We rounded off our Australian road trip with a couple of days in Adelaide, capital of South Australia. Here is my itinerary for our two days in Adelaide. If you have a third day, take a trip to the Barossa Valley for some wine tasting.
How to get to Adelaide
We drove from Melbourne to Adelaide, which by the fastest route is approximately 450 miles. If, however, you take the infinitely more scenic route along the Great Ocean Road, this brings the total to more like 650 miles. A further, well worth it, detour is to approach Adelaide via the Barossa Valley for some vineyard visiting and wine tasting. This adds around a further 100 miles to the journey.
We departed Adelaide by plane. Adelaide Airport is 3 miles west of downtown Adelaide, easily reachable by public transport – buses J1/J2.
Getting around Adelaide
We did most of our sightseeing on foot, with occasional use of public transport, mainly to get into town from our motel in the suburbs. Adelaide, with its proliferation of parks and gardens is a pleasant city to explore on foot.
Where to stay in Adelaide
We stayed at the Princes Lodge Motel in North Adelaide. This former Edwardian mansion has been converted into a 23 room hotel. The decor is somewhere in between grand Edwardian and shabby chic. But it is in a lovely location overlooking the park with plenty of bars and restaurants nearby. The hotel had everything we needed, including free parking, wifi and a laundry room. From here, it is 2 miles to downtown Adelaide. The walk into town is a pleasant one, through a series of parks. Alternatively, bus No 98a stops in Lefevre Terrace, just next to the motel.
Adelaide in 2 Days Itinerary
| Day 1 | Adelaide Botanic Garden National Wine Centre Art Gallery of South Australia South Australian Museum Accommodation – Princes Lodge Motel |
| Day 2 | St Peter’s Cathedral Adelaide Oval State Library of South Australia Migration Museum Lunch at Rundle Mall Victoria Square |
Adelaide Day 1
In the morning, we drive the hour into Adelaide from Nuriootpa. If you’re not on a road trip, I thoroughly recommend adding a day trip to the vineyards of the Barossa Valley to your Adelaide itinerary.
Adelaide Botanic Garden
Once in the city, we start with the Adelaide Botanic Garden. The 50 hectares of beautiful gardens runs round the northeast corner of the city. It is more informally planted than the other antipodean gardens we have seen. As well as the external gardens, there is the 19th Century Palm House and the 20th Century Bicentennial Conservatory.
In the impressive Cactus Garden, I encounter a group of school children competing to see who can get the most cactus spikes in their hands. I wonder if that features in the school’s risk assessment?
Having picked up some supplies on the way into town, we have a picnic in the garden. If you don’t fancy a picnic, there are several dining options available.
The gardens are open daily, with opening times varying by season. Entry is free.
National Wine Centre
Next door is the National Wine Centre. This combines a wine museum with a vending machine style tasting room. It’s a tad expensive, but obviously popular. I haven’t seen so many ATMs in one room since Las Vegas.
The Centre is open daily from 8.30 am (9 am at weekends) until 5 pm (8 pm on Friday). Entry to the building is free.
Art Gallery of South Australia
Next, we head along North Terrace to the Art Gallery of South Australia. Basically, 3 floors of seriously weird stuff. Even the old man, who usually moans about contemporary art, is mesmerised by its weirdness. Weirdest of all: ‘We are all Flesh’ – a dead horse strung up by its hoof.
The gallery is open daily from 10 am until 5 pm. General entry is free. Charges may apply for some exhibitions.
South Australian Museum
We round off our day with the South Australian Museum; somewhat disappointing due to the proliferation of taxidermy. Tucked in a corner, however, its redeeming feature: ‘Milerum and and Me: The Art of Jacob Stengl’ some great paintings by an Aboriginal artist taken from his family aged 3 and raised in a children’s home. That’s enough culture for the old man for one day, so we go and check into our motel.
The Museum is open daily from 10 am until 5 pm. Entry is free. Note: The Stengl exhibition formed part of the museum’s calendar of changing exhibitions. For details about current exhibitions, check here.
Accommodation – Princes Lodge Motel
Our accommodation in Adelaide is a the Princes Lodge Motel. The decor is a little dated, but it is clean and comfortable and we have a view over the park. Ideal to sit and enjoy yesterday’s purchase from Jacob’s Creek, a very nice sparkling Chardonnay.
Adelaide Day 2
It is our last day in Australia. After some time spent doing chores (making use of the motel’s laundry facilities), we set off on for a busy day of sightseeing. Adelaide is heaving. Apparently this has something to do with the crows versus the magpies. I have no idea what this means, but I’m guessing it has nothing to do with ornithology?
St Peter’s Cathedral
We work our way towards the city centre, starting in the places where Australians worship; St Peter’s Cathedral and the Adelaide Oval. The Anglican St Peter’s Cathedral was built in 1896, although it took almost a decade to complete.
Inside, you can admire the ornate stained glass which depicts stories of South Australia and the Bible.
The cathedral can usually be visited Mondays to Fridays between 10.30 am and 3.30 pm (1 pm on Mondays). Entry is free, although donations are welcome.
Adelaide Oval
Adelaide Oval sports ground sits on the edge of the city surrounded by parkland. The stadium dates back to 1871. It hosts various sporting events, predominantly cricket and Australian Rules Football.
It is possible to visit the stadium. Tours usually run twice daily (11 am and 2 pm) and cost $28.
State Library of South Australia
We walk on through the park and across the River Torrens to the State Library of South Australia. In addition to books, the library has some interesting exhibits on South Australia, family history and war & democracy.
The library is open daily, timings can be found here. Entry is free.
Migration Museum
Last stop of the morning is the Migration Museum, where you can ‘explore the rapid changes in Australia through 20th and 21st-century migration, as well as gain an understanding and appreciation of how migration continues to change and shape our communities today‘.
You can follow a timeline through this former Destitute Asylum, learning about the various groups of people who have migrated to Australia and how this has impacted the country they have chosen to call home.
The museum is open daily from 10 am until 5 pm. Entry is free but donations are welcome.
Lunch at Rundle Mall
We stop for lunch at the food court in Rundle Mall. This pedestrian shopping street has plenty of shops and restaurants as well as entertainment venues, a fountain and various sculptures. My favourites are the life size bronze pigs, including this one rooting around a rubbish bin.
Victoria Square
We round things off in Victoria Square, which is the central square of five public squares in the city centre.
When we visited, it was hosting Tasting Australia, an annual food festival. It sounded like a good idea, but the wind picked up and there were several outlets cooking food on an open fire. Thus, the square was so full of smoke that it was difficult to breathe.
We give up and catch the bus home. Only it’s not following the published route and heads unexpectedly in the wrong direction. We have to get off and try again. Second time lucky, we make it home just as the heavens open. The heatwave breaks in a huge storm hours before we’re due to leave Australia.
I hope you found the above information useful. For guides to more destinations in the 50+ countries we have visited, check out my full list of Independent Travel Itineraries here.
- Trip taken: April 2018
- Updated: January 2025
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