Is Freycinet and Wineglass Bay worth visiting?
YesAnd the famous view is a 30 minute climb, not a day's walk.
Yes — and the bit people get wrong is how hard it is. The photograph everyone has seen is from the Wineglass Bay lookout, which is about a 30 minute climb up a stepped track from the car park. Walking down to the sand itself is another hour each way, and most people do not. From Hobart it is a day trip from $159; it also sits naturally on the drive between Launceston and Hobart. The pink granite of the Hazards and the bay below it is the single most photographed view in Tasmania for a reason.
Checked on 6 October 2026.
Freycinet is a peninsula of pink granite peaks on Tasmania's east coast, and Wineglass Bay is the curve of white sand behind them. It is on every Tasmania list, which is usually a reason to be suspicious — but this one holds up.
What the walk actually involves
- The lookout is about 30 minutes upfrom the car park, on a stepped and formed track. This is where the photograph comes from.
- Down to the beach is another hour or so each wayand it is steep coming back. Perfectly doable, but it turns a short walk into a half day.
- The full circuitover to Hazards Beach and back is around 11km and most of a day.
- Day trips do the lookoutwhich is the right call if you are also driving three hours each way.
Getting there
| Trip | Starts and finishes | Effort | Group | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Day Wineglass Bay Tour | Hobart / Hobart | — | Small group, max 20 | $159 |
| 1 Day Launceston to Hobart | Launceston / Hobart | — | Small group, up to 20 | $209 |
| 2 Day Cradle Mountain & Wineglass Bay Tour | Hobart / Hobart | — | Max 13 | $399 |
Effort is rated 1 to 5 on the trip's own page. The Hobart day trip is rated 3 — that is the climb, not the drive.
Which one suits you
- The day from Hobartis the simplest. Pick-up from your accommodation, the lookout, and the seaside towns of Orford and Swansea on the way north. Small group, max 20.
- The Launceston to Hobart dayis the clever one if you are moving between the two cities anyway — you get Freycinet instead of a transfer.
- Two days with Cradle Mountainpairs Tasmania's two most famous places and is rated 2 out of 5 for effort.
- Five day Tasmania tripsinclude it without it being a day of its own.
Is it worth it over the alternatives?
If you have one day out of Hobart, the honest ranking depends on what you want: Freycinet for the view and the coast, Port Arthur for the history, Bruny Island for the food and the gentlest day. If you have two, Freycinet and Cradle Mountain together is the pairing most people are happiest with.
2 Day Cradle Mountain & Wineglass Bay Tourfrom $3992 days, 1 nightMotel / Hostel2 days — Cradle Mountain and Wineglass BayView trip
2 Day Best of Tasmania Tourfrom $2992 days, 1 night2 days — the south, including Bruny IslandView trip
5 Day Tasmania Tourfrom $9395 days, 4 nightsMotel / Cabin5 days — the full Tasmania loopView tripWhen to go
December to March for the warmest and longest days — Hobart sits around 20 to 22°C. The east coast is the drier side of Tasmania, so it holds up better than the west in the shoulder months. Winter is cold and clear and almost empty, and the view does not change.
Where this comes from. What each trip includes, effort ratings, group sizes, pick-up arrangements and prices are that trip's own details as held on its page here, and prices update on their own. Walk times and distances are Tasmania Parks and Wildlife's published track notes for Freycinet National Park. Temperatures are Bureau of Meteorology long-term averages for Hobart.