The Tasmanian capital of Hobart may be small in size, but it’s big in attractions, as you’ll discover on a walking tour around the city. Step back in time at Battery Point, settled as a defensive outpost in the 19^th century. Then explore the cobbled streets of Salamanca Place, the site of epic weekend markets. Gaze over boats at Constitution Dock – this is where yachts finish when competing in the annual Sydney to Hobart race. Put your destination into perspective from the summit of Mt. Nelson, offering endless vistas over Australia’s southernmost city.

Western Tasmania is like nature writ large, a place where the wilderness rules and people are few and far between. Visiting Mount Field National Park is a humbling experience, not only for the fact it’s part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, but also because it’s home to some of the tallest eucalypts and tallest flowering plants on Earth. Wander amid these giants to reach Russell Falls – take a deep breath; your Tasmania tour has begun. Records continue to be broken at Lake St. Clair, the deepest freshwater Lake in Australia, before you arrive in Strahan, gateway to World Heritage-listed Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.

Today has multiple highs – quite literally. The first is 1,545-metre Cradle Mountain, your backdrop as you wander to Dove Lake. You don’t need to look too hard to spot  Bennett’s wallabies, echidnas, and pademelons. The second high is ‘The Nut’, a dramatic 152-metre plateau created by the remains of an ancient volcanic plug. It guards over Stanley, a tiny village with swagger to spare. You could spend days exploring the town’s remarkably well-preserved heritage buildings. But more Tasmania holiday highlights await around the corner.

If there’s a town with a cuter name than Penguin, we’re yet to find it. Locals embrace its appeal – there are penguin sculptures at every turn, including one measuring 10 metres tall. Your journey along the northwest coast also passes through Burnie, Ulverstone and Sheffield, the latter delivering a surprise collection of 60 murals telling the area’s history. All this exploring builds an appetite. Refuel at Ashgrove Tasmanian Farm, where happy cows contribute to award-winning cheeses – everything from cheddar and red Leicester to creamy Tasmanian blue.

There are few places in the world where you can leave the city behind and within minutes be amid an immense wilderness are. Launceston is one. Blink and you’re at Cataract Gorge, a yawning chasm carved by ancient rivers. This rare natural phenomenon unites bushland with neat Victorian gardens, replete with ferns and exotic plants. Get a different perspective of the green cavern on the scenic chairlift, zipping you over the water to a lofty lookout. We wouldn’t blame you for lingering here, perhaps cruising the river to venture deeper into the gorge. Or sample more of Tassie’s finest fare on a Tamar Valley winery tour. This afternoon, the choice is yours.

The colours at Freycinet National Park are so vivid you’ll think someone has taken the glasses off your nose and cleaned them for the first time: The patchwork of ocean blues that lap Coles and Wineglass bays. The powdery white of sand. The intense green of the forest. There’s a reason why Freycinet adventures star on postcards. The other place on postcards is Richmond, its grand 1820s Georgian buildings today home to bijou boutiques, galleries and cafes that appear to be lost in time

The Isle of the Dead, Devil’s Kitchen, Blowhole… the attractions at and around Port Arthur nod to the region’s notoriously harsh history. This is the best-preserved convict site in Australia, and among the most significant convict-era destinations worldwide. The stories these walls could tell.

It took early explorers months to circumnavigate Tasmania. You’ve completed your Tasmania tour in just 10 days. What a wild ride.

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