The 10 Best Annual Adelaide Festivals

Eat, drink, dance and be merry at one of Adelaide’s many vibrant festivals.

Adelaide is known as Australia’s Festival City thanks to its calendar of standout events. From festivals featuring music and art to flagship food and wine festivals and hybrid formats that celebrate all of the above, here are 10 Adelaide festivals that will brighten your days and nights.

St Jerome’s Laneway Festival

This boutique counter-cultural festival, which first popped up in a grungy back alley in Melbourne in 2004, encourages up-and-coming and established musicians – from psycho-rock guitar bands to top-shelf electro DJS — to reclaim the streets of Radelaide. Expect alt acts such as the Pist Idiots, Ocean Alley, Tones and I and Spacey Jane to find their groove at the festival, traditionally held in the historic Hart’s Mill precinct in Port Adelaide.

Adelaide Fringe Festival

Expect to gasp and giggle your way around the annual Adelaide Fringe Festival, where the kaleidoscopic program ranges from grungy, visceral theatre to circus, visual arts, comedy, classical and contemporary music, workshops and more.

All up, there are about 6000 artists performing everything from across 300 venues all over South Australia. Rove through the festival and you will delight at everything from drumming circles to family puppet shows, physical theatre and Indigenous dance.

Adelaide Fringe Festival — Adelaide streets come alive during the Fringe Fest.

Tasting Australia

High up on many a foodie’s bucket list, Tasting Australia has evolved to become Australia’s premier eating and drinking festival, with fabulous food and wine, hands-on workshops, exclusive dinners and inspired feasts. As well as reflecting the diverse cultural heritage of Adelaide’s citizens, the indulgent 10-day adventure will also be your passport to farm tours, tastings and long-table lunches that celebrate the talents of local chefs, winemakers and producers.

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WOMADelaide

The South Australian capital is transformed each year for WOMADelaide, which draws thousands to appreciate its richly varied program of music, aerial theatre, dance, film, art and culture.

The annual festival, which has been celebrating cultural and creative diversity since its inception in 1992, is traditionally held across seven stages in Botanic Park. WOMADelaide is one of six WOMAD festivals that are part of a global circuit.

Kids at WOMADelaide — Kids and adults alike can enjoy WOMADelaide. (Image: Megan Crabb)

Groovin the ‘Moo

This annual autumn musical festival has established itself as one of the classical Aussie music events. Expect acts such as Ruby Fields, Lime Cordiale, G Flip and Hockey Dad to headline the festival which is as much about wearing eye-popping and out-there outfits as it is about groovin’ with your moo crew to gigs ranging from electronic to indie rock. The festival is traditionally held in Adelaide Showground. The festival did not go ahead in 2024 but fans are hopeful it will return in 2025.

Adelaide Beer and BBQ Festival

The Adelaide Beer & BBQ Festival draws together a varied guest list of beer and barbecue vendors who take up residence at Adelaide Showground each year for the annual event.

Close up of glass and guide at Adelaide Beer and BBQ fest — The Beer and BBQ Festival shines the spotlight on one of the great pairings in life. (Image: South Australian Tourism Commission)

With more than 100 brewers, cideries, distillers and winemakers in attendance, you can enjoy a tutored tasting or two and then make a beeline for the best-looking barbecue ribs. The three-day festival also features live music.

100 brewers, cideries, distillers and winemakers convene.

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Adelaide Festival

Let the good times roll at Adelaide Festival, which has been around 60-plus years now. Enjoy an eclectic line-up of dance theatre, contemporary and classical music, striking visual arts displays and award-winning writers at the Adelaide Writers’ Week event, which falls under the festival’s umbrella. Adelaide comes alive for the festival, which provides a platform for emerging artists and commissions innovative new works.

Adelaide Cabaret Festival

Cue your jazz hands for the largest cabaret festival in the world. Conceptualised in 2001, the Adelaide Cabaret Festival shines the spotlight on creative excellence, highlighting the best local, national and – where possible – international artists through a dynamic program of boundary-pushing performances to suit all ages.

Cellar Door Fest

What better way to sample world-class South Australian wines than under one roof at Cellar Door Fest, which brings together some of the State’s best wineries, breweries and distilleries for this annual three-day event. Taste South Australian Grenache from Yalumba, sip on big, bold reds from the Barossa and combine cheese and cider at the festival, which also features local musicians ranging from fiddle-forward folk rockers to indie artists.

Sample South Australian wines at Cellar Door.

South Australian Living Arts Festival

The South Australian Living Arts Festival is one of the most vibrant arts events in Adelaide. Established in 1998 as a way to promote and pay homage to South Australian visual artists, the festival organisers continue to celebrate the diverse creative practises of SA artists with cutting-edge programs that keep the brain cells firing.

Adding colour to the festival are visual artists that use collage, assemblage, painting, photography and video to produce their works.

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With unhurried mornings, long, sun-filled afternoons, evenings shaped around sunset, this iconic beach offers an all-day experience (and it’s about to get even better).

As the sun slowly rises over the languid waves and fine sand of Broome’s Cable Beach, the morning colours shift from rich apricot to pale gold and frosty pearl. Remnants of life reveal themselves in the subtle shadows – crab claw marks, towel impressions, footprints. Life here is unhurried, but don’t be fooled. This town is continually shifting like the desert dunes that surround it.

And with a $75 million upgrade – offering easier and more inclusive access for people of all abilities – it’s getting even better.

Cable Beach upgrade foreshore redevelopment stage 1 — Discover the Cable Beach redevelopment.

The addition of comfortable and welcoming spaces has begun (and will continue). This means visitors will be able to spend longer enjoying this beautiful environment, while knowing that the upgrade will create a more environmentally protected setting that preserves the natural character visitors come for. Come sunset, soak it in all the better thanks to the already improved foreshore areas, made for lingering while the light changes. And for the kids, a new splash park and accessible dry playground will make it easy to while away the hours.

Think you know what a day at this beach is like? Think again.

Morning colours

car on cable beach at sunrise — Cable Beach comes alive after sunrise. (Credit: Tourism WA)

As the sun colours the sky, Cable Beach shows signs of life (and not just the aquatic kind). Locals and visitors alike float in the cool water as it laps the shore, landlubbers explore the coast on foot, runners pace and beachside yoga classes bring quiet movement to the day.

When the sky is blue and the sun is firmly in position, head down to the well-known Cable Beach House for a long, slow breakfast overlooking the ocean. Think fresh tropical fruit, eggs cooked your way and strong coffee in the warm morning breeze.

Afternoon adventures

camel train on cable beach in broome at sunset — Join a camel train at sunset. (Credit: C J Maddock)

When you’re ready to explore, carve a path along the Minyirr Park Trail – a gentle 1.5-2km track through coastal bushland with spectacular views of the dunes. Refuel at the nearby Spinifex Brewery for lunch with its low-key, outdoor beer garden. There’s even an outdoor playground if you’re travelling with young humans.

Walk off your lazy lunch by watching (or joining) one of the beach soccer or volleyball games, or even try Silent Beats Broome – a silent walking disco through the dunes. Or book a spot on the famous camel trains, watching the sun drop below the horizon along the way. They’re a constant reminder of the fascinating history, landscape and cultural mix in this part of the country.

Evening degustation

server at Cable Beach Club — Stop into the Cable Beach Club. (Credit: Tourism WA)

As the day closes, watch the world-famous Cable Beach sunset from the appropriately named Sunset Grill at Cable Beach Club. This open-air terraced dining spot overlooking the beach is the kind of place where the view takes centre stage.

While you sip on a lychee, lime & lemonade mocktail or a local beer, enjoy the bustle of life and nature outside as the day comes to an end.

For dinner, nab a table at the Bali Hai Cafe, where they offer pan-fried crispy barramundi, Abrolhos Island scallops and deep-sea snow crab. When you’re ready for bed, check in to Pinctada Hotel Broome – a lush, tropical resort with palm-dotted gardens and a large, lagoon-style pool to cool off in.

Beyond the beach

Beyond the wide, open beach and never-ending sky of Cable Beach, there are many more reasons to visit North West Australia. These are just a few.

Unmatched experiences

Shinju Matsuri Festival's popular Long Table Dinner on cable beach — Join Shinju Matsuri Festival’s popular Long Table Dinner. (Credit: Tourism WA)

Engage with the history of the land and its people on an Indigenous cultural tour exploring everything from the local wildlife to the tastes of bush tucker. To understand the importance of pearling to this town, take a tour of Chinatown, or head outside of town to the live pearl harvests at Willie Creek or Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm, one of Australia’s oldest pearl farms.

Learn why Japanese pearlers were central to Broome’s pearling success and visit the largest Japanese cemetery in Australia, where 900 Japanese pearlers were buried – a testament to the risks and rewards of this dangerous profession.

And book ahead every spring for when communal tables, freshly cooked local fare and festoon lighting fill the beach for the extremely popular Long Table Dinner on Cable Beach. It’s a highlight of the Shinju Matsuri Festival, along with the Floating Lanterns Matsuri, where you can personalise a lantern and gently release it into the sea to honour those you love.

Dining discoveries

Further your culinary adventure at the laid-back Sunday Sesh at Matso’s Broome Brewery. Chow down on smoked crocodile or Aussie barramundi while kicking back to a local DJ as the heat of the day fades.

For more tunes, the beautiful outdoor Bay Club at the Mangrove Hotel is a great choice for dinner with live music, DJs or an event that stretches on into the early hours. Still hungry? Pop by Johnny Sausage for Italian-influenced meals paired with impeccable wines.

Natural beauties

Gantheaume Point cabnle beach broome — Experience the striking colours of Gantheaume Point. (Credit: Tourism WA)

Avoid the crowds and head to Town Beach for a quieter vantage point to see the phenomenal Staircase to the Moon – a natural illusion where the rising full moon is reflected on the tidal flats, creating a shimmering ‘staircase’ stretching up to the sky.

Just south of Cable Beach are the deep red cliffs and dramatic ocean views of Gantheaume Point, where 130-million-year-old dinosaur footprints can be seen, revealed at low tide. Or head to Roebuck Bay to visit the internationally significant wetlands, where vast tidal flats are home to shorebirds and coastal fauna.

Between October and March, watch turtles nesting and hatchlings emerge from the sand. You’ll be holding your breath as they make their way down to the shoreline, ready to start their life in one of Australia’s most beautiful landscapes.

For more on Cable Beach and Australia’s North West, visit australiasnorthwest.com.

Top 10 annual Adelaide festivals