Moving to a new city is exciting for about two weeks. Then the boxes are unpacked, work is sorted, and you realise you don’t know anyone to call on a Saturday. If that is you, welcome to Adelaide. It is a small enough city that you keep bumping into the same people, which makes it a great place to build a new circle once you find the right places.
Where to meet people when you are new to Adelaide
- Join something weekly. One-off events are fun, but friendships come from seeing the same faces every week. Choose one or two regular things and stick with them.
- parkrun. Free 5 km walks and runs on Saturday mornings in parks around Adelaide, with a coffee crowd afterwards.
- Social sport. Many leagues take individual players and place them in a team. Netball, futsal, volleyball and touch footy are all popular.
- Meetup and Facebook groups. Search for “new to Adelaide”, expat groups from your home country, hiking, board games or language exchanges.
- Volunteering. The Adelaide Fringe, WOMADelaide and many charities need volunteers. You meet people while doing something useful.
- Work and neighbours. Say yes to Friday drinks, and say hello to the neighbours. In Adelaide, everyone seems to know someone who knows you.
- Dance classes. Our favourite, for reasons we explain below.
Why newcomers love dance classes
Many of our members first walked in because they had just moved here. Dance classes solve the hardest part of meeting people: starting the conversation. In a partner dance class, people change partners every few minutes, so you meet the whole room in one evening. You don’t need a partner, any experience or any friends to come with. About 60% of people come to QuickSteps on their own.
Then there are the social nights, where classmates turn into friends. QuickSteps runs dance nights every week, so there is always somewhere to go on a Wednesday or a Friday where you will know people.
What to expect at QuickSteps
- Where: 255 Gouger Street, Adelaide, in the city near the Central Market, easy to reach by bus or tram.
- Who: adults of every age and background, from all over the world. Most start as complete beginners.
- Classes: more than 60 group classes a week across 7 days: salsa, bachata, rock ‘n roll, swing, West Coast swing, ballroom, Latin and more. See the timetable.
- Social nights: Midweek Mingle on Wednesdays at 8:30pm, Dance With Me Friday at 8:30pm, and Bailamos (salsa and bachata) on Fridays from 9:30pm. See events.
- Price: your first group class and first private lesson are free. Unlimited group classes are $57 a week. See pricing.
Book a free group class and come and say hello. Or, if you would rather learn a few steps first, start with a free private lesson.
