Things to do · Hobart · Australia
16 best things to do in Hobart
16 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Quick answer
The essential sights in Hobart are MONA – Museum of Old and New Art, Salamanca Market and kunanyi/Mount Wellington. Of the 16 picks below, 8 are free, 4 work on a rainy day and 6 suit children. Allow about 4 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- MONA – Museum of Old and New Art
- Free sights
- 8
- Good on a rainy day
- MONA – Museum of Old and New Art
- Time to see the highlights
- 4 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| MONA – Museum of Old and New Art | Berriedale | 3–4 hours | Expensive |
| Salamanca Market | Salamanca | 2 hours | Free |
| kunanyi/Mount Wellington | Wellington Park | 2–3 hours | Free |
| Constitution Dock and the fish punts | Waterfront and CBD | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Salamanca Place | Salamanca | 1 hour | Free |
| Battery Point and Arthur Circus | Battery Point | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery | Waterfront and CBD | 2 hours | Free |
| Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens | Queens Domain | 1.5–2 hours | Free |
| Cascade Brewery | South Hobart | 1.5 hours | Mid-priced |
| Cascades Female Factory | South Hobart | 1 hour | Low cost |
| Mawson's Huts Replica Museum | Waterfront and CBD | 45 minutes | Low cost |
| Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary | Brighton | 2 hours | Mid-priced |
| Farm Gate Market | Waterfront and CBD | 1 hour | Free |
| Shot Tower, Taroona | Taroona | 45 minutes | Low cost |
| Theatre Royal | Waterfront and CBD | 2–3 hours with a show | Mid-priced |
| Hobart Rivulet Track | South Hobart | 1.5 hours return | Free |
The 16 best things to do
Museum · Berriedale
1.MONA – Museum of Old and New Art
Built into a sandstone cliff on the Berriedale peninsula, David Walsh's private museum mixes ancient antiquities with provocative contemporary installations across three underground levels. It sits beside the Moorilla winery and Moo Brew, and the playful approach includes an app instead of wall labels.
Take the MONA ferry from Brooke Street Pier rather than the bus; the 25-minute ride up the Derwent is part of the experience.
- Time needed
- 3–4 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Ferry seats and museum entry are best booked online together, especially in summer and during festivals.
- Iconic
- Art
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Market · Salamanca
2.Salamanca Market
Every Saturday, a few hundred stalls line Salamanca Place in front of the sandstone warehouses, selling Tasmanian produce, Huon pine woodwork, knitwear, cheese, cider and street food. It has run since 1972 and is the city's busiest weekly event.
Arrive before 10am for the produce stalls and space to move, then climb Kelly's Steps to Battery Point for coffee.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Food
- Shopping
- Kids
Viewpoint · Wellington Park
3.kunanyi/Mount Wellington
The 1,271-metre mountain behind Hobart is reached by a 21 km sealed road to a summit lookout with views over the city, the Derwent and the D'Entrecasteaux Channel. The dolerite columns of the Organ Pipes line the upper slopes, and walking tracks lead down through alpine heath and eucalypt forest.
Bring warm, windproof layers even in summer; the summit can be 10°C colder than the waterfront, and the road can close after snow.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Views
- Free
- Outdoors
- Nature
Waterfront · Waterfront and CBD
4.Constitution Dock and the fish punts
Constitution Dock is the finishing point of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and home to floating fish punts selling fish and chips, oysters and scallops straight from the boats. Fishing boats, the old Customs House and the Mawson's Huts Replica Museum line the surrounding docks.
Eat flathead and chips on the dock wall, keeping an eye on the gulls, then walk to Mawson's Huts Replica Museum next door.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Food
- Kids
- Photo spot
- Iconic
Historic site · Salamanca
5.Salamanca Place
This row of Georgian sandstone warehouses was built in the 1830s and 1840s to store whale oil, grain and wool beside the port. Today they hold galleries, restaurants and pubs, and the Salamanca Arts Centre runs studios and small theatres in the buildings behind.
Walk through the arched lanes into the Salamanca Arts Centre courtyard, which most visitors miss.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Architecture
- After dark
Neighbourhood · Battery Point
6.Battery Point and Arthur Circus
Named after a gun battery built in 1818, Battery Point is a hill of colonial cottages, churches and pubs. Arthur Circus is a ring of small Georgian cottages around a central green, and Narryna, an 1830s merchant's house, is now a heritage museum.
Walk up Kelly's Steps from Salamanca, loop through Arthur Circus and come down via Princes Park for river views.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Architecture
- Couples
- Photo spot
Museum · Waterfront and CBD
7.Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
TMAG occupies a group of buildings beside Franklin Square, including the city's oldest surviving building, the 1808 Commissariat Store. Galleries cover Tasmanian Aboriginal culture, colonial art, Antarctic exploration and natural history, including the thylacine.
Head first to the thylacine displays and the palawa gallery, then leave time for the colonial art upstairs.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Rainy day
- History
- Kids
- Art
Garden · Queens Domain
8.Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
Founded in 1818, the gardens on the Queens Domain slope down to the Derwent and include a Japanese garden, convict-built walls, a vegetable patch and the Subantarctic Plant House, which recreates the climate of Macquarie Island with misting and cool air.
Visit the Subantarctic Plant House on a warm day for a cool, misty contrast, then picnic on the lawns above the river.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Kids
Historic site · South Hobart
1.Cascade Brewery
Founded in 1824, Cascade is Australia's oldest continually operating brewery, and its pale stone tower against the forested mountain is one of Hobart's best-known views. The site has a bar and garden, and guided tours explain the brewing process and history.
Walk there along the Hobart Rivulet Track from the city, about 45 minutes, and take a bus back.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Book ahead
- Brewery tours have limited places; book ahead at weekends and in summer.
- History
- Food
- Architecture
Historic site · South Hobart
2.Cascades Female Factory
This former prison for convict women, operating from 1828, is one of the eleven sites of the Australian Convict Sites World Heritage listing. Little of the original structure survives, so guided tours and the dramatised 'Her Story' performance bring the lives of the women and their children to life.
Book the guided tour or performance rather than wandering alone; the empty yards make much more sense with the stories.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
Museum · Waterfront and CBD
3.Mawson's Huts Replica Museum
A full-size replica of the huts Douglas Mawson's 1911–14 Australasian Antarctic Expedition built at Cape Denison, furnished with bunks, stoves and equipment. Hobart is a gateway to Antarctica, and the museum's proceeds help conserve the originals.
Ask the volunteer guides about the expedition's survival story; it adds a lot to the small space.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Rainy day
- Kids
Zoo · Brighton
4.Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary
About 25 km north of the city, Bonorong is a wildlife rescue sanctuary where you can see Tasmanian devils, wombats, quolls and free-roaming kangaroos you can feed. Guided tours explain the rescue and release work.
Join a guided tour to see the devils fed, and combine the drive with historic Richmond on the way back.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Nature
- Outdoors
Market · Waterfront and CBD
5.Farm Gate Market
Hobart's Sunday growers' market closes off a block of Bathurst Street for farmers, bakers, cheesemakers, distillers and coffee carts. It is smaller and more food-focused than Salamanca and popular with locals doing their weekly shop.
Come hungry and early for pastries and coffee, and ask growers which fruit is in season that week.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free
- Food
- Free
- Shopping
Historic site · Taroona
6.Shot Tower, Taroona
Built in 1870, this 58-metre sandstone tower was used to make lead shot by dropping molten lead from the top. A spiral staircase climbs to a lookout over the Derwent estuary, and it is on the scenic Channel Highway south of Sandy Bay.
Pair it with Kingston Beach, about ten minutes further south, on a drive towards the Huon Valley or Bruny Island ferry.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Views
- Off the beaten path
Architecture · Waterfront and CBD
7.Theatre Royal
Opened in 1837 on Campbell Street, the Theatre Royal is Australia's oldest continuously operating theatre, with a horseshoe-shaped auditorium of tiered boxes. It stages drama, comedy and music, and seeing any show is the way to get inside.
Check the programme before you travel; even a modest touring show is worth it for the historic interior.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours with a show
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- History
- After dark
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Nature · South Hobart
8.Hobart Rivulet Track
A shared walking and cycling path follows the rivulet from the city edge through bushland to the Cascade Brewery, passing the Cascades Female Factory. It is an easy, mostly flat way to leave the centre behind within minutes.
Start at the Collins Street end near Molle Street and walk uphill to the brewery, which is the more scenic direction.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours return
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Active
- Nature
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| Art and museums | MONA – Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery and Mawson's Huts Replica Museum |
| History | Salamanca Place, Battery Point and Arthur Circus, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery and Cascade Brewery |
| Views | kunanyi/Mount Wellington and Shot Tower, Taroona |
| Outdoors and nature | kunanyi/Mount Wellington, Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary and Hobart Rivulet Track |
| Food and markets | Salamanca Market, Constitution Dock and the fish punts, Cascade Brewery and Farm Gate Market |
| After dark | Salamanca Place and Theatre Royal |
| With children | Salamanca Market, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens and Constitution Dock and the fish punts |
| On a rainy day | MONA – Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Mawson's Huts Replica Museum and Theatre Royal |
What to book ahead
- MONA – Museum of Old and New Art: Ferry seats and museum entry are best booked online together, especially in summer and during festivals.
- Cascade Brewery: Brewery tours have limited places; book ahead at weekends and in summer.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Hobart?
MONA – Museum of Old and New Art. Built into a sandstone cliff on the Berriedale peninsula, David Walsh's private museum mixes ancient antiquities with provocative contemporary installations across three underground levels.
+What can you do for free in Hobart?
Salamanca Market, kunanyi/Mount Wellington, Salamanca Place, Battery Point and Arthur Circus and Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Hobart when it rains?
Head indoors to MONA – Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Mawson's Huts Replica Museum and Theatre Royal.
+What is there to do in Hobart at night?
Salamanca Place and Theatre Royal are best after dark.