 
Australian Natural Adventures Tourism
Australia accredited Premier Aussie Specialist.
Tasmania is Australia's smallest state,
and is ideal to see by car (unlike much of Australia's vast distances).
In fact, as there are virtually no internal air flights, and Tassie's
best features are spread from corner to corner, north to south, a
self-driving visit becomes for many the tour of choice. Distances
are short, roads are good, and traffic is light. The wonderful scenery,
interesting smaller towns and villages, and often unplanned but rewardng
reasons to stop for a few minutes all add to the benefit of discovering
Tasmania by self-drive. However, if you prefer
several fully inclusive tours are also available. We will be happy
to link you up with a small group tour covering the whole state, or
custom design a tour just for you featuring your interests. Tasmania is the most southern Australian state, and this means the coldest. June, July and August are the winter months, and the rainy ones, and touring at this time is not recommended. The best time to see Tasmania is from November to March, with September/October and April/May suitable but the chance of cooler weather and rain increases. Click on our Australian Weather page for more information.
TASMANIAN DEVIL FACIAL TUMOUR DISEASEDevil Facial Tumour Disease is a fatal condition
in Tasmanian devils characterised by the appearance of obvious facial
cancers. Tumours are first noticed in and around the mouth as small
lesions or lumps. These develop into large tumours around the face
and neck and sometimes ev NATURE
TRAVEL SPECIALISTS has adopted the
Tasmanian Devil as our 2007 eco-charity recipient, and will donate
5% of the profits of our tours that include Tasmania to the Tasmanian
Devil Appeal , and will match (up to $100) donations made by
our travelers in Tasmania. We encourage you to find
out more about this serious wildlife problem, thought to have
killed about half the world's population of this species in the
last twelve years, and for which there is no known cure or control.
You can make a difference by donating to this cause of Tasmanian
Devils on the web here,
or by mail - see the appeal site above. You can also become directly
involved by volunteering to work with the devil monitoring program
in Tasmania - see some of Tasmania's most beautiful and wild areas,
and a lot of Australian wildlife, while working to save the Tassie
Devil. There's more information
about volunteering here.
Read the June 2008 Tassie Devil Newsletter here. Please subscribe and donate.
Suggested Tasmania Itineraries Self-Drive Naturally these suggested itineraries can be modified to suit your own time and interests, although we suggest shorter itineraries are best achieved by leaving something out, rather than hurrying through. Seasonal factors may also influence activites and areas visited, and flight times and accommodation availability may alter the order of the tour. We've aimed at two-night stays wherever possible, to avoid too much packing and unpacking. These are just two samples; the rugged and wilderness area of the South-west is not included here, but offers superb scenery, hiking and river rafting Itinerary 1: Scenic
Tasmania Day 1: Sydney or Melbourne/
Launceston / Devonport Day 2: Devonport / Cradle
Mountain Day 3: Cradle Mountain National
Park Day 4: Cradle Mountain / Freycinet Day 5: Freycinet Peninsula Day 6: Bicheno / Hobart
Interested in more wildlife and nature? Go to our Tasmania Parks & Wildlife Itinerary. |
en
in other parts of the body. Adults appear to be most affected by
the disease - males the first affected, then females. Badly affected
devils may have many cancers throughout the body. As the cancers
develop devils may become emaciated, particularly if the tumours
interfere with teeth and feeding. Many females lose their young.
Affected animals appear to die within six months of the lesions
first appearing. Across Tasmania, there has been a 41% decline in
average sightings from 1992-95 to 2002-05. In the north-east region,
where signs of the Tasmanian devil disease were first reported,
there has been a 90 per cent decline of average spotlighting sightings
from 1992-95 to 2002-05. Thankfully, as at December 2006, populations
in the western third of the State remain healthy and viable. While
it is uncommon for wildlife diseases to lead directly to population
extinction in the absence of other severe threats, the Tasmanian
devil disease is a new, unusual disease and there is no hard evidence
for population or individual resistance or recovery from the disease.
There is also a concern that if the population is diminished, while
numbers of the introduced fox increase, it may be difficult for
them ever to recover.
tate.
Before you leave you may wish to visit the 
ademelons,
devils and quolls. Check into the 
n
the Wombat Pool walk, or enjoy a gentler paced day on the shorter
Park trails and private activities offered by the Lodge, including
perhaps taking advantage of some of the spa facilities (additional
cost.) There are many shorter walks, including one named The Enchanted
Forest that winds its way through both eucalyptus and rainforest.
Near the Lodge is 
ive
hour drive through the very pleasant Tasmanian countryside, a mixture
of farmland, sheep country, and even (legal) opium poppy fields. Once
again the long days during the summer months – twilight runs
through until after 9pm – will give you plenty of time for a
relaxing drive. At Bicheno and Freycinet you have several optionsincluding
Day
7: Dunalley/ Hobart