Tasmania · Cultural Landmark
Salamanca Place
The Historic Waterfront Warehouse Row and Saturday Market
schedule 2 min read / Updated Apr 2026
A row of Georgian sandstone warehouses on Hobart's waterfront, originally built in the 1830s for the whaling industry and now home to Tasmania's best restaurants, galleries, bars and the famous Saturday morning Salamanca Market.
Salamanca Place runs along the southern edge of Sullivans Cove in Hobart and is lined with a row of 16 Georgian sandstone warehouses built between 1835 and 1860. The warehouses were originally constructed to serve the whaling industry that dominated the Hobart port in the first half of the 19th century. As whaling declined, the buildings became stores for shipping, merchandising and other waterfront businesses, and fell into gradual disrepair by the mid-20th century.
The precinct was comprehensively restored in the 1970s and 80s and is now considered one of the most successful adaptive-reuse heritage projects in Australia. The warehouses today house bars, restaurants, galleries, craft shops and the Salamanca Arts Centre, which is home to more than 70 artists and arts organisations in a single building.
The Salamanca Market, held every Saturday morning year round from 8:30am to 3pm, is the most famous market in Tasmania and one of the largest outdoor markets in Australia. Around 300 stalls set up along the length of Salamanca Place, selling local produce, Tasmanian craft, fresh flowers, gourmet food, clothing and art. The market draws around 25,000 visitors on a good Saturday and is one of the highest-rated things to do in Hobart on any travel review site.
Morning coffee at Salamanca is a Hobart institution. The row of cafes facing the warehouses opens early and remains busy throughout the day. After dark, the precinct becomes Hobart's main bar and restaurant strip, with outdoor dining in the summer months and the dramatic backdrop of the lit-up warehouses throughout the year.
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- Boats near Salamanca Place in Hobart, Tasmania.jpg · Lautreca11 · CC0
- Restaurants at Salamanca Place.jpg · Lautreca11 · CC0
- Restaurants near the waterfront in Hobart, Tasmania.jpg · Lautreca11 · CC0
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