Wineglass Bay
A Perfect White Arc of Sand
schedule 3 min read / Updated Apr 2026
A perfect crescent of white sand inside Freycinet National Park on Tasmania's east coast, Wineglass Bay is regularly voted one of the top ten beaches in the world. The view from the Wineglass Bay Lookout is the most photographed single view in Tasmania.
Wineglass Bay sits on the east coast of Tasmania inside Freycinet National Park, around two and a half hours' drive north of Hobart or a similar distance from Launceston. The bay was formed when glaciers and rising sea levels in the late Pleistocene cut a perfect curve into the pink-granite Hazards Range, leaving a beach of fine white sand roughly one and a half kilometres long between two granite headlands.
The name Wineglass Bay is thought to have come from the days of whaling, when the bay was used as a harbour for processing whale carcasses and the water regularly turned red with blood. In the 1820s and 1830s this was one of the busiest whaling stations in the southern hemisphere. The industry had largely wound down by 1850, and the beach and the bay have been protected since 1916 when Freycinet was declared one of Tasmania's first national parks, making it one of the oldest protected areas on the island.
The traditional owners are the Oyster Bay tribe of the Tasmanian Aboriginal people, who had lived on the east coast for tens of thousands of years before European contact. Middens (ancient shell deposits from Aboriginal meals) are still found along the coast and are protected cultural heritage. The park and its surrounding country are now actively managed with input from the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.
The classic visitor experience is the hike to the Wineglass Bay Lookout. The walk starts at the Wineglass Bay car park and climbs steeply up a stone staircase to a saddle between Mt Amos and Mt Mayson. The lookout platform gives the famous view of the curve of the bay surrounded by pink granite cliffs and the brilliant turquoise water, and it is considered the single most photographed view in Tasmania. The walk is around three kilometres return and takes about an hour and a half for the average walker, though the final climb is steeper than visitors often expect.
For those who want to go beyond the lookout, a longer track continues down to the beach itself. The full lookout and beach walk is around five kilometres return and takes around two and a half hours. The sand on the beach is bright white and the water is genuinely turquoise thanks to the fine white sand bottom. The Tasman Sea here is cold, typically 14 to 18 degrees, so swimmers are usually brief.
The Hazards Beach Circuit is a longer 11 kilometre loop that crosses the Freycinet Peninsula from Wineglass Bay on the east to Hazards Beach on the west, then returns along the western side of the peninsula. This walk takes most of a day and is the best way to see the full variety of the peninsula's coast, including the rarely visited Hazards Beach side.
The town of Coles Bay sits immediately outside the park and has accommodation ranging from the Freycinet Lodge (located inside the park itself) to self-catering cabins and camping. Saffire Freycinet, the most famous luxury lodge in Tasmania, sits on the northern edge of the park and has won numerous best-hotel-in-the-world awards. The park is open year-round but the best months are October to April, when the weather is stable and the tracks are safe to walk. Winter conditions can be cold and windy, though the lookout is still accessible and dramatic on clear days.
Common questions
Things visitors ask about Wineglass Bay.
Quick answers to help you plan.
Where is Wineglass Bay?
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Wineglass Bay is a curved white-sand beach on the Freycinet Peninsula on Tasmania's east coast, inside Freycinet National Park. The trailhead is reached via the Coles Bay Road (C302), which turns off the Tasman Highway about 12 km south of Bicheno. Coles Bay township sits at the edge of the park and is the main service hub for visitors.
How do you get to Wineglass Bay from Hobart or Launceston?
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It is roughly 195 km from Hobart (around 2.5 hours) and 175 km from Launceston (around 2 hours) to Coles Bay. From the Coles Bay car park inside the national park, you then walk in to Wineglass Bay, as there is no road access to the beach itself.
Is there an entry fee for Freycinet National Park?
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Yes, a valid Tasmanian Parks Pass is required to enter Freycinet. A 24-hour vehicle pass is $47.70 and the Holiday Pass (valid up to 2 months) is $95.50 per vehicle for up to 8 people. Passes can be bought online via passes.parks.tas.gov.au or at the Freycinet Visitor Centre.
How long is the Wineglass Bay Lookout walk?
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The lookout walk is 2.6 km return and takes most people 1 to 1.5 hours. It is graded Grade 3, climbing steeply through coastal woodland and granite boulders to a viewing platform above the bay. There are resting seats along the way and sturdy footwear is recommended.
What is the difference between the lookout walk and the full Wineglass Bay circuit?
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The lookout walk stops at the viewing platform above the bay, while the Wineglass Bay and Hazards Beach Circuit continues down to the beach, crosses the isthmus to Hazards Beach and loops back along the coast. The full circuit is 11 km and takes 4 to 5 hours, and is rated Grade 4 with longer, rougher and steeper sections.
When is the best time of year to visit Wineglass Bay?
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Summer (December to April) has the warmest weather and longest days, but it is also the busiest period and the Freycinet camping ballot is drawn in August for that season. Spring and autumn are quieter, with native orchids flowering in October and November. Walking the lookout track in early morning or late afternoon helps you avoid the busy midday crowd.
Where can you stay near Wineglass Bay?
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Most visitors base themselves in Coles Bay, which has everything from holiday cottages and guest houses to caravan and camping facilities. Inside the national park, Freycinet Lodge offers cabins, suites and Coastal Pavilions tucked among the bushland near Honeymoon Bay. Parks-run camping is available at Richardsons Beach, Honeymoon Bay, Ranger Creek and Friendly Beaches, with peak-season sites allocated by ballot.
Can you swim at Wineglass Bay?
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Yes, the bay is famous for its crystal-clear water and many walkers cool off after the descent from the lookout. The beach is unpatrolled, so swim with care, and remember Tasmanian water stays cool year-round, generally sitting in the mid teens in winter and reaching the high teens to low 20s in mid-summer. There are no shops or drinking water at the beach, so carry everything you need.
Why is it called Wineglass Bay?
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The most cited explanation is the bay's perfect curved shape, which resembles a wineglass when viewed from the hills above. A darker theory links the name to the shore-based whaling stations that operated at Wineglass Bay, Refuge Bay, Bryans Beach and Coles Bay in the 1820s and 1830s, when the water was said to turn red with whale blood. Whaling on the peninsula ran for roughly two decades before the industry declined.
What wildlife might you see in Freycinet National Park?
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Bennett's wallabies and pademelons are commonly seen along the tracks and around the camping areas, along with echidnas and the occasional wombat. White-bellied sea eagles glide above the cliffs, Australasian gannets dive offshore, and dolphins, seals and migrating humpback whales are sometimes spotted from the lookout and Cape Tourville.
Can you book a guided multi-day walk at Freycinet?
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Yes, the Freycinet Experience Walk is a four-day fully guided walk along the length of the peninsula, including Wineglass Bay, with transfers from Hobart, all meals and accommodation at the private Friendly Beaches Lodge. Group size is capped at 10 walkers and bookings are made through freycinet.com.au. Shorter half-day and day tours of Wineglass Bay also depart from Coles Bay.
Gallery
Wineglass Bay in pictures.
7 images licensed from Wikimedia Commons
All images are sourced from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licences. Individual photographers are credited on the source pages.
On the itinerary
Trip plans that include Wineglass Bay.
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Scenic views
Lookouts near Wineglass Bay.
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Attribution
Sources & credits
Content (5)
- Wikipedia: Wineglass Bay · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wineglass Bay Lookout · Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania
- Wineglass Bay and Hazards Beach · Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania
- Park passes and entry fees · Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania
- Guide to Freycinet National Park · Tourism Tasmania
Images (7)
- Beach, Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park, Tasmania.jpg · Paulscho203 · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park, Tasmania, Australia-... · Peter Shanks · CC BY 2.0
- Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park.jpg · Liam2520 · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Freycinet-Tasmania-Australia01.JPG · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Freycinet National Park, Tasmania - 52188911612 2022.jpg · Paris Buttfield-Addison · CC BY 2.0
- Freycinet Wineglass Bay And Promise Bay.jpg · Bjørn Christian Tørrissen · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Wineglass Bay seen from Mount Amos at Freycinet National Par... · Joaquín Salido Bello · CC BY-SA 4.0
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