Adelaide
Australia’s fifth largest city is blessed with Mediterranean climate and a really nice location. A lot of parks offer the possibility of relaxing walks, while the zoo and botanical garden are the perfect places to spend quality time. In the evening, sample some of the local wines and food.
Location
Adelaide, Australia’s fifth largest city is a costal town, located on eastern side of Gulf St. Vincent. It’s the capital city of South Australia.
How to Get to Adelaide
By plane, you can get from Sydney to Adelaide in about 2 hours (the shortest route).
Quick search flights to Adelaide (ADL) from Sydney (SYD), Melbourne (MEL), Brisbane (BNE), Perth (PER), Cairns (CNS) and Darwin (DRW):
By car, the drive from Sydney to Adelaide is about 1,000 miles. Make sure to stick to the highway.
By train, to get from Sydney to Adelaide take the Indian Pacific train. The journey takes exactly 24 hours. Adelaide is also connected to Melbourne, the journey being much shorter (you leave mid-morning from Adelaide and get to Melbourne in the evening of the same day). If you want to get to Perth, take the same Indian Pacific train and expect to spend two nights on board.
Buses also link Adelaide to Sydney and the journey takes about 18 hours.
Weather
Adelaide is blessed with Mediterranean climate. Most of the rain falls during the winter, with June being the wetter month. However, Adelaide is the driest city of all the Australian capital cities. Frosts are rare and snowfall is not common at all.
The average temperature during summer is 9 C / 48 F to 32 C / 90 F, while during winter the average is 7 C/ 44 F to 16 C / 61 F.
What to Do
Nestled along the Torrens River and positioned between Gulf St Vincent and the Adelaide Hills, Adelaide is a picturesque city with beautiful parklands and great architecture. It’s very easy to navigate your way in the city and probably the best way to explore it is to take a historical walk and discover the city’s origins.
Adelaide Botanic Garden comprises both the Botanic Park and Adelaide Zoo in an area stretching over 125 acres. Among the tourists’ favorites we can list the Palm house, the Rose Garden and Bicentennial conservatory. The Zoo is home to 3,400 animals and is the second oldest Australian zoo. Children can feed the animals with animal food provided within the zoo. The zoo is opened daily from 9 AM to 5 PM and tickets cost AUD 12 for children and AUD 20 for adults.
Home to some of the best wines in Australia, in Adelaide you will find the National Wine Centre of Australia where you can explore the wine yards and taste the wine. Private tours are also organized to visit some of the other vineyards in the valley (make sure to ask around at a tourist information center).
Recognized as one of the best cities to explore the Aussie cuisine, Adelaide is home to a lot of fine restaurants, pubs and cafes. Make sure to try the local wine as well.
Adelaide is home to a bunch of festivals all year round, such as: Adelaide Festival of Arts, Fringe Festival – in 2008 it will be held between Feb 22 and March 16 -, Adelaide Film Festival, Adelaide Writers’ Week, Adelaide Festival of Ideas and the Feast Festival.
Kangaroo Island is located off the Fleurieu Peninsula and is the perfect spot to see the wildlife and the wilderness. You can plan to take a day trip and enjoy a day out of the city.