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Launceston is a year-round destination in Tasmania and is the perfect place to visit for your next adventure in a campervan. With captivating landscapes and heart-stopping coastlines, this vibrant riverside city will not disappoint. You could save on your accommodation and transportation costs by booking a campervan hire with VroomVroomVroom. If you prefer a smaller vehicle like an SUV or station wagon, you can also compare rental cars in Launceston.
Launceston or “Lonnie” to the locals is a city of contrast. It is Tasmania’s second-largest city and one of Australia’s oldest cities. Just 200 km north of Hobart, the city is a great place to pick up your campervan hire in northern Tasmania. Launceston features a lively Victorian-era ambience as well as historical sites, natural attractions, restaurants, adventure sports, and the popular Cataract Gorge Reserve.
Some of our favourite things to do year-round in Launceston are:
Summer (December, January, February): Showcasing the best food and wine in Tasmania, the three-day Festivale celebration of summer is one event you shouldn’t miss. Also worth checking out is the MONA FOMA, an annual music and arts festival held in Launceston. Enjoy a full day dining in some of the best bars, cafes, and restaurants such as Geronimo, Saint John, Bryher, Queen Victoria Art Gallery, Sweetbrew, Seven Monks, Metz, Black Cow Bistro, and Stillwater Restaurant.
Autumn (March, April, May): Park your rented campervan and make sure to relax in the picturesque City Park. Just a few minutes away from the city centre, you can see the beautiful Cataract Gorge. Autumn is an ideal time to explore the East Coast that includes popular tourist spots such as the Wineglass Bay and the Bay of Fires which are less crowded at this time of the year.
Winter (June, July, August): Only a ten-minute drive away from Launceston, the stunning Tamar Island Wetlands is guaranteed to take your breath away. Walk along the boardwalks and take in the view of the Tamar River with its tranquil lagoons. Less than an hour drive from Lauceston via C401, the ski field at the Ben Lomond National Park is also worth checking out.
Spring (September, October, November): Get ready for a memorable adventure at the award-winning Hollybank Wilderness Adventures in Tasmania’s north. You can choose to glide along the forest floor on a Segway Tour or fly through the treetops on the Zipline Adventure. The Tamar Valley is a great day trip from the city where you can explore historic towns and check out vineyards and cellar doors.
Year-Round: Launceston is a great city to explore even if you have limited time. Visit Queen Victoria Museum, Entally House, Royal Park, and Franklin House. Drive your campervan hire and head to Mt. Wellington for one of the best views on the island or travel along the eastern coast to stop by the famous Tasman Arch.
Discovery Holiday Parks Hadspen is just 15 minutes from Launceston and its pet-friendly campsite facilities include a barbecue, camp kitchen, communal kitchen, laundry and playground.
Longford Riverside Caravan Park is just around 15 minutes west of Launceston along the banks of the Macquarie River. The accommodations that it offers includes cabins, caravan sites (powered and unpowered), and campsites. Its campsite facilities include a shared kitchen, camper's kitchen and barbecue.
Big 4 Launceston Holiday Park enjoys a central location, just two kilometres outside of central Launceston. It offers accommodation including holiday cabins, onsite caravans, powered caravan, and campervan sites and camping and tent sites. Its caravan park features three amenities blocks, onsite laundromat, free barbecues, campers kitchen, and LPG refill.
Ben Lomond National Park is located 50 kilometres east of Launceston in northern Tasmania, Australia. The park is home to a wide range of animals and plants. It has an impressive bird area that protects Flame Robin birds and many other native Tasmanian birds. The popular activities within the park are camping, bird watching, leisure walking and skiing during winter.
Cataract Gorge Reserve or “ The Gorge” is a sought after wilderness area around fifteen minutes from the centre of Launceston. It features include the world’s longest single-span chair lift, café peacocks and wildlife, hiking trails, attractive gardens, a suspension bridge, swimming pool and lookouts that offer magnificent panoramic views.
Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery is located at 2 Invermay Road, Launceston. The museum and art gallery is the largest regional gallery in Australia, and it features a large number of impressive collections including Australian colonial art, items related to the Tasmanian history and natural sciences, contemporary craft and design and attractions such as its planetarium, Launceston Railway Workshops and a Chinese Temple.
Tasmania Zoo is at 1166 Ecclestone Road, Riverside, Launceston. Located around eighteen kilometres from the centre of Launceston, the zoo is currently Tasmania’s largest wildlife park and covers 900 acres of bushland. The park has a number of exotic and native animals such as Tasmanian Devils, penguins, crocodiles, wombats, echidnas, kangaroos, quolls, reptiles and the opportunity to off-road on a 4WD buggy tour.
The Old Umbrella Shop can be found at 60 George Street, Launceston. It is a charming old-world umbrella shop that serves as the oldest surviving well-preserved 20th-century shop in Tasmania. The store houses a wide variety of century-old umbrellas and sells wonderful souvenirs to take home.
Trevallyn Nature Recreation Area sits along the banks of South Esk River, around four kilometres from the centre of Launceston. The site is a popular recreation and nature reserve that serves as a great venue for activities likes canoeing, mountain biking, dog walking, horse riding, picnics, rock climbing, running, while it protects a number of wildlife and flora including over 28 threatened plants. Nearby is the famous Cataract Gorge.
On hiring a campervan in Launceston
Unlike when hiring a rental car, people tend to book a campervan a bit further in advance, and there are a few reasons for this.
When you’re hiring a campervan, you’re not simply hiring something with four wheels to buzz around a city for a few days, instead you’re hiring a vehicle that you could well be living in for days, weeks, or even months. As such, people tend to have far more specific needs — some may require a certain number of berths, perhaps an onboard kitchen, or more comfortable living space. All this means that doing your research to find the right campervan for you can pay off handsomely — but it also means that supply is more limited. When supply is limited, it is a good idea to book as far in advance as possible so that you know that the campervan you need will be waiting for you when you arrive.
With this in mind, while it isn’t unusual for people to book a hire car the day before they need it, with campervans, people often book their vehicle months in advance. So our advice to you is if you’re planning to rent a campervan, start researching today, and when you find the right campervan for you, book it!
One more point, another way campervan rentals differ from regular cars, is that bookings are not instant. Once you make a campervan booking it will need to be approved by the provider. Yet another reason not to leave your campervan rental until you’re sitting in the airport boarding lounge.
If you’re new to campervans and not sure where to start, please give our campervans for beginners page a read as it explains many of the basics you’ll need to know to make an informed decision.
We could start off by telling you that a typical customer hiring a campervan in Launceston tends to look at campervans with two or four berths (including a toilet and shower). This isn’t really all that helpful though, as they type of campervan you should hire in Launceston depends very much on the type of campervan you — rather than a typical customer — needs. Consider the following questions:
How big is your travel group? What is your budget? What facilities do you need — or not need? Where are you planning to go? How long for? Knowing the answers to these questions — and plenty more — is the best way to make sure the campervan you hire in Launceston is the right one for you.
Solo travellers or couples might find a compact campervan to be more than enough, while families — especially those with young kids — or larger groups might prefer a more spacious motorhome with multiple sleeping areas.
Next, consider the facilities you need and the facilities you want. These might sound the same, but they are very different! Basic campervans often include a bed and simple cooking gear, while more luxurious options feature kitchens, bathrooms, and comfortable bedding. For example, if you’re planning on camping, perhaps paying the extra for comfortable beds isn’t really necessary, but if you’re not even packing a tent, then the extra expense required to get more comfortable beds might be a smart choice.
Where you’re going also matters. If you’re planning to just potter around Launceston and its immediate surrounds, then you could probably get away with a standard campervan. That said, if you’re planning to drive from Launceston to Devonport — or Perth — something more spacious would be a sound investment.
Think about your budget, as campervans vary in cost depending on size, amenities, and rental duration, and while shortening the length of your trip might bring different options within your budget, spending more to get a bigger van may mean you’ll spend even less on hotels. Either way, do the math!
In conclusion, when you’re booking a campervan for pickup from Launceston, it pays to be honest when considering what you need versus what you want, along with what fits with your budget and overall travel plans. It’s the best way to maximise your chance of getting the perfect campervan for you.
For most rental caravan providers, the minimum age to rent a campervan is the same as for car rentals — 21 years of age. Depending on the campervan rental supplier, those under 21 may only be able to rent certain vehicles. Double check with the campervan rental provider to see what their specific requirements are.
In most cases, you won’t need to present a special type of licence to rent a campervan — you’ll only be asked to present your standard and valid full Australian driving licence. Keep in mind that a probationary, learner permit, or provisional licence are not accepted for campervan hire. If your licence is in a language other than English, you’ll need to provide an International Driving Permit in conjunction with your valid licence. If you’re unsure as to whether your licence will be accepted, you should contact your prospective campervan provider prior to booking.
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