Separated from mainland Australia by the 240 km stretch of Bass Strait, Tasmania is a land apart – a place of wild and beautiful landscapes; friendly, welcoming people; a pleasant, temperate climate; wonderful wine and food; a rich history  and a relaxed island lifestyle.

Sometime in the 1990s Tasmania woke from a deep slumber. After decades of stagnation brought on by a declining agricultural economy and a social climate colder than the winds off Mt Wellington, a reawakening began.

It was as if the Apple Isle suddenly switched brands from Granny Smith to Pink Lady. Gay law reform transformed the state from an embarrassing backwater that had to be dragged kicking and screaming to the United Nations to a world leader in acceptance of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Tasmania's capital lies in the southeast of the State, near the mouth of the Derwent River at the foot of mighty Mount Wellington. The city offers the best of a capital city - good theatre, restaurant, galleries, shopping and services without the usual negatives of crowding, traffic and alienation. The city has preserved the best of its history in the warm sandstone buildings, busy working harbour and dark green forested hills.

As you walk beside the River you will spot bright spinnakers on the water, fish punts at the docks and hear the call of fishermen unloading their catch. There is time to stop for coffee under the sun umbrellas of Salamanca Place before exploring the precinct.

The 19th century waterfront warehouses for which the city is famous once swarmed with whalers, soldiers, petty bureaucrats and opportunist businessmen. Now they house cafes, restaurants and studios and bustle with shoppers and visitors. Polished casement windows wink in the sunlight of Battery Point settlers' cottages, and brass doorknobs gleam in the lofty porches of the city's colonial edifices.

Square-riggers still put out on the River, tacking among the yachts and fishing boats. Parliament House looks out on its lawns, once the market garden for old Hobart Town, and historic Government House sits serenely in its park, where the Governor's cows graze as they always have in their city-centre paddock.

Hobart's busy arts scene takes in art, craft, music and theatre. Here you can enjoy Irish jigs or pub rock, street buskers or string quartets, and theatrical performances both classic and contemporary. In galleries and studios, our artists and craftspeople make bold and beautiful statements in timber, pigments, glass, ceramics and fabrics.

Come on down to the most southern part of Australia and discover a paradise ready for your enjoyment.