Tasmania Weather, climate and geography

Weather and climate

Best time to visit

With four seasons, the summer tends to be warm rather than hot. Winters are wet, cold and stormy, particularly in the east.

Required clothing

Lightweight cottons and linens in summer. Waterproof clothes are advisable in the winter.

Geography

The island of Tasmania is located 240km (149 miles) south of Melbourne across the Bass Strait. Roughly heart-shaped, Tasmania is 296km (184 miles) long, ranging from 315km (196 miles) wide in the north to 70km (44 miles) in the south.

The diverse landscape is comprised of rugged mountains (snow-capped in winter), dense bushland (including the Horizontal Forest, so-called because the tree trunks are bent over parallel to the ground), tranquil countryside and farmland. Approximately 40% of Tasmania is protected in national parks and other reserves, over half of this being the World Heritage-listed temperate wilderness in the west of the island.