Explore Adelaide for $0, $50 or $100, from brekky to bedtime

YHA Local Lowdown: Adelaide might just be one of Australia's most underrated cities, and it's one of the easiest to explore on a budget. There are festivals year-round (it’s known as Australia’s festival capital), the big galleries and museums are free, and the beach is only a tram ride away. Spend your mornings wandering North Terrace, your afternoons swimming at Glenelg, and your evenings catching live music at a local pub, all for little-to-nothing.

What would you choose – chocolate tastings, custard tarts, a sunset swim at Glenelg or picking strawberries in Hahndorf? Well, our Adelaide guide fits all of it into three days for free, under $50 and under $100, starting and finishing at YHA Adelaide Central.

What's your budget?

Day 1 (FREE): Explore free galleries, gardens, and a city sunset

At a glance: About 9 km on foot · $0 on activities and transport · Best for art, history and an easy first day

Before you go: Cook breakfast and pack a picnic in the 24-hour kitchen

• The guest kitchen at YHA Adelaide Central never closes, so cook breakfast whenever suits you. Grab supplies the night before from Coles or Woolworths in Rundle Mall, and make sandwiches for a picnic later. Leave with a full water bottle.

Morning: Ride the free tram to the Adelaide Botanic Garden

• It's a 10 minute walk from YHA Adelaide Central to North Terrace. Ride the free tram east to the last stop, the Botanic Gardens.
• Kick things off with a free guided walk. The Adelaide Botanic Garden runs one every day at 10.30am from the Schomburgk Pavilion. It takes about 90 minutes and there's no need to book. 
• On your way out, stop at the International Rose Garden, which flowers from spring through to autumn.

Lunchtime: Picnic under the trees on the garden lawns

• Spread out on the Botanic Garden lawns for your picnic. There's plenty of shade, and you're a 10 minute walk from your next stop.

Afternoon: See free art, learn about Aboriginal culture and some great selfie spots

• Walk west along North Terrace to the Art Gallery of South Australia (free, 10am to 5pm daily). It's a huge collection, so pick a few highlights rather than trying to see everything. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander collections are a good way to start.
• Next door, the South Australian Museum is also free and has the same opening hours. Head for the Australian Aboriginal Cultures Gallery, which holds one of the world's largest collections of Aboriginal cultural materials. Give yourself an hour to explore.
• One more door along, the State Library of South Australia is home to the Mortlock Chamber. The wrought-iron balconies, glass dome and walls of old books make it look like a set from a fantasy film. It's free, takes 10 minutes, and is worth the photo stop.
• Walk north down Kintore Avenue to the River Torrens, which has the Kaurna name Karrawirra Parri. Cross the Adelaide Oval footbridge for views along the water.

Evening: Watch the sunset, then meet Rundle Mall’s most famous residents

• From the footbridge, it's around 15 minutes uphill to Light's Vision on Montefiore Hill in North Adelaide, which commemorates Adelaide’s founding surveyor Colonel William Light. The lookout faces back across the river to the city, and the skyline turns golden at sunset. Check sunset time in advance and arrive early.
• Walk back down King William Street into Rundle Mall, where you’ll meet Horatio, Oliver, Truffles and Augusta, the four bronze pigs who've been in the mall since 1999. Further along are the Mall's Balls, two stacked silver spheres that locals have used as a meeting spot for decades. YHA Adelaide Central is around 10 to 15 minutes away.
• Back at the property, Tuesday is Paint & Sip and Thursday is the table tennis competition, both starting at 7pm from reception. On other nights, there's a barbecue, games room or movie night. The YHA Explorer app has the week's activities.

Day 2 (under $50): Eat your way across Adelaide, then hit the beach

At a glance: About 11 km on foot · Around $50 including food and transport · Best for foodies who also want a swim

Before you go: Grab a coffee on Peel Street or Leigh Street

• Peel Street and Leigh Street are both around five minutes from YHA Adelaide Central, and both have excellent coffee. Order a latte and pastry at La Moka on Peel Street or Coffee Branch on Leigh Street (around $12).

Morning: Walk the Park Lands to a free Haigh's chocolate tasting

• Head south through Tarntanyangga (Victoria Square) and over the Park Lands to Parkside, around 40 minutes in total. To save time, ride the free tram to South Terrace and walk the last 15 minutes.
• Nearby, Haigh's Chocolates has been making chocolate in Adelaide since 1915. From Monday to Saturday, its visitor centre at 154 Greenhill Road runs a free chocolate experience (book online), where you'll see how cocoa beans turn into chocolate and get to taste some along the way.

Image: South Australian Tourism Commission

Lunchtime: Graze your way around the Adelaide Central Market

• Head back to South Terrace and ride the free tram to Tarntanyangga. The Adelaide Central Market is a five minute walk away and opens Tuesday to Saturday, so plan this day around it.
• Set aside around $15 for lunch. Save room for a Portuguese custard tart from Saudade and a slice of bung fritz, South Australia's own version of devon, from one of the market's butchers.
• Put your earbuds in for the free Adelaide Central Market Audio Tour, where food writers Adam Liaw and Katie Spain walk you through their favourite stalls. It's about 50 minutes long and plays on any podcast app. 

Afternoon: Ride the tram to Glenelg for a swim and a seaside walk

• Catch the tram from Tarntanyangga to Glenelg, taking around 30 minutes. Tap on when you board, as the ride to the beach is outside of the free tram zone.
• Take a swim at Glenelg Beach. The water is usually calm, and there's plenty of space on the sand. 
• Then walk south along the flat seaside path towards Brighton Jetty. Turn around after about 30 minutes and you'll be back in Glenelg in time for dinner.
• Rather ride? Borrow a free bike from Hindmarsh Library and follow the River Torrens Linear Park Trail to Henley Beach for another great swimming spot. Ride back the same way, as the bike needs to go back to the library before it closes at 5pm.

Evening: Eat fish and chips on the sand, then watch the sunset from Glenelg Jetty

• Grab fish and chips on Jetty Road (around $15) and take them down to the beach.
• Adelaide's beaches face west, so the sun goes down over the water. Walk out along Glenelg Jetty to watch it.
• Ride the tram back to the city and walk around 10 minutes to YHA Adelaide Central. After a day of exploring in the sun, the games room and lounge are perfect spaces for winding down (or connecting with fellow travellers too).

 
Image: South Australian Tourism Commission

Day 3 (under $100): Take the bus to Hahndorf and the Adelaide Hills

At a glance: About 5 km on foot · Around $98 including food and transport · Best for a day out of the city, and without a car

Before you go: Fill up on breakfast before the bus

• Fill up at the continental breakfast at YHA Adelaide Central, around $12 through the YHA Explorer app.

Morning: Soak up city views from Adelaide’s highest peak

• Take the bus from the city to Mount Lofty Summit. Double check departure times and the specific routes with your YHA hosts.
• Mount Lofty Summit sits 710 metres above sea level, and is the highest point in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. From the lookout, you can see all of Adelaide below. Order a coffee from the summit cafe (around $5) and take in the view.

Lunchtime: Explore Hahndorf, Australia's oldest German town

• Catch the bus back towards Adelaide, changing at Crafers Park and Ride for Hahndorf. Get off at the stop just at the beginning of Main Street. Prussian migrants settled in Hahndorf in 1839, and it's known as Australia's oldest surviving German town. Wander along Main Street, lined with charming old stone buildings and big shady trees.
• For lunch, Otto's Bakery has pies and pastries, and $20 covers something savoury and something sweet. 

Image: South Australian Tourism Commission

Afternoon: Browse free art and pick your own fresh strawberries

• Explore the Hahndorf Academy on Main Street. It's free (10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday, from noon on Sunday), with local art and original drawings by landscape painter Hans Heysen. 
• From here, it's a 12 minute walk to Beerenberg Farm. From November to April, you can pick your own strawberries and pay for what you pick. Around $15 covers entry and a handful to snack on. The rest of the year, the farm shop has jams and sauces to try.
• The bus ride back to the city takes around 45 minutes to an hour and runs about once an hour. Check timings before you go. Rest at YHA Adelaide Central before the evening.
• Got a bit more to spend for day four? There's the Barossa Valley Hop On Hop Off Wine Tour (from $89.95, leaving the CBD at 9.30am with return transfers and tastings, 18+), a River Torrens cruise on Popeye, RoofClimb at Adelaide Oval or a dolphin cruise from Port Adelaide. Any of these will push you past $100, but YHA members get 10% off Experience Oz bookings.

Evening: Catch free live music at the Grace Emily Hotel

• Grab dinner at the Bread & Bone Wood Grill on Peel Street, or find a nearby pub meal, budgeting for $25 or so.
• The Grace Emily Hotel is a few minutes' walk along Waymouth Street and it's one of Adelaide's favourite live music pubs. Local bands play most nights, and entry to the long-running Monday night BBQ Jam is free (music from around 9pm). Drinks are around $10.

Words: Troy Nankervis