Occupying an 1843 lock-up, this endearingly old-fashioned museum also doubles as an ad hoc tourist information office. The centrepiece is a huge, dusty model of the town as it would have appeared in 1850, and there's also a room with exhibits about the George Town Female Factory. This includes Christina Henri's installation Arrivals & Departures, which features baby bonnets arranged in the shape of a cross. It's a moving memorial to the many children of female convicts who died in infancy.
George Town Watch House
Tasmania
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28 MILES
At magnificent Cataract Gorge, right at the city centre's edge, the bushland, cliffs and ice-cold South Esk River feel a million miles from town. At First…
0.23 MILES
Undoubtedly the highlight of a visit to George Town, this small museum in a former cinema houses a red-sailed, full-size replica of the Norfolk, the sloop…
3.04 MILES
Cute Platypus House puts the world’s only two monotremes – the platypus and the echidna – on display for your viewing pleasure. Platypuses (including…
24.46 MILES
Housed in the former harbour master’s residence (c 1920), this small but impressive museum is home to displays about the maritime history of Bass Strait…
27.67 MILES
Inside the restored and reinvented Inveresk railway yards, QVMAG has the usual assembly of dinosaurs and stuffed animals, but they sit alongside historic…
27.96 MILES
Colonial paintings, including works by John Glover, are the pride of the collection at this art gallery in a meticulously restored 19th-century building…
27.01 MILES
Near Nabowla, 22km west of Scottsdale, is the southern hemisphere's largest lavender farm. In the flowering season (mid-December to late January), the…
6.89 MILES
The view from the corrugated-iron cellar door at this scenic vineyard, 7km east of Beaconsfield, is hard to beat. Come for a tasting (the chardonnay,…
Nearby Tasmania attractions
0.23 MILES
Undoubtedly the highlight of a visit to George Town, this small museum in a former cinema houses a red-sailed, full-size replica of the Norfolk, the sloop…
3 MILES
At coo-inducing Seahorse World, seahorses are hatched and raised to supply aquariums worldwide. Compulsory 45-minute guided tours run on the hour and take…
3.04 MILES
Cute Platypus House puts the world’s only two monotremes – the platypus and the echidna – on display for your viewing pleasure. Platypuses (including…
3.24 MILES
In the Low Head historic pilot station precinct, this museum occupies the cottages that once housed Low Head's pilot. A series of rooms contains a weird…
3.96 MILES
Built in 1888, replacing the original 1833 light station, this red-and-white lighthouse on the end of Low Head itself is a great spot to watch kanamaluka…
6. Beaconsfield Mine & Heritage Centre
6.58 MILES
Learn about Beaconsfield's fascinating mining heritage at this interactive museum, which includes a large exhibition devoted to the 2006 mine rescue…
6.87 MILES
Winemaker Rebecca Duffy is making a splash in the local scene, producing fantastic pinot noir from grapes grown at this vineyard 4km east of Beaconsfield …
6.89 MILES
The view from the corrugated-iron cellar door at this scenic vineyard, 7km east of Beaconsfield, is hard to beat. Come for a tasting (the chardonnay,…