I have a confession to make. While my job is to give you hotel lust, I actually don’t care where I stay for most of my holidays. I’m not going to Prague to hang out in a hotel room! Just give me somewhere central with a door that locks and a bed that’s relatively free of plant life and I’m happy.
But travelling can be hard work, and sometimes you’ve got to treat yo’self. So when Mr LML and I make plans to visit Hobart, we decide we want somewhere special to recover from our cheese and whisky binges. Enter Somerset on the Pier to make our Hobart experience even more amazing. Here’s how –
Cosy as your PJs, cool as your tux
Forget booking a mere room – staying at Somerset on the Pier means a cool 1- or 2-bedroom loft apartment in a converted warehouse. Surrounded by old-school wooden sailing boats and with high, sloping ceilings, you get that nautical feel without being drowned in sailor stripes. Nice!
Our new home
Not a stripe or anchor to be seen!
However, the real winner for us is the bed. Is there a size above King? Are we looking at an Emperor, Pharaoh, or Space Pope? Or is this a King and we’re just sad, sorry people who’ve never experienced one? Whatever it is, our bed is glorious and Mr LML thoroughly enjoys the rare treat of not waking up squished in a corner. He’s in a safe place now where my sleep contortions can’t hurt him anymore.
This bed will save your relationship
View porn
I don’t mean that as a suggested holiday activity (although whatever floats your historic wooden boat), but my best description for the 360 degrees of gratuitous beauty that surround S on the P. This is literally on our front doorstep:
Obscene
It’s not just guests who enjoy the view. We arrive three days after a serious cold snap brings snow to the CBD (the first time since 2005), and everyone’s talking about it. A concierge tells us how she saw snow fall on the harbour in the morning, then watched dolphins play in the same water in the afternoon, all without leaving the front desk. Not bad for a day at the office!
We don’t see any dolphins during our stay, but the scene outside our living room is still pretty fantastic. We plonk ourselves down on the couch for a little rest before dinner, but make the terrible mistake of opening a bottle of wine.
“Just one glass,” we say.
“Oh, one more.”
“Just another half glass before we go…”
Before we know it, the bottle’s gone and we’ve watched the sun go down. Curse you, soothing harbour view.
We never had a chance
Somehow we manage to drag ourselves out again, but it’s a close call. Luckily you can get room service from Tavern 42 Degrees South, so there’s no risk of starving if you do stay in. I strongly recommend the Bruny Island oysters with chilli and bacon. So good!
Location, location, location!
It’s everything, right? And in addition to distractingly good views, staying on the pier means quiet nights while still having the best of Hobart within food-induced-waddling distance. No road outside your window means no late-night sirens or weekend revellers singing Enter Sandman while they wait for a cab. Not that I know anything about that…
Just a 2-minute stroll away, the Tasmanian Travel and Information Centre on Davey Street is a lifesaver if you’re a carless pleb (like us) and want to see more than just the city. Mr LML and I get shuttle bus tickets to the top of kunanyi / Mount Wellington (which has only *just* re-opened after the snow) and book a half-day tour to Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary. Snow + devils = doing Hobart right.
Kunanyi / Mount Wellington (aka Hobart being all scenic again)
DEVILS!
More Bonorong friends
Opposite Somerset on the Pier is Franklin Wharf, departure point for the famous MONA ferry. If you’re thinking of driving from the city to save a few dollars, grab yourself by the shoulders and shake off the dumb. You can ride a sheep. On a pimped-out catamaran. To MONA. You’d be crazy to miss it!
I AM THE MASTER OF SHEEP!
Battery Point (home to the must-do Salamanca Market) is also within dawdling distance. Bring an empty stomach and full wallet, ‘cause there’s plenty of things to eat and buy. Check out Machine Laundry Cafe for breakfast or lunch (the ricotta hotcakes with roast pear, peanut brittle and salted caramel sauce are INSANE), Smolt for dinner (market fish, all the way), and Salamanca Arts Centre for art, performance and boutique shopping. For a nightcap you’ve gotta try The South Seas Cocktail Lounge on Castray Esplanade. It’s tricky to find, but, man, those cocktail bowls are worth it!
The South Seas Cocktail Lounge. Find this door, order a bowl of flaming alcoholic joy. That’s an order.
In case you hadn’t guessed, we’re now smitten with Hobart. And it all started by choosing the right place to stay.
Cassie stayed as a guest of Somerset on the Pier