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Learn about Port Adelaide’s fascinating maritime history and its present-day rejuvenation as well as visiting the unique Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary on a guided 2-houre cruise of the Port Adelaide River.
A Guided Tour
Your Skipper on the day will also be your cruise guide. Sit back, relax and enjoy the views as your guide talks you through the local history, famous ships and iconic locations you are cruising through.
A Rich Maritime History
The Port Adelaide River is steeped in a rich maritime history that you will discover as you cruise along its length, seeing famous ships and locations. Your cruise guide will point out interesting landmarks and vessels, and we provide a PowerPoint display with additional information for the duration of the cruise.
A Fully Functioning Port
Port Adelaide is still a functioning Port. On your cruises you will pass by many interesting sights of the Ports daily life and the Ships that work within, all of which will be explained by your tour guide.
Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary
Established in 2005 the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary is home to 30 residential Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins and approximately 400 transient dolphins that visit at various times.
On your cruise keep an eye out for these amazing marine mammals as your guide delves into both the history of the sanctuary, the residential population, and the types of behaviours you might observe on your cruise.
Unique Ecosystems
The Port River is home to several unique ecosystems that you will pass through on your cruise including Shellfish Reefs, Intertidal Zones, Samphire Flats, Mudflats and the renowned 10,000-year-old mangrove forests.
Submarine’s Ahoy
Port Adelaide is home to Australia’s Naval Group Submarine dry dock where you can get a glimpse of these 2-billion-dollar attack class submarine’s being built and hear a little about the work that goes into constructing them.
IMPORTANT NOTES
- Infant rates apply to children 2 years and under.
- Child rates apply for children aged 3-12 years.
- All children from the age of 12-17 are to be charges at student prices.
- Adult rates apply for anyone over the age of 13 years.
- Seniors, Concessions and Students must provide ID proof before boarding vessel.
- We cannot guarantee you will see dolphins while within the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary. These are wild animals and are not always present.
- There is a toilet located onboard
- If you have mobility issues please contact Port River Cruises on 08 7082 9608. We are able to provide a ramp and different boarding location to make boarding the vessel easier.
- Wheelchair access is available on our 16-seater vessel. Please call to book on 08 7082 9608. Unfortunately we are unable to cater for mechanical/electric wheelchairs
- Food is not permitted to be eaten onboard the vessel unless given prior approval.
CANCELLATION POLICY
A FULL refund is provided to guests if the tour is cancelled due to minimum numbers not being reached, poor weather conditions or unforeseen circumstances and an alternative time is not established to undertake the tour. As we are providing tours within a river system, the water is very calm.
- NO refund is provided to guests for non-attendance at scheduled tour time
- NO refund is provided to guests who cancel within 48 hours of scheduled tour time.
- Guests can reschedule tour if required, however need to ensure that more than 48 hours’ notice is provided to Port River Cruises via telephone confirmation
- All bookings cancelled within 7 days of scheduled departure, will incur a 50% charge of tour cost, alternatively a credit can be held for you to use within a 18 month timeframe, unless otherwise stated on the booking form.
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Even got lucky to see a few dolphins right up to the boat in wild environment (sanctuary only means protected but natural environment). Great experience!

We saw three dolphins which was heartwarming.
I’m not sure whether the cruise would be suitable for young children.
We were told a lunch cruise is being planned and we look forward to that in the future.


Train ride to the Port from Adeliade CBD and then a short walk to the Port
The boat drivers were great, very informative and did all they could to ensure that we were comfortable and saw all that was available to be viewed.
We first meet little (not so little) Rocket an orphaned dolphin who has called the Port home and happy there
Then boarded the boat, there were upstairs/outside seats and the drivers ensure that was equally rotated between guests.
Saw the port, told stories, saw shipwrecks, birdlife and some more dolphins feeding.
A great trip and recommend




We highly recommend this cruise. We even got to see 3 groups of beautiful Dolphins. One group was a mother Dolphin and her calf. Another couple of Dolphins playfully swam right up near the side of our cruise boat. Thank you Port River Cruises, we shall be back again 😀





We had captain Chris and he was a wealth of knowledge, super friendly and definitely had a good sense of humour!
We really enjoyed our tour out to ship wrecks, we were lucky to see Rocket before boarding and after so we got a super close view of a dolphin! Will definitely book again if we are ever in the area.
10/10 amazing service and definitely a great tour on offer for the area. The kids absolutely loved it and would definitely have loved to go again!












Only downside...it is expensive for what it is and no food or drinks are available.
We've been on previous cruises on the Port River on a much bigger boat, where you could buy lunch, drinks, etc and that cruise was much cheaper in price.





Ben is a funny lad that might crack a couple of dad jokes and his cruise is clean and comfortable.



Port River Cruises offered this tour and we are greatly appreciative of the guys who provided this experience. Two knowledgeable guys who made you feel welcome and comfortable on their 20 seat cruiser. Saw plenty of dolphins and other wildlife all with great commentary and with the ability to slow the boat down to take advantage of watching them up close.
Fantastic 90 minutes.
Well done.






The cabin cruiser used for the tour is comfortable with large windows that can be opened and for those who want a better view and don't mind being buffeted by the breeze there are another 10 seats on top of the boat.
Dolphins were spotted on a couple of occasions, but only a few of the passengers, excluding me, were lucky enough to sight them before they vanished again. Mangroves lining part of the shore, and which used to exist in far higher concentrations, were also evident and are popular spot for birds.
Next time you're in the South Australian capital why not head on up to Port Adelaide and book a spot on the tour and keep these lads from having to seek alternative employment.


This was a group activity on a Sunday morning. Staff very friendly. Explored boat wrecks on the river. Spied just 2 dolphins in the dolphin sanctuary.



The crew were helpful and friendly and, with fewer than 20 on board, it is easy to move around and view the scenery.
The tour was great. Full of interesting and fun facts about the local area and the “graveyard ships”. We didn’t see any dolphins, but I would definitely do this again :) It was a beautiful day out on the water regardless :)






We highly recommend this trip!!!




Cameron was very pleasant and very knowledgeable of the area.
he was determined to find us dolphins and which he succeeded the views along the way were awesome..


We took our grandson on the boat today, and we saw some beautiful dolphins.
Our guide was informative with the rivers' history and environment.
He interacted extremely well with our grandson and kept him engaged also.
The boat was really clean and comfortable with big windows for viewing.
We highly recommend going on the tour.
Cruise on 01/06/2023

We saw about 7 dolphins and their calves which was a truly wonderful experience.