Uncork'd Houseboat

On the Murray at Loxton North, in the heart of the Riverland's vineyard country, this ten-berth houseboat runs off solar panels and battery storage, with a generator kept only as backup after a recent renovation. Five queen bedrooms, two of which convert to twins, and two bathrooms handle a full group, and the galley runs to a dishwasher, gas cooktop and oven and a coffee machine, with a 55-inch television in the main living area for evenings moored up. Guests skipper the boat themselves along a stretch of river bordered by red-gum forest and the district's vineyards, with a three-night minimum on hire. Bookings and enquiries run through Proud Wines, a Loxton North vineyard operation, tying the boat to the same wine country it drifts through — an apt pun in the name. It's an independent booking rather than a corporate hire fleet, one of a handful of family-run houseboats that make Loxton a base for exploring the Riverland by water.