Moonta

Moonta, Moonta Bay and Port Hughes are adjacent coastal towns on the Yorke Peninsula.

Understand

On the Copper Coast, during its mining heyday Moonta had a population second only to Adelaide in South Australia.

Today, the town plays on its Cornish heritage, mining tourism, as well as its beaches, boating and fishing.

Tourist information

• Copper Coast Visitor Information Centre, Kadina (The Farm Shed Museum & Tourism Centre), 50 Moonta Road, Kadina, toll-free: 1800 654 991, fax: +61 8 8821 4633, thefarmshed@coppercoast.sa.gov.au. M–F 9AM–5PM; Sa Su 10AM–4PM. 
• Moonta Tourist Office, Old Railway Station, Moonta, ☏ +61 8 8825 1891, info@moontatourism.org.au. Daily 9AM–5PM. 

Get in

Moonta Railway Station

By car

The B89 Spencer Highway runs past Moonta, although the quickest way from Port Wakefield is the one hour drive via B85 and then B89 or via Mines Rd. From Adelaide, it's another extra two hours to get to Port Wakefield.

See

• 1 Moonta Mines State Heritage Area. Moonta Mines Museum, Local and Family History Centre at the School of Mines, Hughes Engine House, Moonta Mines Tourist Railway (including Historic Horse Drawn Tram, Blacksmith Shop), Miners Cottage & Garden, Moonta Mines Sweet Shop, Richmans Engine House, Old Railway Station (Moonta Tourist Office). In 2024, it was added to the tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage along with nearby Burra.  

Do

• 1 Wheal Hughes Copper Mine, Wallaroo Road, Moonta, ☏ +61 8 8825 1891. Dress up like a miner in a hard hat, cap lamp and boots for the underground mine tour and head into the large underground tunnel that descends 55 m below the surface. The miners of the 1800s pioneered these copper mines. Cathedral-like workings ('stopes') can be seen above the fools gold glittering in the walls of the mine tunnel along with blue patches of copper leaching through the walls. Bookings are essential at the Moonta Information Centre. 
• Kernewek Lowender (Copper Coast Cornish Festival), Kadina, Moonta & Wallaroo, ☏ +61 8 8821 4500, info@kernewek.org. The world’s largest Cornish Festival is celebrated in South Australia’s Copper Coast every 2 years. Rich in Cornish heritage, the towns of Moonta, Wallaroo and Kadina, known as ‘Australia’s Little Cornwall’, host the week-long Kernewek Lowender – which translates from the Cornish language to English as ‘Cornish Happiness’. Visitors can experience the Cornish impact on this region all-year-round by visiting the Moonta Mines State Heritage area, Wheal Hughes Copper Mine, indulging in a locally baked Cornish Pasty. some free, some charges apply. 

Eat

• Cornish Pastie, available at the Cornish Bakery, but also at many of the smaller cafes in town.
• 1 The Coffee Barn Gelateria, cnr Maitland Road & Warren Street, ☏ +61 8 8825 2315, geeandfranco@gmail.com. F-Su & public holidays 10AM-5PM. Visitors to the Coffee Barn Gelataria receive a truly international experience – with Italy, Scotland, Cornwall and Australia combining to make a memorable visit. Decadent sweet treats include gelato/ice-cream made on premises, truffles, Italian espresso coffee and hot chocolate, Scottish breakfasts and shortbread. The Coffee Barn Gelataria, and nearby Villa Martini Bed & Breakfast, provide a little bit of Italy and Scotland in Cornish country. 

Sleep

• 1 Moonta Bay Accommodation, 113 Bay Rd, Moonta Bay, ☏ +61 8 8825 3703. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM. (updated Sep 2021)

Go next

East Moonta, Agery, Moonta Bay, Port Hughes, North Moonta

Routes via Moonta

Minlaton ← Maitland ←

S B89 NNE

→ Port Broughton → Port Pirie