This amazing World Heritage convict site is one of Tasmania’s big-ticket tourist attractions. There are dozens of structures here, best interpreted via a guided tour. The museum was originally an asylum, and the Separate Prison was built to punish prisoners through isolation and sensory deprivation. The 1836 church burned down in 1884, and the penitentiary was originally a granary. The shell of the Broad Arrow Café, scene of many of the 1996 shootings, has been preserved with a memorial garden around it.
Inside the main visitor centre is a cafe, Felons Bistro and a gift shop (which stocks some interesting convict-focused publications). Downstairs is an interpretative gallery where you can follow the convicts’ journey from England to Tasmania. Buggy transport around the site can be arranged for people with restricted mobility – ask at the information counter. The ferry plying the harbour is also wheelchair accessible.
