Kangaroo Island via SeaLink

There is no bridge to get to Kangaroo Island which is just off the mainland of South Australia, so you need to fly or go via ferry!

The easiest is of course the ferry ... so you need to book via SeaLink which departs from Cape Jervis for Penneshaw every day.  There are up to 12 ferry services each day, but do check the timetable especially during busy holiday periods.

SeaLink’s two modern, air-conditioned car and passenger ferries, Sealion 2000 and Spirit of Kangaroo Island take just 45 minutes to cross Backstairs Passage between Cape Jervis and Penneshaw on Kangaroo Island.

on board the Sealion 2000

Both ferries are twin-hulled catamaran ferries complete with air-conditioned lounges, comfortable lounge or café style seating, a licensed café serving great cappuccinos and fresh snacks, outdoor viewing decks, wheelchair access, disabled toilets and baby change facilities.

 

The ferry terminal at Cape Jervis is open from 8:00am thru till 7:00pm between September and April and from May to August it is open from 8.00am till 6.00pm

There is a cafe serving coffee and snacks, free WiFi, restrooms, tourist information and booking services.

Boarding the Ferry:

When you arrive at the Ferry Terminal with your vehicle you must wait in the designated area. Decide who is going to be the driver before obtaining the boarding pass.  If you are towing a caravan, trailer, camper etc you will need to reverse the vehicle onto the ferry so it can be driven straight off at the other end.

a car with a trailer & kayak is reversing onto the ferry

On arrival at the terminal, the passenger will need to go to the Check-in Counter in the terminal with the booking number to obtain the BOARDING PASS.  Do this as soon as you arrive as it will be busy if there are coachloads of passengers arriving in from Adelaide!

foot passengers boarding the ferry

The passenger will need to walk on to the ferry, the driver of the vehicle is the only one permitted to be in the vehicle when boarding.

getting ready to depart

SeaLink also advise you to take out insurance for the crossing. The Ferry can be cancelled at a moments notice due to bad weather etc and it would be an expensive journey if you did not have insurance to cover you for accommodation and or another Ferry Ticket!

Our ticket cost us $428.00 return. That included two adults, one small car and our insurance.
We found it to be a pleasant 45 min journey both ways.

arriving at Penneshaw

the vehicles, trailers etc start to disembark

Useful URL's...

SeaLink Website

SeaLink Timetable

Boarding the Ferry

What is available on board

Help for those that suffer from Motion Sickness



previous blog posts on this particular vacation are:

staying at Cape Jervis Station

crossing the Mighty Murray by Punt

Beachport Jetty

stopping over in Mt Gambier

planning the journey to Kangaroo Island

our thoughts on staying at Cape Borda!

stay tuned for the blog posts on staying at Cape Borda, visiting the many bays, the roads of Kangaroo Island and much more!

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crossing the Mighty Murray by punt .....

Located 105 km south-east of Adelaide in South Australia, Wellington is a small settlement on the banks of the River Murray. Like Tailem Bend, prior to European settlement the area around Wellington was home to the Ngarrindjeri people. They made bark and reed canoes and lived on the fish and the animals which came to the riverbank.
Originally established as a private enterprise in 1839, the Wellington Punt was the earliest and most important ferry crossing on the Murray River.

The Wellington ferry was a vital link on the Great Eastern Road to Victoria, being used by travellers, stock and the mail service.
In 1849 the South Australian Government took over its operation and constructed a new ferry landing which, in the early 1850s, served the escort coaches bringing gold to Adelaide from the Victorian goldfields.
The Wellington ferry was busy. Reports for February 1852 indicated that a total of 1234 people and 1266 horses and bullocks, pulling 164 carriages, crossed the river during that month. Total fees collected were £64. During October to November of the same year the punt serviced 3000 passengers, 361 carriages and 2777 draught oxen.
The early ferry services unreliable and sometimes dangerous and out of action for several days at a time. Sand drifts from the Lake region caused extreme concern and often became a barrier to the crossing. Recurring floods also interfered with the ferry service.
At least four Wellington punts have sunk during a crossing. Perhaps the most notable was in 1958 when the ferry sank with a truckload of cattle and three cars. The divers who later recovered the vehicles reported that there were other derelict punts on the river bottom.

and it takes no more than 10 minutes to cross the other side and you are on your way again!

Wellington Ferry

Ferry service operated by SA Department of Transport

Phone   (08) 8532 8111

Email: dtei.enquiries@sa.gov.au

Website: http://www.transport.sa.gov.au/

Previous blog posts:

staying overnight at Mt Gambier

The Beachport Jetty

useful URL's ....

Wellington on the Murray River

The Historic Punt Crossing at Wellington




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the journey to Kangaroo Island

the journey to Kangaroo Island .... well the one that we have planned!

A month or so ago I started organising our next vacation. We are planning on Kangaroo Island seeing as it is about the only place in Australia we have not been to!

Our plan is to leave home on the Saturday and head down towards Mt Gambier staying there overnight to break the journey and allow us more time to see the South Australian Coastline from Mt Gambier, via Robe to Cape Jervis.

Cape Jervis is where we board the SeaLink Ferry to Kangaroo Island.

We are staying in Cape Jervis on the Sunday night as the ferry departs on Monday morning at 9:00am.The Saturday night happens to be the Easter Weekend and it was a total pain to locate any accommodation as I mentioned in a previous blog post titled: neither simple, easy or low cost! Most places I contacted either directly or thru Zuji, Trip Advisor etc all required a minimum of three nights booking due to it being a 'holiday weekend'. Some of them didn't even bother to return my messages! After much frustration I called The Tower Motor Inn at Mt Gambier direct, what a pleasant experience that turned out to be. I had been on booking.com and knew the lowest price that the Superior Room was selling for, so when I asked him how much would he sell the room to me for, he gave me a higher price!  Told him the lowest price I had seen and he offered me the room at the same price and then proceeded to 'sell' me the Superior Deluxe Suite at a greatly reduced price and for the one night! ..... this man knows how to sell a room and he certainly knows about 'customer service'!

Impressive.

Thank you Gary Walters!

The Tower Motor Inn also had good reports on TripAdvisor, so hopefully our stay will live up to our expectations!  Will certainly let you know either way.  I gave him the cc details and the confirmation by email arrived by the time I put the phone down.

Must admit this is the sort of 'customer service' we should all expect and receive, but sadly it rarely happens in Australia.

Superior Deluxe Room at The Tower Motor Inn at Mt Gambier

Our next place for accommodation was to be around the Cape Jervis area as we had booked the SeaLink Ferry for the 9:00am crossing.  Again, we kept hitting brick walls due to the two or three night minimum booking.

Eventually we came across the Cape Jervis Station and Cottages.  Lovely receptionist on the phone, very helpful, especially with me asking many questions and then after the booking realised I had booked the wrong date!  Had to call her back and request the change .... she was very pleasant about it and told me it was a good learning experience for her too as it was her first day on duty. I certainly hope she is still there as she is more than just a good asset to their business.

We found this to be a little expensive at $175.00 with breakfast, but again, we had no choice due to the dates traveling. Will keep you up to date on the value after we have stayed!

though most of the comments on TripAdvisor are good:

We had booked for one night prior to going over on the morning ferry but ended up staying for two nights as the ferry was cancelled due to terrible weather (next time I will get travel insurance!). Accommodation was great B & B style in the homestead. Electric blanket was a blessing as it was freezing. Had dinner both nights and was lovely home cooked style with a lovely bottle of Shiraz from Kangaroo Island. The hosts were very welcoming and nothing was too much trouble.

Stayed here overnight for an early ferry to Kangaroo Island. The owners were very welcoming and showed us to our room with en-suite. The room was in the older homestead. We were the only people in that part of the complex. There are a variety of ways to stay on the property. They have caravan and motor home sites, log cabins and stone cottages. It is a working farm and the breakfast eggs were from the farm. Delicious. Nice and quiet, I did not hear any traffic noise myself.
Good to note the extra travel Insurance needed, am glad we have purchased ours already!

The downside - for Cape Jervis Station - was when I tried to get on to their website for some images and extra information, it kept coming up with the following message:

Now that is a very bad move for their business, either they need a better service provider or they need to extend their coverage!

I still managed to get a few images of the property and surrounds thru google maps and off TripAdvisor as seen below:

The Monday morning will see us up bright and early heading down to the Ferry Terminal at Cape Jervis to get the 9:00am Ferry ....

from Google Maps, view from the highway after leaving Cape Jervis Station

from Google Maps, view from the highway just before entering Cape Jervis.

and hopefully an hour or so later we are on our way to Cape Borda Lightstation !

My next blog post will be on our return journey from Kangaroo Island, Cape Jervis to Middleton and on to Naracoorte before returning home.

Make sure you subscribe to this blog for follow up posts on our journey to and from Kangaroo Island.

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Cape Borda Lightstation on Kangaroo Island.

most of these amazing images of the Cape Borda area are from the Flickr site

After living overseas for about 6 years we are trying to reacquaint ourselves with life in Australia and what it has to offer. We have already seen quite a bit of the country having done two trips "around Australia" over the years. 

But the one place we have not been to is Kangaroo Island.

Booking accommodation for the trip to Kangaroo Island was not simple, easy or cheap, as seen in one of my previous blog posts .  But first of all the priority was accommodation on the island as our plans included the Easter and Anzac Day break. We would worry about the rest later!

I spent all morning going through TripAdvisor for accommodation of any kind ... there was nothing available. Probably because I was quite specific as to the dates.  We are to leave on Saturday 18th and return on Saturday 26th April.  We wanted three nights / four days on the island itself, with a couple of nights traveling either way.

The nights we were wanting were Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday.

absolutely nothing available.

at any price anywhere.

Well that is apart from the Luxury Southern Ocean Lodge where their rooms START at $990.00 for a twin room PER PERSON PER NIGHT and they advertise it as:

"Rates as quoted are PER PERSON PER NIGHT and include all dining, open bar with premium wines and spirits (cellarmasters list additional), in-suite bar, signature experiences and island airport transfers"

but that was a little beyond our budget.

Would be rather amazing to stay there though!

by the way, the top price is $1800.00 PN PP in a twin room. But if you wanted just a single room for yourself, the cost would be $2700.00 per night with a minimum of two nights! Remember it does include all meals and an open bar.

They do get amazing reviews at TripAdvisor.

anyway, I digress .....

accommodation on Kangaroo Island, oh yes, where was I?

We tried the National Parks of SA (South Australia) website as well and nothing came up. I had tried the accommodation page all morning, so gave up ready to hit the phone and computer again in the afternoon.

Lo and behold, put the same dates in and up popped Cape Borda Lightstation!

images from Flickr and the National Parks of South Australia

location of Cape Borda Lightstation on Kangaroo Island

There must have been a cancellation, so whoever you are, thank you!!

On the National Parks website they 'advertise' Cape Borda Lightstation as:

Set within Flinders Chase National Park, Cape Borda Lighthouse is perched on cliffs overlooking Investigator Strait. Located on the north western corner of Kangaroo Island, this unique square lighthouse was built in 1858 and is steeped in European history.

To discover the maritime history of the area you can take a tour of the lightstation. The lighthouse area features a restored signal cannon, a museum and kiosk where refreshments and souvenirs are available. Don't miss the daily cannon firing on the 12.30pm tour.

After exploring the lighthouse, enjoy a stroll along one of the walking trails around the park including the Cliff Top Hike. This short trail through a picturesque rock garden takes you to a stone lookout that provides an ideal vantage point for spotting whales and dolphins.

and for the accommodation it has:

Flinders Light Lodge - Cape Borda

The beautifully restored Flinders Light Lodge is an ideal romantic getaway for couples or retreat for families. This gracious stone homestead comfortably sleeps up to six guests in three bedrooms with one queen size bed and four single beds in two rooms, living and dining rooms, kitchen, and veranda with views of Cape Borda Lighthouse.

Set within the Flinders Chase National Park, Cape Borda offers a special kind of peace and tranquility. Enjoy stunning sunsets and spectacular views across Investigator Strait.

Explore the park's walking trails or join a tour of the lighthouse and discover Cape Borda's maritime history. Phone +61 8 8553 4410 or email kiparksaccom@sa.gov.au if you experience difficulties making a booking.

We can accommodate 2 infants (under 4 years old) at no charge including complimentary cot and High chair loan, please call or email to add infants and requirements to your booking.
 

of course I immediately booked the three nights that were available. 

I checked the Flickr site for images of the area of Cape Borda and came up with quite a few here, and yes, I can definitely see us here for three days of photography, peace, quiet, reading, walking and whatever else comes our way!

When looking for places to travel to I always use Flickr to give me an idea of what the area is like and what we can expect to see (as seen in the first image above)   .... it is as good as using TripAdvisor to verify accommodation!

Also had another look at the TripAdvisor reviews for Cape Borda Lightstation. It looks as though everyone has been happy with their stay and am sure we will be too..... even the 30klms of corrugated road will not deter us! Well that's what we are saying now, stay tuned and we will let you know on our return at the end of April. :)

the 30klms of corrugated road we are to expect!

After booking our accommodation, I had to make sure we were able to board the SeaLink Ferry .... the booking process was quick and easy, though we did find the cost of the ticket rather expensive at $428.00 in total for two passengers and our vehicle. It did however include QBE Travel Insurance for the ferry journey which covers cancellations etc. But still the actual ticket costs $184.00 each way for a 45 minute trip!

What I will add here is that the Ferry ticket to Tasmania (in total) for two adults in a cabin, plus a vehicle is just $479.00!

images from the SeaLink Website

We did notice some accommodation places included the ferry ticket in their pricing, so if you are able to get that, then do so!

We have now booked all the accommodation for our journey to and from Kangaroo Island but will tell you about that in our next post.

Apart from all the reading, walking, eating and sleeping I intend to do, I am so hoping I can manage a photo or two just like these by Egui from Flickr:

another amazing image off the Flickr site by Egui_

so yes, stay tuned or subscribe to my posts or follow me on google+ and hopefully you will get to see photos like the above later on in April. 






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