Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific - Adelaide and Surrounds

Does anyone have any recommendations about where to stay in Adelaide? How is the Hilton?

Has anyone stayed at The Louise in the Barossa? Is it worth the steep tariff?

Hilton is in the center of town, so very convenient to shopping and restaurants. Hyatt is in the north part of town and there isn't much to do around that immediate area. Cab ride is AUD$12 to center of town (or you can take free tram just outside the hotel). Costs about the same to get to some great restaurants like Chianti Classico and Buenos Aires. If you are going to Barossa, it's about an hour's drive from Adelaide. If you are serious about visiting the wineries, I would recommend staying in Barossa rather than Adelaide. Staying in Adelaide was great the last night we were there. 10 minute ride to the airport ($20 on a Sunday - Sundays are always higher for restaurants and cabs because it's considered a holiday).

I think we could be more helpful if you could add a few details of how long you're going to be in Adelaide, budget & what you plan to do/see.

Agree with JMC that the Hilton is in a more convenient location for walking to restaurants (Gouger St.) and it's adjacent to the central market which has an amazing array of locally grown produce & other food stuffs. The hotel is quite nice, but I wouldn't consider it a 'luxury property.' If you have a rental car parking at the Hilton is very expensive and some FTers recommend parking on the street & risking a ticket which is cheaper than valet.

The riverfront Hyatt is probably the nicest hotel and is adjacent to the central train station and casino. Across the street are the Sebel Playford, Mercure, and Stamford which are a couple of notches below the Hyatt.

Note that the Barossa is about 50 miles NE of Adelaide.

+1 on the Hilton - the Stamford is a dump, avoid it at all costs. Hilton wins on Location, Great restaurant (The Grange), and reliable service - as you would expect.

The BiziBBs (2 of us) were in the Barossa three weekends back.
I'll update my Trip Report, but we were happy with our stay at the Hilton.
For a Barossa trip, next time I'd find a B&B up there and just collect a hire car and drive. Make sure you get a tourist map and a street directory at the rental agency, to ensure you're not getting lost on your way. You won't find signposts to the winery areas until you are 15-20mins north of Adelaide and going the wrong way's pretty boring (believe me!).

We drove to the Barossa area and arrived early Saturday afternoon, visited as many wineries as we could (4-5) and returned for a very full Sunday of tastings. The drive is VERY easy but is 1'45'' if you don't speed.

Hertz is a ten minute walk, if you prefer to get a taxi to the Hilton, take it easy for your first day and collect the car after a day in Adelaide.

Check the Hilton forumm for reviews, but we were happy with a very nice Exec Plus room and Exec Club access. Nibblies were not much of a meal substitute (:p) and the drinks were average, so it's just a very pleasant lounge with an okay breakfast and a peaceful, rejuvenating atmosphere - with a distant view to ADL.

I had no trouble at all parking on the street, on metered spaces, because the meters aren't running on the weekend after 12.30PM and there was adequate choice of spaces each weekend night.

Have you looked at barossa.com as a starting point, then the local version of vrbo (stayz.com.au) in case you could rent a place from the owner? Just an idea; I'll try that next time. Otherwise, the Hilton's fine as long as you're on the road by 08.30 in time to get to the Barossa wineries at an early hour. :)

BTW, Henschkeis only open Saturday morning on the weekends, so schedule it accordingly. Don't miss Langmeil on Para & Langmeil roads, just past Richmond Grove.