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Brad A. Johnson

Food & Travel

Brad A Johnson
  • Blog
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Freycinet, Tasmania: Where to Stay, High and Low

  • November 14, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
Halfway up the eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia, you’ll find the breathtaking Freycinet Peninsula—a protected national park that dips southeastward into the cold Tasman Sea, forming spectacular bays on either side. Fronting the wild Tasman Sea, you’ll find the legendary Wineglass Bay, renowned for its beaches, the best of which are accessible only by foot. On the island side, there’s the vast Great Oyster Bay, one of Tasmania’s most treasured troves of seafood: Pacific oysters, Angasi oysters, mussels (as big as chihuahuas!), rock lobsters, scallops, abalone, calamari, squid and sea urchins, plus flathead, bream, tuna, mullet, flounder, blue-eye trevalla… It’s a nature lover’s paradise and seafood lover’s dream.
Coles Bay in Freycinet, Tasmania (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Coles Bay in Freycinet, Tasmania (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)

Here are two great options for accommodations (each with terrific cuisine) overlooking Great Oyster Bay (which encompasses the smaller Coles Bay and Honeymoon Bay).

Saffire Freycinet

When the 20-villa Saffire Freycinet opened in 2010, it was the first and only five-star luxury resort in Tasmania. It still is. A member of Relais & Chateaux, it is an architectural stunner that accommodates a maximum of 40 guests at any given time. Every villa offers floor-to-ceiling views of the pink granite Hazards Mountains across the bay, and most villas come with private plunge pools. In the restaurant, look for steamed blue-eye trevalla with dashi custard and sea urchin in a green tea and seaweed broth, as well as grilled grass-fed beef (from Tassie’s famed Cape Grim) with braised oxtail, smoked bone marrow and onion rings. Villas from $1,500.

Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Saffire Freycinet resort, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)

Freycinet Lodge

Freycinet Lodge’s 60 rustic cabins meander across more than 14 acres of thickly forested Freycinet National Park overlooking Coles Bay, part of the larger Great Oyster Bay. There’s a hiking trail behind the property that leads to the blissfully secluded Honeymoon Bay, where sunsets provide a dramatic nightly show. The accommodations are basic but comfortable, not quite luxury, but not quite camping either. All rooms come with a French press coffee maker and some pretty darned good beans, as well as a 3-way radio that picks up a decent radio station that plays the likes of Billie Holliday and Frank Sinatra. The restaurant’s kitchen is far more sophisticated than its modestly furnished dining room might suggest, serving locally harvested crayfish and a killer jambalaya that’s made with Great Oyster Bay mussels, shrimp and scallops mingled with spicy Tasmanian chorizo. Cabins from $170.

Freycinet Lodge, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Freycinet Lodge, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Coles Bay in Freycinet, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Freycinet Lodge, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Honeymoon Bay in Freycinet, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Freycinet Lodge, Tasmania, Australia (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)

For more travel inspiration and photos, I invite you to follow me and join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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Brad A. Johnson

Brad A. Johnson is a writer and photographer specializing in food and travel. His work has been honored by the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, James Beard Awards, World Food Media Awards, Food Photographer of the Year Awards, Society of Features Journalism Awards and others. Based in Southern California, Brad currently serves as Editorial Director of the new luxury consumer travel magazine of the Global Travel Collection (launching Spring 2023).

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Hey, OC. Do you know about this one? Cool new modern Thai restaurant in Irvine: Nara Thai Kitchen . Beautiful food, but the kitchen doesn't do spicy. The flavors are not nearly as exciting as, say, @thai_avenue (still the best) in Garden Grove, but this is easily one of the nicer Thai restaurants in OC. Great potential here.  It just opened a couple weeks ago. You'll need a reservation. It's been packed every night.  #orangecounty #thai 290 10
Hey OC, do y'all know about this new wood-fire pizzeria @theparlorsp in Tustin? Really good stuff! They're open only for weekday lunch, no weekends or dinner, located next door to the new @ryegoods. It's an odd location (adjacent to the chef's commercial catering kitchen, maybe?), with limited seating inside the tiny parlor itself. But they also have extra seating in a common indoor/outdoor area shared with Rye Goods.  I hope they eventually open for dinner/weekends. ⁠ 333 25
I might have found my new favorite place in OC for chicken pho @pho.nicfv⁠ 174 19
My sincerest thanks to the North American Travel Journalists Awards!⁠ 129 19
Hey, OC. FYI in case you missed it, @ryegoods has opened a new location on Red Hill in Tustin, just down the street from Flight/Mess Hall. Same incredible breads and pastries as the original on the peninsula. No lines here, plus a huge seating area. #sourdough #pastries #coffee #orangecounty 337 10
One more post from our lovely stay at @fstokyo. Delicious lunch at @maisonmarunouchi, the casual sibling to @sezannetokyo. Excellent all around. And clearly popular with Tokyo's ladies who lunch: the clientele during our visit, almost entirely women. Quite the see-and-be-seen crowd. 70 1
Brad A. Johnson
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Writer. Photographer. Traveler. Restaurant Critic.

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