Cradle Mountain: Hobart to Cradle Active Day Trip
What’s Included in Your Active Day Trip Adventure — Tasmania’s Biggest and Best Tour to One of the World’s Most Beautiful Places
From AUD $225.00 (Student, Child or a group of 4)
Depart time: 6am
Return time: 9pm
Breakfast and dinner stops in beautiful Deloraine.
5 hours in Cradle Mountain National Park and up to 4 hours hiking time.
Discover the only Hobart to Cradle Mountain Day Tour – running weekly since 2022 with The Derwent Experience. This full-day adventure is the most comfortable and efficient way to explore Tasmania’s iconic Cradle Mountain from Hobart, with return travel included. It’s an early start, but the reward is a breathtaking journey through Tasmania’s heartlands and an unforgettable day immersed in one of the world’s most beautiful alpine landscapes.
Cradle Mountain from Hobart – A Wild Day Out Worth Waking Up For
Cradle Mountain–Lake St Clair National Park is Tasmania at its wildest and most wonderful — a UNESCO World Heritage-listed jewel tucked deep in the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA). It’s iconic for a reason: dramatic alpine peaks, glacial lakes, and walking trails that feel worlds away from modern life.
Getting to Cradle Mountain from Hobart can be a challenge — it’s remote, but not unreachable. That’s where we come in. With your own private bus, all-day comfort, and no overnight packing required, this is the easiest, most enjoyable way to explore Cradle Mountain from the south.
Yes, it’s a 6am start — but you’ll gain more than sleep could ever give. Our guests spend more time inside the National Park than most tours departing from much closer towns. That means more wild air, more epic scenery, and more time to simply be in one of the most breathtaking landscapes on Earth.
Want to geek out on the official facts? Check out Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife Service page for the full lowdown.
⭐️ Why Our Guests Love This Tour
🌄 Unmatched Scenery - Spend quality time inside Cradle Mountain–Lake St Clair National Park, not just driving past it.
🕕 Early Start, Epic Rewards - Depart Hobart at 6am and see the real Tasmania — as someone else expertly drives, as you aim for one of the most beautiful places on the planet.
🚌 Comfort All the Way - Travel in a private, air-conditioned bus with reclining seats, USB ports, and a local guide who knows their stuff.
💼 No Packing, No Fuss - No need for overnight gear. Just bring your daypack and your sense of adventure.
🔁 Return to Hobart Same Day - No need to book accommodation — sleep in your own bed that night after a big day out.
🥾 Walk at Your Own Pace - Hike trails to suit you, with insights from your guide to adapt to conditions and capture highlights.
🌿 Local, Independent, Real - The only Hobart to Cradle Mountain day trip. Proudly Tasmanian, running weekly since 2022.
Premium Cradle Mountain Walking Tour from Hobart
Join our small-group, full-day walking tour to Cradle Mountain — carefully crafted for solo travellers, couples, families, and friends seeking both comfort and adventure. This private bus tour is the only one of its kind departing from Hobart, and it's been running weekly since 2022.
Here’s what makes it a standout:
🌿 Up to Five Hours in the National Park
Plenty of time to:
Tackle a rewarding hike to Marions Lookout or even beyond, hiking more of The Overland Track - 3-3.5 hours (challenging)
Enjoy the stunning Dove Lake Circuit - 2+ hours (moderate)
Wander through Waldheim Chalet and Weindorfers Forest (a sub-optimal weather option)
King Billy or Dove Canyon walks, Devils @ Cradle (sub-optimal weather options)
🦘 Wildlife & Wild Water
Cradle Mountain is alive with native Tasmanian wildlife — and you’ll have a real chance to spot wombats, wallabies, echidnas, and maybe even a curious quoll in their natural habitat.
Keep your eyes peeled as we wander through ancient forests, alpine meadows, and button grass plains — this is the wild heart of Tasmania, and the animals here roam free.
We also love drinking pure mountain water straight from a glacial river — cold, clean, and possibly the best water you will ever taste. It’s a Derwent Experience signature moment you’ll really enjoy and remember whenever you think of drinking water that is NOT from a tap or bottle.
🎟️ Everything You Need, Nothing You Don’t
National Park day pass included
Deluxe private bus: reclining chairs, USB charging (BYO cord), climate control & luggage room
Pick up and drop off at your Hobart accommodation - or as close as we can (sometimes we consolidate locations)
🍽️ Delicious Stops Along the Way
Morning breakfast stop at Mamma Buzz Café in Deloraine — a local favourite (own expense)
Early comfort and coffee stop at Convict Coffee & Bakery, Ross - always around 7.30am
Evening dinner stop at the historic and popular Empire Hotel in Deloraine (own expense)
BYO picnic lunch encouraged — fruit, muesli bars, cheese, and crusty bread hit the spot mid-walk. You won’t need much extra energy on the trail as we have a late breakfast and early dinner. You can always pickup something along the way
🌅 A Day of Light and Landscape
Depart Hobart at 6am and the sunrise as we head north.
Return to Hobart around 9pm, often catching a dramatic sunset as we descend from the highlands.
Conditions permitting, a dark skies stop for a star gazing and southern lights moment.
Why Travel to Cradle Mountain with Us?
Cradle Mountain is one of Tasmania’s most breathtaking destinations — but getting there from Hobart in a day isn’t easy. That’s why this tour exists.
Over the past few years, Sam (your driver, guide, and founder of The Derwent Experience) has led groups to Cradle Mountain for other companies, all while crafting his own unforgettable day trips through the Derwent Valley. Now, he’s combined his passion for storytelling, scenic driving, and wild places into Tasmania’s only Cradle Mountain day tour from Hobart — running weekly since 2022.
Sam’s got energy to spare, a deep love for the open road, and a simple belief: a big day to Cradle Mountain is the best way to experience Tasmania’s natural beauty when time is limited.
Your Safety on the Cradle Mountain Day Tour
At The Derwent Experience, your safety is our top priority — especially on a big day trip like this one, travelling from Hobart to Cradle Mountain and back.
While we’re not a licensed walking or hiking guide service, we do provide fully insured, safe and comfortable transport to and from Cradle Mountain National Park. Our driver will accompany those who prefer a gentler pace and is trained in basic first aid and group support.
You’re free to choose your own walking trail — from easy circuits to more challenging climbs — but it’s vital that everyone returns at the designated time to ensure a smooth journey back to Hobart, arriving typically between by 9pm.
This is your greatest day tour yet — are you ready?
Book your Cradle Mountain walking tour from Hobart with The Derwent Experience today.
Here’s a review of our Cradle Mountain walking tour that gives a good sense of what to expect from a passengers perspect:
“Had our day trip to Cradle Mountain from Hobart with The Derwent Experience recently! It’s incredibly rare to find tours starting from Hobart as most begin from Launceston so we were lucky that Sam’s offering such tours. It was lovely meeting him as well, an incredibly friendly and warm-hearted guy!”
Mt Roland, on the way to Cradle Mountain, North West Tasmania
Some Other Reasons Why The Derwent Experience is a 10/10
⭐️ The private hire bus is extremely clean and sleek. Comes with reclining chairs plus USB ports to charge your phones.
⭐️ Food options are amazing! We stopped at Deloraine for both our brunch and dinner - first at Mumma Buzz Cafe then dinner at Empire Hotel.
⭐️ Sam’s a seasoned & safe driver, so you’re definitely in good hands as he takes you through the winding yet scenic roads towards and back from Cradle Mountain walking tour to Hobart.
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