Home to the Great Barrier Reef, Sydney Opera House and Uluru, Australia has long been famed for its iconic attractions. However for those in search of an authentic Aussie experience, South Australia is arguably where it’s at. Check out the list below of 12 facts you might know about South Australia…

Did you know…

  • South Australia is twice the size of France, 1.5 times the size of Texas and four times the size of the UK
  • Australia’s famous ‘dog fence’ is the longest man-made structure on earth and was built to prevent dingoes from preying on southern sheep flocks. It’s also twice the length of the Great Wall of China
  • National Parks and Reserves stretch across 12 million hectares of the South Australian Outback, making it one of the largest desert reserve systems in the world
  • Kangaroo Island is seven times the size of Singapore
  • South Australia’s waters are among the most biologically diverse in the world, with more than 370 species of fish, 80 percent of which occur only in South Australia
  • Haigh’s Chocolate factory is Australia’s oldest-surviving chocolate producer, and one of only three in the world that still makes chocolate direct from the cocoa bean
  • Kangaroo Island was recently voted by National Geographic Traveler as the most unspoilt island in the Asia Pacific region. It is widely considered to be the Galapagos of Australia, and the best place in the country to see native wildlife in their natural habitat
  • South Australia has more festivals on its calendar than any other Australian state
  • The 16km Coonawarra strip is the most expensive vineyard real estate in Australia
  • South Australia was the first of the Australian colonies to grant women the right to vote in 1894
  • South Australia is home to the world’s fastest suburban bus. At 12 kilometres long, the Adelaide O-Bahn is the longest and fastest guided bus service in the world, travelling at speeds of up to 100km/h
  • Kangaroo Island separated from the mainland over 10,000 years ago. Animals and plants evolved differently creating new species including a sub species of kangaroo, darker with a  shorter nose and longer hair than its mainland counterparts

Words: FlightCentre