Santos Best Dressed Town

Celebrate your community

The Santos Best Dressed Town is more than a competition – it’s a chance to showcase creativity, pride, and the spirit that makes each South Australian town unique.

As the Santos Tour Down Under passes through, communities transform their streets and spaces into vibrant displays of colour, art, and storytelling. It’s not just about decorations – it’s about connection. Local businesses, schools, sporting clubs, artists, and residents come together to create something unforgettable.

From painting and planting to building and making, each effort tells a town’s story, welcoming the race and sharing South Australia’s character with visitors and viewers across the globe.

Getting involved is easy – complete a nomination form to enter your town, business, or home. Then, decorate ahead of the race and show your community spirit.

Nominations now open

Daily Winners

Saturday 17 January

Santos Best Dressed Town for Ziptrak Women’s Stage 1 is Willunga! The town was bursting with creativity, shining with colour and energy. Streets were decorated with crowns and sunflowers made from recycled materials, creating eye-catching displays at every turn. Bikes were lined along fences, each one adorned with baskets filled with beautiful flowerpots, adding charm and character throughout the town.

The displays were fun, eco-friendly, and lively, making Willunga feel truly alive and unforgettable.

Santos Best Dressed Commercial or Community Property for Ziptrak Women’s Stage 1 is Gorgeous Soles Boutique! The storefront absolutely burst with Santos Tour Down Under spirit, with clothing perfectly styled to match the official TDU colours. A stunning bike took pride of place across the front, exquisitely decorated with flowers woven through the frame, creating a striking fusion of cycling culture and artistic flair.

The addition of Santos bunting tied the entire display together, filling the space with movement, colour, and celebration. Bright, bold, and irresistibly vibrant, Gorgeous Sole Boutique delivered a show-stopping display that truly captured the excitement and energy of the event!

Santos Best Dressed Private Property for Ziptrak Women’s Stage 1 goes to Ryan Smith & Christine Martin! Their front yard was transformed into a vibrant, immersive Tour Down Under scene bursting with colour, creativity, and personality. Playful figures relaxed in cycling-themed chairs and lounged picnic-style.

Hand-made crowns, sunflowers, bunting, and artwork crafted from recycled materials featured throughout, alongside reused race collateral such as sunglasses, water bottles, bunting, and backpacks. Recycled bike chains, coat hangers, and bed slats added an extra layer of ingenuity. Creative, joyful, and thoughtfully crafted, Ryan and Christine’s display perfectly captured the spirit of the race while celebrating sustainability and community pride.

Sunday 18 January

Santos Best Dressed Town for Health Partners Women’s Stage 2 is Gumeracha!

Gumeracha leapt into the spotlight with a fun and fantastical frog theme that captured everyone's imagination. Local businesses, schools and residents all joined forces to bring the town to life with giant frogs, handmade bunting and street banners donning a cycling theme. A delightful showcase of pride and collaboration that brought the whole community together in celebration!

Past Entries

Competition Details

Santos Best Dressed Town
Santos Best Dressed Private Property
Santos Best Dressed Commercial or Community Property

Each year, our riders pass through towns and regions across South Australia that turn on an unforgettable welcome. The Santos Best Dressed Town competition recognises the effort and flair of those who go above and beyond to celebrate the race.

Independent judges travel the route during race week, looking for colour, innovation, and community involvement. Judging takes place the day prior to each nominated stage, ensuring every effort is recognised before the race arrives.

Daily winners are announced on the day of the nominated stage and presented on stage at the race finish, ahead of the podium presentation. Overall winners are revealed after the event.

Santos Best Dressed Town - Community involvement, innovation, appearance, sustainable initiatives and the use of Santos Tour Down Under in your display.
Santos Best Dressed Private, Commercial or Community Property - Innovation, appearance, sustainable initiatives and the use of Santos Tour Down Under in your display.

Community involvement – Is the whole community pitching in? Are residents, schools, clubs, and businesses contributing to an atmosphere that makes visitors feel welcome and excited?
Appearance – Has real effort gone into creating eye-catching displays, activities, and celebrations? Is there strong visual impact and plenty of colour along the route?
Innovation – Have clever, creative, or unexpected ideas been used to bring the town to life?
Connection to the Santos Tour Down Under – How well is the race acknowledged in the design and decorations?
Sustainability – Are environmentally friendly practices incorporated? Judges value displays that minimise waste and use recycled or repurposed materials such as old bike parts, jars, fabrics, timber, and cans (while single-use plastics and balloons won’t score points).

2025 OVERALL WINNERS

Santos Best Dressed Town
Santos Best Dressed Private Property
Santos Best Dressed Commercial or Community Property

Gumeracha

The overall Gold winner of the Santos Best Dressed Town is Gumeracha! Gumeracha became a frog-filled spectacle this year, showcasing the town’s creativity and community spirit. The frog theme holds deep significance to the town of Gumeracha. Businesses, schools, and residents collaborate to create vibrant frog displays, with some frogs climbing buildings or riding bikes. As cyclists pass through, they’re greeted by this colorful celebration, reflecting the town’s unique blend of art, hospitality, and a shared love for nature. It’s an expression of pride and creativity that brings the whole community together.

SILVER: Uraidla

The overall Silver winner of the Santos Best Dressed Town is Uraidla! Bunting lined the streets of Uraidla, adding a festive touch while symbolizing the strong bonds that tie this Adelaide Hills town together. Crafted from a mix of different materials, the bunting transformed the town into a vibrant canvas, with each colorful piece contributing to a sense of unity and pride. The cheerful display not only brightened the streets but also captured the essence of the community: diverse, creative, and tightly connected. It was a visual celebration of what makes Uraidla special, wrapping the whole town in a colorful thread of togetherness.

BRONZE: Willunga

The overall Bronze winner of the Santos Best Dressed Town is Willunga! Willunga was shining bright! The streets were lined with crowns and sunflowers made from recycled materials, creating a burst of color and creativity everywhere. Fresh local flowers added to the vibrant display, giving the town a cheerful, winning atmosphere. It was a fun; eco-friendly celebration that made the whole place feel alive and full of energy!

Alicia Camac

The overall winner of the Santos Best Dressed Private Property is Alicia Camac! Alicia Camac’s home was a standout in the Santos Best Dressed competition, with a delightful display of teddies in all shapes and sizes riding bikes in every imaginable position. The colorful scene was a true reflection of love, with Alicia receiving plenty of help from her young kids, who added their own creative touches to the display. The result was a joyful, vibrant collection that perfectly captured the fun and community spirit of the event. It was a charming, family-driven effort that brought smiles to all who passed by!

Lobethal Bakery

The overall winner of the Santos Best Dressed Commercial or Community Property is Lobethal Bakery! Lobethal Bakery turned heads with its innovative and eye-catching display this year. The bakery showcased bikes crafted from recycled bottles and materials, adding a bright, colorful flair to the town's bike-themed festivities. Adding a fun twist, the local baker got in on the action with a cheeky display of a baker giving bikes "a spin." Blue and orange koalas were positioned around the bakery, warmly welcoming cyclists as they made their way through the town. As a beloved local institution, Lobethal Bakery's vibrant and sustainable display perfectly captured the community spirit, making it a must-visit stop during the Santos Tour Down Under. It was a lovely blend of creativity, sustainability, and hospitality that made the experience even sweeter.