21 incredible things to do on Bruny Island

It’s got deserted beaches, magical walks and some of Tasmania’s best local produce in spades. If you haven’t seen Bruny Island, consider this epic list of things to do as your sign to get there ASAP.

Bruny Island – the traditional lands of the Nuenonne people – lies south of Hobart, separated from the rest of Tassie by the D’Entrecasteaux Channel. More like a set of twins than a single child, Lunawanna-Allonah (as Bruny Island is known in the local Aboriginal language) has a north and south island, joined by a narrow strip of land called ‘The Neck’.

Today, Bruny Island has roughly a thousand residents. But despite the small numbers, you better believe there are plenty of things to do here (but you can stuff a fair few of them into a day trip if you absolutely have to).

So what do you need to know about going to Bruny? Well, before you hop onto that ferry, we’ve laid out the best things to do on Bruny Island below.

1. Eat oysters at Get Shucked

Get your fix of freshly shucked Bruny Island oysters. (Image: Adam Gibson)

Devour oysters just across the road from the ocean they came from at this locally owned oyster farm and restaurant. It’s as fresh as they come at this oyster bar, so stop off for lunch or a snack on a day trip for a delectable plate of cheap, plump, Bruny Island oysters. In a rush? Get Shucked has a handy drive-through too (making it that little bit easier to make your way through the list of top restaurants and foodie experiences on the island).

2. Devour a platter at Bruny Island Cheese Co.

Sit down with a platter of artisanal cheeses and cold beer. (Image: Tourism Australia)

Calling all turophiles (AKA cheese lovers) and beer fans – this is your haunt. The Bruny Island Cheese Company offers free samples of its award-winning cheese (including a nutty raw-milk cheese made in traditional large wheels) and a range of locally brewed beers. This means you can pinpoint the tastes that tickle your fancy before sitting down with a platter, an oozy gooey ‘Otto’ cheese mound wrapped in prosciutto, and a beer paddle on the deck or under the trees. Bonus points: the cafe is dog-friendly.

3. Treat yourself to Bruny Island Honey (and chocolate)

Pop by Bruny Island Honey for some sweet treats.

Along with berries, honey and chocolate are the sweet treats of choice on the Tasmanian island. Stop by Bruny Island Honey for a taste of the sweet life that goes beyond your wildest imaginings, like honeycombs and bush and floral honey.

The bees themselves travel around the island, following the nectar of various flowers, resulting in a range of distinct honey flavours, which you can sample in the gift shop. Watch them hard at work behind a glass panel as you devour a signature honey ice cream.

More of a chocolate fan? Bruny Island Chocolate Company, located just past ‘The Neck’ on the south island has a range of housemade fudge and chocolates. Note, that there are no tastings here, so you’ll have to commit based on a browse of the shelves.

4. Stop by the Bruny Baker Bread Fridge

Get fresh hot bread straight from Bruny Baker in their roadside fridge. (Image: James Vodicka)

The Bruny Island Bread Fridge is literally just that (well, actually, it’s two fridges). The rusted, retro fridges serve as a protective cabinet of sorts for fresh bread straight from the ovens of the Bruny Baker, at the turnoff to Sheepwash Road. The only thing you need to complete a beachside picnic with a warm loaf? Some cash for the honesty box, or a bank transfer to the account scratched onto brown paper inside the door.

As you cruise along Bruny Island Main Rd, you’ll see a sign for ‘bread’ when the fridges are imminent and likely a few cars pulled over on the gravel at the start of Sheepwash Rd. The bread gets re-stocked throughout the day and you can text the number inside the door if you find the fridges empty and want to know when the next delivery is due.

5. Take a Bruny Island food tour

Dine on fresh oysters while on a Bruny Island food tour. (Image: Tourism Australia)

There are all kinds of tours of Bruny Island but if you want to experience much of the above with a local, Bruny Island Safari Tours offers the full package with their Bruny Island Food, Sightseeing and Lighthouse Tour.

Starting from Hobart, not only will you explore the Mount Mangana rainforests looking for the elusive white wallaby and scale the stairs of the Bruny Island Lighthouse, but you’ll also dine on oysters, cheese, salmon, whisky … and all the other culinary treats that Bruny Island is famous for.

6. Enjoy a tasting at Bruny Island House of Whisky

Sip Tasmanian single malts. (Image: Adam Gibson)

In a state famous for its craft whisky industry, stop by the Bruny Island House of Whisky for a dram or two. With over 150 Tasmanian single malts to try, sip on yours by the property’s open fire.

7. Take a Bruny Island Wilderness Cruise

Go cruising past sea caves around Bruny Island. (Image: Sean Scott)

Wrap up warm to travel the Tasman Sea around Bruny Island with Bruny Island Wilderness Cruises by Pennicott Wilderness Journeys. Departing from Adventure Bay, over three hours you’ll gaze up at 272-metre-high sea cliffs, explore sea caves, watch powerful blowholes expel giant sprays of white water, and spot marine life like sunbaking fur seals, shearwaters and other sea birds, and migrating whales. After the tour, you can grab lunch in the spacious Pennicott restaurant (which is where the tour departs from).

8. Tour the Cape Bruny Lighthouse

The second-oldest lighthouse in Australia sits amidst dolerite cliffs. (Image: Adam Gibson)

Built in 1836, the Bruny Island Lighthouse is the only lighthouse you can tour in southern Tasmania. Overlooking Cape Bruny and the churning waters below, it was manned for over 150 years before being decommissioned in 1996. Today, you can pay a fee to ascend the cast-iron stairs with Cape Bruny Lighthouse Tours and hear about its long history.

9. Educate yourself at Bruny Island Quarantine Station

Back when people around the world would undertake immensely long journeys to get to Australia, humans had a fear of pandemics, which we can now appreciate having lived through the Covid era. This resulted in the creation of quarantine stations for the Australian states, and Tasmania was no different.

Throughout the years, the Bruny Island Quarantine Station at Barnes Bay has been used as a state quarantine against infectious diseases like typhoid, as an internment camp during the world wars and then as a quarantine for plants. These days the facility is maintained by a passionate group of locals and you can tour the site by donation.

10. Visit Dennes Point

Savour wood-fired pizzas at Jetty Cafe.

Many visitors skip Dennes Point at the tippity-top of Bruny’s north island, instead beelining for the attractions further south. But the fact it’s overlooked is precisely the reason to visit. This is a calmer, quieter side of Bruny (if there is such a thing), where farmland overlooks the ocean yonder and there isn’t a tour bus in sight.

After visiting the quarantine station, which is in the vicinity, stop for a delicious wood-fired pizza and glass of wine at Bruny Island Wild’s Jetty Cafe (open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only) and browse the small adjoining gallery and craft shop. If bread-making tickles your fancy, the cafe can run sourdough-making classes on demand under the tuition of a local climate scientist turned baker.

11. Visit The Neck and Truganini Lookout

The narrow strip of land connects the north and south islands. (Image: Jason Charles Hill)

You won’t be short on stunning hikes to choose from on Bruny Island, but for a short but steep climb (we’re talking almost 300 steps) with great reward, stop by The Neck and ascend to the Truganini Lookout. The narrow ‘Neck’ connects north and south Bruny by road, and the lookout gives you a 360-degree view of the ocean on both sides of the isthmus. The lookout is dedicated to Truganini, a powerful and respected Nuenonne woman who fought to protect her Indigenous clan from early colonists.

There is also a game reserve and rookery here, which is home to short-tailed shearwaters and little ‘fairy’ penguins. If you’re lucky enough to visit between July and March, arrive at dusk to watch the penguins toddle back to their homes after sunset.

12. Visit the Bruny Island Raspberry Farm

Sweet berries thrive in the verdant landscapes of Tasmania.

Pick ripe, delicious berries at Bruny Island Raspberry Farm in Adventure Bay and enjoy a range of sweet treats like crepes and scones with raspberry jam. Given the berries are seasonal, the farm and cafe close during the colder months, so check out the farm’s Facebook page or ask a local to confirm the place is open before you set off.

13. Find peace on the Mavista Nature Walk

Further down the road from the raspberry farm, you’ll find the Mavista walking track, which takes you on an easy and serene 1.4-kilometre stroll through a shaded gully lined with tree ferns, stringybarks and blackwood trees. Note, it can get muddy after rain, so be prepared with proper footwear and turn back if you feel it’s getting too slippery, given you’ll need to return along the same track anyway.

Oh, and some information sources will mention the ‘Mavisata waterfall’. Don’t feel cheated if you don’t find it (and don’t walk for miles looking for it) as the current track does not reach a waterfall. Rather, just enjoy the calm trickle of Waterfall Creek, which runs alongside the track.

14. Look for white wallabies at Adventure Bay

If you’re lucky, you’ll spot the white wallaby around Adventure Bay.

While it’s calm and sheltered for swimming, a lot of people you see at Adventure Bay are in fact on the lookout for the wild white wallaby. Named for the genetic mutation that has turned its fur white, they are surprisingly hard to spot due to their small numbers. But you’ll have fun trying with the family!

Though the white wallabies are most commonly seen on the plains around Adventure Bay, they hop and graze all around the island, so, you never know, you might get lucky and pass one on your travels.

15. Go bird-spotting on an Inala Nature Tour

Join a passionate nature-loving guide on a tour with Inala Nature Tours, established by conservationist and biologist Dr Tonia Cochran. The tour will let you explore the internationally significant Jurassic Garden, home to 750 species of plants with connections to Gondwana, and give you the opportunity to spot some of Tasmania’s rarest birds, including the endangered forty-spotted pardalote.

As you wander across the 1500-acre private reserve, you’ll be told about Tasmania’s unique flora and fauna, with a pair of binoculars in hand. Whether you’re a seasoned birder or a curious nature enthusiast, you’re sure to learn something.

16. Hit the surf at Cloudy Bay

Cloudy Bay is a superb beach for a surf or swim. (Image: Jess Bonde)

Home to the Bruny Island Classic surfing comp, Cloudy Bay is your one-stop shop for surfing on Bruny Island. Catch a wave at the northern end, or, if you would prefer a more sedate swim, head to its southern end. If you’re staying the night, there are two campsites to choose from.

17. Camp on Bruny Island

Cloudy Bay has some great camping spots. (Image: Jess Bonde)

Speaking of picking a place to sling your swag, Bruny Island has plenty of camping spots to choose from, particularly in the South Bruny National Park. As well as Cloudy Bay, there are sites at Jetty Beach and The Neck. Got your woofer with you? Try Captain Cook Caravan Park, which is dog-friendly.

18. Jump on a Bruny Island Scenic Flight

Why get a ferry when you can take to the skies? Soar over the magnificent beaches, bushland, the Bruny Island lighthouse and the slender Neck when you book in with Island Scenic Flights. If you want to take things up a notch you can arrange a flight by Mt Wellington and Hobart or even a flight over the Southern Wilderness Area. There’s also the option to add a two-hour stopover at Melaleuca to picnic and hike.

19. Do the Grass Point and Fluted Cape hike

Pass by Adventure Bay while on the Grass Point hike. (Image: Tourism Australia)

The easy Grass Point walk is the shorter version of the longer, more challenging Fluted Cape hike. If your pick is the family-friendly Grass Point (four kilometres return, and a reasonably flat track), head to the Boat Ramp Rd parking area, then set off east along the beach. Keep your eye out for adorable white wallabies, as well as southern right whales when the season is right. There are also remnants of Bruny’s whaling industry along the way.

Feeling more ambitious? The Fluted Cape track (a 5.4-kilometre circuit) starts by following the same track, but involves climbing the gulch, up to Fluted Cape, for jaw-dropping clifftop lookouts over the water.

20. Tackle the Cape Queen Elizabeth coastal hike

An equally stunning hike is the 12.6-kilometre return Cape Queen Elizabeth track, which traverses beach and bush. You’ll get some spectacular views of The Neck from Mars Bluff then end up on the remote Miles Beach before heading to the point. Be aware of the tides on this hike, as there’s a section that splits into a low and high-tide track, and you don’t want to get caught on the beach during a rising tide.

Once you reach the point at Cape Queen Elizabeth you’ll have a glorious view back to Adventure Bay.

As this is a return track, you can shorten the hike by turning around at the Rock Arch.

21. Join a guided walking tour

Take in nature views on the 35-km Long Weekend Walk. (Image: Tasmanian Walking Co)

Rather be guided through the wilderness? The Tasmanian Walking Company’s ‘long weekend’ on Bruny Island covers 30 kilometres over three days.

This article was originally written by Kate Bettes with updates by Emily Mcauliffe.