toz100

Dear members, I will have a layover in Adelaide soon and would appreciate advice for the following:
1. Full day Barossa valley tours. Which company is good?
2. Dinner on a Sunday evening (many places seem to be closed on Sunday evenings). Up market but not Michelin star category.
3. Any other recommendations to fill a day.

Thanks

Simone87

Hi Toz,
I hope you have a great time in Adelaide! I have done a Trailhopper tour in McLaren Vale, and I know they run tours in the Barossa too. I really prefer it to a standard tour as you can pick and choose the wineries you go to and how long you spend there. There are others like Bums on seats, Gray line tours, Groovy grape. Here is a list you could look at: https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Attra...Australia.html

In terms of restaurants, Adelaide has a lot! There are some really nice ones in the Barossa, Adelaide Hills or McLaren Vale. Penfolds Winery has a restaurant in Magill (about 15 minutes from the city), but there is also Orana and Georges on Waymouth which are great too. There's also Hill of Grace at Adelaide Oval. While the food is very well done, the service was severely lacking, and I personally wouldn't hurry back.

When will you be there? If you're going to be there when it's warm, I highly recommend heading to the beaches. Glenelg is the easiest to get to, but locals are big fans of Henley.

toz100

Hi Simone,

thanks a lot for that. Trailhopper looks excellent. I think I will book the Barossa tour.

The restaurants you mentioned are all closed on Sundays or under renovation. It seems that all Adelaide stays at home on Sunday nights ;-)

I will not have time to go to the beaches though. I will arrive this Sunday afternoon from Brisbane and leave late on Monday night. This is just a positioning flight for my home journey after 3 months of travelling in NZ and OZ.

Cheers
Maximilian

number_6

Star of Greece is open sunday 12-3 so lunch only not dinner but it is superb and worth the effort. https://www.starofgreece.com.au/
Otherwise your observation that Adelaide rolls up the sidewalks on Sunday is mostly correct, not as bad as used to be but it is quite different from Sydney or Melbourne.

worldiswide

Sunset at Gleneg (take the tram from the CBD) is really nice. Its the beach area, and there are lots of restaurants. Not fancy a variety of cuisines and very nice atmosphere on the square.

There is a jamie oliver restaurant in the CBD if you like that sort of thing.

Museums are also great. The South Australian museum is one of several.

There is also Hahndorf in the valley, strawberry picking, and good aboriginal galleries. one is right in the entrance to the central market (which is also a good place to visit)

In short, lots to do, and easy to get around.

aztimm

Hi everyone--

Thought I'd add to this thread since my question is very similar. I'll have a long layover at ADL on a Tuesday in January, about 1:30pm to 10pm. Realistically, I'll want to be back at ADL around 7:30-8pm, so I have about 6 hours to play with.

Is the Star of Greece kiosk worthwhile? I was thinking of hiring a car at ADL and driving down. How is the beach in that area? Perhaps I could hang out down there for a bit.


I had looked into options for storing bags at ADL (I have separate bookings so they won't transfer through), and taking transit into town/locally. But if I get a car, I can just put my bags in that and use it for transit, so it accomplishes both objectives.

Are there any other good drives that would take me no more than 90 min from ADL? How is the drive out toward Cape Jervis or Victor Harbor?

Mwenenzi

Aldinga Beach/Star of Greece kiosk is 44km from ADL airport
https://goo.gl/maps/bbudjyerwtQpCcjFA
Victor Harbour is 85km: more of a day trip, unless you want to immediately turn around and drive back to the airport.

For say 14:00 to 19:30 I would go Glenelg beach or Aldinga Beach (Star of Greece)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenelg,_South_Australia
McLaren Vale is a wine area
In January it can be very hot in Adelaide.

CPMaverick

Glenelg Beach is right next door to the airport. it's the perfect place to go on a short layover (if you like beaches).

I know it is too late for you now, but for others, I can recommend Goodlife Modern Organic Pizza, or Beach Burrito Co, in Glenelg. Both are tasty, both are open on Sunday until 9 pm at least.

number_6

To be clear Star of Greece is now a very nice restaurant set on top of a cliff overlooking a great beach. It started as a beach shack but is now a roughly Michelin 1-star restaurant with a great wine list. Well worth going out of your way, and the surrounding area is quite nice too. I don't know if the beach is safe for swimming -- quite likely not. Lots to do in the surrounding area, mix of country and small town heavy on wineries.

aztimm

I realize that Star of Greece is quite the restaurant:
https://www.starofgreece.com.au/

But since I'll be by myself, and showing up at an off-time (I'm guessing around 3pm), and certainly won't be dressed for dinner, I posed the question of their kiosk. The prices look pretty good, and the atmosphere sounds more like what I'd want--eating outside, maybe even take my food down to the beach to eat.

And yes, I know that Adelaide can be quite warm in January. But I'll be passing through the area, travel is already booked.
My choices are:
1. stay in the airport (unless it is pouring rain, this will not happen)
2. explore town and/or local beaches, such as Gleneg (I'd then have to deal with storing my luggage at the airport)
3. hire a vehicle and drive somewhere, such as to Star of Greece. (could put my luggage in the vehicle).

For now, I'm leaning toward option 3, I've reserved a vehicle and am thinking of driving to Star of Greece and eat at the kiosk. I'll keep an eye on weather leading up to this and adjust as needed.

Mwenenzi

You sort of drive past the Gleneg turnoff on the way to Aldinga Beach (Star of Greece)
M2 expressway one way and the slower A15 the other?
Will be a pleasant way to spend ~ 6 hours

aztimm

Just to wrap this up for everyone, the day prior to my visit I booked a table at Star of Greece for 2:30pm (the latest they had for lunch). They say that they'll hold your table for 15 minutes.
Of course my flight into ADL was delayed...and it took a few minutes to claim luggage and collect my rental vehicle. By the time I arrived it was about exactly 2:45pm.
They had assigned me a small table without the best view (but really any table has a good view), but as soon as they heard me speak and realized I was a visitor...they cleaned a large table beside the HUGE windows with a view of the beach. They told me that as long as you get in the order by 3pm you're fine, and I certainly did (and there were others who sat after I did).

This was simply an amazing experience! Incredible food with views that are to die for. The service was top notch too--similar to what I had flying on Qatar Airlines.

After I ate, I walked along the beach for a bit. Then of course I changed and swam in the water. I'd guess the water temp was about 75F (21-22C), and it was just so clear. I could see the bottom from 20 feet deep! The only sea life was a few dolphins (no jellies like near Melbourne!). Since I swam in a pool before I left Brisbane that morning, I didn't intend to swim far, but it felt great to stretch out. There were maybe 40 people on the beach, and everyone I spoke with was extremely friendly (they all had to ask where I'm from). I asked a few people to keep an eye on my things when I went in the water, and there were no issues (someone said I could leave a wallet with $100 and still be fine).

There are showers beside the toilets in the parking lot/car park for Star of Greece, so I was able to rinse off before heading back to ADL. The drive back was uneventful, and I arrived around 8pm, with plenty of time before my ADL-DOH flight at 9:50pm.

Definitely a great way to spend a layover in ADL.

CPMaverick

That's great, thanks so much for coming back and letting us know your experience!

aztimm

Thank you and everyone else for the tips that pushed me to go. It really is a magical place, difficult to describe in words.
I posted this picture over on Omni:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/31985475-post7258.html
(not sure if I took that from the restaurant or from the beach)

It is going a bit out of the comfort zone, having to hire a vehicle and drive (on the other side). But Hertz upgraded me from an Audi Q2 to an Audi Q5, so it was a nice ride...and after a few minutes it was somewhat relaxing (it certainly was on the way back). I've driven on the left before, in both Australia and South Africa, and I'd much prefer Australia (and Adelaide was much easier than Sydney or Melbourne)

number_6

I am a big fan of Star of Greece, and now with the Adelaide Hills bushfires that area really needs the international tourist business. It is still a *stunning* place, both the restaurant and the Adelaide Hills area, well worth the easy drive from ADL to get there. Thank you for describing your experience, it can inspire others.