SA vineyards

South Australian Vineyards: Hotel reviews

South Australian Vineyards Insider

The Commercial Hotel - Strathalbyn, South Australia

The countryside is dotted with old pubs, restored cottages, farms and vineyards that can make that vineyard getaway something special.

Save a buck on cheap sleeps

Budget accommodation options are quite limited around SA. When locals want to sleep cheaply (and get closer to nature) they go camping. If you don't have a tent, no worries — most campgrounds have self-contained flats that rent for around $40-$80 a night.

Camping grounds around the wine regions include the Gawler Caravan Park, Barossa Tourist Park, Clare Caravan Park, McLaren Vale Lakeside Caravan Park and Penola Caravan Park near Coonawarra.

For big groups the YHA's Barossa Valley Farmhouse and Rent-A-YHA Wilderness Cottages at Mount Lofty and Mylor in the Adelaide Hills and Wirrabara in the Flinders Ranges can be booked out for $100-170. The accommodation in the hostels is very basic, but the scenery around them is beautiful and, split across a group from between 10 to 20 people, they are very cheap places to stay.

Stay at the source: the vineyards

What better place to sleep than amongst the vines? Not only is the scenery magical, but it's a short stumble back to a comfortable bed for those who like to overindulge. In the Barossa, Seppeltsfield Vineyard Cottage, Barossa Shiraz Estate and Jacob's Creek wineries have accommodation. Seppeltsfield offers packages with dining and pampering included.

In the Clare Valley Skillogalee winery is a good option, as is the modern accommodation at Longview Vineyard in the Adelaide Hills. Padthaway Homestead in the Coonawarra/Padthaway wine region is a Victorian guesthouse that was built in 1882. Sitting amidst the vines the location is perfect and the fabulous breakfast can cure any winery-induced hangover.

Bedding down old style: country pubs

When I travel I love staying in pubs, the original traveller's accommodation. Out the back of the Adelaide Hill's region, Strathalbyn's Victoria Hotel is a great place to stay. Although it has been modernised, the pub retains much of its old charm. Strathalbyn itself is an interesting town as well, famous for its numerous antique and bric-a-brac shops. Check out G'day Pubs to see other pubs around the state.

If you really have to: hotels and resorts

The Novotel Barossa Valley Resort is the only large hotel in the area. It has decent enough accommodation, with the cleanliness, comfort and service you would expect from a hotel, as well as the other facilities such as a pool, gym and golf course. The restaurant and wine selection are very good, but the hotel feels more oriented towards conferences and functions than the individual traveller.

B&B accommodation

There are so many B&B options around SA that it is a little unfair to single out the few that I have stayed at. Most are old stone or wood cottages lovingly restored, with open fires, comfortable beds, huge breakfasts and an ambience that will truly make your visit to the wine regions.

There are several good websites to search for a B&B:

I won't finish without one recommendation though. The Georgian mansion Martindale Hall has remained almost unchanged since it was built in 1879. Not only is the building itself interesting, being a museum as well as a guesthouse, but it offers theme nights including murder-mystery night 'Incident at Martindale' and 'Spooky Cellar Nights', making it a very unique place to stay.

How would you rate these hotels? Know any other places to stay? Have your say using the comments form below.

See for yourself! Get great deals on hotels and super-cheap flights to the South Australian Vinyards now on

Next: Awesome links

More about Hotels:

Topics:

Hotels Barossa Valley McLaren Vale Australia South Australia

User comments

Write a comment

Email: *
Your email will not be shared with any third parties or published with your comment.
Nickname: *
Location: *

Subject:
*
Comment:
*
Maximum characters 1000

* Indicates required field

Comment guidelines

Avoid using:

Personal attacks
Irrelevant comments
HTML tags
Personal information
Offensive language
Text in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS

See full comment guidelines

Comment guidelines X

Thank you for sharing your opinions with other users of NineMSN. People will find your comments more helpful if you include relevant information and avoid some common pitfalls.

Please note: All reviews and comments submitted are subject to moderation, NineMSN reserves the right to alter and / or remove any content that does not comply with usage guidelines.

What to include in your comment: