Port Arthur, Deloraine and Devonport have been crowned the winners of Tasmania’s Top Tourism Towns for 2026, chosen from a field of nine towns across the state.
The awards, run by the Tourism Industry Council Tasmania, split towns into three categories based on population size.
Port Arthur took out the Tiny Tourism Town category as a first-time winner, while Deloraine claimed the Small Tourism Town title for a second year running.
Devonport, already a hall-of-fame recipient, was again recognised as Tasmania’s Top Tourism Town in the largest category.
Stanley won the People’s Choice award for the fourth consecutive year after scoring the highest number of public votes.
More than 7,000 votes were cast by the public across the competition.
The awards come amid record tourism growth in Tasmania, with the state attracting 1.404 million visitors and almost $3.8 billion in visitor spending in the year to March.
Regional towns have played a key role in that growth, with food, wine, heritage and nature experiences continuing to draw travellers around the state.
Tourism Industry Council Tasmania chief executive Amy Hills said the entrants included well-known destinations alongside emerging tourism hot spots.
“Our towns and regional areas play a critical role in Tasmania’s visitor economy, so it’s important to celebrate their contribution, promote local pride and showcase the experiences that can only be found in these areas,” she said.
“It’s so rewarding to see communities show up in the thousands to vote for their favourite Tassie towns.”
Hills said each town submitted a short video highlighting key attractions and an itinerary designed to encourage visitors to stay and explore.
“We truly were spoilt for choice with all nine towns and it made the judges’ job extremely difficult, especially with each submission being such high quality,” she said.
Other finalists included Bothwell in the south, Queenstown in the west and Beauty Point, Legana and Westbury in the north.
An expert panel judged the submissions alongside the public vote.
The three category winners will now be assessed against their mainland counterparts to determine Australia’s Top Tourism Towns, with results to be announced at Parliament House in Canberra later this year.
