Destination Information

Hahndorf

Adelaide Hills

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Hahndorf, located in the Adelaide Hills of South Australia, is the oldest surviving Germanic settlement in Australia, founded in 1839. People of all cultures and ages enjoy its charm and hospitality.

Stroll tree-lined Main Street and discover a butcher, a baker and a candlestick maker. Explore more than one hundred shops, including a leathersmith, a jeweller, a brewery, wineries, a distiller, a chocolatier, German-style pubs, multicultural restaurants and cafés. It’s a high street like no other.

Over the years Hahndorf has evolved into a true artisan village.

Located around half an hour south-east of the centre of Adelaide, the contemporary village of Hahndorf is proud of its German heritage built by Prussian settlers in 1839 who made the long journey from Europe on a small sailing ship named the Zebra, under the command of Dane, Captain Dirk Hahn.

The Peramangk people inhabited this area long before Hahndorf became the first settlement in Australia planned specifically for non-British immigrants, and you can visit galleries and museums featuring First Nations artwork and history in town.

The Cedars, the former home and studio of renowned landscape artist Sir Hans Heysen is just a few minutes out of town. Hahndorf Academy in Hahndorf’s main street is a hub of creativity, heritage and contemporary culture with exhibitions, classes and an outstanding shop selling the work of local artists and designers. It is here that you will find the Adelaide Hills Visitor Information Centre.

Anyone with an interest in wine and viticulture should visit the Wolf Blass Gallery and Museum, which houses the private collection of Australian wine icon Wolf Blass.

Drop by the Menz FruChocs shop and don’t miss artisan food producers such as Udder Delights Cheese, and wine producers Somerled, Landhaus, La Prova, Sidewood, and a little further afield The Lane Vineyard and Hahndorf Hill Wines. Then there is Ambleside Distillers, renowned for handcrafted gin.

Families love the Fairy Garden, Mini Golf, Hahndorf Farm Barn and picking strawberries at Beerenberg Farm.

Hahndorf also has a great range of accommodation, from luxury villas, B&Bs, motels and the Discovery Parks - Hahndorf Resort.