Adelaide Oval RoofClimb

Scale New Heights on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb

In Activities, Australia, Most Popular Posts 3, Outdoors by Sheena9 Comments

See the city around you from a whole new perspective on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb. Check out the stunning views and find out why it’s the ultimate one-of-a-kind experience in Australia.

Contents

The Perfect Gift

I came across the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb while searching online for Christmas gifts for my travel-loving family. I always prefer receiving experiences over material things so that’s what I try to give too 🙂

Everyone was super happy with their Roof Climb gift cards – except for my brother’s fiancée Fiona who turned out to be afraid of heights! The certificates are transferable so she was able to give it to her aunt Colleen to go with her dad Ralph, as well as my parents & myself.

With 5 people to work around, it took a few months to coordinate a date & time that suited everyone but we eventually made it on the twilight Adelaide Oval Roof Climb on a perfect March evening.

Fun things to do in Adelaide
Adelaide Oval Roof Climb gift cards made the perfect Christmas present for my family!

Suiting Up at Adelaide Oval

Adelaide Oval is in the heart of our fine city. The best way to get there is to take the Riverbank Footbridge from North Terrace.

We arrived 30 minutes early (at least 15 minutes is necessary), which gave us plenty of time to read & sign the health & safety forms.

At 6:00pm our Adelaide Oval Roof Climb experience officially kicked off! We were introduced to our guide Adam as well as the 4 other people in our group.

Then we began suiting up in our custom blue & orange roof climb jumpsuits. These were put on over our clothes and as it was a cooler evening, most people kept their jumpers on too.

Glasses can be attached to a lanyard but no cameras, phones & jewellery are allowed.

The jumpsuit came with a safety harness and many other straps & buckles to put into place so suiting up took around 30 minutes. We were also hooked up with an audio system & earpiece and a metal trolley that would keep us secure on the roof.

Adelaide Oval Roof Climb
The Adelaide Oval Roof Climb goes from the Western Stand on the right to the Southern Stand in the middle

On Top of the World

All geared up, Team Roof Climb was ready to roll! After a short walk around the stadium, an elevator ride & a few stairs we were quickly up on the roof of Adelaide Oval.

From up here, it was easy to see why it’s regarded as one of the most picturesque cricket grounds in the world. Trees & parklands surround Adelaide Oval against a backdrop of rolling mountain ranges on one side & the coastline on the other.

The natural setting has been so well integrated in the $535 million development, completed in 2014.

Much of the heritage of Adelaide Oval also remains, such as the scoreboard & northern-mound fig trees behind the beloved Hill.

Guide Adam enlightened us with lots of facts & stories during the roof climb. The audio system & earpiece was fantastic as we were always able to hear him clearly & from a distance.

As all of us were locals on the tour, Adam quizzed us on various landmarks across the city. We did better on those that the South Australian history questions… who knew that Colonel Light (Adelaide’s original city planner) was actually buried under Light Square?!

Adelaide Oval Roof Climb
Tourists in our own backyard & loving it!

Safety First

3 new grandstands were built as part of the redevelopment, which of course has allowed us to experience the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb today.

As I mentioned before, all climbers carry a metal trolley attached to their jumpsuits.

This is then hooked onto a railing system that runs the entire length of the roof climb. The trolley follows you along as you walk & you never have to hook or unhook it even once.

Best things to do in Adelaide
Looking good in our blue jumpsuits on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb!

I loved being able to walk so high up with my hands-free, knowing that it was virtually impossible to fall or injure myself.

Safety is taken extremely seriously on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb, as it should be.

I felt like I was in the safest of hands, which is why I think it’s a good challenge for those with a fear of heights. The roof climb is on a solid surface (for the most part!) and at 50m from the ground, it’s not tooooo high – with the metal trolley you’re also truly secure at all times.

For international visitors, don’t forget to purchase travel insurance before any trip to Australia. We’ve been using World Nomads for over 10 years and we’ve been really happy with their coverage and services.

For more details check out our Word Nomads review here.

Best Seats in the House

The Adelaide Oval Roof Climb took us along the Western Stand.  We went at a leisurely pace & were never rushed which made it even more enjoyable.

We made several stops along to way to talk, enjoy the views & take photos. Unfortunately we couldn’t bring along our own phones or cameras but Guide Adam took lots of shots. A group photo is included in the tour & more photos are available for purchase.

There’s obviously lots of walking involved on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb and some sections are a little steep – but I’d say you’d just need a reasonable level of fitness. It’s definitely suitable for all ages, young & old.

Adelaide Oval Roof Climb
The best seats in the house are all the way up on the Southern Stand!

From the Western Stand we climbed up to the Southern Riverbank Stand where we then walked across a narrow bridge under the roof. Now this is where a little vertigo could kick in as the bridge was quite exposed on all sides and you could look down directly down to the ground under your feet. Personally I love this kind of adrenaline!

The bridge walk led out onto a wide platform facing the entire Adelaide Oval. We took a break & sat down on the chairs – literally the best seats in the house!

The view was absolutely spectacular, especially at sunset. It would be awesome to watch a game of footy or cricket from up here, which you can actually do on game days. Roof climb & match? The ultimate day for any sports lover I reckon.

This was also the spot where we had the chance to lean all the way back off the edge of the platform, as far as our metal trolley would let us. With your arms open wide, the “Lean Out” should be at the top of every Adelaide bucketlist!

Fun things to do in Adelaide
Dare to “Lean Out” on the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb!

Adelaide Oval Roof Climb: The Final Verdict

We walked back inside & under the roof to complete our full circle of the Southern Riverbank Stand.

Along the way we admired the bright lights of Adelaide & the beautiful Riverbank promenade.

Soon after we came to the end of the Roof Climb experience & we were back on the outside ourselves, minus the jumpsuits (but we got to keep the caps)!

We all had an awesome time & it was one of the most memorable experiences we’ve had as a family.

The Adelaide Oval Roof Climb is one of only 6 stadiums in the world you can walk on, up there with the O2 Arena in London.

As a South Australian, I’ve always been proud to have Adelaide Oval in my backyard – now the Roof Climb is the cherry on top that I hope everyone will get a taste of 🙂

Adelaide Oval Roof Climb
Lovely view of the Riverbank from the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb

Find more inspiration in one of the Australia guide books below! 

Adelaide Oval Tours

There are four different Adelaide Oval Roof Climb tours available:

  • Roof Climb Day: AU$109
  • Roof Climb Twilight: AU$119
  • Roof Climb Night: AU$124
  • Roof Climb Game On: AU$235 + match ticket

Adelaide Oval also runs Stadium Tours for AU$25. Stadium tours are available daily at 10 am, 11 am, and 2 pm. They also run at 1 pm Saturday and Sunday.

The Bradman Collection is free.

The Hill of Grace Restaurant offers fine dining overlooking the hallowed turf.

Of course Adelaide Oval is also the home of cricket and football in South Australia. It also hosts major sporting events and international concerts – whatever your preference, don’t miss a visit to this iconic venue!

What's on in Adelaide
One last look at the stadium on the twilight Adelaide Oval Roof Climb

Know Before You Go

Location: Adelaide Oval – War Memorial Drive, North Adelaide, SA 5006
Adelaide Oval Roof Climb Cost: Starting at AU$109
Duration: approximately 2 hours
Souvenirs Included: Group Photo and Roof Climb Cap
Wear: Comfortable clothes, closed footwear (no phones, cameras and jewelry allowed)
Contact Information:

Visited in March 2018

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means that we receive a small commission if you click on a link and purchase something that we’ve recommended, at no extra cost to you.

Thank you to Elise and Adelaide Oval Roof Climb for hosting me. We only recommend fun, value for money activities & experiences that we believe our readers would enjoy.  As always, all opinions are our own – photos courtesy of Adelaide Oval Roof Climb and Guide Adam!

Comments

  1. I can see how the Adelaide Oval Roof Climb could be scary for some people. Luckily, I’m not one of them! This looks like such a fun experience, especially for the view of the city. What a great idea to give your family gift cards so you could all experience this together, too!

    1. Author

      Yes that was the best part! It was a bit of a gamble putting all my Christmas presents in 1 basket but everyone loved it. Always nice to play tourist in your own backyard 🙂

  2. What an adventure! It’s fun to see more and more attractions adding features like this — there are a lot of people who really enjoy this kind of thrill!

    1. Author

      Are you one of them?! As a local it can be hard to find new things to do so I was excited to test it out. Adelaide’s version of the Sydney Harbor Bridge Walk 🙂

    2. Author

      Are you one of them?! As a local it can be hard to find new things to do so I was excited to test it out. Adelaide’s version of the Sydney Harbour Bridge Walk 🙂

  3. Wow! I loved my time in Adelaide, but I didn’t know you could do this. Looks like a beautiful view, and you guys had such nice weather for your day!

  4. How exciting! I didn’t even know roof climbs were a thing! It’s probably a good thing you couldn’t bring your camera, as I know if it was me, I’d probably drop it and lose it forever.

    1. Author

      Haha that’s a good point! It’s always nice to be hands-free too, I feel like I really soak up experiences a lot more without a phone or camera in my hands.

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