Experience Hobart

Salamanca Market, Hobart

Tasmania’s capital lies in the south-east of the state, near the mouth of the Derwent River and at the foot of Mount Wellington.

The 19th century waterfront warehouses for which the city is famous once bustled with whalers, soldiers, petty bureaucrats and opportunist businessmen. Now they house cafes, restaurants and studios and bustle with shoppers and visitors. Polished glass winks in the windows of settlers’ cottages, and brass doorknobs gleam in the lofty porches of colonial edifices.

Hobart is warm sandstone, bright spinnakers on the water, fish punts at the docks, the slap of halyards on masts, coffee under the striped sun umbrellas of Salamanca, an occasional frosting of snow on Mt Wellington, bush tracks and birdsong.

Square-riggers still put out on the river, tacking among the yachts and fishing boats. Parliament House looks out on its lawns, once the market garden for old Hobart Town, and historic Government House sits serenely in its park, where the Governor’s cows graze as they always have in their city-centre paddock.

Hobart ’s busy arts scene takes in art, craft, music and theatre. Here you can enjoy Irish jigs or pub rock, a flutter at the Wrest Point casino, street buskers and string quartets, and theatrical performances both classic and contemporary. In galleries and studios, artists and craftspeople make bold and beautiful statements in pigments, glass, pottery and fabrics.

For more information on Hobart’s many attractions, visit the Totally South website.

For information on what to see and do in Tasmania, visit the Discover Tasmania website.

Popular Day Trips

• Huon Valley and Tahune Forest AirWalk (time permitting, add Cockle Creek and Recherche Bay)
• Bruny Island
• Port Arthur, Tasman Peninsula and the South East
  
• Richmond and Coal Valley Vineyard
• New Norfolk, Cradle Mountain - Lake St Clair National Park and Mount Field National Park

Useful facts about Tasmania

• Retail opening hours are unrestricted in Tasmania.  Large supermarkets are generally open from 0700 to 2100 seven days a week. Many smaller convenience stores are open longer.
  
• ATMs and EFTPOS facilities are widely available.
  
• Most banks are open 0930 to 1600, Monday to Friday
  
• Petrol is available 24 hours in major centres.
  
• As in most parts of regional Australia petrol prices are slightly higher - but then again you won’t have to travel vast distances. The Royal Automobile Club of Tasmania tracks current petrol prices.
  
• The speed limit in built-up areas is 50 kilometres per hour unless otherwise indicated. The maximum speed possible on roads outside cities and towns is usually 100 kilometres per hour, although there is a limit of 110 kilometres per hour on a small number of high quality roads. On all open roads, however, lower speed limits are frequently indicated and these limits must be adhered to.
  
• Speed cameras and random breath testing units operate throughout Tasmania.
  
• Seat belts must be worn in motor vehicles - motorcyclists and bicyclists must wear helmets.
  
• Contact police, fire and ambulance by dialling 000
  
• The Australian GST (goods & services tax) of 10% applies to most purchases.
  
• Tasmania operates on Australian Eastern Standard Time. For daylight saving, clocks are advanced one hour between October and March.
  
• Electricity is supplied at 230/240 volts (50 hertz)