Innes National Park has seven bushy camp sites. Our favourite spot is Pondalowie, or try Cable Bay for beach access, Surfers for surfing or Browns Beach for fishing. Alternatively, the heritage lodges at Inneston sleep four to 10 people and have showers and cooking facilities. Book camp sites and lodges online, or with a credit card at the park visitor centre; BYO drinking water in summer.

The highlight of tiny Marion Bay is this wing of five spiffy motel rooms (white walls, new TVs, nice linen). The glass-fronted tavern next door (mains $17 to $38; serving noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8pm) surveys the bay, with a pizza oven in a corrugated-iron water tank and Asian-influenced pub standards (try the Vietnamese chicken salad).

It's a dusty site and a fair walk from town (and from the shoreline when the tide is out), but the cabins here are decent and there are simple four-bed dorm units for backpackers. The cheapest beds in town for those who don't fancy sleeping above a pub.

Catering largely to conventioneers, this group of 75 luxury units (from studios to two bedrooms) with jaunty designs is right by the water. All rooms have washing machines, dryers, TVs, fridges, microwaves, fortresslike security and flashy interior design. Free wi-fi too.

Brand new when we visited, this is one cool motel (literally). Built using rammed earth, double glazing and structural insulated panels (SIPs), the aim is to provide a thermally stable environment for guests, plus 100% more architectural style than anything else in Port Augusta. Desert hues, nice linen and free wi-fi seal the deal. A pool is on the cards.

The sprawling Standpipe motel attracts government delegates and business types with its pool, adjacent golf course and 85 reasonably hip units (doubles/two-bedroom apartments from $128/233), but the main lure is the awesome (and very unexpected) Indian restaurant here. Unbelievable!

Run by a high-energy couple who have spent a fortune renovating the place, this impressive 84-bed hostel occupies a former squash-court complex. Thoughtful bonuses include chunky sprung mattresses, reading lights, a cafe/bar and power outlets in lockers (for phones!). Outrageously clean, and with 300 movies for a rainy day (including Jaws). Staff can help with activities bookings too.

The old Pier has had a facelift, including the dozen en suite rooms upstairs − they're now bright and clean with polished floorboards and TVs. The bistro downstairs (mains $18 to $34; serving noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8pm) is big on local seafood: oysters, calamari and scallops reign supreme.

This breezy waterside operation is Port Lincoln's best caravan park, with some beaut executive cabins by the water and plenty of elbow room. Fish from the jetty and swim at the private beach. BYO linen in the basic cabins.

Bankrolled by a couple of Adelaide Crows Australian Football League (AFL) footballers, this ritzy seven-storey hotel lifts Port Lincoln above the fray. It's a classy, contemporary affair with switched-on staff. Good on-site bars and eateries too, open all day − play 'Spot Mark Ricciuto' from behind your menu (mains $25 to $42).

Two plush, solar-powered, architect-designed ecolodges in the hills behind Port Lincoln. They're both superprivate and surrounded by native bush, bird life and walking trails. Roll into town for dinner, or take advantage of the DIY packs of local produce available.

Check the fish of the day on the blackboard out the front of this fabulous seafood shack. Inside you can buy fresh local seafood straight off the boats (King George whiting, tuna, kingfish, flathead etc), plus Coffin Bay oysters for $12 a dozen and superb fish and chips. Not to be missed! Seafood-tasting tours and cooking classes also available.

A local hang-out a block away from the beach (and thus not on many tourist radars), GLO serves wholesome organic quiches, wraps, salads, falafels, cous-cous and Port Lincoln's best coffee. What's the soup of the day?

The busiest eatery in town, and with good reason: there's good coffee, big breakfasts and excellent local produce (especially seafood) at prices lower than at the pubs. Fab pizzas, pastas and pots of Kinkawooka mussels with tomato, chilli and white wine.

Right on Doctors Beach just east of town, this sandy park is overrun with cavorting families in summer and caravanning grey nomads in winter. Plenty of space and sea-based things to do.

The upstairs rooms at this 1866 beauty have rip-snorting views and a balcony from which to snort them. The downstairs rooms don't have views, bathrooms, TV or air-con but are decent. Motel rooms are unglamorous but more private. Meals happen in the bistro (mains $16 to $35, 7am to 9am, noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8.30pm).

A tidy row of bricky, older-style motel units (with a facelift), plus a crop of new family-size villas that are much more 'now' (spiky pot plants, mushroom-hued render, lime-coloured outdoor furniture). Cheaper off-season rates and three-bedroom houses also available.

It looks like a big shipping container from the street, but this jaunty corrugated-iron-clad cafe is the town's social pacemaker, with murals, Moroccan lanterns and water views from the wrap-around balcony. Dishes focus on scrumptious Eyre Peninsula seafood; try the chilli-and-lime squid or the abalone. Super coffee and takeaways too. Closed in August.

The renovated 54-room Foreshore is the most luxurious option in town, with water views and a bistro focused on west-coast seafood (mains $17 to $38, serving 6.30am to 9am, noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8.30pm). The view from the outdoor terrace extends through Norfolk Island pines and out across the bay.

Pick up a box of freshly shucked molluscs and head for the foreshore, or sit up on the rooftop here (are the renovations finished yet?) and watch the road trains rumble in from WA. Fresh as can be.

A short hop from Ceduna, this well-kept park is rated by some travellers as the best on the Nullarbor. The cabins are in good shape, and the camping area has a laundry and barbecues. Extra charge for linen.

You'll find powered sites, a kiosk and sophisticated solar systems at this cheery caravan park. Nearby are heritage buildings, good fishing, passing whales and rambling dunes. Ask about whale-watching tours (May to October). The Fowlers Bay turn-off is 106km from Ceduna.

Basic motel-style units sleeping four, with full kitchens. It's a short walk from the town jetty (bring your fishing rod).

If you're heading west, Nundroo has this decent hotel/motel and the last mechanic until Norseman, WA, 1038km away. Expect worn but comfy motel rooms with updated bathrooms. There's also a bar-restaurant on-site (meals $15 to $35, open 11am till late.

Close to the Head of Bight whale-watching area, this roadhouse is a real oasis for weary road warriors. The on-site bar-restaurant is open from 7am to 10pm (meals $15 to $30).

Just 50m from the WA border, this rebuilt motel has a variety of modern rooms and cabins, plusa licensed restaurant (meals $15 to $28; open noon to 2pm and 6pm to 8pm).