There is a comfort and convenience about Adelaide that is rarely found in larger cities, with a highly competitive cost of living that makes it possible for everyone to enjoy life here to the full.

Its city streets are filled with lively cafes and restaurants and reflect the huge diversity of its ethnic communities. The Adelaide Central Market is evidence of this multicultural appeal and is a wonderful destination for those who love great food and a great place to get a cheap eat. Offering not only fresh fruit and vegetables, most of which are grown within an hour’s drive of the city, the market also features one of the largest selections of meat and fish, along with gourmet specialities from across the globe. You cant go past the Adelaide Central Market Tour designed by local food expert, Mark Gleeson.

Adelaide’s rich cultural life is demonstrated not just in its galleries and theatres, but most vigorously in its many cultural festivals, including one of the world’s leading biennial arts festivals – the Adelaide Festival of Arts and the Adelaide Fringe Festival.

Minutes from the city, the Adelaide Hills are dotted with vineyards and small farms which generate some of South Australia’s finest produce. Quaint townships, cellar doors, Cleland National Park and the National Motor Museum at Birdwood are other key attractions.

The Barossa (just an hours drive from Adelaide) is Australia’s richest and best known wine region. Premium wines, five-star restaurants and cellar doors abound among the vineyards and undulating hills. Local winemakers include household names such as Seppelt, Penfolds and Peter Lehmann.

Located an hour south of Adelaide, the Fleurieu Peninsula is a dramatic mix of cliffscapes, surf and pristine beaches. Its soils and climate produce great food and wines, while the southern coastal towns of Victor Harbor and Goolwa are some of the State’s most popular seaside holiday destinations.

The third largest island off of the coast of Australia, Kangaroo Island is a nature wonderland. It’s a place where visitors can wander along coastlines scattered with sleeping seals, watch fairy penguins scamper up the beach or visit wildlife reserves brimming with kangaroos, wallabies, koalas and emus. More than 30 per cent of the island is national parkland and many species of flora and fauna extinct on the mainland have been preserved here.

The Flinders Ranges and Outback is the largest region in South Australia. About 85 per cent of the world’s opals are produced around Coober Pedy, in the north of South Australia, while further south are the natural wonders of the Flinders Ranges and Wilpena Pound.

The Clare Valley is characterised by classic farmland with pockets of pristine bushland and wine country. Heritage towns such as Burra, Auburn and Mintaro have been preserved as a tribute to 19th century copper miners and early settlers, while the 25-kilometre Riesling Trail from Clare to Auburn provides a unique way of moving between boutique wineries and cellar doors.

The Eyre Peninsula and its rugged West Coast, including part of the Great Australian Bight, offers spectacular scenery and is the gateway to the Nullarbor Plain. The Head of Bight is one of the best locations in the world for watching Southern Right Whales and their young. While visiting the region make sure you check out Adventure Bay Charters, based in Port Lincoln they offer a once in a lifetime experiences interacting with marine wildlife in their nature environment.

The Yorke Peninsula is a fishing haven, offering bountiful catches of King George whiting, snapper, salmon and squid. It’s also home to some of the country’s premier surf beaches. Innes National Park, at the most southerly point of the Yorke Peninsula, is a Mecca for divers, surfers, salmon fishermen, bushwalkers and campers.

The Limestone Coast is home to Mount Gambier’s mysterious Blue Lake, the World Heritage-listed Naracoorte Caves and the awarded Coonawarra wine region.

One of the world’s great rivers, the Murray River dominates the beautiful and diverse Riverland region. Further south in the Murraylands the Murray River winds its way from Swan Reach to the spectacular Coorong, where visitors can explore the lakes and their prolific bird life and spectacular flora.

Information provided by South Australian Tourism Commission