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Dog Friendly Travel – Touring Southern Tasmania with your furry friend

  • Image Credit: Tourism Tasmania & Rob Burnett

Dog-friendly Outdoor Adventures

Everyone loves a good outdoor adventure, even more when you can bring your doggo along. While our four-legged friends are not permitted in National Parks around Tasmania, there are plenty of great activities and adventures that our pooches can explore.

If you are keen to get out and about and explore our island home with your canine companion in tow, we have pulled together a great bunch of dog-friendly stays, cafes and adventures that the whole family can enjoy.

Table of Contents

Hobart

There are so many places to enjoy with your doggo in and around the capital city.

kunanyi / Mount Wellington is a favourite with many of the mountain trails accessible with pets in tow.

Dogs are permitted on The Springs to Lenah Valley Track, the Fern Tree to Neika track and along the Sphinx Rock loop, be sure to familiarise yourself with the dog-friendly areas on the trail map.

The mountain also has a range of sensitive flora and fauna so please keep your dog on the lead and pick up after them.

Guide to kunanyi
Dog Friendly. Image Credit: @benjikelpiex
Dog Friendly. Image Credit: @benjikelpiex

Port Arthur and the Tasman Peninsula

The beautiful Tessellated Pavement is always a hit when visiting the Tasman Peninsula and there is no reason why your dog can’t enjoy the unique pavements as well!

Dogs are welcome (on lead) on the pavement as well as along the beach at Eaglehawk Neck. Be sure to drop into Cubed Espresso for a pick-me-up to start your day. They have one of the best views on the peninsula to enjoy. 

While on the peninsula, a visit to The Port Arthur Historic site is a must and they are also very accommodating of our furry friends. There is even a special entrance that you and your dog can enter (cute!). There are some areas that dogs are not allowed to enter such as the visitor centre, house museums and the harbour cruise vessel MV Marana.

Port Arthur Historic Site
The Port Arthur Historic Site is one of Australia's most important heritage sites and tourist destinations. Located on the scenic Tasman Peninsula in the south east of Tasmania, it offers a unique and essential experience for all visitors to the area.
The Port Arthur Historic Site

Kingston & surrounds

South of Hobart, also has some fabulous spots to take your doggo. If you are after a nice walking track, head out on the Alum Cliffs Trail. 

For those seeking some waterfall therapy, Snug Falls is a popular outing with your pooch and the trail to Pelverata Falls is also dog-friendly. For those looking for a sandy escape, Kingston Beach has an off-leash dog area for your pal to enjoy.

Further down the channel will find the Art Farm at Birchs Bay. The farm offers lovely short walks around the gardens, farm and orchards, with beautiful views across to Bruny Island and the D’Entrecasteaux Channel. Dogs are very welcome on leads however there are no bins on the trail so please leave no trace. 

D’Entrecasteaux Channel
Dog Friendly. Image Credit: @teddy.the.greyhound
Dog Friendly. Image Credit: @teddy.the.greyhound

Huon Valley

A visit to the far south region of Tasmania is always a fun way to spend a weekend. If you are looking for a peaceful moment in nature then visit the Tahune Airwalk where dogs are welcomed (on lead). Just be sure to check with your dog to make sure he/she isn’t afraid of heights first.

The far south region of Cockle Creek is also dog-friendly. While you cannot take dogs along the South Cape Bay track, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery, and isolated beaches and perhaps do some whale watching during whale season.

For the best dog-friendly walking trails, waterfalls and beaches around southern Tasmania, visit our article on dog-friendly walking tracks.

Tahune Airwalk
Visitor Centre and Cafe - Tahune Adventures
Visitor Centre and Cafe - Tahune Adventures

Dog-friendly Cafes

There are plenty of great options around Southern Tasmania to take your friends out for a coffee, cider, wine or lunch (and by friends, we mean your doggo).

Hobart

Located in Sandy Bay, Sisterhood is very welcoming of dogs. They even have a doggie menu so you can order your pooch a treat too – house-made dog biscuits and puppycinos, does it get any cuter!?

Just around the corner from Sisterhood is Giddy Up whose outdoor courtyard often features canines of all sizes. It is also a great spot when the weather is a little cooler thanks to their outdoor heaters.

Room for a Pony in North Hobart is also great for pets, with a large outdoor area available for your pooch to enjoy. Other great stops for a coffee and bite to eat with your furry friend include Criterion Street Cafe in the CBD and Retro Cafe in Salamanca which have lovely outdoor seating.

For those exploring Mount Wellington with your dog, be sure to enjoy a visit at Lost Freight Cafe – your pooch might even get featured on their Dogs of Lost Freight Instagram page!

Lost Freight Cafe
Lost Freight Cafe
Lost Freight Cafe

Kingston

For those venturing further out of the city, the Salty Dog in Kingston has a fenced outdoor area that is a hit when the sun is shining and after some swims at the beach. Peppermint Bay Hotel’s Bar and Bistro deck area is also a nice way to spend an afternoon with your pal. 

Peppermint Bay

Bruny Island

For those travelling around Bruny Island, the Bruny Island Cheese Company also welcomes dogs in their outside area. Please be sure to keep pets on a lead.

Discover Bruny Island

Huon Valley

South of Hobart, in the Huon Valley region, you can enjoy a cider with your doggo at either Willie Smith’s Apple Shed (Grove) or Pagan Cider (Cygnet), with your dog in their outdoor areas.

Geeveston’s Harvest and Light is a very cosy spot to visit – dogs are even allowed to sit inside. A must-do on your trip to Tahune!

Pagan Cider
Pagan Cider
Pagan Cider

Kempton

If you are exploring the Southern Midlands and looking for a place for an afternoon beverage (responsibly, of course) then Old Kempton Distillery is a great place to visit with your pooch.

The courtyard is very dog friendly and the staff love seeing the different pooches coming through the doors.

Old Kempton Distillery

New Norfolk

A day out in the Derwent Valley is always a good time. Stop by the Glen Derwent Tea Rooms, Black Swan Bookstore (and cafe!) and Patchwork Cafe for a coffee.

Sit back and enjoy a drink at The Eleventh Order Brewery while your canine companion makes some new friends.

Derwent Valley

Richmond and Coal River Valley

If you are visiting the Coal River Valley (around Richmond), Wobbly Boot Vineyard and Wattlebanks Cafe are dog-friendly. Wobbly Boot even has three off-lead areas so your dog can run around and make new friends while you enjoy a relaxing Tassie vino.

Wobbly Boot Vineyard
Wobbly Boot Vineyard
Wobbly Boot Vineyard

Dog-Friendly Accommodation

If you want to head out and about for a few days with your trusty pooch alongside, we have pulled together a few accommodation options that welcome doggos. Please always call ahead and let them know you’d like to bring your dog so they can accommodate you.

Margate

Waterview Gardens B&B in Margate along the Channel also welcome pets to stay. The B&B features beautiful views of the D’Entrecasteaux Channel and Bruny Island.

Waterview Gardens
Waterview Gardens B&B
Waterview Gardens B&B

Dover

Essentially Tas in Southern Tasmania has a great range of pet-friendly accommodation options for your next adventure south. Their Castaway Cottage and Seascapes properties are all located in Dover and Fair Winds is located in Brooks Bay.

The lovely properties are ideal for a romantic weekend away for three or for the whole family to escape to the south.

Castaway Cottage
Fair Winds Tasmania
Fair Winds Tasmania

New Norfolk

For those escaping to the Derwent Valley, Explorers Lodge and the historic Glen Derwent Cottages are great pet-friendly options.

Enjoy a wander around New Norfolk or find some snow around the Great Lakes region for your furry friend to play in. Unfortunately, dogs are not allowed to visit the Mount Field National Park or Southwest National Park.

Discover the Derwent Valley
Glen Derwent
Glen Derwent

Hamilton & Bothwell

If you are keen to escape to the country, Ratho Farm and Rathmore are both pet-friendly.

Rathmore is located in Hollow Tree, a 40-minute drive from New Norfolk. Their Shearers Quarters offer revived, rustic-chic lodgings that are pet-friendly under certain conditions.

Ratho Farm, located in Bothwell, features one of Australia’s oldest golf courses and accommodation in former convict barns and stables which have now been restored into boutique rooms. Visitors are asked to chat to the team about bringing their pet along, prior to booking their accommodation.

Ratho Farm
Ratho Farm Accommodation

Ross

If you are travelling along the Midlands Highway between Hobart and Launceston and need a little spot to break up the drive a visit to Ross is a great stop.

The Ross Motel is dog-friendly along with the Ross Caravan Park for those travelling in caravans, motorhomes and camper trailers.

Heritage Highway
Ross, Tasmania. Image Credit: Darren Wright Photography
Ross, Tasmania. Image Credit: Darren Wright Photography

Additional notes

Of course, dog owners are obligated to do the right thing when it comes to taking their pooch out and about in Southern Tasmania. This includes cleaning up after your dog, ensuring you carry a lead at all times and keep your fluffy friend under control at all times.  Please always ensure you notify the hotel/motel/BNB upon booking that you require a dog-friendly space. 

For more pet-friendly stays visit our Where to Stay page.

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We acknowledge the Tasmanian Aboriginal people and their enduring custodianship of lutruwita / Tasmania. We honour 40,000 years of uninterrupted care, protection and belonging to these islands, before the invasion and colonisation of European settlement. As a destination that welcomes visitors to these lands, we acknowledge our responsibility to represent to our visitors, Tasmania’s deep and complex history, fully, respectfully and truthfully.

We acknowledge the Aboriginal people who continue to care for this country today. We pay our respects to their elders, past and present. We honour their stories, songs, art, and culture, and their aspirations for the future of their people and these lands. We respectfully ask that tourism be a part of that future.

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