Tasmania is located just 150 miles from the mainland of Australia, but offers everything your clients are looking for out of an Australian adventure—with five regions to explore, local food and wine to savor, and luxury accommodations.
For adventure-seekers, the list of activities seems never-ending, from caving and diving to mountain biking and hang gliding. Foodies will also find plenty to please their palate. It’s all about going local here with everything from organic produce to oysters and homemade cheeses. One way travelers can sample some of what Tasmania has to offer is with the Savour Tasmania festival.
In its fifth year, this festival, running from May 29-June 2, features events showcasing Tasmanian produce. The Long Table Dinner, for example, showcases local and national chefs; a Tasmanian Red Wine Weekend offers tastings and master classes; and Pop-Up PorkStar is an event featuring wine and cider tastings, as well as a whole-roasted pig, with Sydney chef Colin Fassnidge and “Gourmet Farmer” host Matt Evans. For more information, visit savourtasmania.com.au.
Palate restaurant in the luxury lodge Saffire Freycinet also offers travelers a chance to try local ingredients and local wines with its daily changing menus. Located along Tasmania’s East Coast, about a 2-hour drive from Launceston, the hotel offers 20 suites and arranges everything a guest may need—from helicopter transfers to island excursions. A variety of complimentary activities are also included in the stay, such as visiting a working oyster farm with a guide; taking a mixology master class; and mountain biking on the trails in the Coles Bay Conservation Area.
If your clients would like to take additional excursions, options include the 3-hour Schouten Island half-day experience ($250 pp) to see the marinelife at the reefs, or the Saffire Sparkling Cruise ($140 pp), which cruises the Freycinet coastline and then stops at a secluded beach, complete with sparkling wine. In addition, the spa, which uses the techniques of celebrity facialist Marionne De Candia, offers a variety of treatments and therapies, specializing in men’s treatments.
Rates start at $1,859 per night for up to two people in a luxury suite including dinner with beverages. Rates also include breakfast in the restaurant; lunch; complimentary minibar and selected deluxe beverages; Internet access; and a $100 spa credit per suite, per stay. For more information, visit saffire-freycinet.com.au.
If your clients are interested in tour options, Brendan Vacations’ 10-day Western Icons with Tasmanian Wonders tour takes travelers to the West Coast of Tasmania starting in Hobart, and then heads to Mt. Field National Park to see Russell Falls. Highlights also include a cruise on the Gordon River and learning about cheese making at Ashgrove Farm.
Rates start at $2,730 pp and include airport transfers; accommodations in twin-bedded rooms; six full breakfasts, highlight lunch, four dinners and a welcome drink with dinner; a travel director and driver; an air-conditioned coach; and a portfolio of travel documents and map. For more information, call (800) 421-8446 or visit brendanvacations.com.
For more information, visit discovertasmania.com.
