What to do on Bruny Island: The Best Day Trip from Hobart

Bruny Island Tasmania is wild and beautiful and may just be the most captivating “island… off an island… off an island” that you’ve ever visited. Although there are more than enough scenic spots and exciting activities to occupy an entire week here, Bruny Island is easily accessible as a quick day-trip from Hobart, making it the perfect addition to any Tasmania itinerary. Spend an entire day indulging in local treats like locally brewed beers, fresh oysters and gourmet cheese, explore the island’s many beaches and scenic viewpoints on foot, search for rare white wallabies or watch fairy penguins come in from the surf, enjoy sweeping views from atop of ‘The Neck’ lookout and climb to the top of Australia’s second-oldest lighthouse. Here is all the information you need to make the most of your day trip from Hobart on magical Bruny Island. 

First let’s make sure you have everything you need for your trip away-

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Day Trip from Hobart: The Logistics

Getting to Bruny Island

A ferry from mainland Tasmania is the only way to reach Bruny Island for your day of adventure. Sealink operates a small vehicle ferry from Kettering, just 30min south of Hobart, that runs approximately every hour from 6.30 to 7pm (plus a few extra sailings during the summer months). As of yet, there’s no way to reserve spots in advance, so just rock up to the jetty 20min before departure and purchase your tickets from the little booth.

Fares are amazingly inexpensive— depending on the time of day, either $32 or $38 will buy return tickets for your car and everyone in it! Walk-ons are actually free, although I wouldn’t recommend this unless you have someone picking you up on the island, as there’s no obvious way to get around without a car. The crossing takes just 20min and then you can finally start your day on Bruny Island from Roberts Point in the northeast.

Parks & Wildlife Entry Pass

South Bruny Island is a National Park and if you are looking to visit that area or even do some free camping then you will need a parks pass.

I can tell you straight away, that purchasing separate day passes is not worth it. For example a day pass for Cradle Mountain National Park costs $16.50 per person/day. If there is 2 of you that’s already $33. And that’s only for one day! A way more economical option is to purchase an 8 week pass for $60, which will cover up to 8 people for all national parks in all of Tasmania!

That’s way better value for money and it will save you time too as you will only have to purchase it once! You can get one at the Parks and Wildlife office located at the gates of any of the national parks or online through Parks & Wildlife Service prior to your travels. 

Top Tours on Bruny Island

What to do on Bruny Island

1st Stop: Cape Queen Elizabeth Track

After getting off the ferry and onto Bruny Island, head less than 20min south down Bruny Island Main Road (B66) to reach your first stop, the Cape Queen Elizabeth trailhead. It’s pretty easy to miss if you don’t know where to look, so navigate to the vibrantly-signed Bruny Island Honey instead and then, immediately across the road, you’ll see a small carpark with a wide sandy trail leading off into the distance.

There are so many amazing things to do on Bruny Island that I’d recommend cutting down the full Cape Queen Elizabeth walk and only going as far as Mars Bluff to see the incredible rock Arch rising above the ocean, which is the highlight of the hike anyway. Set aside 2hrs for the entire excursion, although this can be shorter if you’re lucky enough to be here during low tide. After walking along a flat trail for about 30min, ascend 10min on a slightly steeper trail, come down the other side of the hill, and then stroll about 100m along the beach to reach the stunning Cape Queen Elizabeth Arch. 

Things to know:

• 2hrs return hike to the rocky Cape Queen Elizabeth Arch
• If walking at low tide and taking the beach path, the whole trail is flat and undemanding
• If walking at high tide and taking the Mars Bluff path, most of the trail is flat except for about 10min of climbing and 5min of descending to get to the beach
• You can still get the same amazing photos of the Cape Queen Elizabeth Arch in high tide, so don’t let that put you off!
• Check the current tides here
• Full detailed post on Hiking the Cape Queen Elizabeth Track to find the Bruny Island Arch

2nd Stop: Bruny Island Cheese & Beer Co.

Backtrack about 2min from the Cape Queen Elizabeth trailhead along the same main road to reach the Bruny Island Cheese & Beer Co., very invitingly signed as “CHEESE AND BEER”. This is an out-of-this-world local cheese shop, cafe, bakery, and brewery serving up cheese tasting boards, beer paddles (tastings of 4 different beers), fresh sourdough, local wine, and some pretty spectacular cheese-based lunch items such as wood-fire pizza and croque monsieur. They have a beautiful outdoor garden with heaps of seating, so take the opportunity to relax after your hike over a cheesy lunch and a cheeky afternoon beverage. Alternatively, about 100m down the road is Get Shucked, an immensely popular oyster bar offering a variety of fresh and cooked local oysters.

Things to know:

• $12 beer paddles let you taste 4 delicious beers
• For $5, order a cheese flight and sample delicious local varieties of both hard and soft cheese
• Enjoy a delicious lunch made with fresh-baked sourdough bread and Bruny Island Cheese
• This place can get busy, especially in summer or during the weekends, so allow plenty of time in your schedule for what will be a leisurely lunch
• If you fancy something a bit more fishy, head about 1min down the road to Get Shucked

3rd Stop: Truganini Lookout at The Neck

When researching about where to go on a day trip in Tasmania, it was the amazing view of The Neck lookout that put Bruny Island on my radar in the first place. An isthmus of land connecting north and south Bruny together as a single island. Driving just 8min down the road from Bruny Island Cheese & Beer Co., you’ll see a large carpark on the right side of the road beneath a long flight of wooden stairs. Once you reach the top of the stairs and turn around you will discover incredible sweeping views of the narrow beaches on either side of The Neck. 

Things to know:

• Even when conditions aren’t perfectly clear, this lookout is still breathtaking!
• Follow the boardwalks to explore the Neck Game Reserve, looking out for the many Fairy Penguins that have made burrows here— the best time to spot them is in the evening
• There’s also a little campground here about 20m off the beach

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More things to do on Bruny Island

If you have more time and plan on spending an extra day or so on Bruny Island, why not try out these other few activities you can do on Bruny Island:

• Explore the rugged coastline, cruising beneath high sea cliffs and entering deep sea caves on an Eco Cruise where you can encounter sea and coastal wildlife such as seals, dolphins and whales.
• Join a guided tour to climb the spiral staircase of a heritage-listed lighthouse that has a nearly 200 year legacy of guiding ships safely around the southern coast of Tasmania. The Cape Bruny Lighthouse was first lit in 1838 and continuously manned until 1993, and still proudly stands as the second oldest lighthouse in all of Australia. 
• Go to Adventure Bay and look for rare and elusive white (albino) wallabies that are unique to Bruny Island. (The best time to spot white wallabies is in the evening, although people definitely get lucky at all times of the day if they are persistent)

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