This page provides information and resources for South Australia’s tourism industry relating to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions.
For official information about COVID-19 in South Australia, please refer to the State Government’s COVID information site at covid-19.sa.gov.au.
South Australia is open to fully-vaccinated people from all Australian states and territories. (Vaccination requirements apply to all travellers over 12 years and 2 months of age, including returning SA residents).
All people planning to travel to South Australia from interstate and overseas must apply through the EntryCheck SA system.
EntryCheck SA will assess your COVID-19 risk and advise of any entry conditions, such as testing requirements.
For more information about South Australia’s border entry process, please refer to the South Australian Government COVID-19 travel page at covid-19.sa.gov.au/travel.
Level 1 restrictions are currently in place in South Australia.
Restrictions include density limits of 3 people per 4 square metres in venues (75 per cent) for seated activities; seated food and beverage consumption only for indoor defined public activities; and COVID Management Plans required for events of more than 1,000 people.
For details of current COVID-19 restrictions in South Australia, refer to covid-19.sa.gov.au.
The SA COVID-Ready Plan outlines the safe easing of restrictions and how COVID-19 will be managed in South Australia.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts, the State Government established support packages to provide financial assistance to small and medium businesses across South Australia.
For information about financial assistance, please visit: treasury.sa.gov.au.
Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment
Support is available for South Australians who can't earn an income because they must self-isolate or quarantine, or are caring for someone with COVID-19. Information about the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment is available at the Services Australia website.
Under the current Emergency Declaration, a COVID Management Plan, approved by SA Health, is required for a prescribed gathering:
A COVID Management Plan is a more comprehensive plan than the COVID-Safe Plan (see information about COVID-Safe Plans below). The COVID Management Plan is required to adequately describe the management of higher risks associated with hosting larger numbers of people onsite and hosting higher risk activities.
Refer to the information at covid-19.sa.gov.au/recovery/create-a-covid-management-plan to create your COVID Management Plan. You can find useful guidance and frequently asked questions at that link.
Under the current Emergency Declaration, if you are a business involved in a public activity or you are organising a public event for under 1,000 patrons, you are required to create and submit a COVID-Safe Plan.
Refer to the information at covid-19.sa.gov.au/recovery/create-a-covid-safe-plan to create a COVID-Safe Plan.
The below information is provided for event and festival organisers seeking to hold COVID-safe events and help understand the requirements of SA Health to do so.
It includes details of a COVID Management Plan, COVID Safe Plan, differing risk levels of events, and how events are monitored.
The South Australian Events COVID-19 Guideline is designed to assist the events, festivals and entertainment industry to deliver COVID-safe events in SA and help protect workers, patrons and the broader community.
The Guideline is designed to help event businesses, organisers and contractors understand government requirements, your work health and safety duties, and identifying risks and mitigation strategies.
A framework developed by SA Health’s COVID Management Committee has been released to guide people applying for a COVID Management Plan (CMP).
The COVID Management Plan Assessment Framework (August 2021) is provided to help event organisers design lower-risk events, and to provide an indication of the risk tolerance of SA Health’s COVID Management Committee which is responsible for assessing and approving plans. This framework is to be used as a guide only – SA Health has indicated all plans are different and will be assessed on their own merits and subject to their own conditions.
If your current CMP outlines an event that does not align with the framework you may wish to consider adjusting your plans or discussing them with one of the CMP team before it is submitted to the COVID Management Committee.
SA Health can be contacted from Monday to Friday on (08) 8226 7100 or via email at Health.COVIDManagementPlan@sa.gov.au.
See: COVID Management Plan Assessment Framework (August 2021)
The South Australian Events COVID-19 Guide includes information about interstate people involved in your event and good links to the key information needed from each state. The ‘Interstate people working on my event-movements’ spreadsheet can be used in conjunction with the guide to provide the means for:
The spreadsheet can be downloaded here for your own use.
Vehicles and other movable objects that are available for hire by members of the public for the purpose of tours or other recreational activities are a defined public activity under the Emergency Management (Public Activities) (COVID-19) Direction 2020.
This means the person conducting the tour/activity must:
The Guidance for transport and tour vehicles fact sheet provides information for transport and tour vehicles of all types (excluding public transport) to operate safely and manage COVID-19 health risks.
Accommodation service providers who have guests in isolation or quarantine provide an important service for the community.
The following fact sheets will help to ensure your staff, other guests and the South Australian public remain safe and well:
For more information, see the SA Health website.
Certain restrictions remain on shared/communal food service and facilities. For more information, see the Public Activities Direction.
For more information, see the SA Health website.
A QR code system – COVID SAfe Check-In – is in place in South Australia to enable quick and effective contract tracing capabilities.
Businesses with a COVID Safe Plan are provided a unique QR code which is to be printed off and displayed in a prominent location within the business.
When people arrive at a venue or business, they are to check-in by scanning the QR code using their smart phone through the mySA Gov app. For those who don’t have the app, they can simply use their smart phone camera to scan the QR code, which will prompt a secure web-form to open for them to check in. Once checked in, patrons will receive confirmation via a 'green tick'.
The COVID SAfe Check-In applies to all defined public activities with a COVID Safe Plan. It includes licensed venues, any premises with on-site or takeaway consumption of food, providers of recreational transport, and more.
Frequently asked questions for businesses and customers are available at covid-19.sa.gov.au/business-and-work/covid-safe-check-in.
A ban is in place on all international cruise ships to Australia until 17 December 2021.
