At $22 per car, it can be pricey if you are flying solo. But it's the drive-in cinema!! Why would you go alone!? Clown car it up (to a max of 5) and bring along the family and friends to the one and only drive-in cinema in South Australia. (sobs). Drive in cinema is one of my favourite ways to watch the latest flicks on the market. So it's an extra special thing to me to have the drive in so close to me. I love pinicking in the car, driving into a watch a movie in my PJs and fluffiest bathrobe, surrounded by numerous imports from my bed, quilts; pillows, and soft toys nonwithstanding. You can talk during the movie, eat with your mouth open, stick your feet up on the dashboard and nobody will yell at you (except maybe the people in your car). You can tie down a sofa to the top of your car and watch the movie from there as well! The possibilities are endless, just be careful not to run the heater constantly in winter to avoid killing your batteries and be one of those poor souls who have to go ask for a little help to jumpstart their car. Been there, done that, don't do it. So rug up, pile in with your softies, and prepare to 'enjoy the movie'! read more

Load the car up with snacks, wear your trackies and on a balmy summers night even pack your deck chairs! Then wait for sundown and settle in for a movie or two at a very low price - especially if your car is loaded up with people!! Make sure you get in early to secure a great location because for popular movies the line to get in can be very long! read more

Whenever I think of Grease and the teenage escapades of Sandy and Danny in tight leather trousers and poofy hair, I think of the drive in. The classic movie watching experience that thankfully for Adelaide movie-goers can be replicated here in our fine city on the outskirts of Gepps Cross in Northern Adelaide. The Mainline has been around since my parents lived here and before I was born (so at least 25 years) and now remains the only drive in movie theatre left. Mainline is owned by the Wallis Franchise and a list of the movies and session times can be found on the Wallis website. The days and session times vary, but usually they show one, or two, movies per night from Wednesday to Sunday. A tip however, because it is now daylight savings most movies don't start until at least 8:30pm for it to be dark enough to see and because they show the children's movies first so they can scoot off to bed, the adult ones may not be on until 11/12pm, which can make for a very late night. However, the experience is so much better than a normal boring movie theatre. You can bring your own snacks and drinks or get pop out of the car and walk down the back to the candy bar where the prices are more reasonable than actual theatres. You tune your radio in to a certain station to get the sound and while the quality isn't amazing its better than those little crackling boxes you used to have to park next to in the 'old days'. For $22 a car, with up to 5 people per car it is also way better value than the $15+ you're going to have to fork out at Marion. Happy Drive In! read more

The drive-in is a bit of a novelty I think. Unless its a family situation, no one goes to the drive-in to actually watch the movie. Guaranteed that if the car next to you has a young couple in it, the windows will be fogged up before the end of the first movie. I remember the crackly speaker phone things that used to hook onto the car window for sound and sometimes they were so weather beaten they didn't work anymore so you would have to move. The novelty sure does wear off quickly. Luckily if your car features a radio you can just tune it into the station they tell you to and voila you have sound. Not so great if your car battery is a bit dodgy though, best bring some jumper leads! I dont know, is it good for kids? maybe if your kids are well behaved and quiet and are ones for complaining. I know I used to look forward to going when I was younger, but it would get so uncomfortable and squishy after a while and it was really kind of hard to actually see the screen from the back seat. I wasn't the most grateful child I'll admit. I'm not sure the drive-in experience is better than normal viewing, but it's definitely different and everyone should try it once. read more

I LOVE the drive-in!!!! It is such a cool experience. The movies don't look quite as good as on the new cinemas and the sound is about as good as your car radio but the price is FANTASTIC and so is the experience. You can go here on a hot summer's night and sit outside the car on deck chairs and blankets. You can park backwards in a wagon and all sit in the back with theboot open. Or you can just sit in your car and watch the movie. The candy bar and toilets are only a short walk away. And check out the website - they have some great entertainment for kids before the movies sometimes and it's worth going early. It's so much cheaper than going to the cinema and paying per carload vs paying per person for a ticket. Also check the website about trash'n'treasure - held at this same drive in every Sunday morning. Great bargains of all descriptions and some amazing deals on fresh produce. Open to anyone to sell or buy. read more

How cool are drive-ins? 4 stars just for the nostalgia of it all!! The mainline drive in is still trucking on and looks as if it will be for a little while yet! Unfortunately with most cinemas going digital and not many films being produced in 35mm film anymore, i'm not sure how long it can sustain new and current movies. But I think maybe showing old movies might hit even more of a niche! Often with lines around the corner to get in- the Mainline drive in always offers two sessions for a night. A kids one (or a lower rated one) earlier on, and more adult (M-MA) rated movies later at night. Still with the same set up as drive ins have always had, you use your radio to get the sound and you still have to deal with the hoons in the car next to you. If you want food, you can go to their old little building at the back and buy popcorn and maltesers, but the toilets are a little shabby. Hit it up, and start some nooky. Thats what I say. read more

Ahhh .. the drive in. Kudos to Wallis Cinemas for keeping one of these open. It brings back fond memories of yester-year when the drive-in was almost a fortnightly event. . I just had to get a "choc-top" from the "Candy bar", as well as bringing in a whole lot of comfort food from the shops on the way. Good times! What isn't so good is that everyone seems to have an SUV now and feels that they need to reverse in and then open up their tailgate. This is fine when everyone is in a SUV but we were not, and had to contend with someone else's tailgate protruding onto the screen for the whole movie. Back in the "old days" the panel vans etc that wanted to do this had the good sense not to bother other patrons by parking at the back. Wallis really needs to look at how to handle different sized cars so that the screen can be seen by all patrons. I also think it is a bit of mistake to head down there during school holidays. Too many people trying to find the best spot and you do tend to get rednecks that think the height of sophistication is dragging their couch from under their porch, whacking it in the back of the SUV, and dragging it out to sit on when they get get to the drive in. All the negatives aside, it is a great experience, one that was more worthy than three stars, except for the fact that users have lost their "drive-in etiquette" over the years. Head down there outside of school holidays and take something akin to an 18 wheeler as your vehicle, and you WILL have a five star experience! read more

Who didn't visit the drive in as a child growing up in Adelaide? It's a fun and unique experience for kids (and adults) of any age.. Fun school holiday activity for the kids and a sentimental trip down memory lane for the adults. During summer, bring some chairs and sit in front of the car and in winter bring blankets. The snack bar is expensive and busy, so give it a miss and BYO. read more