Adelaide is the capital of South Australia and with a population of just over 1.1 million is the fifth most populated city in Australia. Adelaide is known for its arts, wine and the many festivals held there.

Adelaide’s climate is very Mediterranean, with most of the rainfall being in winter. During summer rain is usually light and very unreliable. Adelaide is known to be one of the driest capitals in Australia. Frosts are rare and except for the Mount Lofty and a few places in the Adelaide Hills it does not normally snow.

CLIMATE DATA

Month                                      Dec                  Mar                  Jun                   Sep

Max Temp                                26.8                26.1                  16.9                  18.8

Min Temp                                 15.5                15.0                   8.2                     9.6

Rainfall Total mm                    26.8                 26.2                  83.1                   63.9

Rain Days                                6.7                   5.7                    15.4                   13.2

Adelaide is a coastal city on the Adelaide Plains. It is 20 kms from the coast to the foothills and stretches from Gawler in the north to Sellicks Beach in the south, a distance of 90 kms.

Buying a Home

Due to the close proximity to the wine regions, Adelaide Hills and surrounding farmlands Adelaide has a rural feel whilst having all the amenities of a large city. In a 2001 – 2005 survey conducted by Mercer Quality of Life Surveys, Adelaide was rated in the top 25 cities in the world. Buying a property in Adelaide will cost you less than then many other states in particular Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, with the average median staying at $270,000. (1st quarter 2005). Because of the lower entry price of properties in Adelaide the property market is great not only for those buying a home but investment purposes.

.St Pauls Cathederal

Public Transport

Mount Osmond Interchange on the South Eastern Freeway

Because of its central location on the mainland, Adelaide is an important part the transport system for east to west and north to south.

The city has a public transport system known as the Adelaide Metro, which consists of a contracted bus system including the O-Bahn Busway, metropolitan railways and the Adelaide-Glenelg Tram. Adelaide roads are wide with multiple lanes for easy commuting.

There is one freeway, the South Eastern Freeway which connects the city with the Adelaide Hills, and two expressways: the Port River Expressway and the Southern Expressway.

Adelaide International Airport is the newest and most advanced terminal in Australia, it incorporates features such as glass aerobridges and can cater for the new Airbus A380. This airport is located at West Beach only about 7 kms form the CBD.

Education

                                                                                                                                                  South Australia

Adelaide has many primary and secondary schools both public and private which are administered by the State Government. The Tertiary Education system is extensive with five out of the eight TAFE Centers being in Adelaide itself. It is also home to three universities, the University of Adelaide which is the third oldest in Australia being formed in 1874, the University of South Australia which was formed in 1991 and Flinders University founded in 1966with a medical school at the adjacent Flinders Medical Centre.

Leading US private university Carnegie Mellon is to establish two Adelaide campuses thus offering both Australian and US degrees. One will specialize in IT whilst the other will concentrate on media and entertainment.

Demography

                                                                                                                                                 Adelaide landscapes

As of 2004 there are an estimated 1,124,315 people living in Adelaide and its inhabitants occupy 325,000 houses, 57,000 detached, terrace or town houses and 49,000 units, apartments and caravans.

Over 24.6% of the population of Adelaide were born overseas, with suburbs such as Golden Grove, Salisbury and those close to the CBD having a high ratio of overseas born Adelaideans.

Almost a fifth of the population of Adelaide has university qualifications

Approximately 38% of the population identified themselves as English, 34% as Australian (Anglo-Celtic background) and 8.45 as Irish. The most spoken languages other than English were 3.5% Italian, 2.3% Greek, 1.2%Vietnamese, 0.7%Polish and 0.7% German.

Health Care

The Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) was founded in 1840. It is a teaching hospital of the University of Adelaide and has a 705 bed capacity. There are also two other campuses of RAH, the Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre in Northfield and the Glenside Campus Mental Health Centre.

Other major hospitals are The Women’s and Children’s Hospital with 305 beds, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, 340 beds and the Flinders Medical Centre with 500 beds. These hospitals are also associated with medical schools.

Sport

Adelaide hosts the very successful Clipsal 500 V8 Supercar race which is held on the modified circuit left by the Grand Prix. It is also home to the two Australian Football League Teams, The Adelaide Crows and Port Adelaide Power. There is also a local football league, SANFL, which is made up of teams from around the Adelaide area. There are soccer clubs, basketball clubs and netball associations. Each summer Adelaide hosts an international cricket test as well as a number of one day international tests.

Adelaide has hosted the Tour Down Under bicycle race since 1999. It is also host to the Bay to Birdswood run which features vintage cars from around the world.

Whatever your sport there is a club and venue so you can participate or merely be a spectator.

The Art gallary of South Australia

In the 1970’s under the leadership of Premier Don Dunstan, Adelaide’s art scene exploded. He removed some of the restrictions on cultural activities and paved the ways for the city to host events such as the Barossa Music Festival, Adelaide Festival of Arts, Adelaide Film Festival, Adelaide Festival of Ideas, Come Out Youth Arts Festival and the Fringe Festival as well as WOMADelaide, Australia’s premier world music event.

Adelaide has produced musicians who have achieved national and worldwide acclaim, The Angels, Cold Chisel, Eric Bogle, The Superjesus, and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian also hails from Adelaide.

The Business Environment

Collins Class Submarine

The Economy

Adelaide’s economy is based around manufacturing, defence technology and research, export and corresponding service industries. Almost half the cars produced in Australia come from Adelaide. Our largest oil company, Santos and major brewery Coopers are based in Adelaide.

Over 70% of Australian defence companies are located in Adelaide. The Defence Science and Technology Organisation and other similar defence organisations such as Tenix are located near RAAF Base Edinburgh near Salisbury and others at Technology Park.

There are 466,829 employed people in Adelaide with 62.3% full-time and 35.1% part-time. The median family income is $800- $999 per week. The cost of living and notably the cost of housing are substantially lower in Adelaide than other states. In October 2005 the unemployment rate was 4.8%.

Shopping

Rundle Mall photo courtesy of the South Australian Tourism Commission

Adelaide’s major shopping centre is Rundle Mall and is one of the most competitive shopping areas in Australia. It stretches between King William St and Pulteney St and is well serviced by buses. It is open 7 days a week. There are many shops selling a variety of goods from food to fashion, books, souvenirs or crafts. As Adelaide is the centre of the world’s opal industry there are many beautiful opals on offer.

You can buy fresh flowers, fresh fruit and veges in shops and stalls and there are numerous juice bars. There are fast food outlets and department stores. There are a number of banks that have ATM’s in Rundle Mall as well.

All suburbs are close to major shops and supermarkets that are open extended hours.

Around Adelaide

Adelaide Zoo

Things to Do

Within easy distance from the city is the Adelaide Zoo, great for a day out with the family. The Adelaide Botanic Gardens was established in1855 and houses the Bicentennial Conservatory, which is the largest glasshouse in the southern hemisphere and the State Herbarium. There is the Tandanya National Aboriginal Culture Centre and if you are in the mood for gambling a visit to the Adelaide Casino is the way to go.

Around the suburbs you can find the South Australian Maritime Museum, Port Dock Station Railway Museum and 14 km north west of the city is Fort Glanville, a collection of buildings which remind us of our colonial past.

Day Trips

St Kilda Mangrove Trail is a free adventure playground for children and adults and the 10 km trip down to Glenelg is a great place to cool off on a hot summer’s day.

At Mount Thebarton you can ice skate all year at the indoor ice arena and there is always something new to see at the “Investigator Science and Technology Centre.

Further A Field

                                                                              Mount Gambier’s Blue Lake with old pumping station in foreground

Victor Harbour is 80 south of Adelaide and has panoramic views of the rugged granite landmark bluff and the Granite Island. On the way there be sure to visit Melba’s Chocolate Factory. Yum!

The Barossa Valley is known for quality wines which are produced there and exported. The vineyards are open to the public for inspection, wine tasting and cellar door sales.

Gorge Wildlife Park houses monkeys, giant fruit bats, kangaroos, dingoes and hundreds of other animals. Get up close and personal feeding roos and holding koala.

Hahndorf is a historic German village in the Adelaide Hills. Go on a tour and see the quaint buildings.

The Blue Lake is the star attraction in Mount Gambier. Each November the water in the lake which lies in the crater of an extinct volcano, changes from a dull grey to a deep blue and remains as such for many months. The world famous Coonawarra Wine Region is an easy half hour drive away. Not far away from Mount Gambier is the world heritage listed Naracoorte Caves. 30 separate caves house these world renowned fossils. Naracoorte is approx 330 kms south east of Adelaide and 400 km west of Melbourne. For the more adventurous you can visit the Flinders Ranges, Wilpena Pound or Coober Pedy.