Hobart Twilight Market Brooke Street Pier
The city-centre half of Hobart's original Friday twilight market, trading on a floating pontoon building moored at Franklin Wharf.
About this market
Hobart Twilight Market's city-centre site is Brooke Street Pier, which is not a pier in the ordinary sense: it is a four-storey floating pontoon building weighing about 5,300 tonnes, built in 2014 and 2015 at a cost of around $13 million and moored against the shore at Franklin Wharf. When the market trades here on a Friday evening, the ground it stands on is floating.
A Friday night out on the waterfront
The format is the market's own summary of itself: eats, drinks, design and music. Street food comes from local traders and a sizeable food truck line-up, drinks run to small-batch Tasmanian liquors, cocktails, cordials and wines, and the design stalls carry jewellery, gifts, books and homewares from Tasmanian makers. Local produce sits alongside them, with growers selling fruit, vegetables and plants direct. Live music plays through the evening from local artists, and there is a fashion element too, mixing new work from local designers with preloved pieces.
Market at a glance
The operator runs a second site at Long Beach in Sandy Bay, ten minutes from the CBD, which trades its own Friday dates plus a Sunday pop-up series through the cooler months. The two do not simply mirror each other, so the Long Beach market has its own calendar worth checking separately. Practical facilities here include toilets, accessible parking, a dedicated information booth and a fee-free cash-out facility.
Brooke Street Pier was the largest floating building in Australia when it was completed. Rather than drive piles for a four-storey structure, the builders found a floating pontoon cheaper, making it the first building of its kind in the country, and it has a basement level below the waterline.
Good to know before you go
Dates are the thing to get right. The market trades selected Fridays rather than every Friday, and the operator warns that dates can change, so check the calendar rather than assuming this week is on. Being in the heart of the city, the pier is easily walkable from anywhere in central Hobart and needs no parking plan at all, which is rare for a market. Come for dinner rather than shopping alone, since the food and drink line-up is the main event and there is seating. Dress for a waterfront evening: it is exposed, and a Hobart Friday night gets cold well outside winter. This is muwinina country.
Frequently Asked Questions
- When is the market on at Brooke Street Pier?
- Selected Friday evenings, 4:30pm to 9pm. The operator publishes dates on its own calendar and says they are subject to change, so confirm before you go.
- Is this the same market as the one at Long Beach?
- Same operator, different site. Hobart Twilight Market runs two waterfront locations and publishes a separate date list for each.
- Is it accessible and dog friendly?
- Yes. The market provides toilets, accessible parking, an information booth and a fee-free cash-out facility, and welcomes dogs and families.