Small group holidays to Adelaide and surrounds

Explore and learn about on a small group tour of Adelaide city and its pastoral, cultural and historic settlement. Visit Fleurieu Peninsula, the Barossa valley, learn about William Morris and the arts and craft movement in the Art gallery and National trust houses.

From A$4,350AUD

Highlights

  1. 1. Visit the Mclaren Vale wine region and the Barossa Valley
  2. 2. Learn about the fascinating settlement history and influence of the Lutherans in South Australia
  3. 3. Explore and learn about the influence of William Morris and the Arts and crafts movement in Adelaide
  4. 4. Explore Fleurieu peninsula and some its coastal towns history and relationship with the Murray river
Small group holidays to Adelaide and surrounds itinerary

Departure Dates

Departure Date Price

Small group tour of Adelaide city and surrounds

The state capital of South Australia is Adelaide city. Contemporary Adelaide and the surrounds of the Fleurieu peninsula and Barossa Valley make for a refreshing destination to visit as the size and scale of the city against Melbourne and Sydney.

This, like all Odyssey Traveller small group tours is limited to 12 people.

Our small group Adelaide tours spends 8 days in Adelaide city and the surrounding area including the Adelaide hills, the Barossa Valley and the McLaren Vale Wine Region, the Fleurieu peninsula and the Murray river. Each day of our Adelaide tours, the group learns about and visits a particular part of Adelaide city and surrounding area. There are a lot of things to do in Adelaide and the surrounding area and the itinerary reflects this. The full day tour arranged including a Murray river cruise and wine tasting with cellar door visits and a wine tour at selected wineries. Our small group Adelaide tours for seniors seeking to enjoy their holidays to Adelaide city, has a maximum group size of 12 travellers including couples and solo travellers . The program aided by your tour guide, delves extensively not only into the history of the Adelaide CBD but also historic Port Adelaide as well. To tour South Australia and learn about the history of the state, then these small group guided holidays to Adelaide are a great program to start with.

Early history of Adelaide City

Before Europeans arrived, the Kaurna people lived in the Adelaide area. The Indigenous Australians of Southern Australia called the Adelaide area Tandanya, which means the Place of the Red Kangaroo. However, in the early 1830s the British drew up plans to settle this region of Southern Australia. It was planned that the new colony in South Australiawould be of "free people" not convicts. Surveyor-general William Light selected the site for the capital of the new colony in December 1836. Adelaide was a planned city and it was named after the wife of King George IV. Adelaide 's CBD was laid out as an orderly grid, bordered by North, South, West and East terraces, with King st as the main thoroughfare in the city .

The first governor of the new colony was Captain John Hindmarsh who landed on 28 December 1838. At first the settlers were British or Irish but in the mid-19th century it was predominately a German settlement. Meanwhile in 1840 Adelaide was incorporated (given a corporation). It was the first city in Australia to be incorporated. The first mayor of Adelaide was James Hurtle Fisher. Also, in 1840 The Royal Adelaide Hospital was founded. In 1840 Adelaide had a population of over 2,000. By 1850 Adelaide had a population of over 14,000. In 1900 Adelaide had a population of 162,000.

Many famous buildings were erected in Adelaide's cbd in the 19th century. The foundation stone of Holy Trinity Church was laid in 1838. Old Adelaide Gaol was built in 1841. (It was decommissioned in 1988). Government House was completed in 1855 and St Francis Xavier Cathedral was dedicated in 1858. Ayers House was built in 1846. From 1855 to 1897 it was the home of Henry Ayers. Meanwhile Adelaide Town Hall was built in 1866. Adelaide General Post Office was built in 1867-72. It opened on 6 May 1872. (However the Adelaide cbd Post Office did not get its clock until 1875). Then in the year 1878 St Peter's Cathedral was consecrated. Edmund Wright House was also built in 1878.

Creating the Modern Adelaide city

In 1900 the population of South Australia Adelaide was 162,000 and it was growing rapidly. As Adelaide expanded more buildings were added. Parliament House in Adelaide was built in two parts. The West Wing was built in 1889 and the East Wing was built in 1939.

In 1904 a statue of the explorer John McDouall Stuart was erected in Adelaide . In 1906 a statue of William Light was unveiled. Meanwhile amenities in Adelaide improved. The Botanic Gardens opened in 1857. Adelaide gained a gas supply in 1863 and an electricity supply in 1900. Meanwhile Adelaide Oval was established in 1871. Adelaide Universitywas founded in 1874. The Art Gallery of South Australia Adelaide was established in 1881.

Adelaide airport dates from 1921. The War Memorial in Adelaide was built in 1931. Flinders University opened in 1966.

Adelaide is also known for the South Australian Museum and the Migration Museum , which opened in 1986. The South Australia Maritime Museum also opened in 1986. Today Adelaide is a thriving city . Now the population of Adelaide is about 1.3 million and there are plenty of things to do in Adelaide .

What you experience on these small group Adelaide tours & Surrounds.

To tour South Australia and Adelaide this program has three elements; the City of Adelaide tour, Fleurieu peninsula tour and Barossa Valley tour. The first day of this Adelaide city tour explores the cities settlement history including Port Adelaide and Adelaide's beaches and then the small group has a day tour each exploring individual regions around Adelaide.

Adelaide city

So to familiarise ourselves with the city centre and some of historic buildings and superb Architecture of the Victorian era we start with a walking tour to take in the city highlights and Adelaide's main attractions for those travellers keen to learn about the history of the city. After lunch we travel to Port Adelaide and Glenelg. We familiarise ourselves this morning with a walking tour of the city with a tour guide explaining the rich history on offer in this city. This morning's tour takes us on a tram to South terrace and we walk back to take in a key Adelaide attraction, the Adelaide central market an important part of the culture of Adelaide, pausing for morning tea in a cafe. After morning tea we carry on up to North terrace into " North Adelaide " to the botanic garden, on the banks of the river Torrens, University of Adelaide, the art gallery, Adelaide museum and state library. After lunch we will leave the city centre by public transport taking the tram for a half day tour of Port Adelaide.

Historic Port Adelaide is known for its well preserved 19th-century pubs and hotels, reflecting South Australia' s maritime history in catering to the sailors of trading ships. Victorian History is very present in the Port. A key location for the export of Australia's Wool clip, the port played an influential role in shipping for some 130 years until containerisation in the 1970's. There are several museums in the area, we will take the opportunity to visit the maritime history museum before taking the tram back to Glenelg for a walk on the esplanade and then return back to Adelaide city via Adelaide's beaches.

McLaren Vale Fleurieu Peninsula, and Victor Harbour

Today our tour of Adelaide takes us to McLaren Vale wine region drive, Fleurieu Peninsula, and Victor Harbour. The tour leaves the city for the Fleurieu peninsula tour, we head south of the city. The tour visits the McLaren Vale wine region passing many of Australia's famous wineries. We have a guided tour of the region. Stops at Sellicks Beach and Rapid Bay are included. At Cape Jervis where the ferry departs for Kangaroo Island we pause to look across the water to the island before carrying onto the Victor Harbor township and lunch. Victor Harbor and Granite island are popular day trip attractions in South Australia. If the horse drawn tram is operating, we can enjoy a ride across to the island. The tour group then travels onto Port Elliot. We visit here because in the 1850's a big future was envisioned for Port Elliot when it was earmarked in 1854 as the major Encounter Bay outlet through which the rich agricultural bounty shipped down the Murray River would be exported from Australia, instead Port Adelaide become the centre. Today, a battered breakwater is all that remains of the failed attempt to construct a safe shipping harbour.

Strathalbyn, Goolwa & the Murray

Our portfolio of Adelaide, Fleurieu and Barossa valley tours has the group return again to the south east part of South Australia. This is a full day tour to several locations. The group initially visit and explore on a short walking tour, the historic township of Strathalbyn. Strathalbyn has over 30 buildings of historic interest. Of particular interest is the Terminus Hotel, which is the town's first building, located on Franklin Street. It was here in 1869 a dinner to honour Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh was held. From Strathalbyn we tour Goolwa, a place with an interesting back story.

Before 1837 the area Goolwa was considered for the site of the new colony's capital. A wharf was constructed in 1852 and government buildings soon followed, including a post office in 1853. However, the treacherous waters of the mouth of the Murray river made it difficult for shipping and made the town unsuitable as a major port. Goolwa nevertheless developed as Australia's first inland port (1853) built to connect the town to Port Elliot and later extended to Victor Harbor, allowing goods to move from river boats to sea boats, so that neither had to negotiate the Murray Mouth.

The spread of railways to inland Australia put an end to the river trade and Goolwa's significance as a port. With the decline of the river trade Goolwa became dependent on local farming and fishing, as well as becoming a popular destination for holidaymakers from Adelaide city and South Australia.

In 1935 a permanent barrage (called the Goolwa Barrage ) was constructed between Hindmarsh Island and Sir Richard Peninsula on the south eastern outskirts of Goolwa. The barrage separates the fresh water of the River Murray from the saltwater coming up from the River Murray mouth. The barrage was constructed to prevent the saltwater of the Southern ocean traversing further up the River Murray and polluting much needed fresh water.

After pausing for lunch in Goolwa this afternoon we take a short Murray river cruise to the mouth of the Murray River on the Coorong.

The Murray river is the third longest navigable river in the world and for Australia its longest river traversing 3 states before reaching South Australia and the end of its 2,508 Kilometre run to the Southern Ocean. We then return back to the city.

Adelaide Hills, Stirling, Hahndorf & the Barossa Valley

Today this tour of Adelaide heads up into the Adelaide hills for our Barossa Valley tour. This an area of South Australia famous for its fine wine. We stop at Mt Lofty in the Mount Lofty ranges. Mount Lofty was named by Matthew Flinders in 1802 during his circumnavigation of the Australia. It was first climbed by a European when the Military explorer Collet Barker climbed it in April 1831, almost six years before Adelaide was settled. Mt lofty on a clear day the tour group will have a great view back over Adelaide city, to the Flinders range and round to kangaroo island over Fleurieu peninsula and across to Yorke peninsula and Eyre peninsula. The tour continues first to on to Stirling. Settled in 1854, Stirling has some of the South Australia's most beautiful homes. Initially the site of orchards and market gardens, the late 19th century saw the town become popular with Adelaide city's wealthy residents who built summer houses up in the Adelaide hills to escape Adelaide's weather. we travel on a little further to Hahndorf, a small town in South Australia. Settled by 19th-century Lutheran migrants, it’s known for its original German-style architecture and artisanal food. Hahndorf Academy is home to the German Migration Museum, tracing local history. North of town, the Cedars houses the studio and art of German-born landscape painter Sir Hans Heysen. We have time for morning tea before pressing on.

Our small group tour continues onto Auchendarroch House before heading north to the Barossa valley.

Auchendarroch House Built in 1860 by Scottish immigrant, Lachlan McFarlane, began its life in Mt Barker as the Oakfield Hotel, and remained as such until 1878 when it was sold to another Scotsman, Robert Barr Smith, for the sum of 3000 pounds. Robert Barr Smith, a wealthy businessman and philanthropist, chose Mt Barker and the Oakfield Hotel to be the summer house for himself, his wife Joanna and their children. He employed a young architect, John H. Grainger to build a “thirty roomed mansion in the French Renaissance of The Modern School Style” around the old hotel.

As with their other homes, the house was extensively decorated in the William Morris style with all the wallpapers, fabrics, furnishing and carpets by Morris & Co. The original hand-blocked “Spring Thicket” wallpaper still adorns the Ballroom (formerly the Drawing Room) today. Shortly after completion Barr Smith named it “Auchendarroch”. Auchendarroch derives its origins from the Scottish-Gaelic term “holy place of the oaks”. A visit to Auchendarroch House begins the transition to last two days visiting and learning about the incredibly lavish homes decorated in Adelaide city in the Victorian era.

The Barossa Valley is a renowned Australian wine producing region northeast of Adelaide city, in South Australia. This afternoon we explore the Barossa Valley passing along our way through towns such as Tanunda, Angaston and Nuriootpa. Shiraz grapes are the Barossa Valley wine speciality. Australia’s leading wineries are found in the Barossa valley wine region producing acclaimed Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz from the vine. The Barossa region with the valley, the vineyard, rolling hills all combined make for stunning scenery on this day. Our Barossa valley tours do stop for a wine tasting at a local winery. As we tour the Barossa valley, evidence of German settlers and their small settlements in the region is highlighted by place names such as Menglers hill, the stone cottages and Lutheran churches throughout the Barossa valley region.

Arts and Craft movement and Adelaide in the Victorian era

The last two days of this tour of Adelaide are spent back in the city, where there are plenty of things to do in Adelaide! This portion of the Adelaide city tour examines the Victorian influence on the city and in particular the work of William Morris. William Morris was extremely influential on the arts and craft movement. Adelaide has the second largest collection of original William Morris & Co pieces in the Art Gallery of South Australia (the largest collection is held by the V&A in London). His biggest patron was a wealthy Adelaide family - the Barr-Smiths, who furnished 7 of their large houses with near continual shipments of rugs, stained glass windows, furniture, tapestries, wallpapers and furnishing fabrics sent from England. The Arts and Crafts period influenced many of the very large houses and their interiors designed in and around Adelaide city (Stirling in the Adelaide Hills has many of them) - Adelaide had many wealthy families at the time from Agricultural and mining booms in South Australia. As tends to happen amongst friends you will often find that one will influence the others, and many of the wealthy Adelaide families collected Morris & Co and designed houses in the then fashionable Arts and Crafts style. Our tour allows time to explore and Admire the Morris-designed stained-glass windows of St Augustine’s Anglican Church and All Souls Church as well as a guided tour of

Ayers House is Adelaide’s finest Victorian-era home, and one of the last remaining grand 19th century residences that once lined the North Terrace cultural boulevard. At first a small cottage, the site evolved in several stages from a nine-roomed brick house built by chemist William Paxton in the early 1850s. Upon returning to England, Paxton leased the property to Henry Ayers, a fellow businessman poised to become one of the colony’s most wealthy and influential politicians and financiers. From 1855 to 1897 the house was extended in stages to encompass more than 40 rooms over a two-acre property. Henry and his wife Anne created an opulent home with fine furnishings and fixtures, most imported from England, that showcased the wealth and status they had acquired since emigrating in 1840. For 40 years, the house was central to Ayers’ family life and an entertainment destination for Adelaide’s social and political elite.

The tour also spends time in Art gallery of South Australia with the original William Morris works.

You can choose from one of our 10 Adelaide tours including the Fleurieu peninsula and the Barossa valley offered each year.

Articles about Adelaide city and surrounds published by Odyssey Traveller:

For all the articles Odyssey Traveller has published for mature aged and senior travellers, click through on this link.

External articles to assist you on your visit to Adelaide and South Australia:

Itinerary

8 days

Day 1: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

We meet as a group in the hotel for a welcome dinner.

Day 2: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

So to familiarise ourselves with the city and some of historic buildings we start with a walking tour.

We familiarise ourselves this morning with a walking tour of the city. This morning’s tour takes us on a tram to South terrace and we walk back to take in a key Adelaide attraction, the Adelaide central market, after we carry on up to North terrace to the botanic garden, University of Adelaide, the art gallery, Adelaide museum and state library. After lunch we will leave the city by tram to tour Port Adelaide .

Historic Port Adelaide is known for its well preserved 19th-century pubs and hotels, reflecting South Australia‘ s maritime history in catering to the sailors of trading ships. Victorian History is very present in the Port. A key location for the export of Australia‘s Wool clip, the port played an influential role in shipping for some 130 years until containerisation in the 1970’s. There are several museums in the area, we will take the opportunity to visit the maritime history museum before taking the tram to Glenelg for a walk on the esplanade.

The group returns back to Adelaide city via Adelaide’s beaches.

Day 3: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

Today our full day tour takes us to McLaren Vale wine region drive, Fleurieu Peninsula, and Victor Harbour.

The tour visits the McLaren Vale wine region passing many of Australia’s famous wineries along the way. We have a guided tour of the region. Stops at Sellicks Beach and Rapid Bay are included. At Cape Jervis where the ferry departs for Kangaroo Island we pause to look across the water to the island before carrying onto the Victor Harbor township and lunch.

Exploring Victor Harbor and Granite island are popular day trip attractions in South Australia. If the horse drawn tram is operating, we can enjoy a ride across to the island. The tour group then travels onto Port Elliot. We visit here because in the 1850’s a big future was envisioned for Port Elliot when it was earmarked in 1854 as the major Encounter Bay outlet through which the rich agricultural bounty shipped down the Murray River would be exported from Australia, instead Port Adelaide become the centre. Today, a battered breakwater is all that remains of the failed attempt to construct a safe shipping harbour.

Day 4: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

This is a full day tour to several locations outside the Adelaide city.

The group initially visit and explore on a short walking tour, the historic township of Strathalbyn.

Strathalbyn has over 30 buildings of historic interest. Of particular interest is the Terminus Hotel, which is the town’s first building, located on Franklin Street. It was here in 1869 a dinner to honour Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh was held. From Strathalbyn the coach takes us onto the coastal town of Goolwa, a place with an interesting back story.

Before 1837 the area Goolwa was considered for the site of the new colony’s capital. A wharf was constructed in 1852 and government buildings soon followed, including a post office in 1853. However, the treacherous waters of the mouth of the Murray river made it difficult for shipping and made the town unsuitable as a major port. Goolwa nevertheless developed as Australia’s first inland port (1853) built to connect the town to Port Elliot and later extended to Victor Harbor, allowing goods to move from river boats to sea boats, so that neither had to negotiate the Murray Mouth.

The spread of railways to inland Australia put an end to the river trade and Goolwa’s significance as a port. With the decline of the river trade Goolwa became dependent on local farming and fishing, as well as becoming a popular destination for South Australian holidaymakers from Adelaide city and the regional areas of Port Lincoln and Mount Gambier for example.

In 1935 a permanent barrage (called the Goolwa Barrage ) was constructed between Hindmarsh Island and Sir Richard Peninsula on the south eastern outskirts of Goolwa. The barrage separates the fresh water of the River Murray from the saltwater coming up from the River Murray mouth. The barrage was constructed to prevent the saltwater of the Southern ocean traversing further up the River Murray and polluting much needed fresh water.

After pausing for lunch in Goolwa this afternoon we take a short Murray river cruise to the mouth of the Murray River on the Coorong.

The Murray river is the third longest navigable river in the world and for Australia its longest river traversing 3 states before reaching South Australia and the end of its 2,508 Kilometre run to the Southern Ocean. We then return back to the city.

Day 5: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

Today this tour of Adelaide heads up into the Adelaide hills for our Barossa Valley tour.

We stop at Mt Lofty in the Mount Lofty ranges. Mount Lofty was named by Matthew Flinders in 1802 during his circumnavigation of the Australia. It was first climbed by a European when the Military explorer Collet Barker climbed it in April 1831, almost six years before Adelaide was settled. Mt lofty on a clear day the tour group will have a great view back over Adelaide city, to the Flinders range and round to kangaroo island over Fleurieu peninsula and across to Yorke peninsula and Eyre peninsula.

The tour continues on to Stirling. Settled in 1854, Stirling has some of the South Australia‘s most beautiful homes. Initially the site of orchards and market gardens, the late 19th century saw the town become popular with Adelaide city‘s wealthy residents who built summer houses up in the Adelaide hills to escape Adelaide’s weather.

After Stirling, we travel on a little further to Hahndorf, a small town in South Australia. Settled by 19th-century Lutheran migrants, it’s known for its original German-style architecture and artisanal food. Hahndorf Academy is home to the German Migration Museum, tracing local history. North of town, the Cedars houses the studio and art of German-born landscape painter Sir Hans Heysen. We have time for morning tea before pressing on.

Our small group tour continues onto Auchendarroch House before heading north to the Barossa valley.

Auchendarroch House Built in 1860 by Scottish immigrant, Lachlan McFarlane, began its life in Mt Barker as the Oakfield Hotel, and remained as such until 1878 when it was sold to another Scotsman, Robert Barr Smith, for the sum of 3000 pounds. Robert Barr Smith, a wealthy businessman and philanthropist, chose Mt Barker and the Oakfield Hotel to be the summer house for himself, his wife Joanna and their children. He employed a young architect, John H. Grainger to build a “thirty roomed mansion in the French Renaissance of The Modern School Style” around the old hotel.

As with their other homes, the house was extensively decorated in the William Morris style with all the wallpapers, fabrics, furnishing and carpets by Morris & Co. The original hand-blocked “Spring Thicket” wallpaper still adorns the Ballroom (formerly the Drawing Room) today. Shortly after completion Barr Smith named it “Auchendarroch”. Auchendarroch derives its origins from the Scottish-Gaelic term “holy place of the oaks”. A visit to Auchendarroch House begins the transition to last two days visiting and learning about the incredibly lavish homes decorated in Adelaide city in the Victorian era.

After lunch we explore the Barossa Valley a renowned Australian wine producing region northeast of Adelaide city. This afternoon we explore the Barossa Valley passing along our way through towns such as Tanunda, Angaston and Nuriootpa. Shiraz grapes are the Barossa Valley wine speciality. Our Barossa valley tours do stop for a wine tasting at a local winery. As we tour the Barossa valley, evidence of German settlers and their small settlements in the region is highlighted by place names such as Menglers hill, the stone cottages and Lutheran churches throughout the region.

Day 6: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

The last two days of this tour of Adelaide are spent back in the city, where there are plenty of things to do in Adelaide!

This portion of the Adelaide city tour examines the Victorian influence on the city and in particular the work of William Morris. William Morris was extremely influential on the arts and craft movement. Adelaide has the second largest collection of original William Morris & Co pieces in the Art Gallery of South Australia (the largest collection is held by the V&A in London). His biggest patron was a wealthy Adelaide family – the Barr-Smiths, who furnished 7 of their large houses with near continual shipments of rugs, stained glass windows, furniture, tapestries, wallpapers and furnishing fabrics sent from England. The Arts and Crafts period influenced many of the very large houses and their interiors designed in and around Adelaide city (Stirling in the Adelaide Hills has many of them) – Adelaide had many wealthy families at the time from Agricultural and mining booms in South Australia.

Our tour allows time to explore and Admire the Morris-designed stained-glass windows of St Augustine’s Anglican Church and All Souls Church as well as a guided tour of Ayers House is Adelaide’s finest Victorian-era home, and one of the last remaining grand 19th century residences that once lined the North Terrace cultural boulevard. At first a small cottage, the site evolved in several stages from a nine-roomed brick house built by chemist William Paxton in the early 1850s. Upon returning to England, Paxton leased the property to Henry Ayers, a fellow businessman poised to become one of the colony’s most wealthy and influential politicians and financiers. From 1855 to 1897 the house was extended in stages to encompass more than 40 rooms over a two-acre property. Henry and his wife Anne created an opulent home with fine furnishings and fixtures, most imported from England, that showcased the wealth and status they had acquired since emigrating in 1840. For 40 years, the house was central to Ayers’ family life and an entertainment destination for Adelaide’s social and political elite.

The tour also spends time in Art gallery of South Australia with the original William Morris works.

Day 7: Adelaide

Accommodation: Pullman Adelaide or similar

This morning the group visits Carrick Hill is Australia’s most intact twentieth-century heritage house museum and garden. Aspects of its privately-collected French, British and Australian fine and decorative arts collection are of an international standard, including masterpieces of British modernism and fine examples of seventeenth-century furniture and house fittings. The garden, grounds, house and collections are all integral to the definition of Carrick Hill.

A very important aspect of the Haywards’, and thus Carrick Hill’s, influence on the cultural life of South Australia was through their patronage of the arts, in particular the visual arts. Both Ursula and Edward were keen collectors, and many works of art by contemporary European and Australian artists were on display in their home. We also have the opportunity to tour the gardens.

This afternoon the tour spends time in Art gallery of South Australia with the original William Morris works and a guide, as well as a time to view the exhibits.

This evening there is a farewell dinner.

Day 8: Adelaide

Tour concludes after Breakfast today.

Includes / Excludes

What’s included in the tour.

  • 7 nights accomodation
  • 7 breakfasts, 1 lunch, 3 dinners.
  • Transport by modern and comfortable coach.
  • Entrances and sightseeing as specified.
  • Services of Tour Leader for the duration of tour
  • Detailed Preparatory Information

What’s not included in our Tour

  • Return Domestic airfares
  • Comprehensive travel insurance.
  • Items of a personal nature, such as telephone calls and laundry
Level 1 - Introductory to Moderate

Participants must be able to carry their own luggage, climb and descend stairs, moderate walking on uneven surfaces between 3 - 5 kilometers per day. Suitable for most fitness levels

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The safety of our travellers, tour leader, local guide and support staff has always been our top priority and with the new guidelines for public health and safety for keeping safe for destinations around the world, we’ve developed our plan to give you peace of mind when travelling with us.

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Reading List Download PDF

Adelaide Remember When

Bob Byrne

Remember childhood visits to the Adelaide Zoo with a ride in the elephant cart? School lunches and a glass bottle of sun-warmed milk? spending Saturday night at Downtown or Tilt to play arcade games or go rollerskating? rides at Magic Mountain or Dazzleland, dances at local clubs with local bands, early TV shows and sleeping on the lawn on a hot Adelaide summer night? Adelaide Remember When is the city we remember, in pictures and words.

Amazon

Adelaide A Brief History

Kathryn Gargett, Susan Marsden

On 7 February 1837 Colonel Light completed a sketch plan for the 'town of Adelaide'. This colourful book traces how this vision grew into the attractive and comfortable city we know today.

Photographs, illustrations, a chronology and a map of 'places to find' direct readers to Adelaide's distinctive features - its Aboriginal environment, its plan, its British foundations, its buildings and the growing enjoyment of its cultural diversity.

Booktopia

South Australia's Barossa Valley

Brian Lawrenson

The state of South Australia is Australia’s most productive wine area. It is also rich in history and artistically, culturally and scenically wonderful. This is the story of a couples exploration of the capital city, Adelaide, then follow them as they spend sevens days exploring three of the most developed wine regions: the Barossa Valley, Clare Valley and the McLaren Vale. Their journey starts on The Ghan train from the centre of Australia and ends as they travel on the Indian Pacific intercontinental railway across Australia.

Amazon

Conversations with winemakers: Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale, South Australia

Christopher Barnes

The story of the Barossa Valley and the McLaren Vale in South Australia told through the voices of winemakers.

Amazon

Cry Me A River: The Tragedy of the Murray-Darling Basin

Margaret Simons

The Murray-Darling Basin is the food bowl of Australia, and it's in trouble. What does this mean for the future - for water and crops, and for the people and towns that depend on it?

In Cry Me a River, acclaimed journalist Margaret Simons takes a trip through the Basin, all the way from Queensland to South Australia. She shows that its plight is environmental but also economic, and enmeshed in ideology and identity.

Her essay is both a portrait of the Murray-Darling Basin and an explanation of its woes. It looks at rural Australia and the failure of politics over decades to meet the needs of communities forced to bear the heaviest burden of change. Whether it is fish kills or state rivalries, drought or climate change, in the Basin our ability to plan for the future is being put to the test.

"The story of the Murray-Darling Basin ... is a story of our nation, the things that join and divide us. It asks whether our current systems - our society and its communities - can possibly meet the needs of the nation and the certainty of change. Is the Plan an honest compact, and is it fair? Can it work? Are our politics up to the task?"

Amazon

The Ship That Never Was: The Greatest Escape Story Of Australian Colonial History

Adam Courtenay

The greatest escape story of Australian colonial history by the son of Australia’s best-loved storyteller

In 1823, cockney sailor and chancer James Porter was convicted of stealing a stack of beaver furs and transported halfway around the world to Van Diemen's Land. After several escape attempts from the notorious penal colony, Porter, who told authorities he was a 'beer-machine maker', was sent to Macquarie Harbour, known in Van Diemen's Land as hell on earth.

Many had tried to escape Macquarie Harbour; few had succeeded. But when Governor George Arthur announced that the place would be closed and its prisoners moved to the new penal station of Port Arthur, Porter, along with a motley crew of other prisoners, pulled off an audacious escape. Wresting control of the ship they'd been building to transport them to their fresh hell, the escapees instead sailed all the way to Chile. What happened next is stranger than fiction, a fitting outcome for this true-life picaresque tale.

The Ship That Never Was is the entertaining and rollicking story of what is surely the greatest escape in Australian colonial history. James Porter, whose memoirs were the inspiration for Marcus Clarke's For the Term of his Natural Life, is an original Australian larrikin whose ingenuity, gift of the gab and refusal to buckle under authority make him an irresistible anti-hero who deserves a place in our history.

Amazon

The Kangaroo Islanders: A story of South Australia before colonisation 1823

W. A. Cawthorne

Written in the mid-1850s before any official or more orthodox history of the South Australian colony had appeared, The Kangaroo Islanders is one of the few colonial novels that represents in fleeting glimpses some of the improvisational and interactive encounters between the colonisers and the colonised on the edges of the island continent.

A remarkable and colourful book, this novel represents life on Kangaroo Island in the period between 1802–1836. Rick Hosking has annotated the book extensively with absorbing historical information and fascinating details of personalities and events, making this new edition of The Kangaroo Islanders a delight for both fiction fans and history buffs. And art lovers too, for the book includes pages of many of W.A. Cawthorne’s best watercolours, reproduced in colour.

FAQs

Who can take the tour?

Odyssey Traveller’s holidays to Adelaide small group tours are designed for mature and senior travellers. Typically, our clients begin travelling with us in their mid-50s, but we’ve had clients in their 80s travel with us!

If you’re concerned about your health or mobility, you may want to look at our tour activity levels before you book with us. Our tour of Adelaide is graded Level 1 – Introductory to Moderate meaning that the tour is suitable for most fitness levels. Bear in mind that:

Participants must be able to carry their own luggage, climb and descend stairs, moderate walking on uneven surfaces for 3 – 5 kilometres per day.

Is Adelaide safe?

Absolutely! In 2013, South Australia‘s Adelaide was ranked Australia‘s safest city and consistently ranks as one of the World’s most liveable cities.

Does it snow in Adelaide?

Very rarely. It never snows in the city centre, but areas in the Adelaide Hills, particularly Mt Lofty, might see snow every 5-10 years. Click here for a charming collection of photos of the Adelaide Hills under 15cms of snow in the 1950s.

In general, South Australia Adelaide has a mild Mediterranean climate, with hot, dry long summers and mild winters, though wind chill makes the weather sometimes feel much colder than it really is! June is the wettest month, though Adelaide is the driest Australian city.

Reflecting Adelaide’s and the regional areas generally mild weather, Odyssey Traveller is offering tours from August through to November this year, and from February onward in 2021.

How big is Adelaide Australia?

In 2018, Adelaide had a population of 1,345,777, making it the 5th biggest city in Australia.

What is Adelaide known for?

Adelaide is the capital of South Australia and known for its festivals, incredible food and premium wine regions just a short drive from the centre of town.

Why is Adelaide so popular?

Besides its many festivals and sporting events, its nearby wine regions and multicultural environment, it is also South Australia’s government and commercial centre, Adelaide is the site of many governmental and financial institutions.

Articles about Adelaide and surrounds

Vineyard - McLaren Vale

Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale Wine Regions, South Australia

This small group tour for mature and senior travellers for couples and solo travellers in Adelaide takes time to explore the two major wine-growing regions of South Australia, the Barossa Valley and the McLaren Vale.

5 May 20 · 6 mins read
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Exploring the museums of Port Adelaide, South Australia

Exploring the museums of Port Adelaide, South Australia

8 days exploring Adelaide city and surrounds on small group tour for mature and senior travellers, couples and solo travellers visiting include Port Adelaide, The Barossa valley and Mclaren Vale and Fleurieu Peninsula.

6 May 20 · 6 mins read
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Fleurieu Peninsula

History of the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia

Fleurieu Peninsula is part of a small group tour of Adelaide for mature and senior travellers seeking to travel as a couple or as a solo traveller. The Peninsula is historically important, click through to learn... It is also where you will find Mclaren Vale.

5 May 20 · 5 mins read
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Sea Lion

Kangaroo Island, South Australia

Kangaroo Island is reached from Adelaide for a short break tours or view our small group tours of South Australia and/or Adelaide for senior and mature travellers.

7 May 20 · 4 mins read
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Old Parliament House, Adelaide, South Australia

Short history of Adelaide, Australia

The capital of South Australia, Adelaide has a fascinating and distinctive history as the only Australian state without a convict past. On both of these small group tours; Adelaide or the Flinders ranges we explore and learn about this city.

1 May 20 · 5 mins read
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Morris and Co studio

William Morris at the Art Gallery of South Australia

Adelaide has the Morris & Co. collection at the Art Gallery of South Australia, the world's second biggest collection of Morris decorative arts after the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Learn more on this small group tour for mature travellers.

6 May 20 · 5 mins read
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