George Town: Maritime History and Active Experiences
Accommodation in George Town
George Town combines maritime history with opportunities for hiking and mountain biking. At the museums, you can explore different chapters of the town’s history; outdoors, a 6-kilometre trail and two mountain bike networks with more than 100 kilometres of riding take centre stage. When planning your trip, you can decide whether historical topics, outdoor activity or both should shape your choice of a holiday rental in George Town.
Maritime History and Early Settlement
The Bass & Flinders Maritime Museum explores the voyage of Bass and Flinders and Tasmania’s maritime history. Its extensive collection includes maps and charts, photographs, paintings, logbooks, films, diaries and journals. These different formats offer varied perspectives on maritime themes: maps and charts sit alongside personal records, images and films. A replica of the sloop Norfolk adds a ship model to the collection. Those interested in exploration and seafaring history will find several specific topics to explore here.
The Watch House is George Town’s historic former gaol site. It includes a model village illustrating life in George Town in the early 19th century. The “Departures and Arrivals” exhibition explores Female Factories and convict history. Together, the model village and exhibition offer insight into different aspects of life and society at the time. George Town is described as Australia’s third-oldest European settlement, founded in 1804. This provides another historical point of reference for learning about the town.
Exploring on Foot and by Mountain Bike
The kanamaluka Trail runs 6 kilometres from George Town to Low Head and is used for hiking. Its length can help you factor the walk into your day’s plans. George Town has two mountain bike trail networks, with purpose-built trails and more than 100 kilometres of riding. Uplift services are also available for both networks. This gives you different options: a named walking route between George Town and Low Head, and extensive mountain bike trails. If cycling is to be a focus of your trip, this scale is a useful point of reference when choosing your destination.
Fishing and diving are also among the activities on offer: Tamar River & Bass Strait Charters provides both. If you’d rather spend your holiday days on these activities than on hiking or mountain biking, you can take that difference into account when planning your trip. You can choose a holiday rental in George Town to suit the activities you want to prioritise, without combining every experience into a single excursion itinerary.
Windmill Point and Low Head
The Windmill Point Tree Sculptures depict workers landing a telegraph cable, along with Matthew Flinders, George Bass and Colonel William Paterson. In 1891, the telegraph operations at Windmill Point were moved to the new Cable Station. The sculptures are also accompanied by a barbecue area and a playground with a wooden boat named after HMS Buffalo. For families with children, the playground is a practical extra stop; the people and scenes depicted also offer a way to explore history and telegraphy.
Just north of George Town is the nearby historic site of Low Head. It includes the Low Head Pilot Station and the Low Head Light Station. The nearby Low Head Pilot Station Maritime Museum offers guided tours and is open daily. If you’re interested in maritime history, these details add to the topics also covered at the Bass & Flinders Maritime Museum.
More places to consider when planning your trip: Derwent Bridge, Hobart, Rosny Park, Quamby Brook, Bicheno, Zeehan, Ranelagh and Primrose Sands.
For the broader travel overview: Tasmania.
