Family Fun: The Best Things to Do in Adelaide with Kids

So, you need some inspiration to keep your little ones entertained. We totally get it - there’s certainly a limit to how many playgrounds and indoor play centres one can handle.

When the school holidays hit, or the kids just need a little extra stimulation over the weekend, we’ve got you sorted. The best news is you don’t have to miss out on the fun either - most of these activities are great for grown-ups too!

Taking it up a notch from a day at the beach or lunch at a kid-friendly pub, we’ve covered everything from adventure parks and wildlife encounters to chocolate factories and museums.

Pack up the car and the crew and get ready for fun with the family as we explore the best things to do in Adelaide with kids.

Hahndorf Farm Barn

If your little ones are animal lovers, treat them to a day out at Hahndorf Farm Barn - and get a whole lot of cuteness overload while you're at it. Despite the name, this 'farm barn' isn't only a place to play and interact with farm animals; it's also a wildlife park! So, you can experience both a cosy hay day and wildlife safari. Bring a picnic blanket and some food with you and stay for lunch, as there's an undercover picnic and barbecue area.

Adults $18.50, children $14.50

2282 Mount Barker Road, Hahndorf

National Railway Museum

The National Railway Museum is a fun and educational day out for the whole family. Check out all sorts of displays, including model trains, steam locomotives, carriages from the Tea and Sugar train, interactive activities and so much more. You can even hop on a train for a free ride around the museum!

If you want to venture outdoors, take the Semaphore Train along the coastline. You can either go one-way and spend the rest of the day in Port Malcolm, or book a return trip.

During your time at the museum, make sure you visit the train simulator in the Main Pavilion, for an experience so realistic, you'll feel as though you're being transported to some mystery location. 

Adults $17, children $7

26 Champion Road, Newport

Adelaide Gaol

If your kids like all things spooky, why not take them to Adelaide Gaol? There's an abundance of activities and things to see, so you definitely won't get bored! Take a self-guided tour during the day, or embark on a ghost crime tour at night time. Alternatively, if you want to do something a little more lighthearted, have a picnic on the lawns and enjoy the sunshine!

18 Gaol Road, Adelaide

Australian Space Discovery Centre

Your kids will feel as though they've blasted off into outer space from the minute they step inside of the Australian Space Discovery Centre. Here, you'll be able to explore the latest innovations and developments in aerospace technology and learn about our country's involvement in space. It's bound to wow the little ones, and even yourself!

Lot Fourteen Ground Floor, McEwin Building, corner of Frome Road and North Terrace, Adelaide

South Australian Maritime Museum

From outer space to under the sea. This is quite the opposite to our previous suggestion, the South Australian Maritime Museum, but equally entertaining. This museum tracks the voyages of those who lived on the sea, charted unknown waters, and migrated to begin completely new lives. Learn about the ships they sailed in, the marine ecosystems and how they have shifted from the past to what they are today, and interact with special exhibitions. 

126 Lipson Street, Port Adelaide

Adelaide Botanic Gardens

If you want to get the kids outdoors, why not explore the Adelaide Botanic Gardens? There's so much to explore, so you can easily spend an entire day here. Stroll through the endless stretches of aesthetic gardens and admire the historic buildings including Palm House, the Santos Museum of Economic Botany and the Goodman Building and State Herbarium. Make sure you bring a picnic blanket so that you can set up on a stretch of grass and enjoy lunch as a family.

North Terrace, Adelaide

Beerenberg Strawberry Farm

From November through to April, a trip out to the charming suburb of Hahndorf is made even sweeter by making a stop at the Beerenberg Farm for strawberry picking. Head to the Farm Shop and collect your picking containers, then head out to the patch and look for the most vibrant strawberries to pick.

At the end of your collection, you pay for your haul by weight. We have a sneaking suspicion these will be some of the juiciest berries you’ve had in a while!

Visit the Farm Café and Dairy for some milkshakes and apple crumble waffles, post-pick and don’t forget some jam, chutney and sauces from the Farm Shop before you leave to have a taste of Beerenberg at home.

Sitchu Tip: Be sure to check the website before jumping in the car, as sometimes the strawberry farm needs to close if they have been ‘picked out’ or due to bad weather.

$5 per person, kids under 12 free

Picking times: November through April

Mount Barker Road, Hahndorf

Tree Climb Adelaide

For an outdoor adventure that will get the heart pulsing, buckle up for a TreeClimb. Easily one of the most fun things to do in Adelaide with kids (plus a great way to get them away from the screens) you’ll be harnessed in, given a safety briefing and walking amongst the treetops, ziplining through forest and completing course challenges in no time.

Situated in the heart of Adelaide parklands for convenience, as well as a new location further out in the Kuitpo Forest which has a giant enclosed jumping net for the kiddies that are too short to climb. This is a day that will tire everyone out, and you’ll all leave with a little more knowledge of the environment and conservation.

Opening hours and prices vary, please check here for details

Adelaide: Park 20, Corner Greenhill Road and Unley Road, Kurangga Park, Adelaide

Kuitpo: Corner Black Nursery Road and Brookman Road, Kuitpo

Urth Clay Studio

Take the kids to a class where they are allowed to get their hands dirty... in a controlled creative environment, that is. Urth Clay Studio is offering something a little messy, but also a little zen. Several classes and programs cater to younger humans, with Muddy Hands, Big Brains Tiny Hands, Social Clay and school holiday programs all suitable for kids aged 7 and older. The team at Urth also host kids parties, where the focus is on planning and implementing pottery or clay pieces, and seeing their imaginations run wild as they get to work.

For more info on workshops and pricing, click here

3A Hubbe Court, Burnside

7/89 Goodwood Road, Goodwood

 Adelaide Zoo and Gorge Wildlife Park

Got an animal lover in your clan? They’ll love a trip to the Adelaide Zoo or Gorge Wildlife Park. The Adelaide Zoo is in a prime location on the outskirts of the CBD, and is home to animals from across the globe, including African lions, Giant pandas, giraffes and meerkats, plus all the Aussie natives – including the adorable quokka. There are animal encounters for the kids who are brave enough to get up close and have a go at feeding a giraffe or having a cheeky meerkat climbing along their shoulders.

A little further east, the kids can cuddle a koala and hold reptiles in the privately owned animal sanctuary at Gorge Wildlife Park. For the kids under eight, they can still watch some amazing encounters and learn a lot about the wildlife at the park.

Adelaide Zoo open daily, 9.30am to 5.00pm; from $22.50 for kids aged four to 14

Frome Road, Adelaide

Gorge Wildlife Park open daily, 9.00am to 5.00pm; from $13 for kids aged three to 15

30 Redden Drive, Cudlee Creek

The Beachouse

Make a splash at The Beachouse, a family amusement centre where it doesn’t matter if it’s a warm summer’s day or the middle of winter – there is always plenty of fun to be had here. Known by most Adelaideans given its long-standing residence and a beachfront location in Glenelg that is hard to miss, there are endless activities within these vibrant walls for the whole family to enjoy. From dodgem cars, mini golf and arcade games to water slides and bumper boats. There is a mini indoor play centre, classic carousel and train rides for the little kids, and a café with snacks and most importantly - barista made coffee for mum and dad.

No entry fee or bookings required, pay as you play; more information available here

Colley Terrace, Glenelg

Haigh’s Chocolate Factory

Remember how we said the grown-ups would be able to enjoy some of these activities too? Enter: The Haigh’s Chocolate Factory Tour. Live out your Charlie and the Chocolate Factory dreams and take the little ones to where it all started for Haigh’s. This well-loved South Australian company is over 100 years old and still operating out of their original factory on the fringe of the Adelaide Parklands – so these guys know a thing or two about great chocolate. The tours are completely free and operate 6 days a week, and you’ll see the expert chocolatiers at work creating delicious little bites. Once your tour is over, you’ll be spoilt for choice at the iconic (and huge) Haigh’s retail store on site. A great experience for those with a sweet tooth!

Free entry

154 Greenhill Road, Parkside

Play a round of Mini Golf

Mini golf, putt-putt, putting, peewee golf – whatever you call it, there are no two ways about it – an afternoon of mini golf is one of the best things to do in Adelaide with kids and is fun for the ‘hole’ family. Not only does it kill quite a bit of time as your group makes its way around the course, but it also teaches the little ones a thing or two about patience and control, all while being in a fabulously fun environment.

Adelaide has a few standout places to play, so find the adventure that best suits you. Holey Moley is a great option for rainy days, as this is an entirely indoor venue. Each hole brings a new theme and photo opps that are a little different to your standard mini golf windmills – think Monopoly boards, The Simpsons couch and Forrest Gump’s infamous park bench. There are arcade games, karaoke, an escape room and a bar for the adults – meaning you really could spend hours here.  

West Beach Mini Golf features 18 holes on a classic outdoor mini golf course not far from the beach making it perfect when the sun is shining, while Shanx takes the term ‘mini golf’ to a whole new meaning. A course that is miniature in size but copying a real golf course. There are no amusement concepts here, just rolling green hills, sand banks and a whole lot of golf...just in miniature. Cute!

Holey Moley: 170 Pulteney Road, Adelaide, prices available when booking.

West Beach Mini Golf: 1 Hamra Avenue, West Beach, pricing available here

Shanx: 216 Days Road, Regency Park, prices available when booking

South Australian Museum

For the days when a slow stroll amongst ancient artifacts and interactive exhibits calls, take the family for an afternoon at the South Australian Museum. This isn’t your basic, run-of-the-mill museum either. Showcasing Australian history across 5 levels, with a vibrant calendar of events and exhibitions that will have curiosity running wild. You can take a self-guided tour and go at your own pace or join a tour for all the fascinating information you might have missed. Our current pick of exhibits? The Shadow Initiation. Part escape room and part museum, you are given 1 hour to solve over 40 puzzles on this adventure.

Free entry, open daily 10.00am to 5.00pm

North Terrace, Adelaide

Has our list of things to do in Adelaide with kids got you itching to get out and explore even more of Adelaide and beyond? Why not take some time for yourself with a luxurious pamper sesh, or sip your way through some of the best wineries in South Australia?