The Overland Track is the walk most Australians mean when they say they want to do a proper hike. It runs for six days through Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, past buttongrass plains, glacial lakes, pencil pine forest and the highest mountain in Tasmania. It is also one of the few walks in the country where the hardest part can be getting a start date, because the number of people who may set out each day during the main season is capped.

This guide sorts out what you need to decide before you go: whether a booked summer start is still realistic, what the fee covers and what it does not, how the one-way route and the huts work, and how to finish at Lake St Clair. Fees, dates and rules were checked against the Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service and other sources in October 2026. Prices are in Australian dollars.

  • The booking season runs from 1 October to 31 May, and a booked pass is required to walk in that period.
  • The adult fee is $312, with $272 for children aged 17 and under and for concession holders.
  • No more than 34 independent walkers can start on any one day, and in the booking season everyone walks north to south.
  • The walk is 65 km over six days, from Ronny Creek near Cradle Mountain to Narcissus Hut at the top of Lake St Clair.
  • Huts cannot be booked, so every walker has to carry a tent.
  • Most people finish with a privately run ferry across Lake St Clair; the alternative is a 17.5 km walk along the shore.

During the summer booking season (1 October to 31 May), the Overland Track fee is $312 per adult and $272 per child or concession holder. The fee includes park entry for the length of your walk. [1]

How the booking window works

Bookings for a whole season open on one morning each year. According to the Parks and Wildlife Service FAQ, that is the first Tuesday in July at 9am AEST. For the 2026/27 season it was 7 July 2026. An online waiting room opened at 8am, and at 9am everyone in it was put into a random order for the booking site. Anyone who arrived after 9am joined the back of the queue.

On opening day for the 2026/27 season, 5,805 people had booked by 4pm, and the December to March peak was fully booked by 2pm. [8]

That is the key planning fact for this season. Unless you already hold a booking, the classic summer months are gone. Local reporting after opening day said November and April had only a few spots left, while October and May still had good availability. With October now under way, the dates most likely to be open are late in the season, in May, plus any December to March dates freed up by cancellations.

There is no waitlist, so the only way to pick up a cancelled place is to check the booking site yourself. If you do get one, the original booker can change departure dates within the same season, subject to availability, but cancellation fees apply. Changes and cancellations go through the Parks and Wildlife Service by email, as set out on the Service Tasmania booking page.

Why the cap exists and what it means on the track

Around 11,000 people walk the Overland Track each year. The daily limit spreads them out. A spokesperson for Tasmania's Department of Natural Resources and Environment said the limits help rangers manage departures and reduce both crowding and damage to a fragile alpine environment.

The daily limits exist so that departures can be managed and the remote bushwalking environment is protected from the social and physical wear of too many walkers at once.

— Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, as reported by Pulse Tasmania (paraphrased)

In practice, the cap means you move along the track with a loose group of people who started on the same day, and you will share huts and campsites with many of them most nights.

A maximum of 34 independent walkers can depart on any given day, and during the booking season they must walk north to south only. [3]

When to walk

The track is open all year, but the booking season covers the months most walkers want. December to March is high summer and the first period to sell out. The shoulder months of October, November, April and May are cooler and quieter, and snow can fall on the high ground in any season.

There is no month you can rely on for good weather. The official planning page notes that much of the route is above 1,000 metres, on exposed plateaus far from help, and that people have died after being caught unprepared in cold, wet and windy conditions. Pack for winter whatever the calendar says, and check the Bureau of Meteorology forecast for Cradle Valley before you start.

From June to September you do not need a booked pass. You register your walk online and carry a valid parks pass instead. That is a serious alpine undertaking in deep winter, and it is best left to experienced walkers with the right gear.

Check-in day at Cradle Mountain

Your walk starts at the Cradle Mountain Visitor Centre, not at the trailhead. You collect your pass there, either after 3pm the day before or by 1:30pm on your departure day (12:30pm in April and May). You also go through a ranger briefing of about 30 minutes. Briefings start at 8:30am, and the last one is at 1:30pm, or 12pm in April and May.

Bring your booking confirmation, photo ID, any concession cards and a completed copy of the Overland Track Safety Checklist, which lists the minimum gear you must carry. After the briefing, the Cradle shuttle bus takes you about 7 km to Ronny Creek. You sign the walker registration book there and must be on the track by 2pm on your booked date.

Walkers must be on the track by 2:00pm on their booked departure date, after a ranger briefing that runs for about 30 minutes. [3]

Getting to the visitor centre is straightforward. Commercial transport runs all year from Hobart, Launceston and Devonport, with more services in summer. The Parks and Wildlife Service lists several operators. Confirm their timetables, and book transport for both ends of the walk when you book your pass.

The route, day by day

The six standard stages are short by distance but slow underfoot, with boardwalk, rock, roots and mud. The figures below are from the official walk notes; the times are walking time and do not include side trips.

  • Day 1: Ronny Creek to Waterfall Valley, 10.7 km, 4 to 6 hours. This is the big climb onto the plateau past Cradle Mountain.
  • Day 2: Waterfall Valley to Lake Windermere, 7.8 km, 2.5 to 3.5 hours.
  • Day 3: Lake Windermere to Pelion, 16.8 km, 5 to 7 hours. This is the longest stage.
  • Day 4: Pelion to Kia Ora, 8.6 km, 3 to 4 hours, over Pelion Gap.
  • Day 5: Kia Ora to Windy Ridge (Bert Nichols Hut), 9.6 km, 3.5 to 4.5 hours, with waterfall side trips.
  • Day 6: Windy Ridge to Narcissus, 9 km, 3 to 4 hours.

The short days leave time for side trips, which many walkers rate as the highlights. On day one, the Cradle Mountain summit is a 2 km scramble of 2 to 3 hours return from the junction, if the weather allows. On day four, Mount Ossa, at 1,617 metres the highest point in Tasmania, is a 5.2 km side trip of 4 to 5 hours return from Pelion Gap. On day five, D'Alton, Fergusson and Hartnett Falls are each about an hour return.

Mount Ossa (1,617 m), Tasmania's highest peak, is a 5.2 km, 4 to 5 hour return side trip from the Overland Track at Pelion Gap. [5]

Huts, tents and what to carry

Each stage ends at a public hut with composting toilets, rainwater tanks and a shared cooking area. Most huts sleep between 16 and 34 people. Pelion Hut sleeps 36 and Narcissus sleeps 18. Beds are first come, first served, and you cannot book them. That is why a tent is compulsory: if a hut is full, or you do not reach it, you camp on the timber platforms or in an overflow area.

There are no cooking fires, so you carry your own fuel stove and utensils. The Parks and Wildlife Service suggests that everything should fit in a pack of about 75 litres weighing around 18 kg, including at least 2 litres of water. Many walkers also carry a personal locator beacon. You can hire one on weekdays from Service Tasmania shops in Hobart, Launceston, Burnie and Devonport. The Cradle Mountain visitor centre has a few, but they cannot be reserved.

Finishing at Lake St Clair

The official track ends at Narcissus Hut, at the northern tip of Lake St Clair. From there you have two ways out. The first is to walk 17.5 km along the western shore to the Lake St Clair Visitor Centre at Cynthia Bay, which adds a seventh day and takes 5 to 6 hours. Echo Point Hut is about 5 km along this shoreline route.

The second, which most walkers choose, is the ferry. It is run privately from Lake St Clair Lodge, not by the parks service, and you should book it before you start the walk. Even with a booking, you must confirm by radio from the hut when you arrive.

The Narcissus to Cynthia Bay ferry costs $60 one way for adults and $30 for children under 12, and under-5s ride free. Scheduled departures from Narcissus are at 9:30am, 1pm and 3:30pm, and sailings with fewer than six passengers carry a $330 minimum charge. [9]

That minimum charge matters in quieter months. Because the daily cap means you finish with people who started on your day, it is worth talking at the last hut about sharing a sailing.

Is it for you?

The Parks and Wildlife Service grades the Overland Track as Grade 4, which means bushwalking experience is recommended, and does not recommend it for children under eight. The daily distances are modest, but you carry everything for six days through weather that can change within an hour. If you are fit, have done a few overnight walks and are happy to turn back from a summit when the cloud comes in, it is one of the best-organised long walks in Australia.

If the summer has already sold out for you, consider a May start. It brings shorter days and colder nights, but the light is clear and the huts are quieter. Either way, book the pass first, then the ferry and transport, and leave a day spare at each end for the weather.

Sources & further reading

  1. 1. Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service: Overland Track
  2. 2. Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service: Overland Track bookings to open tomorrow (6 July 2026)
  3. 3. Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service: Overland Track FAQs
  4. 4. Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service: Plan your trip
  5. 5. Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service: Overland Track walk notes
  6. 6. Service Tasmania: Book the Overland Track
  7. 7. Pulse Tasmania: Overland Track bookings for 2026/27 season to open on Tuesday
  8. 8. Pulse Tasmania: Overland Track bookings fill up fast as thousands lock in a spot
  9. 9. Lake St Clair Lodge: Ferry service and scenic cruise