How do you get to Kangaroo Island from Adelaide?
Coach and ferryAdelaide to Cape Jervis, then 45 minutes across to Penneshaw.
By coach from Adelaide to Cape Jervis, then a 45 minute ferry across to Penneshaw. The morning connection leaves the Adelaide CBD at 6:45am, and an evening ferry brings you back, with the coach into Adelaide around 9pm. The easiest way is to let a tour book it: the trips below include the ferry and the transfers, from $399 for a day with hotel pick-up and Seal Bay, or from $869 for two days with a night on the island.
Checked on 28 October 2026.
Kangaroo Island sits off the South Australian coast. The crossing itself is the short part: 45 minutes on the ferry from Cape Jervis. The coach down to the terminal is what makes it an early start.
The crossing, step by step
| Step | What happens | When |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide | Coach pick-up from Adelaide CBD, or from your hotel on the tours that collect | 6:30 to 6:45am |
| Cape Jervis | The ferry terminal on the mainland | Early morning |
| The ferry | Cape Jervis to Penneshaw, on the island | 45 minutes |
| The way back | Ferry from Penneshaw, then the coach to Adelaide | Ferry 5:30pm, Adelaide about 9pm |
Times are from the trips' own transport sheets. The ferry and coach transfers are included on every trip in the tables below.
Let a trip do the getting there
Kangaroo Island is 150km long, so stepping off the ferry at Penneshaw is only the start. That is the real reason most people go with a trip: the ferry, the coach and the driving on the island are all in one booking, and a guide is at the wheel.
| Trip | Length | How you get there | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Day Kangaroo Island Experience | 1 day | A coach with an experienced guide, and the ferry across to Kangaroo Island. Hotel pick-up and drop-off, all transport and the ferry pass are included. From Adelaide it is a 16 hour day, with time to rest on the ferry and between stops. | $399 |
| 2 Day Kangaroo Island + Barossa Valley | 2 days, you arrange your own night between them | A coach with an experienced guide, plus the ferry to Kangaroo Island on day 1. Hotel pick-up and drop-off and the ferry pass are included. Day 1 from Adelaide is a 16 hour day; day 2 picks up at 9am in Adelaide or 8:30am in Glenelg. | $465 |
| 2 Day Kangaroo Island Camping Adventure | 2 days, 1 night | An air-conditioned 4WD mini bus with a guide, picking up from selected Adelaide hotels between 6:30 and 6:45am, and the 45 minute ferry from Cape Jervis. The ferry back leaves Penneshaw in the evening on day 2. | $869 |
| 3 Day Kangaroo Island Camping Adventure | 3 days, 2 nights | An air-conditioned coach with your guide on the island, reached by a 6:45am bus transfer from Adelaide CBD to Cape Jervis and a 45 minute ferry to Penneshaw. The ferry back leaves at 5:30pm on day 3, with the bus connection reaching Adelaide at 9pm. | $885 |
Prices update on their own.
Which suits you
- One day, everything included.Hotel pick-up in Adelaide, the ferry pass, and a guided beach walk among the sea lions at Seal Bay, led by a Parks officer. It is about a 16 hour day door to door, with time to rest on the ferry and between stops.
- One day on the island and one in the Barossa.The island day is the same, then a second day in the wine country, with your own night in Adelaide between them.
- Two days with a night on the island.Hotel pick-up between 6:30 and 6:45am, a night glamping at Eleanor Downs Farm, and the evening ferry back on day 2. A 4WD and a group of 20 at most.
- Three days for the whole island.The 6:45am coach to Cape Jervis, two nights at a private property with its own access to Antechamber Bay, and the 5:30pm ferry home on day 3.
Already on the island?
If you have made your own way across, the day trips can start at Penneshaw instead of Adelaide, which takes the travel out entirely. The food and wine day runs from the island too, with a two course lunch at the Emu Ridge distillery, tastings through the day and the Raptor Domain birds of prey show.
When the crossing is at its best
Kangaroo Island is mild all year. Kingscote averages 27°C in January and 15°C in July, and January is the driest month, with 15mm of rain. Summer brings long warm days on the island; the winter months are cooler and quieter.
1 Day Kangaroo Island Experience from $3991 dayNon Applicable1 day from Adelaide, ferry and transfers inView trip
2 Day Kangaroo Island Camping Adventurefrom $8692 days, 1 nightGlamping2 days. Glamping, small groupView trip
3 Day Kangaroo Island Camping Adventurefrom $8853 days, 2 nightsCamping3 days. The whole islandView tripPeople also ask
- Can you do Kangaroo Island in a day, and what do you see?
- Kangaroo Island itinerary — 1, 2 or 3 days
- Is Kangaroo Island worth visiting?
- What trips go from Adelaide?
Where this comes from. Pick-up times, the ferry route and crossing time, return times, what each trip includes and prices are each trip's own transport and inclusions sheet, as held on its page here, and prices update on their own. Temperatures and rainfall are Bureau of Meteorology long-term monthly averages for Kingscote Aero.