Want the best that Hobart has to offer? It's here, where a small number of contemporary steel and glass pavilions have been set at the water's edge on David Walsh's superb Moorilla Estate.

You get stunning views of the Derwent River's natural beauty plus the convenience of being just 15 minutes' drive from the centre of the city. You'll want to take a spa, even if you're not usually the spa type, just for the experience of floating above the river and watching the birds wing past at eye level.

The breakfast tray (provided by stellar restaurant The Source, just up the hill) rivals anything you'll get in town and, if fortune smiles, you can partake of it on a deck streamed in sunshine.

If you can be lured into town, don't miss the chance to take the water route: arrange to make the trip by catamaran.

It's all very civilised, even before the art museum opens here in 2010.