Hobart 6 Day Itinerary

Quokkas don’t live in Tasmania, they’re a Western Australian animal, mostly famous from Rottnest Island near Perth, so if a wildlife park itinerary near Hobart promises you quokkas, that’s wrong. What you’ll actually meet at a proper Tasmanian sanctuary are wombats, eastern quolls, Tasmanian devils and echidnas, arguably a more interesting lineup anyway.

Day 1: Arrival and City Exploration

Hobart Airport sits about 20 km from the CBD, a taxi or rideshare runs 20-30 minutes depending on traffic; there’s no train link, so budget for a car transfer either way. Check into something central, Hobart’s compact enough that almost anywhere in the CBD or on the waterfront puts you within walking distance of day one’s stops.

Grab a casual lunch, then time your afternoon around Salamanca Market if your trip lands on a Saturday, it only runs that one day a week and is genuinely one of the best open-air markets in Australia, Tasmanian produce, crafts, and street food packed along the sandstone warehouse strip. If your dates miss Saturday, don’t force it, Salamanca Place itself is still worth a walk any day for the same warehouses now housing galleries and restaurants. For dinner, a waterfront spot looking over the Derwent River estuary sets the tone for the week, order kunzea-smoked local salmon or Tasmanian scallops if they’re on the menu, the seafood here is a genuine step up from mainland Australia.

Day 2: MONA and Port Arthur

MONA, the Museum of Old and New Art, is Hobart’s signature attraction and deserves the morning. Take the ferry from Brooke Street Pier rather than driving, it’s part of the experience: return ferry tickets run about 30 AUD, or 65 AUD for the “Posh Pit” upgrade with a private lounge and drinks, and museum entry itself is a separate ticket, around 39 AUD for adults, 33 concession, so budget both, not just the ferry. The collection is deliberately provocative, built underground into sandstone cliffs by a professional gambler, and it rewards several hours rather than a rushed pass-through.

In the afternoon, drive to Port Arthur, about 1.5 hours from Hobart, Australia’s most significant convict-era site and also the location of the 1996 mass shooting that changed the country’s gun laws, a history the site addresses directly rather than glossing over. Entry runs around 53 AUD for adults and is valid across two consecutive days if you want to split the visit, though most people manage the core site in an afternoon. Given the drive, this makes for a long day; leave Hobart by mid-morning at the latest.

Day 3: Wildlife and Mount Wellington

Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, about 30 minutes north of the city in Brighton, is a genuine wildlife rescue and rehabilitation facility rather than a roadside zoo, home to around 200 animals across 25 species, Tasmanian devils, wombats, eastern quolls, echidnas and eastern grey kangaroos among them. Entry is roughly 73.50 AUD for adults, 36.50 for children, and includes free guided tours through the day where keepers bring out the devils and wombats up close, worth timing your visit around the tour schedule rather than just wandering in.

Grab lunch at a farmers market on the way back into town if timing allows, then spend the afternoon on kunanyi, Mount Wellington’s dual Aboriginal and English name now used officially. The drive up takes about 30 minutes from the CBD and the summit, at 1,271 meters, delivers a genuinely different climate from the city below, pack a jacket even in summer since wind at the top is relentless and temperatures drop fast. On a clear day you can see the whole of the Derwent estuary and out toward Bruny Island.

Day 4: Bruny Island

Bruny Island earns a full day. The car ferry from Kettering runs every 20 minutes between roughly 6:10am and 7pm, costs about 50 AUD return per vehicle with passengers riding free, and takes only 20 minutes to cross, book ahead online since the queue system fills the earlier crossings fast in peak season. Bruny splits into North and South Bruny connected by a narrow isthmus called The Neck, worth a stop for the boardwalk and lookout alone.

Bruny Island Cheese Co. is the reliable food stop, award-winning cheeses made on-site, and pairs well with a stop at the island’s chocolate producer if you have room. In the afternoon, Adventure Bay on South Bruny has calm beaches and walking trails where you can spot fairy penguins near dusk and wallabies along the tracks; give yourself enough daylight to get back to the last sensible ferry crossing, missing it means an unplanned night on the island.

Day 5: Food, Drink and a Shorter Radius

Skip trying to squeeze in Launceston, it’s genuinely two hours each way and turning it into a same-day round trip from Hobart leaves you with almost no time there and a long, tiring drive on both ends. Instead, stay closer: a Hobart farmers market in the morning, the Agrarian Kitchen’s farm-to-table restaurant in the Derwent Valley is worth the shorter drive if you want the working-farm dining experience without the Launceston detour, then wander a Hobart neighborhood you haven’t covered yet in the afternoon, North Hobart’s restaurant strip is a good pick for an early evening drink before dinner.

For dinner, a stylish riverside restaurant serving modern Australian cuisine built around Tasmanian produce is the right way to close out the food-focused day, order whatever the kitchen is doing with local oysters or wallaby if it’s on the menu, both show up on serious Tasmanian menus more often than visitors expect.

Day 6: Farewell

Spend the morning on breakfast at a proper bakery and any last-minute shopping, Tasmanian wine, whisky and honey all travel well and make better souvenirs than most tourist-shop trinkets. Hobart’s CBD is entirely walkable and buses cover the rest, so there’s no need for a rental car on this last morning. Head to the airport with the same 20-30 minute buffer you used on arrival, traffic on the airport road can back up around flight banks.

Practical notes

The Australian dollar is the currency and cards are accepted almost everywhere, though small stalls at Salamanca and on Bruny Island sometimes prefer cash. Tasmanian weather changes fast regardless of season, pack layers and a rain shell even in the middle of summer. Book MONA and Bonorong tickets ahead online rather than turning up, both cap daily numbers and summer weekends sell out.