Duration:
1h30m
This is not a pub crawl, but rather a story-rich exploration of 200 years of hardship, and hilarious tales of the pubs, brothels, smugglers, convicts, and the unforgettable Tasmanian characters who left their mark on a secretive past.
Operated By:
Uncover the Spirited Secrets of Historic Hobart
Step back in time and journey through 200 years of Hobart’s fascinating, alcohol-soaked history. On this captivating walking tour, the intriguing stories of old Hobart Town and its legendary libations intertwine, offering you a unique perspective on the city’s colourful past. 🍻
A Journey Through Hobart’s Wild and Secretive Past
Our Old Hobart Pub Tour delves deep into two centuries of hardship, hope, and hilarious tales. Together, we will uncover the hidden histories of:
- Legendary Local Pubs: Discover the historic watering holes that shaped the community.
- Colourful Characters: Hear incredible stories of convicts, smugglers, brothels, and unforgettable Tasmanian personalities. 🕵️♂️
- Hidden Corners: Explore the secretive spots of Hobart that standard tours miss.
An Inclusive, Personalised Experience
With our small group sizes, you will enjoy a highly personalised connection to the stories and characters of the past. Best of all, there is absolutely no obligation to purchase a drink at any of the pubs we visit. Whether you choose to quench your thirst with a local brew or simply soak up the rich storytelling from our friendly guide, the choice is entirely yours! 🌟
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A great time had by one and all Mathew lead an awesome trip. Excitedly telling us about some of the unscrupulous characters associated with these historic pubs. He was the catalyst for some great conversations.read moreread less
beksjones
19 Sep 2026
A ‘must do’ in Hobart We loved this tour! Our guide, John, was excellent, very knowledgeable and showed us aspects of Hobart that we had previously just walked past! We did the 3 hour tour, and it flew by it was so interesting!read moreread less
alicgrey
26 Aug 2026
A great walk around Hobart A truly fantastic walking tour. Richard was very knowledgeable and accommodating.read moreread less
Michael
14 Mar 2026
Interesting pubs & history Everything about our private Historic Pub tour was great! From quick and helpful email replies from Skye to Matthew our guide. Our group of 8 all enjoyed the information Matthew provided and the pubs we visited. Matthew very understanding for one of our group that had difficulty walking. Can highly recommend a tour!! Many thanks.read moreread less
Eick1deb
03 Mar 2026
Informative tour Learnt some interesting things about Hobart and the area we are staying in. Such old building and history. The history on the foreshore was amazing and can't believe it is built on water.read moreread less
Lisa
25 Feb 2026
Great way to Learn about Hobart We took a 3 hour walking tour of Hobart through Hobart Historic Tours. It was fantastic. A shout out to our guide, Richard, who was very knowledgeable and pleasant. Learned about the sandstone buildings downtown and the beautiful area up the hill called Battery Point. A great way to get your bearings in Hobart.read moreread less
Brion
19 Feb 2026
Great tour Great tour of Hobart with excellent tour guide Matthew who was extremely informative - you’ll learn far more about Hobart and its formation/development than you would do just wandering around.read moreread less
McKenzieW0
13 Jan 2026
Informative and fun way to learn about Hobart's beginnings! A wonderful way to see the beautiful city and learn some amazing stories about prominent figures from our past! Our guide was fantastic and the stories made us laugh and also reflect on the hard times people endured to start a new colony.read moreread less
Natalie
11 Jan 2026
Good walking tour Great introduction to Hobart’s history with our guide, Mathew.Some of group continued on the ‘grand tour’ for an extra 1 1/2hr, covering Battery Point.
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Quest633115
29 Nov 2025
Great Time. Had a great time. Sarah was very informative and knew her stuff. The Walking Tour is a must do if your visiting Hobart, so much history. And there's a lot of pubs around for when you've finished all the walking.read moreread less
Sean
03 Nov 2025
Tour guide was average Tour guide was knowledgeable but failed to check if we could all hear. She spoke at busy street corners and her speaker was hidden under her raincoat. Early colonial Tasmanian history was very interesting. Going to the various pubs and hearing about the publicans made it come alive.read moreread less
Michelle
12 Oct 2025
This is a walk worth doing! Exceptionally knowledgeable guide, interesting history, small group. Matthew went out of his way to ensure everyone had a great experience, and the information he shared was really interesting! Plus, he offered insights for other activities we wanted to pursue later.read moreread less
D5949MSelizabethb
06 Oct 2025
Must do tour! Fantastic walking tour with wonderful information. Our tour guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and looked after us so well. Loved it!read moreread less
Wander33526198009
01 Sep 2025
A Great Afternoon Had an excellent time with John our guide. The three hour tour was very well run and worth the money covering a lot of ground around Hobart, learning the history of the town from Discovery to the current day. Not a difficult walk and there was a break for a drink and a comfort stop. The knowledge John gave us was very interesting and there was an interactive element. Give this a go if you are in townread moreread less
markcU9576YS
18 Jun 2025
Fascinating Hobart History tour The tour was very informative and Mathew our tour guide was very accommodating. It’s a really nice way to spend an afternoon learning all about the history of Hobart as well as some new facts along the way.read moreread less
DxF
31 May 2025
An exceptional experience. My wife and I thought we knew a lot in regards to Tasmania’s history from reading various books and visiting Tasmania on many occasions, that was until we were part of the Hobart historic walking tour. The tour guide (Mathew) was so informative and the information he passed on was absolutely amazing. It was a pleasure to listen to him and take it all in especially in regards to the various historic buildings and in some cases, we had passed certain sites on our personal walks and not knowing certain points were around us. A great experience for all groups or individuals to learn more about a fantastic and beautiful place.read moreread less
Kevin
27 May 2025
History filled tour This tour was an amazing tour for a full day. We got to see a lot and the tour guide kept us all on track. Had an interesting lunch lots of good conversations.read moreread less
tourvb
19 Feb 2025
Gem of a tour What a gem of a tour. I was in the Info Centre and all the staff but one were busy. I had a simple question which the person answered but then they said they were actually not part of the Info Centre and were dressed with a name tag as they were running a pub tour. I was sold! The next day Sebastian escorted us around the city and had a great deal of history at his finger-tips. I just didn't realise how old, old Hobart actually is. Great stories from the past. I've been to the highest pub in Australia - Ravenshoe and now the second oldest. I'm starting to see a patternread moreread less
Sightsee58431334248
17 Oct 2024
Highly recommended We joined the 1.5 hour historic walking tour with Matthew as our guide. He was clear, friendly and answered all our questions. The tour was very informative and gave us a brief but thorough overview of the key points in Hobart’s history. The length of the tour was just right.read moreread less
AliceElizabeth1992
28 Sep 2024
Hobart tour Hugo our driver and tour guide was exceptional. Very knowledgeable and extremely helpful. We saw many attractions and were well informed.read moreread less
Global48681266427
27 Sep 2024
Great way to know Hobart for first time visitor It was not the right weather for a walk tour—strong wind, rain, and hail storm; but I’m glad I did the trip and took the longer option. My tour guide Diane was excellent. She does not only hold wonderful knowledge about local history and architecture, her passion and love about the city were apparent through her informative and engaging instructions. She also took personal interest in me after majority of the group left and showed me some places at Battery Point which I enjoyed very much. It was a great way to know Hobart through historical buildings for first time visitor. Deep appreciation to Diane and the tour company.read moreread less
MinibearX
22 Sep 2024
Fun times What an interesting tour we took , loved the old pubs that we frequented . Suggested drink to try is a buttered hot rum 🍹 our guide was knowledgeable and very considerate of the cold weather we were experiencing . Lots of laughs and humourread moreread less
851caryns
21 Sep 2024
Not a pub tour I booked this for 5pm on a Saturday night thinking it would be great to learn about & visit the old pubs of Hobart. Unfortunately we spent 90% of our tour outside on the streets in the cold at night. Out guide was very knowledgeable but gave us a general history tour instead. We visited one old pub and had the opportunity to buy a drink there and be warm inside for about 10 mins. We walked past a few spots that used to be pubs with very little information given about them. Mostly governors, clergy, parks and whaling etc. we finished at our second pub ‘Irish Murphy’s’ not an old pub of Hobart huddled in a corner with no opportunity to buy a drink and more historical information not relating to pubs 🤷♀️. It felt rude to be taking up 7 chairs in someone’s establishment without purchasing to begin with. I was relieved when it ended and a few of us decided to find out own ‘old pub’ to try and have the experience that we thought we had signed up and paid for! Suggest they rename the tour as it is deceiving. The one pub we did visit and hear the history of was excellent more of this if you are going to call it a pub tour.read moreread less
Ali
21 Sep 2024
Learning the history of Hobart Our guide was full of useful and unique facts throughout the walk that allowed for an enhanced experience. He ensured we all had a great time.read moreread less
525davidh525
20 Jan 2024
Disappointed in the pub tour. This isn’t a pub tour, it’s a history tour told as you walk and visit 2 pubs. We were expecting to visit more than 2 historic pubs, and hear more about the pub’s history and characters. We didn’t expect to go into every pub but did expect a tour of historic pubs, which I’m sure there’s more than 2, rather than a walking tour history of Hobart with a token pub thrown in.
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Julie
28 Dec 2023
Nice and easy work team activity. We loved our end of year work tour. Easy to book, and great customer service. Our guide was fun and very knowledgeable. The walking was broken up into easy sections and followed a nice easy walking route. Would definitely recommend for visitors and locals alike.read moreread less
alexcrean95
11 Dec 2023
Eye opening and well worth while What a fantastic experience this was. Di was our tour guide and she was so much fun and a wealth of knowledge.We had access to some magnificent homes that the public would not be able to access. My wife and i thoroughly enjoyed this tour. It gave us a real appreciation of the city of Hobart. Thanks again!
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Andrew
26 Oct 2023
This is a really easy booking service. We did the 3hr tour and upon reflection we would really recommend the first half but the second half seemed to loose the mojo. The first half is full of history, stories and contextualises Hobart in its place in the world past and present. It is definitely a most do in Hobart. The second half is mostly just a walk around Battery Point which you can do independently and doesn't have much specific commentary so you don't miss out on much by doing it yourself without the guide.
The guide was knowledgeable, shared some great stories and his local knowledge helped us out with some great restaurants and pubs for our visit.
The guide was knowledgeable, shared some great stories and his local knowledge helped us out with some great restaurants and pubs for our visit.
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Yvette
26 Sep 2023
Knowledge guide and great introduction to Hobart Diane was outstanding. Her knowledge of the architecture and the history of the city was amazing. It was our first day in Tasmania and the education we received on the tour helped to set the scene for the rest of our visit to this beautiful island.read moreread less
AnnHBaltimore
12 Aug 2023
Fantastic tour with an amazing guide We did the Old Hobart Pub Tour, and our guide Maggie was absolutely fabulous. My friend and I were lucky enough to have Maggie all to ourselves, and as we walked and talked, she kept pointing out pubs and bars and cafes that she thought would peak our interest for us to come back to.You could tell she really knew her history and was passionate about the city as well. She kept sharing fun and interesting stories and kept us engaged the whole time.
A good tour guide can make or break your experience, and Maggie definitely made this for us. This is a definite 10/10
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emmz042019
21 Jul 2023
Glimpse of early Hobart history with a good storyteller. Our guide Diane was a spritely and entertaining character who told the story of Hobart in an interesting way. The stories are an excellent introduction for first time visitors to Hobart. We did the 1 1/2 hour tour that took us from the wharf area, past the older buildings in the CBD and finished in Salamanca Place. We loved viewing the lovely sandstone facades of the buildings and would have enjoyed seeing inside some of them. Would recommend doing.read moreread less
Sunburyite
28 Jun 2023
Very enjoyable walk and information on early convict history in Hobart Town
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Matthew
13 May 2023
Maggie took us on our "Historic" pub crawl. Thank you so much, you were so informative & enthusiastic and I had a really good evening. I think it wouldn't hurt to extend the tour a little & maybe have one or two more drinks. As a solo traveller to Tasmania it was really good to be able to go into a few pubs ( not on my own) and have a drink whilst absorbing all the history this Island has to offer.
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Sylvia
22 Apr 2023
Historic Hobart Walking Tour Great walking tour of historical Hobart. Highly recommend. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable. Will be back.read moreread less
Elizabeth
22 Apr 2023
Hobart, Salamanca & Battery Point Tour John the tour guide was very knowledgeable and the tour was very interesting we did the extended tour so we got to see things in battery point & Salamanca we wouldn’t have on our own. It was a nice leisurely pace even got to stop for a coffeeread moreread less
getawaygirlBrisbane
01 Apr 2023
Pub walk It was very informative but at times hard to hear what was being said. A little bit more about the pubs we were in would have been interesting.read moreread less
365jeanetter
28 Mar 2023
Very interesting! Great informative way to spend three hours in Hobart , Our guide was great , there was so much to learn about this lovely place .read moreread less
irenemD8694ND
18 Feb 2023
First time to Hobart We participated in the walk as part of a APT tour group. The guide, Deb, was excellent. She was well informed, had great stories with lots of detailed information. The pace catered for our group as it was rather warm.read moreread less
Kerri-Ann
31 Jan 2023
History and beers A great way to spend a couple of hours learning about the history of Hobart and experiencing a couple of pubs. Brendon was a great storyteller and very engaging.read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2023-01-31
It is wonderful to hear that you enjoyed the Old Hobart Pub Tour with Brendon. Thank you so much for this feedback.
Kind regards,
Christina and the HHT team
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DRBP7
29 Jan 2023
History and beer! Really fun way to see the city and enjoy some terrific pubs we wouldn’t have otherwise visited. Maggie was our guide and she was so knowledgeable and entertained us with her storytelling. Great way to spend a couple of hours!read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2023-01-22
Hi Yvette,
We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed our Old Hobart Pub Tour with Maggie. Thank you so much for your feedback.
Kind regards
Christina and the HHT team
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yvettei168
21 Jan 2023
History and beer! Really fun way to see the city and enjoy some terrific pubs we wouldn’t have otherwise visited. Maggie was our guide and she was so knowledgeable and entertained us with her storytelling. Great way to spend a couple of hours!read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2023-01-22
Hi Yvette,
We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed our Old Hobart Pub Tour with Maggie. Thank you so much for your feedback.
Kind regards
Christina and the HHT team
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Yvette
21 Jan 2023
Not a pub tour: more an historic tour with a pub at the start and end. Sebastian recognised the former owners of the land then started the tour by stating that prior to the English arriving Tasmania was uninhabited!This is not really a pub tour. If you’ve done the historic Hobart tour it’s the same tour, with a pub to start and a pub to finish.
Some of the dates given were slightly out but unless you’re a historian it’s no big deal.
Finishing at Irish Murphy’s worked for me as they keep their Guinness well and have a great food menu.
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Five-star-critiques
26 Dec 2022
Delightful Tour This was a most pleasant tour of historic Hobart, in a small group, with a couple of significant pubs thrown in. Our Tour Guide, Sebastian, was extremely enthusiastic, amusing and knowledgeable. He was a thoroughly nice chap, who was happy to answer all our questions. He was particularly informative about the early development of Hobart, using good visual guides, pointing out things we’d never have noticed. We would recommend.read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-12-19
Thank you for your feedback. We are delighted to hear you enjoyed the Old Hobart Pub tour with Sebastian and that you would recommend the tour.
Kind regards,
Christina and the HHT team
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Mary-Jane
17 Dec 2022
Walking Through Time The pub culture, history and stories. These pubs are some of the oldest in the country and to see them still standing and operating is amazing.read moreread less
R6038QRlindas
11 Dec 2022
Enjoyable The guide was very knowledge on the history of the pubs and of the early years of settlement. There were 5 couples to our group which was a nice size. In the 1hr 30 min we went to 2 pubs - Hope and Anchor and the Irish Pub. Hope and Anchor was my favourite. Would have loved to squeeze in another old pub to finish off the tour.read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-12-06
Thank you for your feedback, which we have taken on board. It is great to hear that you found our guide very knowledgeable.
Kind regards,
Christina
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W6894AFlorettam
04 Dec 2022
More a history tour than a pub tour Not really a pub tour. More of a history walking tour with a couple of pubs thrown in. If you are wanting to visit different pubs and experience some of the drinks this is not the tour for you. We had 1 drink in the oldest Hobart pub and then did a history tour until the end which finished in an Irish pub with a very limited drink menu. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the history of Hobart.read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-12-04
Thank you for your feedback. That's right, our Old Hobart Pub Tour is a walking tour focusing on the alcohol history of Hobart. Due to the locations of the pubs, there is a walking component to connect the oldest Hobart pub with the pubs in Salamanca. It is great to hear that you found our guide to be knowledgeable and enthusiastic.
Kind regards,
Christina
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lisasF124QD
02 Dec 2022
Our personalised walking tour with Brendon was the highlight of our trip. The two hour walk around Hobart’s oldest and most interesting sites and buildings gave us the understanding of what it would have been like for our first settler ancestors. The amount of research Brendon undertook was outstanding and his delivery had us captivated. We recommend Hobart Historic Tours to anyone who is curious about Hobart’s beginnings and the characters involved.
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Zambelli
27 Nov 2022
Wonderful Historic Hobart We had an informative and enjoyable three hour walking tour with Diane.Her passion for Hobart was apparent.
Would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone.
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A7420VKkarenc
21 Nov 2022
Welcoming and informative Maggie is one of the most accomplished tour guides we have ever had the pleasure of learning from. Friendly, kind, knowledgeable. The walking tour itself was full of interesting content delivered expertly and engagingly. We had a group of eight and we were all friends by the end. Would recommend again and again. Thank you Hobart Historic Tours.read moreread less
HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-11-17
It is wonderful to hear that you would recommend our Old Hobart Pub Tour with Maggie. Thank you kindly for booking with us and for your wonderful feedback.
Kind regards,
Christina and the Hobart Historic Tours team
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Samantha
14 Nov 2022
Had a wonderful tour with Maggie where we enjoyed unique drinks from the Hope & Anchor Hotel, the oldest pub 1804. Then great Gin cocktail at sud polaire. Thanks Maggie.
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Sue
04 Nov 2022
'Girl's trip is cheaper than therapy' historic hotel tour Wonderful tour with great knowledge and infectious enthusiasm made for a very enjoyable experience with Maggie.We experienced unique drinks of stormy seas and hot buttered rum at Hope & Anchor tavern and Sud Polaire a decadent aurora cocktail.
Finishing off in the exquisite Hadley's Orient Hotel. Thank you Maggie.
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HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-11-10
Hi Sue,
Thank you very much for your feedback.
I love the title of your review, it's great!
We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed our Old Hobart Pub Tour with Maggie, and we hope you have a wonderful rest of your girl's trip.
Kind regards,
Christina
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Sue
04 Nov 2022
Maggie our guide. A good walking tour of Hobart. Not only did we visit a few pubs, we were given a lot of history about Hobart and many of its buildings. Maggie was our guide and she had a lot of knowledge and was very enthusiastic.
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HobartHistoricTours, Owner at Hobart Historic Tours, responded to this review - 2022-10-29
Thank you for your feedback. It is great to hear that you enjoyed our Old Hobart Pub Tour with Maggie.
Kind regards,
Christina and the HHT team
read moreread less
Janandsteve1980
28 Oct 2022
An excellent tour with a knowledgeable and friendly local guide. Was recommended by a friend and will definitely be recommending to others. I did the three hour tour and learnt so much despite already knowing a bit about the history of Hobart
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Rachel
20 Aug 2022
A fantastic walking tour of downtown/waterfront Hobart. Di, our guide, was so knowledgeable, passionate about the history and stories of the city, and very engaging, highly recommended.
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Ruth
15 May 2022
Had a fabulous Hobart walking Tour with guide Maggie. A must do tour to get a real appreciation and understanding of historical Hobart and the beautiful old buildings.
The 3 hour grand tour flew by i was so absorbed by all the history. Well paced tour.
A big thank you for such a fabulous afternoon
The 3 hour grand tour flew by i was so absorbed by all the history. Well paced tour.
A big thank you for such a fabulous afternoon
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Rob
24 Apr 2022
I did the Urban Hobart Walking Tour on my first morning in Hobart recently and thoroughly enjoyed it. It gave me a good introduction to the city as I had never been before, but I also saw all sorts of buildings, alleys, signs, and artwork that I would not have noticed on my own. The information covered general history, as well as some local tales and events, and the guide (John) was a treasure trove of interesting information. Highly recommend
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Cheryl
26 Apr 2021
