Things to Do in Adelaide: The City Sights the Tours Stop At
Most of what a city tour shows you in Adelaide is free to walk into: a boulevard of galleries, a covered market, a river park and a beach at the end of a tram line. Weighing up an Adelaide city tour? Know the sights first, and you will see which tour covers the ones you want.
Colonel William Light laid out the centre in 1836 as a grid of wide streets ringed by Park Lands, beside the River Torrens. That plan still shapes your day. The galleries line one street, the market sits a few blocks south, and the river is a short walk north of the shops.
North Terrace — galleries, museum and library in one block
North Terrace is the city's cultural boulevard, running from the museum and the galleries east to the Botanic Garden. Most of the doors on the way are free.
Art Gallery of South Australia
Founded in 1881, at 490 North Terrace. General entry is free, though some exhibitions charge. It opens 10:00 to 17:00 every day except Christmas Day, and you leave large bags and backpacks in its free cloakrooms.
South Australian Museum
Open 10:00 to 17:00 every day, weekends and public holidays included, except Christmas Day and Good Friday. On Anzac Day, 25 April, it opens at noon.
State Library and the National War Memorial
Both are stops on the Gems in a Day city tour, for 30 and 15 minutes. The walk-and-Popeye tour gives the State Library 20 minutes before it heads for Parliament House.
Adelaide Botanic Garden and the Palm House
Open every day of the year, free, at the east end of the terrace. Weekday hours are 7:15 to 18:30 from October to March and 7:15 to 17:30 from April to September. The Palm House is a stop on Gems in a Day.
The tram along North Terrace stops at Art Gallery, University of Adelaide and Botanic Gardens. The Botanic Garden notes that tram travel is free within the city centre.
Adelaide Central Market — trading days and what to taste
Adelaide Central Market has traded at 44–60 Gouger Street since 1869. More than 70 traders share one roof: fruit and vegetables, bakeries, cheese, coffee, meat and seafood. It is closed on Sunday and Monday, and Friday is the late night.
| Day | Adelaide Central Market trading hours |
|---|---|
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | 7:00 to 17:30 |
| Wednesday | 9:00 to 17:30 (a range of traders) |
| Thursday | 9:00 to 17:30 |
| Friday | 7:00 to 21:00 |
| Saturday | 7:00 to 15:00 |
| Sunday | Closed |
You have three ways to taste it with a guide. The discovery walk meets at 9:30 at the SiSea stall in the north-west corner and is for adults 18 and over. The short Taste of the Central Market walk meets at the Grote Street entrance and spends about 40 minutes inside. The F Factor food walk starts in Adelaide Arcade and ends at the market.
Going on your own? Arrive early on Saturday, because trading stops at 15:00. The market also runs a free audio tour.
Rundle Mall and Adelaide Arcade — shopping streets from 1885
Rundle Mall is the pedestrian shopping street in the middle of the grid. Its managers call it the biggest outdoor mall in the Southern Hemisphere and count more than 52 million visits a year. Arcades and laneways run off both sides.
Adelaide Arcade opened in 1885, opposite the fountain in Rundle Mall, and runs through to Grenfell Street. You can follow a free self-guided history tour on a printed brochure or on your phone. The free Adelaide Arcade Museum sits in the stairwell of Gay's Arcade and opens seven days a week in shopping hours.
The Torrens, Elder Park and Adelaide Oval
North of the shops, the ground drops to the river. This is the part of the city you see from the water.
Popeye on the Torrens
The Popeye boats leave from the landing at Elder Park on King William Road, below the Rotunda and the Festival Centre. A trip takes 40 to 50 minutes with live commentary. Each boat takes 48 passengers, first come, first served, and bad weather can cancel a sailing.
Elder Park
The lawns between the Festival Centre and the river. The walk-and-Popeye tour spends 15 minutes here before boarding. The Ultimate walking tour gives the riverbank and the park 30 minutes.
Adelaide Oval
On the north bank of the Torrens, across from Elder Park, near St Peter's Cathedral. Standard stadium tours run daily at 11:00 and 14:00 and must be booked. The Bradman Collection holds Sir Donald Bradman's memorabilia from 1927 to 1977.
Glenelg by tram — the beach at the end of the line
Glenelg is the city's beach suburb, on the gulf south-west of the centre. You can get there without a car or a tour.
- Board in the city: trams run along North Terrace and through the centre, and trips within the city centre are free.
- Ride to the end: the City of Holdfast Bay says trams leave the centre every 10 to 15 minutes and end at Moseley Square.
- Walk Jetty Road: the main street runs from Moseley Square back towards the city, with the beach and the jetty at your back.
- Come back by bus if you prefer: buses 265, 190, 167 and J1 run to the city from Moseley Street.
On a tour, Glenelg is a short stop. Gems in a Day gives you 45 minutes on the beach and the McLaren Vale wine day gives you 20. If you stay in Glenelg, some day tours collect you from the Oaks Glenelg Plaza Pier.
The Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary and Port Adelaide
Wild bottlenose dolphins live in the Port River at Port Adelaide, inside the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary, and in the warmer months you may see calves with them. The same water holds the ships' graveyard, where rusting hulks lie half-submerged in the backwaters, and channels lined with mangroves.
You choose between a boat and a kayak. The cruise is the easy option: 90 minutes, a toilet on board, and a skipper who helps you spot. The kayaks take three hours, need moderate fitness and give you the mangroves at water level. Both can cancel for bad weather.
| Dolphin and ships' graveyard cruise | Dolphin Sanctuary and ships' graveyard kayak | Small-group Dolphin Sanctuary kayak | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where you start | Port Adelaide wharf, 1 McLaren Parade | Lot 204 Garden Island Road, Gillman | Angas Inlet Boat Club, Lot 204 Garden Island Road |
| Time on the water | 1 hour 30 minutes | 3 hours | 3 hours |
| Ages | Most travellers | From 8; under 13s share a kayak with an adult | From 10; under 16s share a kayak with an adult |
| In the fare | Skipper's commentary, toilet on board | Kayak, paddle, life vest, waterproof container, guide | Kayak, life jacket, waterproof bag, guide, sunscreen, locked parking |
| Wheelchair | Not accessible | Accessible | Not accessible |
| Fares from | $63 per person | $56 per person | $57 per person |
None of these listings offers a pickup, so plan how you reach the river. Where each one starts, and how early to arrive, is on the Adelaide tour map.
Which tour covers which sight
Match the sights you want to the tours that stop there. A sight with a short stop is one you may want to come back to on your own.
| Sight | Tours that stop there | Time there |
|---|---|---|
| North Terrace: State Library, War Memorial, Art Gallery | Ultimate Adelaide walking tour City walk and Popeye cruise Gems in a Day: city, Glenelg and Hahndorf Highlights, Hahndorf and McLaren Vale wine day | 5 to 30 minutes a stop |
| Palm House, Adelaide Botanic Garden | Gems in a Day: city, Glenelg and Hahndorf | 20 to 30 minutes |
| Adelaide Central Market | Central Market discovery walk Taste of the Central Market walk F Factor food walk Ultimate Adelaide walking tour Gems in a Day: city, Glenelg and Hahndorf | 40 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes |
| Rundle Mall and Adelaide Arcade | Ultimate Adelaide walking tour City walk and Popeye cruise F Factor food walk | 15 to 25 minutes a stop |
| Elder Park and the Torrens | Popeye cruise on the Torrens City walk and Popeye cruise Ultimate Adelaide walking tour | 15 minutes on foot to 50 minutes afloat |
| Victoria Square / Tarntanyangga | Ultimate Adelaide walking tour Highlights, Hahndorf and McLaren Vale wine day | A walk-through |
| Glenelg | Gems in a Day: city, Glenelg and Hahndorf Highlights, Hahndorf and McLaren Vale wine day | 20 to 45 minutes |
| Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary | Dolphin and ships' graveyard cruise Dolphin Sanctuary and ships' graveyard kayak Small-group Dolphin Sanctuary kayak | 1 hour 30 minutes to 3 hours |
Found the sights you want?
Compare the walks, cruises and city days by what the fare covers and where they start.
Wine country, Hahndorf and the lookout are further out: read the Adelaide Hills and Adelaide's wine regions.
Things to do in Adelaide: your questions
What is free to see in central Adelaide?
When is Adelaide Central Market open?
How do I get from the city to Glenelg?
Where can I see dolphins near Adelaide?
Can I go inside Adelaide Oval?
How long do I need for central Adelaide?
Where these facts come from
- Art Gallery of South Australia: visit
- South Australian Museum: plan your visit
- Adelaide Botanic Garden: plan your visit
- Adelaide Central Market
- Adelaide Arcade: history
- Adelaide Oval: tours
- City of Holdfast Bay: getting here
Hours and access change. Check with the venue before you travel.
Next: plan the practical side on visiting Adelaide, or compare every walk, cruise and day out on Adelaide Australia Tours.