It's the small island off the small island at the bottom of Australia. Bruny Island is still relatively isolated and wild but has touches of civilisation in the small coastal towns dotting the shoreline. Seek out a silent stretch of sand and pretend the real world doesn't exist for a few days, you'll truly feel like a castaway.
Getting there
From Hobart Airport head towards
Hobart and keep driving south along the Southern Outlet and bends of the Channel Highway for about 40 minutes until you reach Kettering, where you'll need to drive your car aboard the
Bruny Island Ferry for the 15-minute ride to the island. Be aware that the only petrol outlet here is at the
Adventure Bay Store, don't get caught out — plan your daytripping around Bruny accordingly.
When you get there
As it will probably be approaching dusk by the time you arrive, don't bother checking into your accommodation or pitching a tent just yet — head straight to
The Neck, the narrowest part of the island, dividing the north and south regions.
The view from the lookout at the top of the Truganini Stairs is well worth the thigh-burning clamber to the top, so don't forget your camera to catch the sun as it dips behind the rugged terrain.
So, the scenery is nice, but the real reason you should head to The Neck in the twilight is to watch Bruny Island's penguins come out to play. During the peak viewing months (September to February) there'll usually be a friendly ranger from the Parks & Wildlife Service there to help you identify the different breeds of penguins and tell you about their breeding and nesting habits. Witnessing the little fairy penguins run from the sea up into the sand dunes is a magical way to begin your Bruny weekend.
Saturday
Wake up early for a dawn beach stroll. Poke about in some rock pools and enjoy the serenity. Every beach on Bruny is different and because there's just so much coastline to be explored there's a good chance you'll have your chosen morning hideaway all to yourself.
Stroll all you like, but best way to properly explore Bruny's kilometres of coastline is from a boat. Bruny Cruises offers a locally-renowned trip which packs the best sights of the island into three hours. See the famous towering cliff formations you've probably only previously seen in glossy Tasmanian tourism advertisements and you're bound to also glimpse seals, dolphins and quite possibly, whales. The cruise departs at 11am and returns around 2pm.
There's a cafe; next to the Bruny Cruises departure point, but with local providers selling everything from gourmet relish to homemade ice-cream, you'd be bonkers not to pack a DIY alfresco picnic sourced only from what's on offer locally.
Before you head off to one of the isolated beaches around Adventure Bay, stop and stock up.
Call Get Shucked before you arrive and they can arrange to have oysters ready to be collected from their farm at Great Bay. At only $8 a dozen, you won't get fresher oysters anywhere — they're sold live. Prepare to gobble them down with nothing but a squeeze of lemon, washed down with a splash of something from Bruny Island Premium Wines.
Bruny Island Cheese is famous throughout the state, not only for their tasty cheeses, but their environmentally sustainable approach to creating their range of gourmet goodies. Buy a loaf of organic wood-fired sourdough bread from the cellar door to mop up some gooey "oen" — cow's milk cheese, washed in pinot and wrapped in vine leaves.
Pack a little something for your sweet tooth from the Island Fudge range sold at the Bruny Island Providore at Hiba. They've got chocolate truffles to crawl over glass for. And rich chocolate sauce just begging to be drizzled on, well, just about anything.
Sunday
Call into
The Hothouse Café for a late brunch where you can be assured the grub served up hasn't travelled far to the table — the cafe is surrounded by plentiful vegie gardens bursting with produce.
Walk breakfast off your hips with one of the better short hikes through the South Bruny National Park, an easy one-and-a-half-hour return walk to Grass Point. It's well signposted from the Adventure Bay park entrance, and hugs the coastline for awesome photo opportunities. Whales can be spotted along this section of coast during migration periods, so keep your eye out.
After your walk, hit the road and travel south, following Lighthouse Road and you can't miss Australia's second-oldest and longest continually staffed lighthouse at Cape Bruny. If you can withstand the gale-force winds from the south-west corner of the island long enough, walk around the cliff-top track for a 360-degree view of the convict-built lighthouse, or better still, call ahead to organise a guided tour: phone (03) 6298 3114.
Leave plenty of time to get back to mainland Tasmania for your drive back to the airport. Plan carefully using the Bruny Island Ferry timetable, or you may be stranded in this southern paradise for longer than you'd planned — which mightn't be such a bad thing.
What to bring home
Be sure to take photos of cute fairy penguins, breaching whales and cheeky dolphins, all of which you're bound to observe at some point during this weekend.
Where to stay
Try the private beachfront villa at
Captains Cabin, cutting-edge architecture at
Bruny Island Weekender, or camping, cabins and caravans at
Captain Cook Caravan Park.
Book a deal to Bruny Island with Expedia 
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