Fleurieu Peninsula

Just an hour from Adelaide, the Fleurieu Peninsula packs an extraordinary range of experiences into a compact geography. McLaren Vale covers the northern slopes in shiraz, grenache and cabernet — some of Australia's most celebrated red wine country, tended by both boutique family producers and internationally known estates. The d'Arenberg Cube alone is worth the drive.

The southern coast is where the Peninsula shows a wilder face. Victor Harbor looks across Encounter Bay to Granite Island, linked to the mainland by a causeway and a horse-drawn tram that's been running since 1894. Southern Right Whales arrive in the bay from June to September to calve in the calm, protected water — you can watch them from the clifftop walk with binoculars or join a whale-watching cruise. Cape Jervis, at the peninsula's southern tip, is the departure point for the Kangaroo Island ferry.

Camping ranges from family-friendly foreshore parks with powered sites at Normanville and Victor Harbor to remote cliff-top spots at Deep Creek Conservation Park — some of SA's most dramatic coastal country, overlooking Backstairs Passage and the islands beyond.