The Huon Hotel

Cygnet
Attractive alternative lifestyle town set in an area of great peace and beauty.
Located 56 km south of Hobart, Cygnet is one of the major centres (they are all rather small) in the Huon Valley area. Once an important apple growing town in recent times it has become the centre of an alternative lifestyle community which have established woodturning, wholefoods shops, craft activities, vintage car restoring and holiday cottage accommodation as important local industries. It should, however, be noted that the farmers in the area still rely on dairy cattle, apple orchards, mixed farming and sawmilling for their economic livelihood.

The Cygnet area was first explored by Bruni D'Entrecasteaux who, in 1793, sailed up the Huon River and named the narrow bay which runs up to Cygnet, Port des Cygnes (the Port of Swans) because of the large number of swans he observed in the area.

The first European settler in the district was William Nichols who arrived in 1834. Part of the home which Nichols built is still standing. It was Nichols grandson, John Wilson, who established the first shipbuilding business at Port Cygnet.

In 1836 an orchard was planted at Petchey's Bay and by 1840 Port Cygnet (as it was known at the time) was surveyed and land blocks and streets were laid out.

The area became a major centre for convicts with the establishment of Convict Probation Stations at Port Cygnet, Lymington and Nicholls Rivulet (it is a misspelling of William Nichols name). The population rose dramatically in the late 1840s however the stations were short-lived. By 1848 the convict stations were in decline.

Free settlers arrived and by 1850 a school had been established. The town was named Lovett in 1862 but this was changed to Cygnet in 1915. By the 1930s Cygnet was the centre of an extraordinarily productive fruit growing region. Figures for the year 1935 indicate that the district produced 644 800 bushels of apples, 21 170 bushels of pears, 5 470 lbs of gooseberries, 31 890 lbs of blackcurrants, 100 750 lbs of raspberries and 160 880 lbs of strawberries.

Things to see:  

Attractions in the Area
Today the attractions around Cygnet are strictly scenic. The area is ideal for picnics, fishing, bushwalking and boating. The handy pamphlet Let's Talk about Cygnet suggests a number of scenic drives. The drive along the coast towards Hobart via Verona Sands and Woodbridge is very pretty with the Huon River becoming wider and wider until it opens into D'Entrecasteaux Channel.

	Hotels
	Commercial Hotel Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1296
	Cygnet Hotel 119 Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1267 Rating: *
	Howard Cygnet Central Hotel Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1244 Rating: **
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Beaupre Cottage Bed & Breakfast 3 Coast Rd Lymington Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1542 Rating: ****
	Cygnet Guesthouse 89 Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 0080 Rating: ***
	Leumeah Lodge Bed & Breakfast 2km Sth of Post Office Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1839 Rating: ***
	Apartments
	The Deepings Apts 1118 Nicholls Rivulet Rd Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1398 Facsimile: (03) 6295 0498 Rating: ***
	Cottages & Cabins
	Talune Wildlife Park Tourist Cabins 1106 Woodbridge Hill Rd Gardners Bay Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1775
	Caravan Parks
	Cygnet Caravan Park Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1869 Rating: **
	Restaurants
	Black Swan Restaurant Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1267
	Cygnet Hotel 119 Mary St Cygnet TAS 7112 Telephone: (03) 6295 1267