Practical Information for visiting Tasmania

Coverage is good in Hobart, Launceston and the main towns.

It disappears across the west coast, the highlands and the southwest — assume none on the Overland Track or anywhere in the wilderness area.

Free Wi-Fi is standard in accommodation and cafés. For multi-day walks, carry a PLB: they are available for free hire from parks offices and police stations, and using one is normal practice.

Tasmania is very safe. The hazards are environmental and almost entirely about weather.

The highlands can produce snow in any month. People die of hypothermia on Tasmanian walking tracks in summer, having set out in shorts on a warm morning. Carry full wet-weather and warm layers on any highland walk regardless of the forecast, and log your intentions.

Carry a PLB on multi-day walks — free to hire from parks offices — and register at the track head.

Bushfire risk is real in summer, particularly in the east and the highlands where peat can burn underground for weeks. Wildlife on roads at night is the most common cause of vehicle damage.

No vaccinations are required and tap water is safe.

Hypothermia is the characteristic Tasmanian medical emergency, and it happens in summer on the highlands as readily as in winter.

UV is extreme despite the cool climate — this latitude has among the highest UV readings in the inhabited world, and the cold air makes it easy to underestimate.

Tasmania has three of Australia's venomous snake species; all are avoidable with boots and attention.

Hospitals are in Hobart, Launceston and Burnie. Remote and wilderness areas rely on helicopter retrieval, and insurance matters.

Tipping is not expected. Wages are legally set and service is included.

Quarantine is strict. Tasmania is free of several mainland pests and diseases, and fresh fruit, vegetables, honey and plant material cannot be brought in — bins are provided at airports and the ferry, and the rules are enforced.

Use the boot wash-down stations at track heads. Spreading root-rot fungus is the single most damaging thing a walker can do here.

A national parks pass is required for park entry. Drink-driving limits are low with random testing, and the drinking age is 18.

000 reaches police, fire and ambulance; 112 also works from mobiles.

Major hospitals are the Royal Hobart, Launceston General and North West Regional at Burnie. The west coast and wilderness depend on helicopter retrieval.

PLBs are free to hire from parks offices and police stations, and carrying one on a multi-day walk is standard rather than cautious.

Log your walking intentions at the track head and sign out again. For bushfire, the Tasmania Fire Service and the state broadcaster carry live warnings.