Must-see attractions in Cradle Country & The West

  • Cradle Mountain and Dove Lake, with deciduous beech (Fagus) in fall colors, Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tasmania, Australia, Pacific

    Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park

    Cradle Country & The West

    Part of the World Heritage–listed Tasmanian Wilderness, this 1614-sq-km national park incorporates the state's most famous mountain (the eponymous Cradle…

  • Rafting on Franklin River

    Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park

    Cradle Country & The West

    This World Heritage–listed national park came to prominence when the wild Franklin River was very publicly saved from hydroelectric immersion in the 1980s…

  • Southwest National Park

    Cradle Country & The West

    One of the planet’s last great isolated wilderness areas, this 6000-plus-sq-km national park, Tasmania’s largest, is home to some of the island's last…

  • Devils@Cradle

    Cradle Country & The West

    A refuge for around 55 Tasmanian devils, this excellent wildlife sanctuary also plays host to eastern and spotted-tail quolls. Although it's open all day…

  • Ocean Beach

    Cradle Country & The West

    Head 6km west of Strahan's town centre to find Ocean Beach, Tasmania's longest beach (40km), which is fiercely pounded by surf. It runs uninterrupted from…

  • West Coast Heritage Centre

    Cradle Country & The West

    Housed in the 1894 School of Mines & Metallurgy, this museum is the pride of the local community and the town's major tourism drawcard. There's plenty to…

  • Iron Blow Lookout

    Cradle Country & The West

    On top of Gormanston Hill on the Lyell Hwy, just before the final descent along hairpin bends west into Queenstown, is a sealed side road leading 900m to…

  • Gaiety Theatre

    Cradle Country & The West

    When the Gaiety opened in February 1898, a troupe of 60 performers was brought to town from Melbourne and played to 1000 spectators every night for a week…

  • Morrison’s Huon Pine Sawmill

    Cradle Country & The West

    You hear a lot about Huon pine in Strahan…now see it, smell it and touch it at this working waterfront sawmill. Milling demonstrations take place daily at…

  • West Coast Reflections

    Cradle Country & The West

    The West Coast Visitor Information Centre is home to this creative and thought-provoking display on the history of Tasmania's west coast. It includes a…

  • Wall in the Wilderness

    Cradle Country & The West

    Wood sculptor Greg Duncan is the genius behind this 100m-wide panorama depicting the history of the Tasmanian highlands, which is presented in a purpose…

  • Wilderness Gallery

    Cradle Country & The West

    Located in the Cradle Mountain Hotel, this 10-room commercial gallery showcases the work of local photographers and artists whose work is inspired by the…

  • Q Bank Gallery

    Cradle Country & The West

    Run by a group of friends who fell in love with the town and its handsome but faded bank building, this gallery is home to the Queenstown Artists in…

  • Spray Tunnel

    Cradle Country & The West

    This 100m-long glowworm-filled railway tunnel was constructed as part of silver-mining operations in 1904. You can now take a short walk through it along…

  • Cape Sorell Lighthouse

    Cradle Country & The West

    Located 12km southwest of Strahan at the harbour’s southern head, this 40m-high lighthouse dates from 1899 and is purportedly the second highest in…

  • Eric Thomas Galley Museum

    Cradle Country & The West

    This museum started life as the Imperial Hotel in 1897 and now houses an extensive and idiosyncratically captioned photographic collection documenting the…

  • Spion Kop Lookout

    Cradle Country & The West

    The panoramic views of town from this lookout, which was named by soldiers after a battle in the Boer War, are excellent. Try to arrive at sunset, when…

  • Paragon Theatre

    Cradle Country & The West

    This 1930s behemoth is the town's major landmark and in its heyday it was the epicentre of a thriving social scene. Lovingly restored to a semblance of…

  • LARQ Studio

    Cradle Country & The West

    Well-known printmaker and painter Raymond Arnold and his artist partner Helena Demczuk are two of a small community of visual artists living and working…

  • Hogarth Falls

    Cradle Country & The West

    A pleasant 50-minute return walk through the rainforest to these falls follows platypus-inhabited Botanical Creek. The track starts at People’s Park, off…

  • West Strahan Beach

    Cradle Country & The West

    The beach next to the caravan park has a gently shelving sandy bottom that provides safe swimming. Don't be discouraged by the water colour – it's tinted…

  • Pioneer Cemetery

    Cradle Country & The West

    Queenstown's story is told in this intriguing cemetery with more than 500 graves and some fascinating inscriptions on the crumbling headstones.

  • Water Tower Hill

    Cradle Country & The West

    There’s a lookout over the town here, accessed by following Esk St, beside the Strahan Village booking office. It’s less than 1km from the Esplanade.