Italy's Amalfi Coast is one of the prettiest places on Planet Earth. Unparalleled ocean views, acclaimed wineries, brilliant food, glorious beaches... It's a little parcel of heaven and a perennial bucket list entry for Australians looking to travel Europe.
The Amalfi Coast also boasts some of the best driving roads on the planet. Plunging cliff lines and narrow passes that wind through charming coastal towns make for a dynamic as well as incredibly beautiful drive, whether you're driving a puttering little Fiat 500 or a fire-breathing Ferrari 488 Pista.
Yes, the Amalfi Drive is enough to have even the most vehicle-sceptic traveller watering at the mouth. But with Australian borders still locked down and Italy continuing to be one of the worst-affected countries by the COVID-19 crisis, the dream of an Amalfi driving holiday seems like a rather distant one for most Antipodeans.
But who needs Italy? We Aussies spend our entire lives looking outwards, fetishising overseas experiences when we're blessed with such amazing opportunities in our own backyard. Why take the 20-hour flight to Salerno from Sydney (an entirely hypothetical scenario in any case as getting a flight is impossible right now) when you can take the 2-hour flight to Adelaide and experience some of the world's most underrated driving roads just a stone's throw from the airport.
Enter: the Adelaide Hills.
[caption id="attachment_290327" align="alignnone" width="920"]
Image: Stayz[/caption]
Less than an hour from Adelaide City, the Adelaide Hills region is one of the country's pre-eminent wine regions and quite frankly, a little parcel of heaven. Boasting a uniquely cool climate as well as some of the most pretty vistas in the entire country, it's strange that more Australians don't know about it – the Barossa Valley gets plenty of limelight but the Adelaide Hills might be even better.
The thing that's particularly striking about the Adelaide Hills is that it actually feels like Europe, a vibe that's only made stronger by the Hills' unusually cool climate year-round, manicured grapevines and Germanic placenames that reflect the Hills' heritage as being one of the first areas of South Australia to be settled by European settlers.
But its beauty is complemented by some of the best driving roads in the country. Windy, narrow and fast, carving through the Adelaide Hills is enormously fun. The speed limits are generous and the roads themselves exciting whilst not being too dangerous. You can push a car to what feels like its limits without putting yourself (or others) in harm's way.
Case in point: I had the chance to take a new Porsche Panamera through the Adelaide Hills, and it was the perfect car for the job: the comfortable yet capable grand tourer just soaked up the roads and sunshine. It was actually really fun having a heavier car like the Panamera on these twisty roads than what you might get with, say, a 911 – again, I had an exhilarating drive, moving all that weight around, without driving dangerously or ponderously. You don't need a supercar to take advantage of these roads (although it can't hurt...)
RELATED: I Drove Porsche’s Insane New Electric Car. It Blew My Mind
View this post on Instagram
Why the Amalfi comparison, considering the Adelaide Hills isn't a coastal drive like the Amalfi Drive? Sure, there's no ocean (although on a clear day if you're lucky you might be able to spot the St Vincent Gulf or Lake Alexandria depending on your perspective) but the oodles of wineries, handsome landscapes and sublime driver's roads make the comparison much more apt than you might think. Oh, and the weather. Try getting sun this nice in Burgundy.
A little known fact about this part of Australia might also surprise some European 'old world' wine snobs – it has some of the oldest vines in the world.
RELATED: Australian Wine Snob Learns Important Lesson After Committing 'Ultimate Barossa Valley Sin'
The comparison is also apt as unlike some of the other roads commonly touted as "the world's best" – like the Stelvio Pass, also in Italy, or Romania's Transfăgărășan Highway – the Amalfi Drive isn't just about pushing a car to its limits. The scenery is just as important as the bitumen. Otherwise, you're just looking for a track day without having to pay an entry fee.
All I can say is this: even for an Italophile like myself, the Adelaide Hills was seriously impressive. Regardless of what you have in the garage, it's a part of the world that any revhead should seriously consider making a pilgrimage to.
Read Next
- ‘Dog Act’: Provocative Video Reveals Hidden Culture War Among Australian Drivers
- Audi Slams The Door On Electric Vehicle Haters With ‘Continent-Spanning’ Experiment
Subscribe to the DMARGE newsletter
Follow DMARGE on Instagram
Follow DMARGE on Facebook
The post I Drove Australia’s Answer To The Amalfi Coast. Who Needs Italy In 2021? appeared first on DMARGE.
from DMARGE https://ift.tt/2SIyxbn
0 comments:
Post a Comment