South Australia

Named after King William IV’s queen, Adelaide is a gracious, well-planned city of gardens, historic, restored colonial pubs, churches and modern buildings. The city centre has a superb setting surrounded by open parkland separating the business heart form the suburbs, and the entire city is sheltered on a narrow coastal plain between the protective ring of the Adelaide Hills and Gulf St Vincent, 10 kilometres to the west.

The South Australian capital, Adelaide is home to more than one million people. There are more restaurant places per head here than anywhere else in Australia. It's where an office is as likely to be in a gracious Victorian or Edwardian building as in a modern tower, and where homes of the colonial era are lovingly preserved, their verandahs and gracious ironwork - Adelaide lace - intact. It's a planned city and the designer, Colonel William Light laid out the parklands which garland it and the squares and gardens which grace it back in 1836. It's where cafes and designer shops reside in buildings of a bygone era.

Shopping in Adelaide centres on Rundle Mall, an attractive paved area noted for its outdoor cafes, trees and modern sculpture. Here you can be entertained by buskers and the passing parade. About 10 km north-west of the city is Port Adelaide. Many of the working port’s 19th century buildings have been restored and its award-winning Maritime Museum is set in seven separate locations. Including the lighthouse, over a concentrated area ideal for walking. other attractions include, Port Dock Station Railway Museum and the Historical Aviation Museum.

Adelaide is where every two years they devote three weeks to one of the world's most dazzling arts festivals, just one of South Australian's feast of festivals. North Terrace is a boulevard of galleries and museums flowing into serene green botanic gardens. Rundle Street, parallel with it, is lined with cafes, bars and restaurants. Put them together and you have typical Adelaide.

Adelaide is where you're only twenty minutes from the tranquility of the Adelaide Hills or from a terrace on a beach watching the sunlight sparkling on the sea. It's where you can shop at leisure in the city's Mall that was a main street, hunt through designer boutiques, take in the bustle of the Central Market, a product market unlike any other, or party into the small house. Home of a million-plus people, café society, designer shopping and vibrant nightlife. Adelaide is what a city is meant to be. Framed by parklands, hills and sea, it's green, wide and welcoming.

Some examples of Adelaide's attractions:
 

Adelaide Oval

Adelaide Oval is widely regarded as the most picturesque test cricket ground in the world with St Peter's Cathedral rising behind an elegant Edwardian scoreboard and Moreton Bay fig trees at the northern end. The ground was established following the formation of the South Australian Cricket Association in 1871. The Adelaide Oval Museum was officially opened in 1995 and displays a comprehensive range of objects and memorabilia relating to the history of Adelaide Oval. While there is an obvious emphasis on cricket memorabilia, some of the Oval's rich football history is also on display. Other sporting and recreational activities which have been held on the ground are also featured. The museum is located on the first level of the Sir Donald Bradman Stand. The museum operates in conjunction with Adelaide Oval tours.

Adelaide Botanic Garden
 

A haven in the heart of the city, the Adelaide Botanic Garden is the most visited cultural attraction in South Australia. Its easy to understand the Garden's popularity with its range of unique attractions including the picturesque Botanic Park, the International Rose Garden, the stunning Bicentennial Conservatory, the Museum of Economic Botany and the enchanting Palm House, just to name a few. You will also discover numerous statues, water features, heritage buildings, a gift shop, kiosk and the acclaimed Botanic Gardens Restaurant. The Garden also hosts many major events throughout the year, and information about them is available on the website.

Barossa Valley Golf Club

The Barossa Valley Golf Club is situated at Nuriootpa in the heart of the Barossa Valley. It is an 18 holes, fully irrigated golf course and boasts exceptionally high quality greens rated by many touring golf professionals as having the best putting surface in the state. This challenging, picturesque course is set amongst many large vineyards and is only one hours drive from the heart of Adelaide. The course is open to the public and attracts a large number of green fee players per week. Facilities: . 18 holes . 6026 Metres . Par 72 . Australian Course Rating 71.

City of Churches. Flinders Street Baptist Church

The province of South Australia was established in 1836, and Flinders Street Baptist Church came into being twenty five years later, when in August 1861, a group of Christian believers covenanted together to form a Baptist church to serve the city of Adelaide. Four months later a foundation stone was laid, and eighteen months after that the building was opened for worship. It is now heritage listed. Features of the interior include a gallery, added in 1873 partly to improve the acoustics, but unfortunately obstructing view of a beautiful rose window, which can now be seen only from the front of the church looking backwards. A large pipe organ was installed in 1886 and rebuilt in 1976. There are a number of plaques around the walls commemorating outstanding service to the church and wartime service and sacrifice by church members. One plaque commemorates the centenary of the Australian Baptist Missionary Society, which began in this church. Nearby is an honour roll of members of the church who have served or are now serving on the mission field. The church is in the centre of the city, but many of the church community travel from various suburbs in Adelaide. People are attracted to the style of worship, which is traditional, but contemporary, and by the friendly atmosphere. The church was built in 1861, and other buildings followed by 1877, including a large hall, classrooms, manse and residence. The buildings are heritage listed and the church is open for a tour, quiet reflection or personal prayer. There are many weekday activities, including groups of newcomers to Australia, who attend classes to learn English. Flinders Street Baptist Church office hours are Monday to Friday 0900 - 1700. Closed Saturday and Sunday.

Mount Remarkable National Park

Mount Remarkable National Park lies across the Southern Flinders Ranges. It has a diversity of habitats each with distinctive plants and animals and dramatic scenery providing naturalists and bushwalkers with an interesting and exciting locality. Alligator Gorge has long been noted for its abundance of wildflowers and spectacular deep gorges which divide the red-brown quartzite outcrop, yet until the mid 1960s this area was used for sheep grazing and timber. Mambray Creek with its canopy of river red gums winds a crooked course from the gorge to the Spencer Gulf. On the surrounding open plains Emus and Red Kangaroos roam, while overhead, kookaburras, Adelaide Rosellas and little corellas make riotous calls. Further into the gorge and on the higher slopes, Sugar Gums and Native Pines grow. Here live the stockier rock-climbing kangaroos like the commonly seen euro and the rarer Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby. Mount Remarkable, named by Eyre, stands as a precipitous backdrop to the small historic town of Melrose . The mount, with an altitude of 960 metres, and the range that lies around it are the prime reasons for the high rainfall in the pastoral district. Indigenous Australians who lived in this region called the area Wongyarra, ‘arra’ meaning running water. Walking trails lead the visitor along well sign-posted routes to panoramic views of the mountain ranges or secluded gorges. A trail leads from near Melrose to the summit of Mount Remarkable. Walking in the park trails vary in their length from one hour to several days. A brochure detailing the walks is available from the Department for Environment and Heritage Mambray Creek Office. Facilities include toilets and picnic sites at both Alligator Gorge and Mambray Creek. Bushwalkers are advised to carry adequate supplies of water. Two separate areas are available for camping. The main campground has 53 individual camp sites, as well as two group camping areas. All individual camp sites are numbered. Please keep tents, caravans, within the vehicles in designated site. This helps to protect the surrounding vegetation, including trees and shrubs which have been planted by volunteers, to enhance privacy. A small cabin to sleep four persons is located in the campground and can be booked through the park headquarters. Campground fees apply.

Murray River National Park - Katarapko

Katarapko lies in the Riverland approximately 180 kilometres from Adelaide. The park is opposite the town of Loxton and is four kilometres south of Berri. Access to the main area of the park is by a sealed road just past the township of Glossop. Other access is gained by crossing the floodplain from either Lower Winkie Road or under the bridge at Berri. Due to the terrain the park is in three distinct sections, which can only be accessed through their separate entrances. The park was formed in 1991 and includes 8,905 hectares with a rich range of habitats. 75 per cent of the area is floodplain and contains many wetlands both permanent and semi permanent. This is an important breeding area for many forms of life including water birds.
 

Murray River National Park - Lyrup Flats

Lyrup Flats together with Bulyong Island and Katarapko form the Murray River National Park. These three areas of similar habitats cover 2,000 hectares and form an archipelago park. The area is important in conserving a number of floodplain environments. It is located 230 kilometres north-east of Adelaide on the northern bank of the River Murray between Renmark and Berri. Many Aboriginal people prior to European settlement populated this area of the River Murray and strong ties to the area remain. Europeans first settled Calperum Station of Lyrup Flats in the 1850's. Originally known as Bookmark Station it became Calperum in 1897 when owners, the Robertson brothers dissolved a partnership, which had encompassed Chowilla Station. The Station Homestead is annexed from the park and remains a private residence. In 1964 Disher Creek was acquired from the station and used as a Drainage Basin, collecting water from the Chaffey and Renmark irrigation districts. A large underground pipe to the Noora Evaporation Basin then pumped the water. This program altered the original water regime of the creek and one of the most obvious outcomes of this was the death of many tall river Red Gums that you can see near the creek.


 

We recommend only fully licensed and insured/registered International Travel Agents.
If you are considering booking we recommend the following travel agents:
Australian Discount Travel & Tours,
Travel With A Cause Inc (a not for profit travel agency assisting several projects in many developing countries).

We recommend Australian Discount Travel & Tours for both Australian and international travel bookings