Things to do in

Port Arthur

Enjoy full access to Port Arthur Historic Site on the Tasman Peninsula with an entry ticket valid for daytime entry for two consecutive days.  Located 90 minutes from Hobart, the Historic Site has over 30 buildings, ruins and restored period homes set in 40 hectares of landscaped grounds. Discover fun, interactive experiences for all ages such as the Lottery of Life and the Museum and Convict Study Centre in the Asylum building.  Explore the Convict Water Supply Trail and the Dockyard.  Allow plenty of time to fully experience all that Port Arthur has to offer! Your admission includes a visitor guide with a map and a 40-minute guided walking tour that gives you a great introduction to Port Arthur, its people, and its past. As part of your admission, you can also enjoy a 25-minute harbor cruise on the MV Marana. The walking tours and cruises run several times a day, subject to availability.

This action-packed day tour starts with an early morning hotel pickup in Hobart. Drive directly to the stunning Tasman Peninsula, home to Australia’s highest sea cliffs. Witness the spectacular scenery with panoramic views from Pirates Bay Lookout. Passing through the isthmus of Eaglehawk Neck and the “dog line,” your tour guides will share with you the fascinating history and stories of the area. Next, begin one of Tasmania’s “Great Short Walks.” Follow a 2-km track along the Waterfall Bay cliff top. This undulating walk takes around 45–60 minutes and is categorized as an easy walk. The track concludes at the remarkable rock formations of Tasman Arch and Devil’s Kitchen. The next stop is the Tasmanian Devil Unzoo. Check out the action of a Tasmanian devil feeding — watch the snarling, fighting, and bone-crushing in a spectacle of devilish behavior. Hand feed the wallabies and walk among the local fauna and flora in the charming “unzoo” setting. Continuing your journey, arrive at the Port Arthur Historic Site. Spend 2.5 hours exploring this former convict settlement, taking in the wealth of information and history of the early Australian penal system. Your entry includes a harbor cruise around the Isle of the Dead and a guided walking tour. Before returning to Hobart, enjoy a stop at Richmond Historical village. In the late afternoon, arrive in historic Richmond Village. Meander the streets, stop for a coffee, and walk across Australia’s oldest bridge still in use today. Finally, check out a fabulous view of Hobart from a local lookout — a picturesque way to return to the city. You’ll be dropped off at your Hobart accommodation around 6:00 PM.

Head to the stunning Tasman Peninsula, home to Australia’s highest sea cliffs, on this full-day excursion. Enjoy panoramic views from Pirate's Bay lookout, see the Tasman Arch and Devil's Kitchen rock formations, and take a spectacular walk along the Waterfall Bay coastal track. Visit the Port Arthur Historic Site, and enjoy a complimentary cruise around the Isle of the Dead and a guided walking tour with an expert guide. Walk around the main penitentiary and see the solitary confinement cells and more in this World Heritage open-air museum. On the return to Hobart visit lovely Richmond village, taking time to walk across Australia’s oldest bridge still in use.

Cross the Tasman Bridge, and head out on the Tasman Highway over the Pittwater Causeway onto Forestier Peninsula. Admire the pristine beauty of Pirates Bay, Eaglehawk Neck, and Norfolk Bay. Visit Abel Tasman National Park, where you’ll marvel at the spectacle of the Tasman Arch and enjoy superb views of the rugged coastline. You’ll be amazed at the magnitude of the Devil's Kitchen. Explore Port Arthur, where you’ll take a guided walking tour of the historic convict site, with access to over 30 restored buildings and ruins. See the penitentiary, the separate prison, the commandant's house, and the church.

This is Tasmania's only dedicated shuttle bus service to Port Arthur. Travel in comfort on air-conditioned vehicles driven by a friendly local driver. Once you reach the historic site you will have four hours to explore and soak up the incredible history and scenery at the multi award-winning Port Arthur. The times allocated runs in conjunction with guided walking tours and allows enough time to do the boat cruise to the Isle of the dead if you choose. From the moment you are picked up sit back and relax enjoy the drive while our driver fills you in and points out the important things along the way. Suggested time to book tours is 12:30 PM Walking for the walking tour and 1:40 PM for the Harbour cruise if you want to pre book your tours. Entry fees include these two tours. The Tour departs Hobart at 10:30 AM and arrives at 12:00 PM, Bus departs Port Arthur at 4:00 PM and arrives back to Hobart 5:30 PM.

Interpretive and interactive presentations at the Port Arthur Historical Site bring to reality the harrowing life of convicts 2 centuries ago. This full-day tour from Hobart ensures that you have maximum time at the site. You’ll cross the Tasman Bridge, and head out on the Tasman Highway over the Pitwater Causeway onto Forestier Peninsula. Admire the pristine beauty of Pirates Bay, Eaglehawk Neck, and Norfolk Bay. Visit Tasman National Park, where you’ll marvel at the spectacle of Tasman Arch and enjoy superb views of the rugged coastline. You’ll be amazed at the magnitude of the Devil's Kitchen! Finally, you’ll have a chance to explore Port Arthur, where you’ll take a guided walking tour of the historic convict site, with access to over 30 restored buildings and ruins. See the penitentiary, the separate prison, the commandant's house, the church, and more. On Saturdays, the tour includes a visit to Hobart’s Salamanca Market. Delight in a shopping experience at this popular, colourful outdoor marketplace. You'll have time to explore the market at leisure for approximately 2 hours. Then, you will need to meet your coach at 11:00 to continue on with the Port Arthur tour and acquire a sense of Australia’s convict era and the early settlement of Tasmania.

Departing early from Hobart, you will drive directly to the stunning Tasman Peninsula. This area has amazing history, fascinating stories and spectacular scenery, and is also home to Australia’s highest sea cliffs. You will enjoy the panoramic views of the area from Pirates Bay Lookout, which provides a great vantage point of the surrounding area. Passing through Eaglehawk Neck and “The Dogline”, your guide will share with you some truly amazing history and stories of the area. You will then begin one of Tasmania’s “great short walks”, following a spectacular track of around 2 kilometers along the Waterfall Bay cliff top. From there you will be dropped off for a short visit to the Port Arthur Lavender Farm, where you will enjoy a self-guided wander around the Lavender grounds and enjoy a browse in the shop where you can find a unique range of handmade lavender products. You will then enter the Port Arthur Historic Site, where you will find a wealth of information and history which you can discover throughout your 3 hours on site. Your entry includes a complimentary harbor cruise around the Isle of the Dead, as well as a guided walking tour with one of the site’s expert guides. On your return to Hobart, make a stop at the historical village of Richmond. Moving along, you will arrive to the historic Richmond Village in the late afternoon. There you can meander the streets, stop for a coffee, visit the Lolly Shop, and walk across Australia’s oldest bridge which is still in use: a convict-built sandstone bridge (which is reportedly haunted). Finally, before you re-enter Hobart, you will stop for a fabulous view across the city from a local lookout, a picturesque way to return to the city. You will then be dropped off back at your Hobart City accommodation at around 6:00 PM.

Depart Hobart at 07:30 on a full-day tour exploring Tasmania’s ruthless convict past, and experience the rugged landscapes of the Tasman Peninsula along the way. Start with a visit to the well-preserved colonial village of Richmond, where sights include Australia's oldest bridge still in use. Then, head south to the Tasman Peninsula and enter the Tasman National Park for some amazing views of the coastline and sea. Upon arrival at the Port Arthur Historic Site, learn the story of the convict settlement and the chilling realities of life as a prisoner amid the preserved jail ruins on a guided tour. Hear more about the penal colony's terrible past. Take a cruise of the harbor to see the site from a different perspective, and get a look at the Isle of the Dead where those who died at the prison were laid to rest in mass graves. Return to Hobart, and benefit from the opportunity to stop by the remarkable geological formations of the Tasman Arch, Devil's Kitchen and Blow Hole. Get dropped off in Hobart at approximately 17:30 at the end of the tour services.

Day one: Port Arthur Historic Site Begin your trip with a pick up around 7:00 AM. After a quick look at Australia’s best preserved colonial village, Richmond, head south to explore Tasmania’s ruthless convict past at the World Heritage listed Port Arthur Historic Site. A guided walk and harbor cruise are included. Rich in visual history, learn of the chilling life of a convict in the restored sandstone prison buildings and preserved ruins. Visit selected geological wonders within Tasman National Park, to top-off a full day on the Tasman Peninsula before returning to Hobart. Day two: Hobart to Strahan Drive through the Derwent Valley. Travel east to west across the island. See the beautiful Russell Falls, walk among the Mt Field National Park tall trees, and visit Australia’s deepest freshwater lake, Lake St Clair. Explore the pristine Franklin-Gordon Wild River National Park and end the day in Strahan, where you will stay overnight. Day three: Wild West Coast  In the untouched wilderness of Tasmania’s West Coast, explore the shifting sands of Henty Dunes. Then continue into the Tarkine Rainforest and walk to Tasmania’s highest waterfall, Montezuma Falls. Stay overnight again in Strahan.  Day four: Cradle Mountain to Launceston  Around 950 meters above sea level is the World Heritage listed Cradle Mountain-Lake St Claire National Park. Here, choose a walk to take. With an extensive range of tracks, you can stroll around Dove Lake or challenge yourself with a hike to Marion’s Lookout. After, take a short drive through Sheffield, the town of murals, to Launceston for your overnight stay.  Day five: Launceston to Bicheno Start the day with a journey to the East Coast and the beautiful Bay of Fires, where the beaches are gleaming and the is water inviting. If the conditions are right, this is the perfect place for a swim and to explore the orange lichen-clad boulders, white sands and turquoise waters of the stunning East Coast. Tasmania’s most scenic coastal drive takes you from St Helens to Bicheno. You will stay overnight at accommodation in Bicheno. Day six: Freycinet National Park to Hobart After breakfast, get ready for an early start to be the first to the Wineglass Bay lookout at the Freycinet National Park. Beat the crowds and the heat for that picture postcard photograph. Relax on a secluded beach or choose the more challenging Mount Amos or Hazards Beach walk. Continue further along the scenic east coast via the seaside towns of Swansea and Orford. Return to Hobart for 5:30 PM. 

Visit Port Arthur Historic Site, part of the UNESCO World Heritage–listed Australian Convict Sites, on this day trip from Hobart. Learn about the site’s history as a convict colony on a guided walking tour of the grounds, visit ruins and restored buildings, and appreciate the coastal scenery that highlights the natural beauty of the Tasman Peninsula. A harbor cruise is included. This full-day tour from Hobart ensures that you have maximum time at the site. Start with a visit to the well-preserved colonial village of Richmond to see Australia's oldest bridge and take the chance to grab coffee from the Richmond bakery. Then, head south to the Tasman Peninsula and admire Pirates Bay lookout and Tessellated pavements. Upon arrival at the Port Arthur Historic Site, learn the story of the convict settlement and the terrifying realities of life as a prisoner among the preserved jail ruins on a guided tour. Take a cruise of the harbor to see the site from a different perspective, and then enjoy self-exploring the site. On the return to Hobart stop into the Port Arthur Lavender farm for an opportunity to taste lavender ice cream and explore the lavender fields, before stopping by geological formations of the Tasman Arch, Devil's Kitchen and Blow Hole. **Please note entrance fees are at own expense