Marina service
Kings Pier Marina
About
Kings Pier Marina at a glance
Kings Pier Marina in Hobart, Tasmania is listed as a recreational berthing facility managed by TasPorts. The marina is available for 12-month licensing; TasPorts also lists Constitution Dock nearby for casual stays. For berthing enquiries and licensing contact TasPorts (phone 1300 366 742 or 0418 334 856; email property@tasports.com.au or operationsadmin@tasports.com.au).
Service area: Hobart / River Derwent, Tasmania
- Marina type
- government/transport wharf-marina
- Operator
- TasPorts
- Region
- Hobart / River Derwent
- Water body
- Sullivans Cove
- Wet berths
- 54
- Maximum vessel
- 17 m
- Berth types
- casual berthing, permanent berthing
Facilities and services
- pump-out
- power & water
- showers & laundry
- Fire hose reels, extinguishers, life buoys and alarm boxes on pontoons
- 4-hour short-stay berthing
- 12-month berth licensing
- catamaran berths
- race week berthing management
Useful for sailors looking for
- Wet berthing and moorings
- Dry storage or hardstand
- Vessels up to 17 m
About Kings Pier Marina
Kings Pier Marina is Hobart's only true floating marina in the city centre, a grid of pontoon berths extending 135 metres from Franklin Wharf behind a 130-metre breakwater at the head of Sullivans Cove. Hobart Ports Corporation built the first stage in 1998 and added a second stage in 2003 at a cost of about $1 million, work carried out by Bellingham Marine and timed to be ready for that summer's Sydney Hobart race fleet. TasPorts now operates the marina with 54 floating berths for vessels up to 17 metres, a mix of 12-month licence holders and casual visitors. The marina's address is about as central as a berth gets in Australia: the GPO, chandleries, cafes and the Elizabeth Street mall are minutes away on foot, and the finish line of the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race lies roughly 200 metres off, which is why the marina, together with Constitution Dock and the north side of Elizabeth Street Pier, has hosted the race fleet each summer for decades. That race connection defines the marina's rhythm. Interstate owners license berths so they can step off a plane and straight onto the boat for a weekend of Tasmanian sailing, cruisers slot in between events, and from 28 December the whole complex turns into the finishing corral for the fleet, with berthing included in the race entry fee. The biennial Australian Wooden Boat Festival likewise spills across these pontoons every second February. From the pontoons the view runs across the cove to the fishing punts of Constitution Dock and the Georgian warehouses of Salamanca, with kunanyi-Mount Wellington framing the whole scene, a reminder that this small marina sits inside a working port rather than beside it.
Marina facilities
The marina provides 54 floating berths suited to vessels up to 17 metres, including catamarans, in more than 3 metres of water at low tide. Every berth has electricity and water, and the pontoon system carries fire hose reels, extinguishers, life buoys and alarm boxes along its walkways. A sewage pump-out serves berth holders and visitors, and the amenities block offers showers, toilets and a laundry. Berthing arrangements run three ways: 12-month licences administered through TasPorts' property office, casual overnight berthing booked through reception on 1300 366 742 or reception@tasports.com.au, and a four-hour short-stay option for boats ducking into the city. Casual fees follow TasPorts' published recreational vessel schedule, and TasPorts' vessel information form must be completed on arrival. There is no fuel berth on the pontoons; diesel is supplied within the port by Bennetts Petroleum on weekdays, and full fuel, slipway and repair facilities are available at the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania and Derwent Sailing Squadron at Sandy Bay, or across the river at the Motor Yacht Club of Tasmania in Lindisfarne. Security benefits from the manned Port Control tower overlooking the cove and CCTV coverage of the waterfront. Race entrants receive berthing from 28 December to the morning of 3 January as part of their entry, with extensions possible subject to availability and a marina fee. The marina's floating docks, sheltered behind the breakwater, avoid the rafting and ladder work required on the Constitution Dock walls, which is why many visitors with the choice prefer it despite slightly higher demand.
Local sailing knowledge
Arriving boats should call Hobart Port Control on VHF 16 or ring 1300 366 742 before entering Sullivans Cove, since berths here are often fully committed, especially over summer. The cove itself is deep, lit and well marked, with the main caution being commercial movements at Macquarie Wharf and the constant shuttle of harbour ferries and cruise ship tenders. Unlike Constitution Dock, no bridge opening is needed to reach the pontoons, so crews can come and go at any hour, a point liveaboards appreciate after a season of waiting on the lifting span. Depths alongside exceed 3 metres at low water and tidal flow is negligible, making this one of the easiest berths in Tasmania to use. Shoreside, everything is walkable: the GPO is minutes away, the waterfront fish punts sell scallops and crayfish in season, Salamanca Market runs on Saturdays, and Woolworths and speciality food shops are in the blocks behind the wharves. Permit parking for berth holders can be arranged through TasPorts. For cruising beyond the river, the Derwent offers day sails to Barnes Bay and the D'Entrecasteaux Channel is an easy passage south, while the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania at Sandy Bay provides fuel, gas and a slipway about 20 minutes away on foot from its own visitor berths. Anyone planning a December or January stay should book far ahead: from 28 December until 3 January the marina is reserved for the Sydney Hobart fleet, and New Year on the Hobart waterfront is one of Australian sailing's great scenes.