Coastal Tasmania: Untamed Wilderness

Upon arrival in Hobart, an Aurora Expeditions representative will meet you and arrange your transfer to the designated group hotel. After check-in, visit the Aurora Expeditions hospitality desk to collect your cabin luggage tags and consult with the ground operations team. They can provide details on pre-embarkation, dining options, cash withdrawal locations, and last-minute purchases at local pharmacies or supermarkets. The rest of the day is yours to explore at leisure. Meals are not included and will be at your own expense.

This morning, your luggage will be collected from the hotel and transferred directly to the port for sanitization and clearance before being delivered to your cabin. Ensure your cabin tags are securely attached and clearly labeled with your name and cabin number. Keep valuables and personal items with you throughout the day. After breakfast, check out and bring your luggage to the foyer, placing any essentials for the day in your hand luggage, as your main bag will be loaded onto the coach. Enjoy an afternoon tour before returning to Hobart to board the Douglas Mawson in the late afternoon.  

Once on board, settle into your cabin before attending mandatory safety briefings. Then, experience the excitement of departure as you set sail. In the evening, meet your fellow expeditioners, crew, and Expedition Team at the Welcome Dinner, marking the start of an unforgettable adventure.

From the comfort of your floating base camp, make your first forays to the picturesque bays at South Bruny Island. Enjoy picturesque coastal walks through flowering heathlands and eucalypt forests, a more leisurely stroll on long stretches of pristine sand, or a more active tramp up the headland for sweeping views of Cloudy Bay and beyond to the Southern Ranges. Later, as you sail southwards, watch for views of Cape Bruny’s historic lighthouse. 

At the extreme south-eastern corner of Tasmania, the idyll of Recherche Bay offered French explorer Bruni D’Entrecasteaux refuge, replenishment, and scientific discovery. Learn more about his exploits, including the well-documented, amicable encounters and mutual observation between the expedition members and the indigenous Lylequonny people. Enjoy a hike towards the extreme southern tip of Tasmania or Fishers Point past the impressive bronze whale sculpture commemorating the area’s early whaling history. Having rounded the South East Cape, experience the untamed wilderness of the south coast. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals.

From the comfort of the ‘mother ship,’ enjoy a ship cruise at the Maatsuyker Island Group. Spy Australia’s most southerly lighthouse at Maatsuyker Island and delight in the majesty of soaring shy albatross in the skies above Mewstone Island before setting sail up Tassie’s wild west coast. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals. 

Often described as a ‘coastal wonderland,’ the impressive sea cliffs, pristine beaches and dunes, sheltered lagoons, and tidal inlets of the remote Hunter Island group provide an exciting backdrop to your adventures. The islands were named after John Hunter (Governor of the Colony of New South Wales) by Flinders on the first recorded circumnavigation of Tasmania in 1798, although the islands show evidence of over 23,000 years of continuous occupation by local Aboriginal people. The islands are a major breeding ground for various birds, including several threatened species, including the orange-bellied and swift parrots, white-bellied sea eagle, shy albatross, Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle, and fairy prion.  

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals. 

Marvel at the mystique of the far-flung Kent Islands – often missed on conventional maps – and experience its rich natural and human history. This cluster of three main islands and four smaller islets comprise Tassie’s northernmost national park. Discover the bountiful, nutrient-rich waters created by the convergence of three major ocean currents, which help feed Australia’s largest fur seal colony. Scan the shorelines and skies for sooty oystercatchers, short-tailed shearwaters, petrels, and prions; contemplate the looming granite lighthouse; and discover stories of sealers, sailors, and shipwrecks in the original lightkeeper’s cottage (the oldest in Australia, and now museum) run by the islands’ only two inhabitants. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals.

Flinders Island – called Great Island until it was renamed in the early 1800s after explorer Matthew Flinders – is the largest of Tasmania’s islands and home to Strzelecki National Park. The island offers sapphire waters, untouched beaches, a wide variety of flora and fauna, rocky ridges, and towering peaks as a backdrop to your hiking or kayaking. Energetic hikers may like to scale the granitic beauties of the Strzelecki Peaks to experience spectacular vistas. At the same time, strollers might enjoy a shorter meander through shaded casuarina woodlands and coastal heath to secluded bays. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals. 

The striking scenery of Freycinet Peninsula tempts you for another day of discovery, whether you hike its towering pink granite peaks for a spectacular view, paddle its iridescent-blue waters, or beach comb a pristine white beach peppered with orange lichen-covered boulders. The surrounding wilderness is also alive with flora and fauna. On your adventures, keep an eye out for white-breasted sea eagles soaring in the skies above, Bennett’s wallabies lazing under a she-oak, the local pod of bottle-nose dolphins, or perhaps one of the short-beaked echidnas that are sometimes seen foraging for ants in daylight hours. Weather permitting, you may also visit the nearby Schouten Island group, where gangs of fur seals can be seen vying for their favorite rocky resting place. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals. 

Known as Tasmania’s ‘Noah’s Ark,’ Maria Island is home to an abundance of native wildlife, including Bennett’s wallabies, common wombats, and rufous-bellied pademelons, as well as conservation sanctuary to several introduced species, including the Tasmanian devil. The island is also considered one of the best bird-watching places, with a variety that includes all but one of Tassie’s endemic bird species. In addition to its natural history, the island has a rich human history stretching back over 40,000 years. The Puthikwilayti people of the Oyster Bay tribe were original custodians of the land and surrounding waters, which were later visited by European explorers and exploited by sealers and whalers. Convict settlements, failed commercial ventures, and an eventual National Park designation are also part of the island’s antiquities.

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals. 

Nestled amid English oaks and gardens, Port Arthur stands in stark contrast to the beauty of the Tasman Peninsula. Once a site of punishment, opportunity, and leisure, it now preserves Australia’s colonial history in stone and brick. Explore the ruins and restored buildings of the Port Arthur Historic Site. Back on board as you set sail for Hobart, toast your adventures, and celebrate with new and old friends at your Captain’s Farewell Dinner. 

Subject to change due to pending regulatory and permitting approvals.

In Hobart, farewell the crew, expedition team, and fellow travelers before your transfer to the airport.