North Terrace offers cultural overload at the very heart of the city. Start with an 8am breakfast at East Terrace Continental, take a stroll in the Botanic Garden before walking west along the Terrace's string of gothic grandeur.

Get a dose of colonial masters in the evocative Art Gallery (free) or go to the SA Museum (free) for opalised plesiosaurs and the two huskies that Mawson didn't eat. The Migration Museum (free) at rear proves evocative in strange ways, the Treasure Wall in the State Library (free) always has curiosities, and the Mortlock Wing (free) is genteel and hallowed.

Turn north at Parliament House and choose between a backstage tour of the Festival Centre or a tour of the world's most beautiful cricket ground, the Adelaide Oval.

Cross the River Torrens, head up the hill to the statue of Colonel Light then look back and murmur: "So this is what Adelaide is all about." Return to North Terrace and catch the tram to Victoria Square for a bit of kicking back.

Change onto the Glenelg tram (25 mins) that terminates at Moseley Square. Practically on the beach, this is where summer kids run through squirty fountains and everyone seems to be eating and drinking. Join them for a badly-needed lunch; the civilised Conservatory in the Stamford offers essential sea views, but fish and chips out of the Kiosk will get you even closer to the water.

Check out the jolly Discovery Centre at the Town Hall, explaining what Glenelg was and is, then take a walk along the jetty, noting Mediterranean-Australians jagging for squid. Join them if you like, or bliss out on the sand. Return on the tram and prepare for some serious eating.

Adelaide has several "Eat Streets", but it's been a big day so make it easy on yourself and head to Gouger Street. Take aperitifs at British India (around the corner), then window shop: most tastes are catered to (the United Nations seems to have opened restaurants here) but ultimately, busy al fresco dining is a good recommendation. Tomorrow you're going to indulge in a little drinking.

(We'll assume use of car, hire car or cabs.) Take breakfast at Cafe Zedz in the Adelaide Central Market (market days only) and enjoy the early morning bustle of the 150-year-old icon. Then to Penfolds Magill Estate in the foothills, a vineyard within city limits and the winery responsible for the famous Penfolds range. Regular tours cost $15, but the $150 tour includes tastings of wines that change hands for tens of thousands of dollars.

Continue steeply up Magill Road, stopping at the very aptly named 19th-century Scenic Hotel for a country lunch. Then cruise 30 minutes through verdant vales to the faintly daft but very happy hamlet of Hahndorf. Art lover or not, make for Hans Heysen's house and stone studio (The Cedars): it's other-worldly and other-timely. Finally, repair to the balcony of nearby Hahndorf Hill Winery with a bottle of Panic to safely see out the afternoon.