museum
Museum of Old and New Art (MONA)
Australia's most controversial and provocative private museum, built underground in a Tasmanian winery.
7 km · about 15 min drive
OceaniaAustraliaTasmania
Geilston Bay
Tasmania, Australia · Oceania
About Geilston Bay
Geilston Bay is worth a stop: 10 minutes from Moonah, 55km from Devils Kitchen.
Geilston Bay is in Tasmania, Australia, with about 2,900 people. You drive on the left here. The nearest town is Moonah, about 4 km away.
Geilston Bay is a largely residential suburb of Hobart between Risdon Vale, Shag Bay, and Lindisfarne, in the City of Clarence located on the Eastern Shore of the River Derwent, taking its name from an inlet of that river of the same name. The inlet and locality were sometimes known by the alternative name LimekilnRead more
Bay on account of lime kilns which operated there between approximately the 1830s and the 1920s, the remains of which remained visible for some decades thereafter; another early name for the Bay was "James's Bay". The present suburb name derives from an early land holding "Geils Town" in the region purchased by Andrew Geils, Commandant of Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) for a brief period in 1812-1813, who subsequently left his Australian holdings behind when he moved back to Scotland.
The nationally significant Late Oligocene (or early Miocene) "Geilston Bay Local Fauna" fossil find originates from this locality. Fossil mammal remains at this site were discovered by limestone quarrying activities in the 1860s and sent to the British Museum in London for further analysis, where they still reside. However there are no surface indications of the location of the site today, which lies buried by landfill under the playing fields of the former Geilston Bay High School.
Where to Stay in Geilston Bay
Compare prices across Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, and more. Select your dates to see availability.
Filter presets
Pick your must-haves once: provider links open pre-filtered. Each filter lists which sites it applies to.
Compare before you book!
Prices can vary significantly between platforms. We recommend checking at least 2-3 sites to find the best deal for your stay in Geilston Bay.
Explore the Area
Discover famous landmarks, scenic roads, and more near Geilston Bay.
Loading map...
Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Geilston Bay?
Within an hour or so of Geilston Bay: Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) (7 km), kunanyi / Mount Wellington (12 km), Tessellated Pavement (52 km), Port Arthur Historic Site (54 km).
Are there any good drives near Geilston Bay?
The nearest famous roads are Jacobs Ladder (Ben Lomond).
Where is Geilston Bay?
Geilston Bay is in Tasmania, Australia, about 4 km from Moonah.
Road trip
Drive to Geilston Bay
Add it as a stop and the planner works out the driving, the nights and what's worth seeing on the way.
Start planningWhat's nearby?
Swipe through places to go
Places within a drive of Geilston Bay. Keep the ones you like and add them to your trip.
Explore now
Quick Information
- Population
- 2,935
- Continent
- Oceania
- Country
- Australia
- Region
- Tasmania
- Timezone
- Australia/Hobart
- Coordinates
- -42.8295, 147.3463
Emergency & Services
Essential numbers in Australia
112 works from mobiles. Distances between fuel stops in the outback can exceed 200 km: plan ahead. Wildlife is most active at dawn/dusk.
Full driving guide for AustraliaTags
Worth the detour from Geilston Bay
6 notable places within an hour's drive.
scenic viewpoint
kunanyi / Mount Wellington
1,271 m summit above Hobart reached by a sealed 21 km road to an enclosed observation shelter overlooking the Derwent estuary.
12 km · about 20 min drive
photogenic
Tessellated Pavement
A flat shore platform at Eaglehawk Neck fractured by tectonic stress into an almost perfectly rectangular grid, then eroded into pans and loaves. Best at low tide near sunrise.
52 km · about 60 min drive
museum
Port Arthur Historic Site
Preserved 19th-century convict penal settlement on the Tasman Peninsula, a World Heritage site at the end of the Arthur Highway.
54 km · about 65 min drive
natural wonder
Devils Kitchen
A collapsed sea cave near Eaglehawk Neck where the ocean boils 60 metres below in a narrow dolerite chasm, with Tasman Arch a short walk away. Both are metres from the car park.
55 km · about 65 min drive
landmark
Callington Mill
A restored 1837 Lincolnshire-style tower windmill at Oatlands, one of very few working Georgian windmills in the southern hemisphere, still milling flour with its sails turning.
59 km · about 70 min drive
Driving roads near Geilston Bay
- Right herekunanyi / Mount Wellington1,271 m summit above Hobart reached by a sealed 21 km road to an enclosed observation shelter overlooking the Derwent estuary.
Nearby Destinations
Other places to explore near Geilston Bay.
Your trip starts here
Plan a road trip from Geilston Bay.
Pick the days, drop in the stops, and share it with whoever's coming.