PENGUIN, TAS

What’s in a name? Well, a lot for this small Tasmanian town. Sitting on the shores of Bass Strait on the state’s north-west coast, Penguin is a quaint seaside town with scenic walking trails, Tasmania’s largest undercover markets (held every Sunday), and their very own ‘Big Thing’ – a three-metre-tall penguin. But it’s the real thing that makes this town so special; every year from September to March fairy penguins come ashore to breed at a number of rookeries located along the coast, and they can be spotted each night at nearby viewing platforms easily accessed from Penguin, including Lillico and Burnie.