Hobart travel guide
Australia
A small harbour city at the foot of kunanyi/Mount Wellington, with sandstone warehouses along the waterfront. Hobart is the gateway to Tasmania's wild coast and a surprisingly strong food and art scene.
Essentials
- Language
- English
- Currency
- Australian dollar (AUD)
- Plugs
- Type I, 230 V
- Emergency number
- 000 for police, fire and ambulance; 112 also works from mobile phones
- Tipping
- Not expected, as service is built into wages; rounding up or leaving around 10% for good restaurant service is appreciated.
Rough daily budget
Approximate spend per person per day, in US dollars:
- Backpacker: $55-85, with a hostel or shared room, street food and public transport.
- Mid-range: $140-220, with a private room and restaurant meals.
Last reviewed: October 2026
Where to stay in Hobart
- Salamanca Place: a row of sandstone warehouses turned into galleries, bars and restaurants beside the docks.
- Battery Point: the oldest residential quarter, with cottages and steep lanes above the waterfront.
- North Hobart: a lively strip of restaurants, pubs and an independent cinema along Elizabeth Street.
Getting around Hobart
The compact centre and waterfront are easily walked, and Metro Tasmania buses reach the suburbs. A car is the practical way to reach the national parks and the rest of the island.
Best time to visit Hobart
December to March, the warmest months, when evenings are long and the summer food festivals run.
Top things to do in Hobart
- Take the ferry up the Derwent to MONA, a privately owned museum of old and new art cut into a riverside cliff
- Browse the Salamanca Market, held every Saturday along the waterfront
- Hike or drive to the summit of kunanyi/Mount Wellington for views across southern Tasmania
- Tour the Cascade Brewery, Australia's oldest operating brewery, at the foot of the mountain
- Visit the free Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery for its colonial and Aboriginal history displays
What to eat in Hobart
- Tasmanian oysters: Pacific oysters farmed in the cold, clean estuaries of the south-east
- Scallop pie: a pastry pie of whole scallops in a curry sauce, a Tasmanian bakery speciality
- Atlantic salmon: farmed in the island's southern waterways and found on most menus
- Leatherwood honey: a strongly flavoured honey from a tree that grows only in Tasmania's rainforests
Day trips from Hobart
- Port Arthur Historic Site: the ruins of a 19th-century convict settlement, about an hour and a half by road
- Bruny Island: cliffs, beaches and local cheese and oysters, reached by car ferry from Kettering, about 40 minutes south of Hobart
- Mount Field National Park: tall forests and Russell Falls, roughly an hour and a quarter by road
Local etiquette
Tasmanians are friendly and informal, and the pace is slower than on the mainland. Many smaller restaurants close early or on certain weekdays, so it is worth booking or checking hours ahead.
Staying connected
Prepaid SIMs from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone are sold at the airport, supermarkets and convenience stores and need your passport to activate, and free Wi-Fi is common in cafés and libraries, though Telstra has the widest coverage outside the towns.
Staying safe
Hobart is calm, and the main hazards are natural: the weather on kunanyi/Mount Wellington can turn cold and wet within an hour, even in summer. If you drive at dusk or after dark, slow down for wildlife on country roads.
A local tip
Drive or take the Explorer shuttle bus up kunanyi/Mount Wellington early for the view over the city and the Derwent estuary, and bring a warm layer even in summer.
Visas:rules depend on your nationality and change often – check your own government's official travel advice before you go.
Meet people in Hobart on Waypacker
Waypacker is a free travel community: stay with ID-verified local hosts, join meetups and city groups, and ask people who live in Hobart for advice. We are new here, so if you live in Hobart, you could be one of the first hosts.
Questions about Hobart
- What currency is used in Hobart?
- Hobart uses the Australian dollar (AUD).
- What is the emergency number in Hobart?
- In Hobart, call 000 for police, fire and ambulance; 112 also works from mobile phones.
- When is the best time to visit Hobart?
- December to March, the warmest months, when evenings are long and the summer food festivals run.
- How much does a day in Hobart cost?
- Roughly $55-85 a day in US dollars on a backpacker budget (a hostel or shared room, street food and public transport), and $140-220 mid-range (a private room and restaurants). These are broad estimates, last reviewed October 2026.
- Is Waypacker free to use in Hobart?
- Yes. Joining is free and stays with hosts carry no nightly rate or booking fee.
- Are Waypacker hosts ID-verified?
- Every host's ID and selfie are checked by hand by a real person before they can host. Nothing is sent to an AI service.
- Can I meet locals in Hobart without staying with anyone?
- Yes. You can join meetups and city groups, or ask locals for tips, without booking a stay.
- Will anyone see my exact location?
- No. Hosts and meetups appear as a neighbourhood-sized area about a kilometre wide, and exact addresses are never stored.