Gordon River Cruise or Wilderness Railway?

The Gordon River cruise and the West Coast Wilderness Railway are different trips from different companies, and the best answer is both, on different days. The cruise is about six hours on the water from Strahan to Hells Gates, the Gordon River and Sarah Island. The railway is a heritage line through the rainforest between Strahan and Queenstown, run under the Tasmanian Government’s Abt Railway Ministerial Corporation; its journeys are short returns from either end, and the full run between the two towns is not on the timetable. No combined ticket is sold. The cruise is Strahan: Gordon River Cruise with Lunch & Sarah Island Walk, from US$116 a person (checked November 2026).

The calendar above is Gordon River Cruises’ morning cruise, with 469 reviews (checked November 2026).

The short answer

If you have one day in Strahan, take the cruise: it reaches Sarah Island and the lower Gordon River, where no road goes, and Hells Gates from the water. If you have two, add the train. The cruise leaves at 8:30 am or 9 am and is out until the afternoon, so the morning trains do not fit on the same day; book the railway for the day before or after. The railway is sold only by its own operator, on wcwr.com.au, not through GetYourGuide or Viator.

Check dates for the cruise

The railway’s journeys

From the West Coast Wilderness Railway’s own pages, November 2026. Child fares are for ages 2 to 17; under-2s ride free without a seat. Premium class costs more: A$80 on the Cryptic Express and A$140 on the Rinadeena journey. Days vary from week to week, so check the railway’s calendar for your dates.

The railway’s Teepookana and the King journey is suspended for bridge and track works, with no return date given, and ABC News reported in April 2026 that the full Queenstown-to-Strahan journey has not been available since parts of the line closed after a slow-speed derailment. The line is closed on Christmas Day and the King’s Birthday holiday, and it runs in rain, though storms can bring trees down on the track and delay or cancel a journey.

Fitting both into two days

Regatta Point Station, at 62 Esplanade on the far side of the bay, is 1.9 km on foot from the Gordon River Cruises terminal, about 25 minutes along the foreshore track. On the cruise, the Heritage Landing boardwalk is your walk in the rainforest; on the train, the forest is out of the carriage window.

Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.