Winner of the 2008 “Keep Australia Beautiful” award for the best preserved historic and cultural village in Australia and the Tasmanian Tidy Towns award. Ross is a small village worthy of it’s reputation.

As you wander the tree-lined streets you will be transported to a time long gone but not forgotten. The bridge at Ross, possibly the most beautiful of its kind left in the world, was built by convict stonemasons. Completed in 1836, it was designed to carry wagons and coaches, yet it bears today’s traffic with ease.

On the banks of the Macquarie River in Tasmania's midlands Ross was first settled in 1812, and is one of Australia’s most appealing convict-built stone villages. Many of the original sandstone buildings in this attractive town have been proudly restored and preserved for future generations.

The main crossroads of the village are said to represent ‘Temptation’ (Man O’Ross Hotel), ‘Recreation’ (Town Hall), ‘’Salvation (Catholic Church) and ‘Damnation’ once a jail, now a private residence. What is known as the Ross Female Convict Station Historic Site was occupied as a convict station between 1833 and 1855. Inmates included male work gangs and chain gangs, and it also served at this time as a road station, hiring depot and probation station. It operated as a probation station for female convicts and their babies between 1847 and 1854, which is why it is known as the Ross Female Factory Site.

The Tasmanian Wool Centre was built in 1988 as a bicentennial project and features a Heritage Museum and Wool Exhibition and an extensive range of Tasmanian woolen products. Churches of historical significance include St John’s Anglican Church (1869), the Roman Catholic Church (converted from a store in 1920) and the Uniting Church (1885). When you’ve done the rounds and finished your shopping for antiques, bric-a-brac, woolen products, arts and crafts, head to one of the town's numerous delightful eating places for lunch, or a tea or coffee and a plate of local fare.

There is a new 4 star Ross Motel set in peaceful surroundings in the heart of the village where you are assured of a restful sleep, (no traffic noise). There are several B and Bs in the village offering varying styles of accommodation.

When you have rested up and feel like wandering around you’ll find delicious bakeries, antiques shops and many historic convict-built houses.  The local hotel – The Man O’Ross has an excellent dining room and cosy atmosphere, especially in the colder months when they light their log fires.

There are many events from October through to end of May each year. with visits from Vintage cars, motorcycles, horse and; Buggy clubs. There’s an annual Rodeo held in the village every January and an athletic Marathon in September. A Car boot sale every month brings forth some interesting articles, and adds to the atmosphere of the main street bulging with tourists enjoying an excellent cup of coffee and a fresh baked delight outside one of the two bakeries.

Winter brings another palette to Ross.  The huge Elm trees drop their golden carpet over the entire main street, then stand as ghostly images in fine morning fogs.  If you are lucky, on some mornings you can look up into the branches and see intricate spider webs covered in tiny icicles shimmering in the fog, or see a family of magpies, or other birds gathered on the electric wires, more ghostly images as the fog drifts around them.

Not to be missed, Ross is a convenient half-way stop between Launceston and Hobart on the Heritage Highway.