Unless you are from South Australia, it’s likely that you have never heard of Tumby Bay. It’s a small town on the Eyre Peninsula that is trying to put itself on the map – and the way they have chosen to do that is with the Tumby Bay street art.
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TL;DR? Here's the outline
It’s about 600km from Adelaide to Tumby Bay on the eastern coast of Eyre Peninsula. Tumby Bay is the hub for the surrounding farming community, mostly focused on crops such as wheat and barley and raising sheep for wool and meat. Being a seaside town, there is also a small fishing industry based here too.
Like much of rural Australia, it has seen a declining population and has around 2500 people now permanently calling the town home. As people move away, local businesses have closed and services have decreased.
While Tumby Bay is a great summer beach location, the township was slowly dying.
It was looking for something more to attract visitors year-round and to entice passing vehicles to turn off the highway as they make their way to Port Lincoln or make a day trip back to visit. It needed something new to add to the things to do in Tumby Bay.
Tumby Bay Silo Art
As the first silo art in South Australia was completed in 2017, the Tumby Bay Progress Association decided that this could be just the thing to get those cars to turn in off the highway.
They were able to receive some grant funding, and the community madly fundraised to get the idea off the ground.
Viterra, the owners of the Tumby Bay silos, approved the use of their giant blank canvas and Argentinian artist Martin Ron was commissioned. The project was scheduled to take place in March 2018.
Painting silos was – and still is with only ten in all of South Australia – a relatively rare event, so Tumby Bay took advantage of that and turned it into a full festival, inviting more street artists to come and make their mark on blank walls all around the town.
Community events were put on, and a whole weekend of fun and entertainment ensued, culminating with the opening of the amazing Tumby Bay silo art.
That street art throughout the town is a drawcard too. Passing motorists can’t help but notice the silos, but the street art draws them further into the town. Tumby Bay is beginning to be as popular as Coffin Bay is for visitors to Port Lincoln.
Colour Tumby Festival
The 2018 Colour Tumby Festival was such a success that it was soon turned into an annual event. In 2019, ten more street artists from all over the world came to Tumby Bay to add to the increasing number of colourful walls in the town.
Not only did the world class street artists do their work, but they also collaborated with some of the local indigenous Barngarla people to produce some amazing murals.
After Covid put a halt to the festival for a couple of years, the Colour Tumby street art festival is now back, with new murals being added to the town in both 2022 and 2023.
Where to Find the Tumby Bay Street Art
Tumby Bay is not all that big, so even a brief drive through the town will mean you pass some of the artwork. But if you are looking for a map which also gives all the artists, then the town has kindly made one up for you to download.
Click here to download the Tumby Bay Street Art Map
You can also find copies of the map in various locations around town, I grabbed one at the caravan park kiosk last time I was there. Look out for it at the viewing location for the silo art too.
Tumby Bay Street Art Gallery
I’m not going to include all of the artworks, I have to leave a few for you to discover for yourself when you visit, but here’s a taste of what you can expect in Tumby Bay, SA.
More Things to Do in Tumby Bay
While you are here, take a look at these other things to do in Tumby Bay
- Enjoy relaxing on that fabulous Tumby Bay beach – after all, you are on holiday
- Take a walk along the mangrove boardwalk
- Check out the views from the Tumby Bay lookout
- Snorkel under the jetty and try to spot a leafy sea dragon
- Go fishing! There are plenty of places around the jetty and boat ramp to catch dinner
- Visit a museum – there are two in town, the Tumby Bay National Trust Museum, and the Excell Blacksmith & Engineering Museum
- If you happen to have a boat, head out to the Sir Joseph Banks group of islands just off the coast for some fishing in the sheltered waters, or enjoy the beaches and coves of the islands.
- Visit the Pioneer Tower after day to see it lit up
Tumby Bay Eats
Once you have come into Tumby Bay to see the silos and the street art, why not stay for a meal or snack. We grabbed a great lunch at the Tumby Bay Bakery.
I would particularly recommend them if looking for vegan food (which I admittedly found quite scarce) because they made me up a huge salad roll, which, while it sounds quite basic, was possibly the best salad roll I’ve had in months.
We may or may not have also taken home a delicious Boston Bun to have later with our coffee!
While we didn’t eat there this time, we did check out the menu at the Tumby Bay Hotel and if I was in town for dinner, this would be my choice. The restaurant is called The Red Roof, and it serves typical pub fare with some local seafood featuring too.
Another place that looks fantastic, but sadly didn’t have any vegan options for me, is the BlueWater Beach Cafe. It boasts a Greek-themed menu and is located right on the foreshore.
(I originally recommended the French restaurant l’Anse here in Tumby Bay, but it has since moved to beautiful new premises in Port Lincoln – look out for it there)
Tumby Bay Accommodation
When in Tumby Bay, the most popular place to stay is the Tumby Bay Caravan Park where there are a variety of cabins available as well as powered and unpowered sites.
We stayed in a basic “Motel Room” cabin and it was perfectly serviceable for a last-minute Easter stay.
Nearby was also Modra’s Apartments which seemed to be an older style but was popular and a new option, is the Tumby Bay Villas. They are newer, but more expensive and further from the beach.
You can also find rooms at the Tumby Bay Pub or for holiday homes, take a look at Stayz.
Looking for more great South Australia posts? Try these
Things to do in Flinders Ranges, South Australia
Best Places for South Australia Whale Watching
Shark Cage Diving in Port Lincoln
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Thanks for the interesting article. If you would like to update L’Anse is now closed (sadly moved on to new venture in Lincoln).
Also, I think you might want to check the population stats – you’ve under estimated our population.
Thanks
Thanks Jackie for the update, much appreciated. I’m sad to hear L’Anse has closed, they were great!