Wineglass Bay, much of the peninsula is designated as Freycinet National Park.
Take a guided hike along the Isthmus Track and be rewarded with magnificent views from the lookout or swim in the azure waters of Wineglass Bay. Cruising close to Ile des Phoques and Schouten Island, keep an eye out for large colonies of fur seals sunning themselves on the rocks.
PORT ARTHUR HISTORIC SITE
One of Australia’s most significant historic places, the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Port Arthur ruins stand sentinel on the Tasman Peninsula south of the narrow isthmus of Eaglehawk Neck. For more than 40 years the Port Arthur penal colony housed British and Australian convicts, sentenced to hard labour before its heavy iron doors clanked shut for the last time in 1877.
Today, the Historic Site has over 30 buildings, ruins and restored period homes set in 100 acres of landscaped grounds. In the company of Port Arthur’s knowledgeable guides, we join an exclusive ‘behind the scenes tour’ which includes access to private collections and historic buildings not otherwise accessible to the public.
DAY 11: ARRIVE HOBART
Disembark in Hobart at 8:00am. A post-cruise transfer from the ship to Hobart city or airport is included.
Note: Throughout the expedition we may make changes to the itinerary as necessary to maximise your expeditionary experience. Allowances may be made for seasonal variations, weather, tidal conditions and any other event that may affect the operation of the vessel. Coral Expeditions suggests that you do not arrive on the day of embarkation or depart on the day of disembarkation due to any changes that may occur in scheduling. No two Tasmania cruises with Coral Expeditions will be the same as each expedition is crafted by our experienced Masters and Expedition Leaders, allowing us to quickly respond to favourable weather conditions to offer you the very best of Tasmania’s flora, fauna and wild coastline. Below are the key destinations we visit.
Please note prices are subject to availability at time of booking and may change without notice.
- 28 January 2025
- 07 February 2025
- 17 February 2025
2025 FARES:
- Main Deck (Category B) - from $7,920 per person twin sharing
- Main Deck (Category A) - from $8,720 per person twin sharing
- Promenade Deck (Category B) - from $9,520 per person twin sharing
- Promenade Deck (Category A) - from $10,320per person twin sharing
- Bridge Deck Balcony Stateroom - from $10,980 per person twin sharing
Call our local travel team on 1300 414 198 to book your cabin!
Coral Discoverer provides an intimate, yachtlike cruising experience. This small ship sports active stabilisers for ocean cruising, over a thousand square metres of open deck space and well-appointed communal lounge and dining spaces. Enjoy sunset drinks on the Sun Deck to end each spectacular day.
BRIDGE DECK BALCONY STATEROOM:
Located on the exclusive Bridge Deck close to the Lounge and Bridge, our six spacious Bridge Deck staterooms are 20sqm (215 square feet) in size and open out onto private balconies for expansive ocean views, along with a sofa, desk, telephone and your choice of Junior King or twin bedding.
PROMENADE DECK (CATEGORY A) STATEROOM:
Encircled by a full-ship promenade, our 19 spacious Promenade Deck (Category A) staterooms are 18sqm (195 square feet) in size and feature picture windows for expansive ocean views, along with a sofa, desk, telephone and your choice of Junior King or twin bedding.
PROMENADE DECK (CATEGORY B) STATEROOM - SOLE USE ONLY:
Located in the bow of the ship and encircled by a full-ship promenade, our two Promenade Deck (Category B) staterooms are 15sqm (160 square feet) in size and feature picture windows for expansive ocean views, along with a desk, telephone and Junior King bedding. These rooms are allocated for Sole Use only.
MAIN DECK (CATEGORY A) STATEROOM:
Located close to the Dining Room, our six spacious Main Deck (Category A) staterooms are 18sqm (195 square feet) in size and feature large, twin porthole windows for expansive ocean views, along with a desk, sofa, telephone and your choice of Junior King or twin bedding.
MAIN DECK (CATEGORY B) STATEROOM:
Located close to the Dining Room, our three spacious Main Deck (Category B) staterooms are 18sqm (195 square feet) in size and feature twin portholes for expansive ocean views, along with a desk, sofa, telephone and your choice of Junior King or twin bedding.
Fitness Level:
This trip is suitable for passengers of all fitness levels, though reasonable mobility is required to enjoy all it has to offer. The Xplorer tender permits easy boarding without climbing any stairs. Hikes vary in intensity and where possible, we split groups to suit easy and moderate walkers. Guests are welcome to opt out of any excursion and relax onboard – the top deck outdoor lounge is great on a sunny day. The ship has no elevator. As the itinerary covers remote regions, it is not suitable for passengers with serious medical conditions.
Note: the summer temperature can still be very cool especially with the wind chill so warm layered clothing is essential.