Stay in Hobart or outside
 

We are planning to be in Hobart for 2 days in November. Our research has turned up accomodations options both in Hobart and outside. I think outside means across the bridge.

Is Hobart a city that we will be disappointed for not staying downtown or will it work to visit during the day?

Stay in town.

Plan a day trip to somewhere if you have time. With such a short time, why waste any of it commuting.

Thanks. We have 8 nites in total in Tasmania it is just that I have two allocated to Hobart when we arrive.

Stay only in downtown Hobart. You will want to walk everywhere.

My husband and I just returned from 4 nights in Hobart and I can recommend staying at Somerset on the Pier (balcony room) - the views across the marina are wonderful and there's always something to see on the water. We woke up one morning to find a huge Celebrity Cruise liner so close you could almost touch it. There is a lot to see within walking distance such as Battery Point, Salamanca market (Saturday only)and the wharf area is buzzing. There are cafes right on the pier, although we weren't disturbed by any noise at all. We did a few drives and wherever we went I congratulated myself on choosing to stay right in Hobart instead of outside in a smaller town or rural area.

...And if you do end up staying at Somerset on the Pier, don't miss eating at Fish Frenzy, also on the pier. It was recommended to us by Lizzy, who posts here frequently. We loved it. Ate the whole portion of fish 'n chips (and I usually eat like a bird).
:-)

If you want only to explore Hobart then staying there is the best BUT if you want to see the countryside then staying outside of Hobart in the area that you are wanting to see makes a lot of sense.

Thanks for the feedback, we have decided to stay in Hobart for the two nites. Will take a look at Somerset as recommended. At the moment we have booked Quest Waterfront.

Next we have to finalize whether to do the circle of Tasmania or focus on the east coast for more walking time, less driving. We are committed to flying in and out of Hobart as we booked the flights before having a few second thoughts about doing the circle.

Hi John -

Love Tassie - this site provides drive times/distances and might be helpful in your planning.

http://www.rentforless.com.au/distances.htm

We've been to Tassie twice - first time we stayed on the outskirts of Hobart (not across the bridge though), second time we stayed in Battery Point. Enjoyed both - you can't go wrong really.

Lots of walking opportunities throughout TAS - if you're headed to Freycinet, you might enjoy this one:

Walk to the Wineglass Bay Lookout (great views), then on to Wineglass Bay, cross the isthmus to Hazards Beach, and follow the coastline around the base of Mt Mayson - nice undulating 11 km walk.

There are several easy access short walks in Mt Field National Park, as well as up by Mt Wellington.

Then of course Cradle Mountain...

We recently did a two week mini-circle holiday round Tasmania (Swansea--Cradle Mountain--Stahan--Lake St Clair--Hobart), it's our third visit. We went for bushwalking mainly and it was fabulous.

I don't especially like driving but the roads were good and mostly we had 2 hour drives between locations so that little time was lost in the car. The highlight was Cradle Mountain, the walk to the Summit particularly. The trip down the Gordon river was also stunning.

Here is my problem with Cradle Mountain and maybe I am on the wrong track.

We live in British Columbia and often hike in the alpine around Whistler during the summer. During our trip to Australia we are trying as much as possible to have different experiences.

Was thinking that it might make sense to have more time around Freycinet at the expense of Cradle Mountain but I might be totally wrong. Would appreciate being put on the right track!

Hi John -

I think I see where you're coming from.

For what it's worth, I'm from Colorado and I found Cradle Mountain unique. I can't really explain why, but it definitely left an impression. The wildlife alone made our visit worthwhile - wombats, wallabies, possums, echidnas.

I liked Freycinet too - pristine beaches, lagoons, lots of birds. Don't miss nearby Bicheno and the penguins.

It's all good.