What to do and see in Greater Hobart, Tasmania: The Best Historic Sites

Richmond Gaol is the oldest fully intact convict Gaol in Australia. It was built 5 years before Port Arthur. It is rare in that it housed both male and female convicts. The cost is $10 per adult $5 per child and $25 per family. Discount for group bookings on request. Ph03 62602127

Australia's most significant site associated with female convicts sits in the shadow of Mount Wellington, a short distance from the Hobart CBD. Women were incarcerated here as punishment or while waiting to be assigned. With guards, nurses and babies, up to 1000 people lived here at any one time. Discover the stories of female convicts and their children on a guided tour that operate regularly throughout the day. You can purchase a basic self-guided site entry or choose to join a Heritage Tour or our dramatised performance tours 'The Proud and the Punished.'

This beautifully preserved 19th-century whaling captain's elegant homestead is just 8 minutes' drive from the Hobart CBD (en route to MONA). Now dedicated to marine conservation, the house has a rich collection of artefacts related to the maritime interests of Captain Charles Bayley and his family, who made it their home for over 100 years. There are also historic artworks and possessions of the previous owner Bishop Francis Nixon, Tasmania's first Anglican bishop. The house was built around 1840 for Robert Pitcairn, one of the first lawyers admitted to the Supreme Court in Van Diemen's Land colony and a leading campaigner against the transportation of convicts from Britain. Closed July and August for House cleaning and Maintenance.

Hear incredible tales of crime and punishment as you are led through the courts and tunnels to the chapel, cells and gallows of this internationally-significant convict site, owned and operated by the National Trust. Join us for Pandemonium - The Convict Experience 7 days a week, and for our Ghost Tours Thursday - Saturday. Please note that access to the site is by guided entry only. Please check our booking website for up to date information.

For the first century of its life, Claremont House was owned by wealthy and powerful merchants, businessmen, politicians, a Captain in the British Army and an Australian Test Cricket Captain. Claremont House was a grand mansion, located on top of a hill looking down on its surrounding 734 acres of land. In 1940, the property passed into the hands of the Red Cross Society and became known as the Lady Clark Convalescent Hospital for returned servicemen. Following World War II, the “grand old Lady” became a rehabilitation centre for thousands of servicemen and later the general community after it was acquired by the Royal Hobart Hospital in 1951. Adult education occupied the property between 1980 and 1993 when increasing maintenance costs caused relinquish of the building and a demolition order was passed to facilitate sale into private ownership. Claremont House had been condemned and was to become another historic building lost forever. Discover the entire history of the property and enjoy a homemade afternoon tea at Claremont House. The Claremont House Story tour and tea operates every Sunday between 2-5pm. The cost of the tour and tea is $30 adults, $25 concession and $15 for children over 10. (U10 free) Bookings are essential and can be made via phone or email.

Kangaroo Bluff, originally settled in the 1820s, was the point where people and goods were ferried across the river -- and in 1975-6 ferries again operated after the collapse of the Tasman Bridge. The name Bellerive was adopted in the 1930s. Many fine buildings survive in Bellerive, one of the oldest being the Police Station and Watch House, circa 1842 (now the Community Arts Centre). Queen Street, originally named Bidasso Street, is lined with fine examples of colonial architecture.