Imagine this – walking up in the morning with a perfect white beach on one side of you and spectacular bush of white ghost gums and other fabulous natives on the other. It really does not get much better than that.

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Well, White Beach Tourist Park in beautiful Tasmania gives you just that setting. You can choose to byo accommodation with great sites for caravans, motorhomes etc or stay in one of 14 fully self contained cabins. There is a playground to keep the kids happy and an all weather BBQ area as Tasmania can be a little chilly from time to time!

When you have settled yourself in, then it is time to start discovering the area. If you want to take a walk, there are some excellent walking tracks from the park, including the one to Cape Raoul which begins at Stormlea Road, with some sections on private land before getting into the park. You need to allow about 5 hours for the return walk, and possibly a little longer to just soak in the stunning views along this amazing bit of coastline.

If you want to see some more of the coast line, then a trip on one of the Tasman Island Cruises is a must. These go morning and afternoon during December to April and mornings only for the rest of the year. You are sure to see plenty of seals and sea birds, and during the migrating seasons (to and from) you get the chance to see the humpback or southern white whales.

Tasman Island is home to one of the most isolated lighthouses in Australia, the Tasman Island Lighthouse, which still plays an important role today in the famous Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

If you have a hankering for some awesome surfing then Shipstern Bluff would have to be one of the most adrenaline charged surfing beaches. If you google Shipstern Bluff, and visit the Images for Shipstern Bluff website, you will see what Tony, your host at White Beach Tourist Park means when he says “This is only for the brave or the stupid”.

History is a major part of a holiday in this area, with Port Arthur not far away. But another old penal colony is also worth a visit. The Salt Water River penal colony which was a market garden supplying fresh vegetables to Hobart was the preferred option for convicts in this area. There was a second one in the same area called the Coal Mines – for obvious reasons – and this one was well known as a hell hole.

Whatever you decided to do while you are in this magical spot, Tony and Vicki Hamilton at the White Beach Tourist Park will be only too happy to help you with your plans.

White Beach Tourist Park
128 White Beach Road
White Beach Tas 7184
Ph: 03 6250 2142
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
www.whitebeachtouristpark.com.au

Review by Alison Huth posted November 2010

Photographs courtesy of Tony Hamilton