Unlike other Australian states, South Australia's citizens were not drawn from convicts but were attracted by the potential to build wealth in wool, copper and wheat. Along the North Terrace are the cultural icons of the South Australian Museum, Art Gallery, University of Adelaide and the Adelaide Casino in the beautifully refurbished 1920s railway station.

The capital of South Australia, Adelaide nestles between the sea and the Adelaide Hills. It is a graceful city of wide streets, elegant buildings and many parklands. Cultural pursuits and good food and wine are high on the agenda and its mild Mediterranean climate encourages outdoor activities.

Every two years, the Adelaide Festival of Arts and the Festival Fringe bring the City a world-class extravaganza of cultural delights - these and other festivals dotted throughout the year, give Adelaide its title as the "Festival City".

North Terrace is a boulevard of galleries and museums, flowing into the serene, green Botanic Gardens. Rundle Street runs parallel, lined with cafes, bars and restaurants - the bustling hub of the East End.

Adelaide is the wine capital of Australia - six out of the top 10 Australian wines are made within a few hours' drive of the City.

South Australia is much more than pleasant cultured Adelaide and the wine lands of the Barossa Valley. You're just 20 minutes from the tranquillity of the Adelaide Hills to the east, while a selection of superb sandy beaches, including Glenelg, awaits to the west.  It is also the mighty Murray River flowing down to the sea, small thriving towns and orchards, graves in the desert, the rugged Flinders ranges, kangaroos, sealions, birdlife and wilderness. It is shimmering beaches and cliffs sculpted by wind and wave. From high along the Great Australian Bight, you can see huge flocks of whales come in from Antarctica, or albatrosses sailing in currents of air....

Most of South Australia is outback, real desert and semi-desert that invites exploration by four wheel drive. You can follow the route of Captain Starlight and other outlaws of old. Or ride the moon plains where Mad Max was filmed, with or without a bike. Travel through dry bush, rippling sand dunes, rugged and remote mountains, dotted with ghosts of the past in the form of abandoned rocket ranges, mining villages and forgotten colonial mansions.

For further information please contact us or the Adelaide Tourism Authority  www.acta.com.au