Travel guide – hobart
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Overview
Tucked between Mt Wellington and the River Derwent 12 miles (20km) upstream of the river mouth, Hobart is the capital of Tasmania, and boasts one of the world's most secure deepwater harbours. The city is the essence of Australia's only island state and represents the fountainhead of white island settlement. It was established in 1804 and is saturated in colonial history.
The main historical district, Battery Point, is characterised by colonial stone cottages, tearooms, antique shops, restaurants and pubs. The Narryna Van Diemen's Land Folk Museum at Battery Point depicts 19th-century pioneer life. Here one also finds the Maritime Museum of Tasmania. Like most Australian cities Hobart has plenty of green space; the largest here is the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, which are known for English-style plantings and trees, and a Japanese garden dominated by a miniature Mt Fuji.
Other amusements for visitors include steam locomotive rides, guided tours of a former women's prison, tours of the Cascade Brewery, gaming at Australia's first legal casino at Wrest Point, taking a cruise of the harbour, or sampling the delights of the fudge factory at Island Produce Tasmania. Mount Wellington, which is a 13-mile (22km) drive from the city, offers extensive views across alpine shrubs of the city below.
Tasmania’s third largest city, Devonport is the gateway to the island state, situated as it is in the centre of the north coast, at the mouth of the Mersey River. It is the point of arrival for car ferries from the mainland and it also welcomes visitors at its modern airport. The city is three hours by road from Hobart on the Midlands Highway. The city has a number of attractions for visitors, including aboriginal rock engravings, a maritime museum and a cycle/walking track which extends around the picturesque foreshore from the city past the Olympic Swimming Pool to the historic Don River Railway, which operates vintage and steam trains. The city’s central location makes it an ideal base for discovering the wilderness experiences of northwest Tasmania, especially the Mt Cradle National Park.
Things to do and see in or around Devonport
Cradle Mountain
One of Tasmania's most popular attractions is the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, placed on the World Heritage list in 1982. Landscapes include ancient rainforest and alpine heath lands, interspersed with button grass and stands of deciduous beech trees. Trails winding through forests of King Billy pines around the mountain offer superb day treks, and the 50 miles (82km) trek from Cradle Mountain in the north to Lake St Clair in the south is Australia's most famous bushwalk. The Park is equipped with mountain huts that offer accommodation for long guided treks, and Cradle Mountain Lodge offers log cabins in a tranquil setting. Lake St Clair, a narrow 10-mile (15km) long waterway in the south of the park, is Australia's deepest natural freshwater lake.
Telephone: (03) 6492 1110 ; The Visitor Centre is open daily 8am to 5pm
Climate
Tasmania's climate is described as temperate maritime, being surrounded by sea, and rarely experiences extremes of temperature. The prevailing weather pattern is from west to east and as a result the west coast is the wettest, while the east coast is almost always warmer and milder than the rest of the state. Summer brings warm days and mild evenings from December to February, while winter can be stormy with snow on the mountain peaks between July and August. Rainfall occurs throughout the year. The weather is most stable from the end of summer to autumn (February to April).
The basics
Getting Around
Hobart is small and compact, therefore it is easy to explore on foot or bicycle. There is an efficient local bus service, the Metro, for which day passes are available. Ferries run between Franklin Wharf and tourist spots around the harbour.
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