DAY 1  SAT 1 NOV

HOME TO ADELAIDE

Meet your Ross Tour Leader at Sydney Domestic Airport for your flight to Adelaide, or join us in Adelaide. Afternoon visit of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens. Settle in to your hotel, then meet up with your travel companions for Welcome Dinner this evening in the hotel restaurant.

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Adelaide

DAY 2 SUN 2 NOV

ANLABY STATION

To Anlaby Station this morning, the oldest Merino stud in South Australia. Established in 1839, this once grand pastoral estate employed 14 gardeners! Our private tour includes the shade house, glasshouse, walled garden, rose garden & terraced lawns. Soak up life on this fascinating property at lunch. This afternoon we head to Maggie Beer’s famous Pheasant Farm at Nurioopta. Taste Maggie’s famous wine & cheese.

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Adelaide

DAY 3 MON 3 NOV

TICKLE TANK

No photos could ever fully capture the wonder and whimsy of Irene Pearce’s ‘Tickle Tank’. Every  inch is filled with colour and form, mosaics and sculptures; with careful planting to create a series of vignettes. Free afternoon in Adelaide with time to explore the Adelaide Central markets.  

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Adelaide

DAY 4 TUES 4 NOV

AL RU FARM

A day to meet three passionate gardeners! Al-Ru Farm is first this morning at One Tree Hill. Irrepressible Ruth Irving is a clever and passionate gardener. Her garden is an exuberance of poppies, iris, perennials and  roses. Walk through her wisteria arbour into a restrained formal white garden. Ashgrove Iris Garden is next, a treat for those who love the magical combination of roses and iris. Meet Diane Michalk,  iris collector, who will show you why Iris is called "The Rainbow Flower". Last stop is a new garden, made with incredible attention to detail. Travel back into Adelaide.

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Adelaide

DAY 5 WED 5 NOV

CARRICK HILL

Carrick Hill is first this morning, a grand Tudor style house built in 1930 by Sir Edward Hayward and bequeathed to the people of South Australia. See the private collection of two perceptive art connoisseurs, Ursula and Bill Hayward. Roses play a large part in this historic garden with formal rose beds, and three separate rose gardens, one for Old Garden Roses, one for modern Hybrid Teas and the third is devoted to Alister Clark roses. We'll enjoy a tour of the house and garden. After free time at Hahndorf Village for lunch, 

‘The Cedars’, the home for more than 50 years of the Heysen family. We will start the afternoon with a special high tea. Our host will then take us on a tour to discover the chalet-style studio where Hans Heysen painted many of his famous landscapes. See the studio of Nora Heysen, daughter of Hans Heysen, the only one of the Heysen children to become an artist. The garden has been recreated with the roses, zinnias and many of the flowers that both Heysens loved to paint. See the eucalypts, River Red Gums and white gums that Hans Heysen painted and that surround his home.  

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Adelaide

DAY 6 THUR 6 NOV

ADELAIDE TO KANGROO ISLAND

Head south this morning to Cape Jervis & take the Sealink ferry across to Kangaroo Island, an unspoiled refuge, internationally famous for its pristine wilderness & wildlife. Kangaroos & Tammar wallabies wander the island. Echidnas & goannas scuttle in the undergrowth & koalas doze in the trees. Lunch included at Emu Lavender Bay. Check into the Aurora Ozone Hotel overlooking Nepean Bay at Kingscote.

Aurora Ozone Hotel, Kingscote K.I.

DAY 7 FRI 7 NOV

SEAL BAY

Begin the day at Seal Bay with incredible views of the extraordinary coastline and sea lion colony. This is the only place in the world where you can see these Australian sea lions at close quarters. You'll be given unique insights into how these endangered animals fish, surf, rest, interact with their pups and defend their territory. Lunch included today at Rockpool Cafe. Meet the locals at The Parndana Community Garden, established after the devastating bushfire on Kangaroo Island in January 2020. 

Aurora Ozone Hotel, Kingscote K.I.

DAY 8 SAT 8 NOV

FLINDERS CHASE NP

We cross the island to the rugged wilderness of the iconic Flinders Chase National Park. Spend the afternoon exploring the stunning coastal park with special note of the bush regeneration. The spectacular Admirals Arch & wind-sculpted Remarkable Rocks are two of the outstanding landmarks you will see today.

Aurora Ozone Hotel, Kingscote K.I.

DAY 9 SUN 9 NOV

MURRAY MOUTH CRUISE

We are heading back on the ferry to Cape Jervis, then on to Victor Harbour with time for lunch. An afternoon cruise from Goolwa to discover the Spirit of the Coorong, a magnificent wetland at the mouth of the Murray River. The long narrow Coorong Wetland Lagoon complex stretches 100 kms from the Murray Mouth, separated from the Southern Ocean by a series of enormous sand dunes. Farewell Dinner included tonight.

Hotel Victor, Victor Harbour

DAY 10  MON 10 NOV

ADELAIDE TO HOME

After breakfast, we will leave Victor Harbour to travel to Adelaide airport for our homeward flight this morning.