Penguin sits between Burnie and Ulverstone with a compact centre facing Bass Strait. The large penguin sculpture is an obvious landmark, but the town also has a working main street, railway history and an accessible foreshore.

Walk the centre and shore

Main Road, the esplanade and public parks are close together. Use marked rail crossings and keep clear of the operating line that runs through the town.

Large penguin sculpture on the Penguin foreshore
The sculpture is a landmark beside the compact main street.Gary Houston, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Read the coast beyond the theme

Beaches and rocky points change with tide, wind and swell. Check signs before swimming, and follow exact dog zones because rules differ along neighbouring beach sections.

Bass Strait beach on Tasmania’s north-west coast
Wind, tide and swell shape conditions along the Central Coast.Gary Houston, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

History sits behind the present town

Historic photographs show a district connected by rail, road, farming and coastal trade. Local heritage collections add context beyond surviving façades.

Penguin township in 1919
Historic views show the close relationship between rail, town and coast.Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office Commons, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Use the Central Coast beaches guide for the wider shore and continue inland through the Central Coast hinterland.