From bustling city life to serene coastlines, Adelaide’s got it all.

By Lawrence Ferber

The concept of Southern Comfort isn’t exclusive to North America. Some would argue that South Australians have us one-upped in that regard. The state of South Australia — S.A. for short — is comprised of acclaimed wine regions, seaside towns, a fantastic, unspoiled island that’s home to the country’s most famed, iconic animal life and the easy-to-navigate capital city of Adelaide. Word is slowly catching on north of Down Under that this is a vacation destination of choice, where you can transition from city life to ocean view resort in mere minutes. And yes, there are plenty of queers!

In fact, S.A. once led the way in Australian gay rights thanks to its premier during the 1970s, Don Dunstan, who, among other progressive actions, decriminalized homosexuality. Today, Adelaide is home to September’s Feast Festival, one of Australia’s largest LGBT cultural events, including theater, dance, visual arts, workshops, a massive picnic in the park (some 15,000 attend) and an opening night party. Known as the “Festival City,” Adelaide’s annual calendar is packed with activities, from the hyper-masculine Clipsal 500 motor rally to the comparatively poncy Cabaret and Fringe performing arts fests.

Having first fallen in love with S.A. during a March 2006 trip, I was eager to return with a couple of other gay journalists in May 2007, during the quite comfortable fall season (December-February, S.A. summers can be brutally hot). To get there, I experienced both coach and business class on Qantas Airways. The coach was comfortable, but nothing beats business class’ lie-down seats, generous personal space and additional details like upscale toiletries and in-seat A/C adapters so you can use your laptop throughout the flight.

Adelaide, S.A.’s capital and home to approximately 1.2 million Aussies, is separated by the River Torrens into two sections—posh North Adelaide and the bustling City Center. The latter is laid out in a compact grid pattern, much of the action concentrated around the Rundle Street Mall, where one can shop or park on a bench and people watch for hours.

Perfectly situated and quite modern-boutiquey, the Majestic Roof Garden Hotel is the city’s most fashionable, gay-friendly property. It’s also just steps away from the Chocolate Bean, a cozy hipster hangout with excellent fresh chocolate delights and beverages (try the chocolate soup!).

Other lodging options include the modern apartment-style Oaks Horizons or Oaks Embassy, the less chic East End Astoria, the five-star Stamford Plaza and the Hyatt Regency, which boasts stunning views. One warning: In-hotel Internet rates are ludicrously expensive, but you can access free public Wi-Fi around Rundle Street’s cafés and the university.

Many museums and cultural attractions, as well as the University of Adelaide, line North Terrace, running one block parallel to Rundle Street. An Adelaide museum crawl should include the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, the Art Gallery of South Australia, the State Library and the National Wine Centre of Australia.

By and large, Adelaide’s LGBT crowd mixes it up when they go out —men and women, younger and older. An easy 20-minute tram ride from Adelaide’s center, in the equally compact seaside town of Glenelg, the airy, gay owned Zest Cafe is one such congregation spot (its mostly gay staff is adorable and quite social to boot!). At the time of my visit, the Adelaide queer nightlife scene had experienced a serious shift. The two-level Edinburgh Hotel dance club/bar had just shuttered its doors (the rumored result of dodgy finances), leaving only Mars Bar. That said, most of Adelaide’s bars—such as the colorful new La Boheme and Crown & Sceptre Hotel—are mixed anyway, and the lack of options means that Mars is guaranteed packed on Friday and Saturday nights. It’s a decent space with two dance floors, an upstairs porch area, seating and pool tables. Late at night, the stage is temporarily cleared for choreographed drag extravaganzas.

While something of a bedroom community, there’s a visible young vibe here, thanks to several major universities. There’s also a significant Asian population, much of it lured by these educational institutions. Good Asian cuisine lines Gouger Street. Mapo Restaurant, voted Adelaide’s best Korean restaurant, serves traditional Korean barbecue as well as contempo-fusion like tempura bugtails (crayfish) and coffee pork spare ribs. Adelaide’s first Thai restaurant, Star of Siam, attracts a noticeably queer crowd.

Overlooking the River Torrens, North Adelaide’s Red Ochre Restaurant specializes in native ingredients and game meats like kangaroo, wallaby, emu and the extremely popular local fish, barramundi. Eros Ouzeri serves superb contempo-Greek, and the Manse earns raves for molecular cuisine and chic deco surroundings. Reservations are a must!

Yes, this is a foodie’s region. Fresh isn’t an emphasis—it’s a rule. By my third day in S.A., I found myself not only reaching my belt’s last notch, but actually unbuttoning my jeans ever so discreetly at dinner. For several days, I ate and drank my way through several of S.A.’s wine and food regions with guide Ralf Hadzic of the Life is a Cabernet tour company. We began in Barossa, an hour outside Adelaide. Since the 1840s, this has been a winemaker’s region of choice, with Shiraz, Grenache, Semillon and Riesling listed amongst main varietals, and over 70 cellar doors to visit—not to mention the Maggie Beer Farm Shop, where one can lunch on the namesake chef’s full range of products (some of which are imported stateside) on a porch overlooking a pond.

Founded by a young English doctor, winery Penfolds offers tours of its substantial facility and a unique opportunity to play winemaker. Dressed in a lab coat, you use beakers and three wine varieties to whip up a new blend. Three efforts later, you take home a 375-milliliter bottle of your most tasty concoction (which, since it hasn’t undergone any bottling processes, should be consumed within a day lest it turn vinegary).

Intimate and positively upscale, Barossa’s Appellation is one of Australia’s best restaurants. Executive chef Mark McNamara creates the most sublime flavor and texture combinations—the thinly sliced, red gum smoked duck breast, and tender, succulent wild venison cutlets make me pine for more even now. The wine list is superb as well. Appellation is part of Peppers The Louise, an incredibly romantic, dreamy, Wallpaper magazine-worthy boutique resort where all is provided for: rooms drenched in latte tones and creamy sugar whites, ultramodern bathrooms with heated floors and indoor/outdoor showers, spa toiletries, giant plasma TVs and a free DVD library. Needless to say, I left Peppers against my will, kicking and screaming.

With 31 cellar doors and cool climate, the Adelaide Hills is another wine haven boasting the additional attraction of Mount Lofty and its summit’s sprawling S.A. views. Owned by a South African gay couple, Hahndorf Hill Winery is one of its best. They produce excellent chardonnay, rose and a “White Mischief” blend, and serve an unforgettable weekend lunch.

Heading down towards the water, the Fleurieu Peninsula and McLaren Vale continue the food/wine debauchery, with the bonus of beach life—surfing, whale watching, Aussies in surfwear!

Just across the water, Kangaroo Island is Australia’s third largest island, where we spent two days exploring with Exceptional Kangaroo Island’s Neil Sheppard, a sort of gay-friendly Crocodile Dundee-slash-artist (one of his paintings hangs in the Island’s airport). We lounged with sea lions— including a really cute baby—on the beach at Seal Bay (but don’t get too close: They’ll maul you!), took photos among the weather-eaten, monstrous stone formations at Remarkable Rocks, and hit up the Island Beehive to sample honeys produced by the world’s last pure strain of Ligurian bees.

We also had close encounters with kangaroo, wallaby, echidna (a peculiar porcupine-like critter with a vibrations-sensing beak), koala, New Zealand fur-seals, penguins and the poisonous black tiger snake. And we slept in style at the spectacular Life Time Private Retreats—a series of gorgeous, entirely modern houses with comforts including high-speed Internet, a packed comp pantry, catered meals and spa bath products, overlooking the ocean and island cliffs. A stay here, with friends or a lover, is well worth a jump to S.A. Truly, the south doesn’t get much more comfortable than this.

Essentials

Accomodations

East End Astoria, 33 Vardon Ave., Adelaide, S.A.

Hyatt Regency, North Terrace. Adelaide, S.A.
www.adelaide.regency.hyatt.com

Majestic Roof Garden Hotel, 55 Frome St., Adelaide, S.A.
www.majestichotels.com.au

Oaks Embassy, 96 North Terrace, Adelaide, S.A.
www.theoaksgroup.com.au

Oaks Horizon, 104 North Terrace, Adelaide, S.A.
www.theoaksgroup.com

Peppers The Louise, Seppeltsfield Rd., Nuriootpa, S.A.
www.thelouise.com.au

Stamford Plaza, 150 North Terrace, Adelaide, S.A.
www.stamford.com.au/spa

Culture

Adelaide Botanic Gardens, North Terrace, Adelaide, S.A.
www.enviroonment.sa.gov.au

The Art Gallery of South Australia, North Terrace between Kintore Avenue and Frome Road, Adelaide, S.A.
www.artgallery.sa.gov.au

Exceptional Kangaroo Island
www.adventurecharters.com.au

The National Wine Centre of Australia, Corner of Botanic and Hackney Roads, Adelaide, S.A.
www.wineaustralia.com.au

The State Library, North Terrace, Adelaide, S.A.
www.slsa.sa.gov.au

Food

Appellation at Peppers The Louise
www.appellation.com.au

Chocolate Bean, 18 Union St., Adelaide, S.A.

Eros Ouzeri, 277 Rundle St., Adelaide, S.A.

Maggie Beer Farm Shop, 2 Keith St., Tanunda, S.A.
www.maggiebeer.com.au

The Manse, 142 Tynte St., North Adelaide, S.A.
www.themanserestaurant.com.au

Mapo Restaurant, 113 Gouger St., Adelaide, S.A.
www.mapo.com.au

Red Ochre Restaurant, War Memorial Drive, North Adelaide, S.A.
www.redochre.com.au

Star of Siam, 67 Gouger St., Adelaide, S.A.

Zest Cafe, 2 Sussex St., Glenelg, S.A.

Getting There

Qantas Airways
www.qantas.com.au

Nightlife

Crown & Sceptre Hotel, 308 King William St., Adelaide, S.A.
www.sceptre.com.au

La Boheme, 34 Grote St., Adelaide, S.A.

Mars Bar, 120 Gouger St., Adelaide, S.A.
www.themarsbar.com.au

Resources

Blaze
www.blazemedia.com.au

The Pink Sofa
www.thepinksofa.com.au

Same Same
www.samesame.com.au

South Australian Tourism Commission
www.southoz.com

Wine

Hahndorf Hill Winery, Lot 10 Pains Rd., Hahndorf, S.A.
www.hahndorfhillwinery.com.au

Life is a Cabernet
www.lifeisacabernet.com.au

Penfolds
www.penfolds.com.au