A Mediterranean holiday without leaving Australia: Travel-starved tourists flock to a breathtaking beach with gold cliffs and crystal clear water
- Australians are getting a taste of the Mediterranean without leaving the country
- Port Willunga boasts golden cliff faces, crystal clear waters and soft white sand
- The South Australian coastline is reminiscent of Europe’s picturesque south
- Caves carved out by fishermen to store boats are now Instagram hotspots
Australians are getting a taste of the Mediterranean in their own backyard at a breathtaking beach less than one hour from Adelaide.
Tucked 45 kilometres south of the South Australian capital, Port Willunga boasts golden cliff faces, crystal clear waters and soft white sand reminiscent of Europe’s picturesque south.
Caves carved into the cliffs by fishermen who once stored boats there are now Instagram hotspots used as backdrops by millennial and Gen Z travellers.
Sections of the hull of the Star of Greece, a three-masted iron cargo ship which ran aground in 1888, remain on the ocean floor and have become one of the state’s most popular diving spots.
Australians are getting a taste of the Mediterranean in their own backyard at a breathtaking beach (pictured) less than one hour from Adelaide
Tucked 45 kilometres south of the SA capital, Port Willunga boasts golden cliff faces, crystal clear waters and soft white sand reminiscent of a Sicilian island or Portugal’s iconic Algarve
Port Willunga Beach, a taste of the Mediterranean less 45 kilometres south of Adelaide, SA
At low tide parts of the wreck are visible from the shore.
Photos of the beach have sparked stunned responses on social media, with many calling it a ‘European paradise’ and their favourite destination in South Australia.
‘Hands down one of the best spots along the Fleurieu Peninsula,’ one man wrote.
‘Forever chasing that blue water,’ said a second, while a third added: ‘Love this beach and the old boat caves!’
Sections of the hull of the Star of Greece, a three-masted iron cargo ship which ran aground in 1888, remain on the ocean floor and have become one of the state’s most popular diving spots
Photos of the beach have sparked stunned responses on social media, with many calling it a ‘European paradise’ and their favourite destination in South Australia
And it’s not the only domestic destination capturing imaginations as the weather heats up.
Thousands of kilometres west, travel-starved Australians are flocking to a ‘hidden gem’ beach on the southern tip of WA.
Nestled in the heart of Two Peoples Bay National Park, 35km east of Albany, Little Beach is famed for its pristine white sand and sparkling turquoise waves.
At the far southern end a path leads to the headland where a waterfall gushes down from the rocks and into the ocean.
Travel-starved Australians are flocking to this ‘hidden gem’ beach on the southern tip of WA
Tucked in the heart of Two Peoples Bay National Park, 35km east of Albany, Little Beach (pictured) is famed for its pristine white sand and sparkling turquoise waves
Flanked by rolling hills and rows of rugged boulders, the beach has been hailed ‘paradise on Earth’ by awestruck visitors.
Photos posted to Instagram by WA travel photographer MKZ Imagery sparked stunned responses, with many saying the beach is the first place they will travel to once the state opens its borders to the rest of the country.
‘Wow, this is incredible. The white sand. Crystal clear water. What a paradise,’ one person wrote.
Another added: ‘This looks like absolute perfection.’
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