Burnie
Burnie is the fourth largest city in Tasmania, with a population of around 20,000. It is on the northwestern coast of Tasmania.
Once renowned as a single-industry town with scant concern for the environment, Burnie has undergone a significant transformation into an attractive coastal city with a diverse economy. Burnie retains an industrial deep-water port, but also enjoys the luxury of several attractive north-facing beaches upon which pleasant and functional public spaces have been and are being developed. Burnie is a popular tourist location as it is close to many great attractions, like the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, the Stanley Nut, the Mole Creek Karst National Park, and the Rocky Cape National Park.
Understand
Visitor information
- burnie.net (council website)
Get in
By plane
Regional Express and Qantas fly to Burnie Airport from Melbourne. Burnie Airport is in the nearby town of Wynyard. Rental cars are available at the airport, as are taxis and a shuttle bus to Burnie.
By car
Burnie is on the Bass Highway, which is part of Highway 1. It will take around 40 minutes to drive from Devonport to Burnie, around 2 hours to drive from Launceston and around 4 hours to drive from Hobart. The Bass Highway between East Devonport and Burnie is a freeway, but the drive east of Devonport is a two-lane undivided highway.
From Queenstown, the Murchison Highway begins at Zeehan and ends at Somerset. Another alternative is the Ridgely Highway which joins the Murchison Highway at Fingerpost. Either way, it's more than 170km and between two and three hours.
Travellers arriving from Victoria or mainland Australia, arriving on the ferry Spirit of Tasmania, berthing in Devonport, can drive west 46 km (28 miles) to Burnie - Approx 30 min.
By bus
- From Hobart it's roughly 330km and 4h away. Redline Coaches operate to/from Burnie once or twice a day ($80). Buses via Launceston take longer.
- From Devonport you can catch a Mersey Link bus to Ulverstone and then catch a Metro Tasmania bus to Burnie and hence to Somerset. Redline also run coaches to Burnie once a day for about $13. Either way the distance is about 55 km and will take at least an hour.
- From Wynyard, Metro Tasmania buses operate regularly.
- From Launceston, Redline operates coaches to Burnie once or twice a day at a fare of around $40.
- From Smithton, Redline operates daily to and from Burnie which is about 80 km away and costs around $20 taking approximately one hour.
Get around
Metro Tasmania operates scheduled bus services in the Burnie area, and services to Wynyard, Somerset, Penguin and Ulverstone. Timetables are available from Metrotas website Fares are around $8 for a single one-way trip, per person.
See
- Visitor Information Hub - Operating during cruise ship season in the cultural precinct Plaza, Burnie.
- Little Penguin Observation Centre, Parsonage Point (along the foreshore boardwalk), ☏ +61 437 436 803. Guides are present around sunset from October to March. Free.
- Fernglade - just a few minutes drive east of the city, a ferny environment with picnic facilities, great for a BBQ and a walk along the banks of the Emu River. You may see be fortunate and see a wild platypus at Fern Glade. The second entrance is the start of a 3 km walk in the Emu Valley, through to Rutherford Rd in Stowport. This track is also excellent for mountain bikes
- Guide Falls - An easy and picturesque 20-minute drive south of Burnie, Guide Falls Reserve is a popular picnic attraction with tables and bbq amenities. Best water flow in Winter and Spring.
- 1 Burnie Regional Museum, Civic Centre Precinct, Little Alexander Street, ☏ +61 3 6430 5746. Formerly the Pioneer Village Museum, contains an indoor exhibition known as Federation Street, it interprets the environment of the period 1890-1910 when Burnie was at the height of its first economic boom. It also has other free temporary exhibitions.
- Burnie Regional Art Exhibitions, 77 – 79 Wilmot Street Burnie, ☏ +61 3 6430 5850. The Arts and Function centre, or nearby Intersection art space feature temporary exhibitions from time to time. Free.
- Emu Valley Rhododendron Garden, 55 Breffny Road, Romaine (turn left at Cascade Rd., 6 km south of Burnie on B18 and follow signs), ☏ +61 3 6433 1805, enquiries@evrg.com.au. Daily 9AM–5PM (closed Christmas Day and Good Friday). 13 hectares of gardens, featuring 23,000 rhododendrons and other plants. Peak flowering Sept–Nov. Tea rooms. Entry fee applies.
- ANZAC Park
- Somerset Beach, which stretches along the full length of the Somerset coastline from the River Cam to the far western outskirts.
- The Cam River
Do
- Heritage town walk - Walking tours
Buy
Eat
- Thai Smile Cafe and Takeaway, 53 Mount St, ☏ +61 3 6431 6139.
- Dave's Noodles, 129 Wilson Street.
- The Foreshore, 2 North Terrace (Burnie Surf Club Building), ☏ +61 3 6432 1111, info@theforeshoreburnie.com.au. A variety of fish and chips, seafood and salad options.
- Bayviews Restaurant & Lounge Bar (On top of Fish Frenzy), ☏ +61 3 6431 7999. M–W 5PM–late, Th–Sa noon–late. Very nice food, or just for drinks.
- Indian Tandoor House, 6 Alexander Street, ☏ +61 3 6431 5111. Daily 5PM–9PM. Best Indian in town.
- food + brew, 1 Cattley Street (on the corner of Marine Terrace), ☏ +61 3 6431 9225, foodbrewburnie@gmail.com. M–W 7:30–3:30PM, Th F 7:30AM–late, Sa Su 8:30AM–late. Good for coffee, drinks and meals for all sized groups.
- VJ's Bakery, Wragg Street. Delicious fresh bakery snacks.
- Jetty Restaurant, 9 Murchison Highway, ☏ +61364351106.
- Pink Pepper Cafe, Wragg Street.
Drink
- Hellyers Road Distillery - Makes whisky and also has a cafe and restaurant.
- Somerset Hotel, 25 Wragg St.
- 1 Village Milkbar, Wragg St.
Sleep
- 1 Beach Hotel Burnie, 1 Wilson St, ☏ +61 3 6431 2333. Check-in: noon, check-out: 10AM.
- 2 Burnie Central Townhouse Hotel, 139 Wilson St, ☏ +61 3 6431 4455. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM.
- Somerset Beachside Caravan Park, 15,235 Bass Hwy, ☏ +61 3 6435-2322. Internet café and barbecue space. Wood-lined en suite cabins are also available with a full kitchen including fridge, microwave, stove and pots, pans and cutlery. RV or tent spaces $16 and up, Cabins $80 and up.
- Seabrook Hotel, Bass Highway, ☏ +61 3 6435-1209. Beach is close and rooms are large with a friendly host. There's both a restaurant and bar downstairs, but a cooked breakfast can be delivered to your room. $69 and up.
Go next
- West
- East
- South
- West Coast
- Cradle Mountain – one of Tasmania's biggest icons.
- Walls of Jerusalem National Park – a beautiful less visited national park. You'll need to make careful preparations for a true bush experience since there's no direct road access and no visitor facilities. Landscapes are as lyrically beautiful as are some of their Biblical names: The Damascus Gate, Herods Gate, King Davids Peak, Solomons Throne, The Pool of Bethesda, and Lake Salome.
| C214 jcn to Arthur River ← Wynyard ← Somerset ← | W A2  E |
→ Penguin → Devonport |
| END ← | N B18 S | → A10 → Tullah → Queenstown |
| END ← | N A10 S | → Tullah → Queenstown |