Bicheno tops Australia’s best town list, Bowral appears in rankings

Australian Traveller named bowral in its 100 best Australian towns to visit list, but Bicheno took the top spot and also finished number one in the Emerging Towns category. The Tasmanian beach town of about 1100 people was the only location from the state to reach the top 10.

Glamorgan Spring Bay mayor Cheryl Arnol said the title was well-deserved. She said, "The rest of Australia is finding out what we've known for a long, long time about the East Coast and Bicheno - that it's an amazing area to visit,"

Bicheno Triangle in February

Bicheno’s rise comes after the town unveiled the Bicheno Triangle amphitheatre in February. The triangle-shaped lookout was made partially from salvaged timber, adding another stop for visitors in a place already known for penguins, fresh seafood and a blowhole that shoots seawater spray into the sky.

Arnol also said, "Bicheno's just an amazing area, they've got the penguins, they're a welcoming community - we've got so much for people to do in a small community." She added, "Even just walking on the beach is a pleasure."

Tasmanian towns on Australian Traveller

Sarah Kingston Clark, the boss of Tourism Tasmania, also backed the result. She said, "[Travellers] want to meet the people behind the produce, understand the stories that shape a place, and feel like they belong, even if only for a few days. Bicheno does this quietly and genuinely,"

St Helens was the next highest Tasmanian location on the list at number 13. Stanley came in at number 17 and won the History and Heritage Towns category, while Richmond ranked 18 and Launceston ranked 26.

New Norfolk placed 36th, Bridport was 39th, Evandale ranked 53rd, Strahan ranked 85th and Sheffield was 86th. Wineglass Bay also appeared at 26 in Time Out’s list of the world’s top 50 beaches.