Is kunanyi / Mount Wellington Open?

Check on the day: Pinnacle Road, the only public road to the summit, can close at any time, and the City of Hobart posts its state on the Pinnacle Road status page. Two things are known in advance. The Wellington Park Management Trust has the road closed for maintenance from 16 to 19 November 2026, with no vehicles to the summit. And snow and ice close it often: 95 nights in 2025-26. When snow shuts the road to cars, the City of Hobart says the kunanyi / Mt Wellington Explorer Bus runs if conditions allow, which makes it a way up on many of those days. Its all-day pass from Brooke Street Pier costs from US$38 a person, checked November 2026.

The calendar above is the Explorer Bus pass, with 1,072 reviews (checked November 2026).

The closure with a date: 16 to 19 November 2026

The Wellington Park Management Trust has scheduled Pinnacle Road’s annual maintenance closure for 16 to 19 November 2026 (read on the Trust’s road and track updates page on 4 November 2026):

• no vehicle access to the summit on any of the four days;
• on 18 and 19 November the lower road is open as far as The Springs only;
• no pedestrians or cyclists on the road while it is closed;
• every track and trail in Wellington Park stays open.

On those days the summit is reachable only on foot by the tracks, so plan the mountain for another day if you want the view from the top.

Snow and ice: how often the road closes

The Trust says snow and ice can restrict the road at any time of year, most of all from April to September, and that it also closes now and then for community and sporting events. Its record for 2025-26:

The Springs could be reached by car on all but one of the closure days. The City of Hobart says that in snow and ice the road is closed to cars but you can still walk on it, which is a different rule from the maintenance closure, when walkers are kept off too. The Trust adds that traffic is often congested on snow days, and that Wellington Park closes to all users on days of Extreme or Catastrophic fire danger in the South East or Upper Derwent Valley forecast districts.

The road and the summit

From the Hobart CBD it is 20 km by road to the Pinnacle, about 29 minutes without traffic, routed. Pinnacle Road starts at the end of Pillinger Drive in Fern Tree and climbs through The Springs to the 1,271 m summit; the Trust describes it as sealed and fine for ordinary cars, but narrow and winding. Wellington Park is free to enter and open every day. Up top it is generally about 10°C colder than in the city, you can meet four seasons in a day, and there is little food or water on the mountain, so bring a warm layer and a drink.

Ways up without a car

Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide, checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.

Two more ways up. The Hobart Shuttle Bus Company's hop-on hop-off pass gives 30 minutes at the summit from Brooke Street Pier, and on snow days, when the gates are shut to the public, it runs on the Explorer Bus, which the City of Hobart says operates during road closures if conditions allow. The same company's mountain and Richmond shuttle pairs 30 minutes at the summit with about 3 hours in Richmond; entry to Richmond’s attractions is not included. On the Explorer Bus, bike freight is extra ($10 per bike) and must be booked at least 30 minutes before departure.

Driving yourself

With a car the mountain is the easiest trip from Hobart: free to enter, 20 km away, no booking. Check the City of Hobart’s status page before you leave, expect traffic on snow days, and leave 16 to 19 November 2026 out of your plans for the summit. Day trips from Hobart by distance sets the mountain beside the longer trips.