Adelaide is the South Australian capital city, the fifth largest in Australia, that acts as a gateway to the gorgeous Kangaroo Island and north to the outback towns of Coober Pedy and Alice Springs. There is good reason to make it down to Adelaide from Sydney, whether it be to relax in the city, enjoy a few bottles from the nearby wine regions or to use it as a hub to other nearby experiences.
Plane is always the fastest route to most places in Australia given the gigantic size. You can quickly hop on a flight from Sydney to Adelaide and arrive in just 2 hours. A good place to start would be to look at this list of budget airlines that fly to Adelaide, or use the search boxes below for a quick price check (it doesn’t hurt to look!).
Quick search flights to Adelaide (ADL) from Sydney (SYD), Melbourne (MEL), Brisbane (BNE), Perth (PER):
If you have 24 hours to spare, taking the train from Sydney to Adelaide can be done on the Indian Pacific. Along the way, there will be a stop in Broken Hill (perfect for a whistle stop tour) and an overnight sleep on the train. Costs for the ticket vary according to class, and you can read more about that on the official Great Southern Rail website.
Read more on getting to Broken Hill from Adelaide.
Another train travel option would be to take the normal CountryLink train from Sydney to Melbourne. Once in Melbourne, you can switch to the Overland (run by GSR like the Indian Pacific) over to Adelaide.
There are several routes to take when self-driving from Sydney to Adelaide, and each would provide their own unique theme. The first way we will discuss will take you into the outback, along the Murray River and further into the wine regions down south. It covers nearly 1700 kilometers and is recommended in a period of 6 days, although it can be done in a matter of 2 if necessary.
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Another driving route from Sydney to Adelaide takes you south along the coast, connects with Melbourne and continues on to Adelaide. This route would be in the 1900 kilometers length range and take the traveler down through the Grand Pacific Drive (south of Sydney) and on to Melbourne where you can continue on the Great Ocean Road.
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Both are great options, best done when renting a campervan and taking it slow. There’s a lot to do and see in between the capital cities of Australia, and campervans make it easy to move around and to more off-the-beaten-path destinations, which actually play home to some of the country’s top attractions.
By Greyhound, the bus journey from Sydney to Adelaide will run 34 hours in length with a changeover in Melbourne. A basic fare one way would be in the $160 range. Bus is a totally viable option for getting from Sydney to Adelaide, but with most things, I’d recommend stops along the way to break up the journey and to just see more of the great country. If not planning to stop off, it might be easier and cheaper to book a budget flight to Adelaide, but everyone has their own preferences.
Photo credit: 1, 2.
