5 Things to do in Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia. It is known more as a large country town rather than a metropolitan city. It’s also known as the 20-minute city because of the way it is designed – from the centre, you can get anywhere else in the city within 20 minutes.

South Australia (and Adelaide) was the settled in the 1860s and was the first colony settled by free people (as opposed to the penal colonies on the east coast). Adelaide is also known as the city of churches due to the many religious nominations and churches that have been present since the first settlers arrived in the 1860s.

Adelaide is the driest city, and South Australia is the driest state in Australia – this is due to the lack of rain. Currently, Adelaide’s reservoirs are only at about 40% capacity, and they have had almost no rain (only around 7mm) so far this year.

Adelaide provides 80% of Australia’s wine. The most famous wine is the Barossa Valley Red Wine. Almonds and olives are also grown in the region. It was nice to drive through and see the vineyards on our way to Kangaroo Island – if you haven’t read that blog yet, click here.

In this blog, I will give you 5 things to do in Adelaide…

#1 Adelaide Zoo

No trip (especially for me) is complete without a trip to the zoo! Adelaide Zoo is on a good bus route and located on the outskirts of the Botanical Gardens. Entry to the zoo costs $46 for adults and $24 for children (aged 4-14), under 3’s go in for free.

The zoo itself is very clean and spacious. I loved the selection of animals and their enclosures were interesting and well-thought out to encourage natural behaviours. Some of my highlights would be the koalas, giraffes, and the giant pandas (a new addition to the zoo). The facilities at the zoo (selection of food, shops and bathrooms) were very good, I had lunch there and thought it was all reasonably priced.

I also really appreciated the sign that said “brown snake spotted in this area” – I know you’re probably thinking “obviously, you’re at the zoo” but, this is Australia and this was very much a wild brown snake. Brown Snakes are one of the deadliest and most venomous snakes in the world – one bite produces enough venom to kill 100+ humans… I appreciated the sign and did not see the snake.

#2 Botanical Gardens

After the zoo, I walked through the Botanical Gardens. Outside the zoo, there is the “Bat Hangout” where hundreds of bats and flying foxes hang from the trees above. It was really cool to see and some of them were flying around.

After checking out the bat hangout, I walked towards the main garden area which was about 10-15 minute walk from the zoo. There was a special art exhibition in the gardens, made up of glass statues and figures. Some of it was in the gardens for everyone to see but there was a paid exhibit in the Bicentennial Conservatory that I didn’t pay for. The gardens were very beautiful. It was a very hot day so it was nice to shelter and cool down under the trees every now and then.

#3 Art Museum of South Australia

This is an interesting museum. It was mostly modern art or Australian culture art. As with most modern art, some of it was a bit weird and whacky or completely strange but other pieces were beautiful. If you go into any modern art museum around the world, go in with an open mind because it is interesting. I loved seeing some of the Aboriginal art that was there. It is free entry and worth a visit if you like art.

#4 State Library of South Australia

I made a very quick stop to the State Library to see the Mortlock Wing. It was a very beautiful, old library filled with books and maps and all sorts. I really liked that someone had taken the time to handwrite the titles on the spines of the oldest and most read books because they had all worn away. I took a single photo in there as it was a bit awkward with lots of people in there studying. The more modern wing of the library had a small exhibition and there were other studying areas as well.

#5 South Australian Museum

This was my preferred museum. This was essentially a natural history and culture museum and was far more interesting to me than the art museum. It had a section for world mammals and a large section of Australian animals which was really interesting. It was quite an interactive museum, for example when I was going through the Australian animals, the screens had pictures of everything in the exhibit so you could select the photo of the animal and learn about what it was and where it can be found etc. It was really cool! There was also a lot more information on the Aboriginal and First Nations cultures at this museum which was really interesting too. I feel like I learnt a lot!

Other things to see

As mentioned at the beginning of the blog, you can do a day trip or multi-day trip to Kangaroo Island from Adelaide. If you haven’t read that blog, you can click here and read it now.

Other things you can do in Adelaide is visit the country’s most famous wine region, Barossa Valley, and sample some of the best wine in the world. There are some beautiful beaches within a short bus or tram ride from the city centre. There are a number of national and conservation parks around the city – something I wanted to do but didn’t have time to was kayaking in the dolphin sanctuary. And finally, for all the sports and music fans out there, you can visit The Adelaide Oval where the grounds host some of the biggest sports events and concerts.

Adelaide is a good base to either head west along the famous Nullabor to Western Australia, head north through Coober Pedy and Uluru to the Northern Territory or south to Melbourne in Victoria along the Great Ocean Road.

Please note: there is a free city bus. There are a couple of different routes the bus takes around the city centre – it’s definitely a good way to see the city.

I visited Adelaide in February 2025 and I really enjoyed my time there. It was nice to see a new city for me and explore a bit. I wish I had had a bit more time to see some of the wider area and do a few more activities. I’m sure that one day, I’ll head back to Adelaide and see more!