Adel Aide & South AuStr Ali AMURRAYRIVERAdel Aide & South AuStr Ali AINFORMATIONAdel Aide & South AuStr Ali ARENMARKriver has hotel rooms (shared bathrooms)
and a wing of spacious en-suite motel rooms.
The cavernous bistro serves upmarket pub
grub (mains $10 to $33, open for breakfast,
lunch and dinner). A slick operation, albeit
a bit Vegas.
Sprouts ̈Café ̈ CAFE$
(%08-8582 1228; www �sproutscafe�com �au; 28
Wilson St; mains $6-14;h8�30am-4pm Mon-Fri,
9�30am-1pmSat) A cheery new cafe on the
hill a few blocks back from the river, with
a natty lime-green colour scheme. Serves
soups, quiches, burgers, curries, wraps and
good coffee. There are homemade cakes
and scones, too.
88 Information
Berri Visitor Information Centre(%1300 768
582, 08-85825511; www �berribarmera�sa �gov �
au; RiverviewDr; h9am-5pmMon-Fri,9am-
2pm Sat, 10am-2pmSun) Rightby the river,
with brochures,internet,maps,waterproof
canoeingguides($10)and clueystaff �
Renmark
POP 9870
Renmark is the first major river town across
from the Victorian border, about 254km
from Adelaide. It’s not a pumping tourist
destination by any means, but has a relaxed
vibe and grassy waterfront, where you can
pick up a houseboat. This is the hub of the
Riverland wine region: lurid signs on the
roads into town scream ‘Buy 6 Get 1 Free!’
and ‘Bulk port $4/litre!’.
1 ̈Sights ̈& ̈Activities
Riverland ̈Leisure ̈Canoe ̈Tours ̈CANOEING
(%08-8595 5399; www �riverlandcanoes�com �au;
half-/full-daytours$75/120) Slow-paced guided
canoe tours on the Murray, departing Par-
inga across the river from Renmark. Canoe/
kayak hire (per day $65/55) and evening and
moonlight tours also available.
Chowilla ̈Game ̈Reserve ̈ NATURERESERVE
(www�environment�sa �gov �au) Upstream from
town, Chowilla Game Reserve is great for
bush camping (per car $7), canoeing and
bushwalking. Access is along the north
bank from Renmark or along the south
bank from Paringa. For more info, contact
the Department ̈of ̈Environment, ̈Water ̈& ̈
Natural ̈Resources (DEWNR;%08-85952111;
28 VaughanTce, Berri) in Berri.
4 ̈Sleeping ̈& ̈Eating
Renmark ̈Hotel ̈ HOTEL-MOTEL$$
(%08-8586 6755, 1800 736 627; www �renmark
hotel �com �au; Murray Ave; hotel/motel d from
$90/110;aiWs) What a beauty! The sexy
art-deco curves of Renmark’s humongous
pub are looking good these days, thanks
to a $3.5-million overhaul. Choose from
older-style hotel rooms and upmarket motel
rooms. On a sultry evening it’s hard to beat
a cold beer and some grilled barramundi
on the balcony at Nanya Bistro (mains $18
to $28, serving from noon to 2.30pm and
5.30pm to 9pm).Renmark ̈Riverfront ̈
Caravan ̈Park ̈ CARAVANPARK$
(%08-85866315, 1300 664 612; www �big4renmark�
com �au; Sturt Hwy; unpowered/poweredsites from
$30/35,cabins$72-285;aiWs) Highlights
of this spiffy riverfront park, 1km east of
town, include a camp kitchen, canoe (single/
double per hour $10/15), paddleboats (per
hour $20) and absolute waterfront cabins
and powered sites. The newish corrugated-
iron cabins are top notch, and look a little
‘Riviera’ surrounded by scraggly palms. The
waterskiing fraternity swarms here during
holidays.88 Information
Renmark Paringa Visitor Information Centre
(%08-85866704,1300 661 704; www �visit
renmark�com; 84 MurrayAve; h9am-5pm
Mon-Fri,9am-4pmSat, 10am-4pmSun) All theRIVERLAND ̈FRUIT ̈PICKINGThe fruit- and grape-growing centres
of Berri, Barmera, Waikerie, Loxton and
Renmark are always seeking harvest
workers. Work is seasonal but there’s
usually something that needs picking
(stonefruit, oranges, grapes, apples...),
except for mid-September to mid-
October and mid-April to mid-May
when things get a bit quiet. If you have
a valid working visa and don’t mind
sweating it out in the fields, ask the
local backpacker hostels about work.
Also try MADEC ̈Jobs ̈Australia ̈Ber-
ri ̈Harvest ̈Labour ̈Office (%1800
062332;www �madec�edu� au;3Riverview
Dr) and National ̈Harvest ̈Informa-
tion ̈Service (%1800062332;www �
jobsearch�gov �au/harvesttrail).