Holiday houses in Orford

It’s all about the great outdoors in this laid-back seaside town, the starting point for Tasmania’s memory-spinning Great Eastern Drive road trip. Dividing Orford in two, the Prosser River runs into a sheltered bay, where fishing, boating, swimming, and diving are all favourite pastimes. Beyond Prosser Bay glimmers the car-free wildlife haven of Maria Island, a short ferry hop across the Mercury Passage.

North of the river, the white sands of Raspins Beach stretch for 9 kilometres, while a clifftop walk to the south links the pristine Shelly and Spring beaches, where you can swim, surf, and explore rockpools. Coastal, river, and forest walks abound. For a bird’s-eye view of Orford and the surrounding area, head up to the Three Thumbs lookout and picnic spot in the Wielangta Forest, from where you can hike to the hills’ three peaks. Orford’s mild weather creates perfect growing conditions for local makers of cheese, whisky, and delicate, cool-climate wines.

Warm, sunny summers and mild winters make Orford a year-round destination. Sheltered from the prevailing westerlies, the town is blessed with far less rainfall than the west coast, though expect sudden changes in the weather, particularly if you’re bushwalking. Off-season, you’ll find deserted beaches and empty roads. In summer, which can bring heatwaves, locals move into their shacks and the town’s small population triples; Easter can get busy, too. Around new year, the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race culminates in the Taste of Tasmania, the capital’s week-long celebration of local food, arts, and entertainment. Spring, which can be breezy, brings wildflowers, while autumn turns vineyards from lush green to golden yellow. Winter, with its occasional frosts, is festival season and the best time for whale spotting.

Raspins Beach Conservation Area

Raspins Beach Conservation Area is home to pied oystercatchers, red-clapped and hooded plovers, and flocks of red-necked stints in summer. Thanks to the breeding pairs of vulnerable fairy terns that nest above the high-tide mark and can dive from heights of up to five metres, a sandspit in the middle of the conservation area has been designated an IBA (Important Bird Area).

Paradise Probation Station

North of the Prosser River bridge, an easy, flat bushland walk takes you along the river to the ruins of the Paradise Probation Station. Hand-hewn brick and stonework along the road, which once ran all the way to Hobart, is one of Orford’s glimpses into its history.

Diving

Among the east coast’s wealth of temperate dive sites, the Troy D is one of the most alluring. In the Mercury Passage’s crystal-clear waters, this 55-metre former container ship was scuttled in 2007 to create an artificial reef. Divers can access every compartment, including the engine room, preserving the ghostly feel of swimming through a wreck, complete with resident cuttlefish. Reef sharks, moray eels, and barracudas appear among the seagrass beds and forests of string kelp.