Your review
Belair National Park
Belair, SA 5052
A rare South Australian national park that lets dogs walk its trails, on a two metre lead.
The Guide's rating
The rules, in short
Before you go
Dogs are welcome in Belair National Park, which is an exception among South Australian national parks. National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia requires dogs to be kept on a lead no more than two metres long, under control at all times, and on designated walking trails rather than roaming the wider bushland. Owners must carry disposable bags and remove their dog's waste, because there are no bins in national parks. Assistance animals are handled under a separate policy and may use designated visitor sites on a lead of up to three metres.
Lead of two metres or less at all times, and dogs must stay on the designated walking trails. This is a permitted access arrangement, not an off lead park, and it does not extend to South Australian national parks generally.
- When
- Any time
- Cost
- Inexpensive
Worth knowing before you arrive
- Australian national parks almost always ban dogs. Belair is a deliberate exception and should not be read as permission for other South Australian national parks.
- Dogs must stay on designated walking trails, so this is not a park for wandering off through the scrub.
- There are no bins anywhere in the park. Bring bags and carry the waste out with you.
- A vehicle entry fee applies, although walking or cycling in is free.
- Gates close in the evening and the closing time is earlier in winter, so time your walk to be out before then.
- Snakes are active in the warmer months on Adelaide Hills trails, another reason the lead rule matters.
About Belair National Park
Belair was South Australia's first national park, declared in 1891, and it sits in the Adelaide Hills only a short drive or train ride from the city. What makes it unusual for this guide is that it admits dogs at all: the overwhelming majority of Australian national parks do not, and South Australia is no exception, so Belair is a genuine outlier rather than the rule. The park mixes stringybark and blue gum woodland with old colonial era plantings, ovals, tennis courts and picnic grounds, and a network of walking trails climbs through the bush above them. Dogs are restricted to the designated walking trails and must be on a lead no longer than two metres, which is a fair trade for bushland access this close to Adelaide. Bring bags, because the park runs no bins at all and expects you to carry everything out.Which dogs it suits
Small
Medium
Large
Giant
What is there
- Parking
- Toilets
- Shade
Best for
bushland walking close to Adelaide
cooler weather trail days
dogs that walk well on a lead
a hills escape without leaving the city
What members say
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