South Australia: The Perfect Place for a Digital Detox

Flinders Ranges & Outback |Credit: South Australian Tourism Commission

When was the last time you went somewhere and genuinely switched off?

Not just putting your phone on silent while still checking emails over breakfast. We mean properly disconnecting - slowing down, getting outside and remembering what it feels like to have nowhere else you need to be.

South Australia may be one of the best places to do it.

Beyond Adelaide, the state quickly opens into an extraordinary collection of coastlines, national parks, walking trails, wine regions and vast Outback landscapes. This is a destination where the journey itself becomes part of the holiday: driving quiet roads, walking through ancient landscapes, watching wildlife or simply sitting somewhere spectacular as the sun goes down.

Kangaroo Island is an obvious place to begin. Its rugged coastline, wildlife and Flinders Chase National Park provide plenty of reasons to leave the phone behind. Head further north and the experience becomes even more dramatic. Around five hours from Adelaide, the Flinders Ranges rise out of the plains in red and purple folds, surrounded by the enormous spaces of the South Australian Outback.

Stay after dark and there's another reason not to stare at a screen. With little artificial light, the Flinders Ranges and Outback offer exceptional stargazing, including the International Dark Sky Sanctuary at Arkaroola. Sometimes the best evening's entertainment really is simply looking up.

A digital detox doesn't have to mean roughing it, either. South Australia has secluded cabins, glamping, eco accommodation and remote nature stays where comfort and isolation can happily coexist. Some retreats are sufficiently remote that mobile coverage disappears altogether - removing the temptation for you.

You could cycle the Riesling Trail in Clare Valley, walk beside the ocean, explore the Eyre Peninsula or find a quiet beach and do very little at all. That's really the point.

South Australia isn't a destination you need to race around collecting photographs of.

Go slowly. Look around. Put the phone away. And give yourself permission to be temporarily unavailable.

For more information visit Tourism South Australia.