Area Hotlist — Central Highlands TAS
20 lifestyle anchors proven to sell property across the Central Highlands (Tas.) area
Area Hotlist — Central Highlands (Tas.)
Great Lake
892 votesTasmania’s second-largest freshwater lake stretches 22 km across the plateau, renowned for world-class sight fishing to cruising browns. Shack villages at Miena line rocky shores, while icy sunrise mists create ethereal views for photographers. Year-round hydro releases keep water levels reliable and visitor numbers steady.
Lake St Clair
611 votesAustralia’s deepest lake anchors the south end of the Overland Track. Glassy dawn reflections of Mount Ida lure Instagrammers, and eco-cruises reveal submerged pencil-pine forests. Lakeside lodges supply fireside pinot and hearty roasts, making it a luxurious base for anglers, hikers and wombat-spotters alike.
Walls of Jerusalem National Park
548 votesAccessible only on foot, “The Walls” reward pack-haul trekkers with dolerite ramparts, cushion-plant meadows and mirror-still alpine tarns. Tent platforms and wilderness huts limit numbers, preserving rare quietude. Serious hikers cherish its true back-country feel just two hours’ drive from Launceston airport.
Derwent Bridge
492 votesThis tiny highway hamlet marks the midpoint between Hobart and Strahan. Visitors pause for pub counter-meals and the acclaimed Wall in the Wilderness wood-carving gallery before pushing on to Lake St Clair. Snow-dusted gums and crackling log fires create classic high-country ambience each winter.
Arthurs Lake
410 votesArthurs is the state’s most consistent mayfly water, drawing fly-fishers chasing explosive summer dun hatches. A maze of timber-lined bays shelters rustic shacks and quiet camps. Hydro draw-downs expose grassy flats that become cricket pitches and sunset picnic spots for families.
Central Plateau Conservation Area
355 votesSpanning 1 000 km² of alpine moor, the “Land of a Thousand Lakes” protects ancient pencil-pines, sphagnum bogs and endemic wildlife. Four-wheel-drive tracks and ski-tour routes criss-cross glacial plains, yet silence reigns once engines cut—pure wilderness therapy only a couple of hours from city desks.
Waddamana Power Station Museum
289 votesSwitchboards, Pelton wheels and roaring turbines tell the story of Tasmania’s first hydro scheme. Guided torch tours reveal art-deco control rooms frozen in time, while the adjacent village offers affordable group bunkhouses for history buffs and fly-fishers chasing early-morning lake starts.
Bronte Park
260 votesBuilt in the 1940s for hydro workers, Bronte Park is now a cosy fishing lodge precinct with open-fire bars, fuel, basic supplies and friendly wallabies on dusk lawns. Central positioning makes it the perfect base to sample half a dozen trophy lakes within a 20-minute radius.
Pine Tier Lagoon
245 votesRinged by skeleton gums, Pine Tier offers sheltered polaroiding for chunky browns feeding on gum-beetle slicks. Gravel ramps suit car-toppers, and low forestry traffic keeps camp spots peaceful. Frosty dawns here often precede glass-out days that send dry-fly addicts into raptures.
Great Lake Hotel
220 votesPerched 1 030 metres above sea level, this revamped pub pairs craft ales with wall-length windows overlooking wind-rippled Great Lake. Tassie beef pies and steaming scallop chowder revive chilled fishers, while cosy ensuites and tackle-talk by the fire ensure repeat winter patronage.
Liawenee
208 votesFamed as Australia’s coldest inhabited spot, Liawenee records minus-10 °C winters that harden resident rangers. May’s Inland Fisheries Weekend sees thousands flock for trout displays, kids’ casting clinics and pop-up hot-chocolate vans—an annual tourism spike that belies the settlement’s usual quiet.
Steppes Sculptures
201 votesSet among snow gums beside an 1860s police paddock, these bronze animal sculptures honor pioneer graziers and Tasmanian wildlife. Picnic tables, interpretive panels and roaming kangaroos create a charming lunch stop along Highland Lakes Road’s otherwise windswept journey.
Dee Lagoon
190 votesBoat-only access keeps Dee Lagoon blissfully uncrowded. Submerged tree trunks hold cruising rainbows, while evening slicks boil with spinner falls. Rug-up winter evenings showcase blazing Milky Way cores—no light pollution here, just crackling campfires and the occasional hoot of a masked owl.
Shannon Lagoon
185 votesOnce Tasmania’s first hydro water store, this shallow lagoon delivers exceptional tailing-trout action at dawn. Early-season weed beds burst with stick caddis, drawing fish into ankle-deep margins. Easy bank access makes it a favourite with learners cutting their fly-fishing teeth.
Little Pine Lagoon
180 votesRegarded worldwide for wind-lane dun hatches, Little Pine rewards stealthy presentations and strong tippets. The anglers’ hut, pit fires and shared storyboards foster a tight community vibe. Conservation zoning preserves its legendary status for future beetle-rise devotees.
Tarraleah Hydro Lookout
172 votesA vertigo-inducing deck peers across art-deco penstocks plunging 170 metres into Tarraleah’s power station. Interpretive signs celebrate 1930s engineering feats, while a revived village offers pink cottages, Highland cattle paddocks and a cliff-top golf course where wedgetails ride afternoon thermals.
Bradys Lake
160 votesPart of the Bradys–Binney canal chain, this tannin-stained lake holds fat browns gorging on galaxias. Shoreline shacks light wood-fires each evening, and summer sees water-skiers share glassy bays with lure-casters—an easy family compromise between adrenaline and angling.
Lake Augusta
152 votesEnd of the gravel road, Lake Augusta provides gateway access for Western Lakes walkers. 4WDers pitch tents beside boat ramps before trekking to pristine wilderness tarns. Low tannin water and sparse scrub deliver textbook sight-fishing when summer breezes settle.
Clyde River
140 votesEmerging beneath Great Lake dam walls, the Clyde meanders through Bothwell golf links and Georgian homesteads before emptying into Lake Meadowbank. Early settlers left ornate stone arches that now frame evening rise-rings—a photogenic blend of colonial history and angling allure.
Highland Lakes Road (A5)
135 votesClimbing from Bothwell to Deloraine, the A5 threads between frost-crusted lakes, snow gums and sweeping valley vistas. Summer cyclists tackle its 1 100-metre summit, while winter drivers chase snow-dusted panoramas and steaming coffee stops at Miena—Tasmania’s favourite alpine road-trip in any season.