The New Spirit of Tasmania Ships: What Triple the Caravan Capacity Means for Your Tasmania Trip
In two weeks, the way caravanners get to Tasmania changes for the first time in over two decades.
Spirit of Tasmania IV and Spirit of Tasmania V — the two new ships built to replace the current Bass Strait pair — begin passenger sailings on 31 October 2026, running overnight between Geelong and Devonport [1]. And for anyone towing a van, the headline isn't the new lounges or the Tasmanian timber fit-out. It's this: the new ships carry more than triple the caravan capacity of the vessels they replace [1].
Bookings for the expanded capacity opened on 16 September and are live now, with travel bookable up to 12 months ahead [1]. If a Tasmania lap is on your summer or autumn plans, here's what actually changed — and how to book it without getting caught.
What Exactly Changes on 31 October
The current ships — Spirit of Tasmania I and II — have worked the crossing since the early 2000s. The new pair is bigger in every direction that matters to a caravanner:
- Vehicle space: each new ship offers 4,098 lane metres for vehicles, up from 2,565 lane metres on the old vessels — close to 60 per cent more capacity, and every lane is tall enough for a caravan or motorhome [5]. On the old ships, only some lanes carried the extra height, which is why high-roof vans and big motorhomes fought for limited spots. Passengers: up to 1,800 per sailing, from roughly 1,400 today [2]. Cabins: 301 per vessel, including accessible cabins [1]. Size: the new ships measure 212 metres, against 194.3 metres for the current pair [2].
For context: the Caravan Industry Association of Australia's State of the Industry 2026 report counted roughly 937,000 registered RVs on Australian roads, with Australians taking 17.3 million caravan and camping trips in 2025 [4]. Tasmania has been absorbing as much of that demand as one strait crossing allows — the state welcomed a record 1.4 million visitors in the year ending March 2026, and TT-Line says Spirit passengers stay longer, spend more and travel further into the regions than other visitors [1]. Triple the caravan capacity is the first real expansion of that bottleneck in a generation.
Why the Booking Window Matters More Than the Ship
Here's the catch most coverage glosses over: demand has been outrunning supply for months.
When the ABC checked availability in September, the expanded capacity wasn't on sale yet — TT-Line was only selling inventory up to the old ships' limits while commissioning work finished. The result, as of 9 September: no car-only bookings until 19 November, and caravan space to Devonport booked out into late February [3]. TT-Line chair Ken Kanofski told a parliamentary hearing the full inventory would go on sale "after the wet testing" [3]. That release came on 16 September — and peak sailings still went first [1][5].
The practical lessons from that crunch haven't changed with the bigger ships:
- Book the crossing before you book the parks. Spirit of Tasmania prices your car and caravan together by total length, and each direction is a separate booking [5]. Lock both directions in one session — the return leg sells out just as hard as the way over. Use the full 12-month window. Bookings now run a year out, into October 2027 [1][5]. If you're tied to school holidays or the summer peak, booking early matters more than booking cheap. Sailings are overnight only at launch. You board in Geelong at night and drive off in Devonport around 6am [2][5]. Plan your first night's camp within an easy hour or two of the terminal — you won't feel like a big first-day drive after the crossing. Don't wait for day sailings. TT-Line says it will consider day sailings only if demand exceeds the new capacity [2]. Assume night crossings for the foreseeable future.
One piece of good news on cost: the operator says it doesn't plan to raise passenger, passenger-vehicle or caravan fares on the new ships outside its normal yearly pricing review [2]. The new berthing setup at both ends has been a long and expensive project, but that bill isn't being passed to travellers as a surcharge — for now.
What's Onboard for Caravanners
The accommodation mix is where the new ships genuinely improve on the old pair:
- Pet-friendly cabins — up to two pets per cabin, replacing the old kennel-only arrangement. For the many caravanners who travel with dogs, this is the single biggest quality-of-life upgrade [1][2]. Family cabins sleeping up to six guests [1]. Deluxe cabins and premium business recliners for those who want more space or a cheaper berth [2].
The food and beverage fit-out leans hard into Tasmanian produce: the Tasmanian Market Kitchen runs five stalls, the Mersey Café and Bar serves local coffee and drinks, and the Maatsuyker Bar pairs casual dining with an undercover outdoor deck looking over Bass Strait [1]. Tasmanian timber — including sustainably recovered Celery Top Pine from Hydrowood, plus Huon Pine and Tasmanian Oak — runs through the interiors [1].
It's still an overnight ferry, not a cruise. But arriving in Devonport at dawn after an actual night's sleep, with the dog asleep at your feet instead of in a kennel below, changes the first day of a Tassie lap considerably.
What to Sort Before You Book
A few things worth checking on your own rig before you lock in a sailing:
- Your total length. The fare is worked out from your combined car-plus-van length [5]. Measure bumper to drawbar, not the brochure figure. Your height. Every lane on the new ships takes a caravan, but know your van's height anyway — the terminal marshalls will ask. Departure logistics. Geelong is the mainland terminal, not Melbourne. If you're coming down the Hume with a van, plan the last leg accordingly — and note you drive off in Devonport at about 6am, so your first night's accommodation should be an easy run [5]. Peak flexibility. If your dates are fixed, book now. If they float, shoulder-season sailings will be easier to secure than Christmas or January — that was true even before the extra capacity existed [3].
The Bottom Line
The new Spirits don't just add capacity — they remove the ceiling on the most popular way Australians take a caravan to Tasmania. Record visitor numbers, close to a million RVs registered nationally, and a booking system that's now open 12 months ahead all point the same way: the bottleneck is easing, but peak crossings will still sell out.
If Tasmania is on your 2026–27 map, the window to book a summer sailing is right now. Whatever rig you're taking — a van behind the 4WD, a motorhome, or something that doesn't need a ramp at all — the booking rules above are the same.
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Sources
1. RV Daily, "New Spirit of Tasmania ships bring more than triple the caravan capacity", 1 October 2026. https://rvdaily.com.au/spirit-of-tasmania-new-ships-caravan-capacity/
2. Spirit of Tasmania, "Official New Ships / Stage 1 Ticket Release pages", 2026. https://www.spiritoftasmania.com.au/new-ships/
3. ABC News, "Full booking capacity for new Spirit of Tasmania ferries not yet available, ahead of first sailings", 10 September 2026. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-10/tas-caravanners-struggle-to-get-bookings-on-new-spirit-ferries/107132292
4. Caravan Industry Association of Australia, "State of the Industry 2026 report", 2026. https://www.caravanindustry.com.au/research-news
5. VanScout, "New Spirit of Tasmania with a caravan: 2026 guide", 2026. https://vanscout.com.au/tasmania/spirit-of-tasmania-caravan/