Welcome to Hobart
Backed by towering Kunanyi/Mt Wellington, Hobart is a harbour city, where the world rushes in on the tide. Down on the waterfront, old pubs sit alongside new craft-beer bars, myriad restaurants, cafes, museumsall of it washed with sea-salty charm and a sense of history. MONA, Hobarts dizzyingly good Museum of Old and New Art, is just north of town.
Boats at Victoria Dock | CYRUS_2000 / SHUTTERSTOCK
HobartTop Sights
MONA
MONA Hobart's show-stopping Museum of Old & New Art is a force of culture. Beyond amazing art and architecture, MONA delivers festivals, wine, beer, shops, markets, transport and accommodation. And it's simply unmissable.
MONA | MONA/RMI CHAUVIN. IMAGE COURTESY MONA, MUSEUM OF OLD AND NEW ART, HOBART
Hobart Top Sights
Salamanca Place
The old stone Salamanca Place warehouses are pretty as a picture. But it's what's inside them that's the real lure: bars, cafes, restaurants, galleries and performance spaces. The Saturday-morning Salamanca Market is here too.
Salamanca Place | TRAVELGAME / GETTY IMAGES
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Battery Point
Hobart's first suburb was Battery Point, occupying the headland (with one-time gun battery) behind Salamanca Place. Here, well-preserved 1800s cottages line tightly nested streets, along with cafes, restaurants and an old pub or two.
Battery Point | ROBIN SMITH / GETTY IMAGES
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Kunanyi/Mt Wellington
Cloaked in winter snow, Kunanyi/Mt Wellington (1271m) towers over Hobart like a benevolent overlord: Hobart's citizens find reassurance in its constant, solid presence. Drive to the top for the best views in the business.
Kunanyi/Mt Wellington | BOY_ANUPONG / GETTY IMAGES
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North Hobart
The first question to ask in a new city: where do the artists hang out? North Hobart is this city's bohemian heart- and art-land, with a dazzling string of cafes, bars and restaurants along Elizabeth St.
North Hobart | GRANT DIXON / GETTY IMAGES
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Cascade Brewery
Since 1832, the formula 'Hobart + beer = Cascade' has been one of this city's unshakable truths. Craft-beer contenders have arrived, but a tour of Cascade Brewery remains a real Hobart 'must do'.
Cascade Brewery | RACHEL LEWIS / GETTY IMAGES
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Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery
The Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery (aka 'TMAG') is a rather amazing collection of colonial-era buildings and gallery spaces, housing Tasmania's most extensive collection of paintings and relics.
Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery | DAVID WALL PHOTO / GETTY IMAGES
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Cascades Female Factory Historic Site
Lost in the South Hobart back-blocks, this Unesco 'site of major historic significance' was where Hobart's female convicts were incarcerated and put to work. Interpretive tours illuminate a dark history.
Cascades Female Factory Historic Site | CASCADES FEMALE FACTORY: IMAGE COURTESY OF PORT ARTHUR HISTORIC SITE MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY
HobartLocal Life
Insider tips to help you find the real Hobart
Hobart is compact, sandwiched between the mountain and the river, but that doesn't mean that it's an obvious sort of place. Some local know-how is required to access the city's history, charms, quirks and hidden corners.
City Centre Shuffle
Shopping
Hidden history
City Centre | WIBOWO RUSLI / GETTY IMAGES
On the Waterfront
Docks, piers & warehouses
Seafood
Waterfront | SCOTT E BARBOUR / GETTY IMAGES
North Hobart Streetwise
Eating & drinking
Entertainment
North Hobart | GRANT DIXON / GETTY IMAGES
Battery Point Backstreets
Historic sites
Architecture