Deloraine

The river and creative talents run deep in Deloraine, an artsy town straddling the Meander River.

As ground zero for Australia's biggest working craft festival, the Tasmanian Craft Fair, held each November, Deloraine lures more than 200 leadlighters and candlestick makers, printers and woodcarvers, kitemakers and glass artists, swelling the town’s population for the four days of the event. 

When it’s not in the grip of crafting, Deloraine is perfect for a spot of window shopping - its streets are lined with Georgian and Victorian shopfronts full of art, antiques and crafts.

Set out on foot along the Great Western Tiers Sculpture Trail around the town and along the river to see the works of Tasmanian artists, while the short kooparoona niara cultural trail unveils native plantings, bush tucker and artworks inspired by Tasmanian Aboriginal culture.

Deloraine is surrounded by some of Tasmania’s most productive farmland, and it's less a 10min drive from Deloraine to the little town of Elizabeth Town, which satisfies even big appetites. Find a feast of Tasmanian fare at the Ashgrove Cheese Dairy Door, Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm Café and Van Diemens Land Creamery.

Set beneath the escarpment of the Great Western Tiers, Deloraine is a good base from which to explore Cradle Mountain, Mole Creek, Liffey Falls and the Central Highlands.

Where

Deloraine is a 40min drive (50km) west of Launceston.

Insider tips 

• Hot-smoked salmon features on tasting platters at 41 Degrees South salmon and ginseng farm. Take a self-guided tour of the wetlands.
• Head onto the slopes of the Great Western Tiers to find Liffey Falls, one of Tasmania’s prettiest waterfalls, and to climb Quamby Bluff, the northernmost peak in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. Allow about 4hr for the 6.5km return walk.