Hobart
Sandstone Town Beneath kunanyi
schedule 3 min read / Updated Jun 2026
The capital of Tasmania and the second-oldest city in Australia. Hobart sits on the Derwent River under kunanyi / Mount Wellington, with a working harbour, a major art museum that rewrote the Australian art scene, and some of the best food and drink in the country.
Hobart sits on the estuary of the Derwent River on the traditional lands of the Muwinina and Nuenonne peoples, on the south-east coast of Tasmania. It was founded in 1803 as a British penal settlement, making it the second-oldest city in Australia after Sydney. The early convict population built most of the heritage sandstone architecture that still defines the Battery Point, Salamanca Place and Hunter Street precincts.
Hobart is dominated geographically by kunanyi / Mount Wellington, a 1,271 metre dolerite peak that rises directly behind the city. The summit is reachable by sealed road, and the view from the top covers the entire Derwent Estuary and extends on clear days to Bruny Island, the Tasman Peninsula and (at the far end of the view) the remote south-west wilderness.
The Salamanca Place waterfront is the historic heart of Hobart. Originally the working harbour and warehouse district for the 19th-century whaling trade, the row of Georgian sandstone warehouses has been restored and now houses bars, galleries, restaurants and shops. The Salamanca Market runs every Saturday morning and is the largest outdoor market in Tasmania.
MONA, the Museum of Old and New Art, is the single biggest reason international visitors come to Hobart. The private museum, built by gambler-turned-philanthropist David Walsh and opened in 2011, is half-underground, carved into sandstone cliffs on the Derwent River 12 kilometres north of the city, and is reached by a purpose-built fast catamaran from the Brooke Street Pier. MONA's Dark Mofo winter festival (June) and its summer MONA FOMA festival have rewritten the Australian cultural calendar.
Food and drink are central to Hobart's identity. The city sits at the top of a food chain that includes Bruny Island oysters and cheese, Huon Valley cider and apples, King Island beef, Tasmanian salmon, local whisky distilleries, and some of the best cool-climate wine in the country (the Tamar Valley near Launceston and the Coal River Valley just outside Hobart). The number of serious restaurants per capita is among the highest in Australia.
Day trips from Hobart include the Tasman Peninsula and Port Arthur historic site (90 minutes south-east), Bruny Island (by vehicle ferry, famous for its wildlife and food producers), Mount Field National Park (rainforest and the three-tiered Russell Falls, 90 minutes north-west), and the Huon Valley (40 minutes south). The full Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area is within half a day's drive.
Hobart is a year-round destination but weather is variable. The best months are December to April when days are long, temperatures are mild and the Overland Track is at its best. Winter (June to August) is cold and can bring snow to the summit of kunanyi, but is also when Dark Mofo fills the city with festival crowds from the mainland. Hobart Airport (HBA) is 17 kilometres east of the city with domestic flights only.
Tourist locations
Places to visit in Hobart.
9 locations to explore
Battery Point and Arthur Circus
Colonial Hobart preserved in stone
Free
Full guide arrow_forwardBonorong Wildlife Sanctuary
Get close to Tasmanian wildlife
$35.50 adult; $20.50 child (3-15); under 3 free
Full guide arrow_forwardCascade Brewery
Australia's oldest working brewery
$26 adult (brewery tour with tasting); bar and grounds entry free
Full guide arrow_forwardCascades Female Factory Historic Site
Confronting stories of convict women
$35 adult (Convict Women's Tour); $25 concession; $20 child (7-17); under 7 free
Full guide arrow_forward
MONA (Museum of Old and New Art)
The Subterranean Art Museum That Rewrote Hobart
Full guide arrow_forwardRoyal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
Fourteen hectares of living heritage
Free
Full guide arrow_forwardSalamanca Market
Hobart's open-air Saturday institution
Free
Full guide arrow_forward
Salamanca Place
The Historic Waterfront Warehouse Row and Saturday Market
Full guide arrow_forwardTasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
Tasmania's story in one place
Free
Full guide arrow_forwardGallery
Hobart in pictures.
11 images licensed from Wikimedia Commons
All images are sourced from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licences. Individual photographers are credited on the source pages.
Things to do
Recommended Experiences
8 bookable experiences at or near Hobart.
On the itinerary
Trip plans that include Hobart.
What's on
Events at Hobart.
From the journal
Read more about Hobart.
Guide · 4 min read
The Best Time to Visit Australia
Australia is too big for a single 'best time'. The right month depends entirely on where you are going and what you want to see. Here is the full calendar.
Guide · 2 min read
Weather and When to Go
Australia spans almost 4,000 kilometres north to south, from the tropics to the temperate cool. The right season for one half of the country is the wrong one for the other.
Guide · 5 min read
Public Transport in Australia
Australia is a car country, but the cities have surprisingly good public transport and there are a handful of iconic long-distance train and bus routes worth planning around.
Scenic views
Lookouts near Hobart.
You may also like
Richmond
Huon Valley
Tasman Peninsula
Bruny Island
Maria Island
kunanyi / Mount Wellington
Museum of Old and New Art (MONA)
Richmond
Port Arthur Historic Site
Mount Field National Park
Russell Falls
Tasman National Park
Attribution
Sources & credits
Content (1)
Images (11)
- Aurora Australis (icebreaker) berthed in Hobart under a rain... · Edoddridge · CC BY-SA 3.0
- CSIRO ScienceImage 2566 Hobart and the Derwent River Tasmani... · Nick Pitsas, CSIRO · CC BY 3.0
- CSIRO ScienceImage 3068 Hobart and the Derwent River Tasmani... · Nick Pitsas, CSIRO · CC BY 3.0
- Hobart, Tasmania, Australia (April 2017).jpg · Mark Pegrum · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Hobart-Tasmania-Australia01.JPG · Diego Delso · CC BY 3.0
- Hobart-Tasmania-Australia04.JPG · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Hobart-Tasmania-Australia11.JPG · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Hobart-Tasmania-Australia16.JPG · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Hobart Tasmania - 48698574586 Jaffa 2019.jpg · Steven Penton · CC BY 2.0
- Hobart from West Hobart.jpg · Paris Buttfield-Addison · CC BY 2.0
- Hobart waterfront Nov 2011 - 2.jpg · Tony 1212 · CC BY 4.0
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