Ten top things to do in Maitland

Maitland Gaol is a heritage-listed site of architectural intrigue and beauty, filled with morbid surprises and packed with enough criminal history to get even the most casual of true crime fanatics excited. With a vibrant history spanning more than 150 years and a list of infamous inmates including Ivan Milat, the former maximum security prison has made an impressive transformation into the Hunter’s most fascinating tourist attraction since its closure in 1998. You can take a self-guided audio tour any day of the week or be led around the grounds by an ex-warder most weekends, with torchlight tours in the evenings for those game to up the spook-factor. 

On the first weekend of November every year, the grounds of Maitland Gaol fill with an eclectic range of music, roving entertainers, delicious food, and most importantly – beer. The Bitter & Twisted Boutique Beer Festival brings droves of brew connoisseurs to the region to taste more than 80 varieties of craft beer and to get some holistic beer education including food and beer pairings and meeting local brewers. Other activities to discover at this year's event (November 2-3) include drag queen bingo with local icon Timberlina, an ’80s disco hosted by Grand Ridge Brewery, and live music both days featuring ’90s indie icons Custard. Tickets start at $45.

The Levee Central Maitland is the region’s newest lifestyle precinct, in the heart of Maitland beside the Hunter River. The area is characterised by an intriguing combination of heritage buildings and modern architecture. Striking metallic cloud sculptures from Newcastle sculptor Braddon Snape float along the walls and ceiling of the Riverlink Building, the gateway to an accessible ramp down to the banks of the river, where you’ll find a revamped Riverside Walk with shaded outdoor seating and plenty of room to roam free. The Levee is home to a growing café culture and boasts shopping options including independent boutiques packed with arty goodies and retro finds alongside op shops and national retailers. On the first and third Thursdays of the month the Slow Food Earth Market Maitland takes over the precinct (read more below).

A trip into Maitland can quickly become a creative pilgrimage, with colourful murals to be discovered around every corner, active galleries and local makers selling their wares. The Maitland Regional Art Gallery (MRAG, as the locals call it) annually houses 25 exhibitions a year from acclaimed artists like double Archibald-winning Del Kathryn Barton, local artists and even works from local school children (adorable). The building itself, a 1900s gothic federation structure, is well worth the visit. The Levee Art Gallery and Studio is also housed in a fascinating historical building and exhibits original work from 13 Australian artists and four sculptors. While you’re here, a visit to Dennerleys Leather Design store is an experience in itself. Husband-and-wife team Bob and Annie Dennerley are genuine artisans producing highly sought after leather goods on the premises. Discover work by local artisans at the Hunter Artisan Gallery and Café, where you can mull over the purchase of artwork, jewellery or homewares as you nibble locally sourced meals, sweets and Hunter wines in the in-house café. Venture a little further out and the Morpeth Gallery offers a selection of traditional Australian landscape and wildlife and investment pieces.  

About a ten-minute drive from of the centre of Maitland you’ll find the beautiful historic town of Morpeth on the banks of the Hunter River. With more heritage sites and buildings than you can count and a bounty of quirky discoveries, Morpeth is a place where you can browse boutiques, relax in a beautifully restored tea room, explore the picturesque Queens Wharf and sample local wine, liquor and beer. There’s an abundance of 19th-century heritage buildings including the bakehouse where the Arnott’s family biscuit dynasty began in 1847, which is now home to Morpeth Sourdough. You can even don an apron and take up a baking class with current owner and Arnott’s scion, Stephen Arnott. There’s no shortage of cafés to stop at for lunch, and with a full stomach you’ll be in good form to sample the local drams. Morpeth Wine Cellar and Moonshine Distillery has local wines on offer, and you can enjoy hand-crafted beers from the Morpeth Brewery and Beer Co at their home at the Commercial Hotel. Non-drinkers can enjoy traditional beverages from the Morpeth Ginger Beer Factory.  

Maitland’s bar and pub scene has been steadily growing in options. The latest addition to High Street is Rama Bar, a neo-cocktail bar specialising in rum, cocktails and retro-futurist vibes. The Whistler, which is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, promises some of the region’s best food and drinks, with 16 craft beers on tap and a healthy cocktail list. On the doorstep of the Maitland train station, the Grand Junction Hotel (or ‘the Junkyard’ as its affectionately known) is an egalitarian pub, somewhere you can take your mates or your nan. A major live music venue for the region, the Junkyard is the place to catch a gig, have a casual drink, fuel up on burgers and pizzas and say hello to the local dogs. Craft beer fanatics cannot pass up the Pourhouse, with the biggest selection of brews in town. The pub itself has a history dating back to 1866, however between 1990 and 2013 it had a stint as an antique shop before two mates decided to bring the building back to its roots. The Old Victoria, meanwhile, offers a grandiose taste of the area’s colonial history, being a prime example of Georgian-inspired architecture. Live out your bougie-est fantasties and try the menu by one of the region’s most awarded chefs, Gavin Forman. 

A couple of restaurants are bolstering Maitland's reputation as a foodie destination, namely Coquun and the Rigby. A refined two-level riverfront location with a downstairs small bar and an upstairs dining room, Coquun’s European-inspired menu borrows from the native food bowl. Dishes include the likes of kangaroo carpaccio with crisp shallot, dorrigo pepper hung yoghurt, smoked black garlic and salt bush. The name ‘Coquun’ comes from the Wonnarua, the area’s first people, and roughly translates to ‘fresh water’. This was the first name given to what is now known as the Hunter River, which is in full view of the restaurant’s floor to ceiling windows. The Rigby’s heritage-meets-industrial high street hideaway, meanwhile, is where the drinks offerings are just as important as the food, with a sophisticated cocktail list matched to tapas, entrées and mains. Father-and-son team Howard and Nick Bourne pride themselves on creating a menu that will have you wondering what to order, such as housemade gnocchi with peas and salsa verde, or snapper with cauliflower and chilli jam served in a ginger and scallion broth. 

What started as a pop-up pumpkin stall in 2016 quickly developed into a full-blown market – and a movement. The Slow Food Earth Markets Maitland, the first of its kind in Australia, takes place on the first and third Thursdays of the month. The Levee Central Maitland is the venue, and it's here local growers and producers offer “good, clean and fair” fresh seasonal produce. Some special goods unique to the area to discover are Maitland’s own turmeric (available fresh when in season, and dried all year round) as well as other fresh and dried herbs, locally produced artisan tea, chutneys and jams, and biodynamic breads and pastries from Fosterton Farm. Maitland’s market is the first one in Australia to be certified by the international Slow Food Earth Market movement, which guarantees that all fresh food and produce sold is fully traceable back to local sources. 

While coffee snobs may tell you that Melbourne is the place to be, Maitland’s café culture has been quietly percolating into something quite special. The Cabin Collective is a tattoo parlour and coffee shop in one. Serving coffee by Primitive Roast, the Collective hand roasts all beans onsite over an open fire, they claim to be the only coffee shop in Australia to do so. The team of tattooists applies eclectic ink in designs ranging from neo-traditional to realism. Many would argue that the best cup of coffee in town can be found at the Cunning Culinarian, a carefully curated rustic yet elegant café serving up a specially chosen house blend by Balmain’s Little Marionette roasters. The well-executed classic café menu changes seasonally, and options may include fluffy corn fritters with lashings of bacon for breakfast and warming chowder for lunch, along with cakes and pastries cooked on-site. The Culinarian also offers cooking classes for both children and adults.

For those that take their cycling as seriously as their caffeine source, the Bikesmith & Espresso Bar will have you covered. The independent, family owned business is somewhere you can head for a quality coffee, a spare tube, a service or even a whole new bike from their speciality range. If the sweets that come along with your coffee are your biggest concern, Icky Sticky Patisserie offers handcrafted treats and treasures with delicate floral flourishes that will be the envy of all your Instagram followers. 

An area steeped in both natural beauty and history, the Walka Recreation and Wildlife Reserve is a popular place for recreation, picnics and the occasional wedding. The heritage-listed Walka Water Works is one of the largest and most intact 19th-century industrial complexes in the Hunter Region, featuring a striking chimney and ornate brickwork. Over 300 species of birdlife and wildlife can be spotted around the large lake area, which is surrounded by walking trails with hidden discoveries. There’s also a playground to keep tiny humans amused.