Outback Adventure

Darwin
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How do you condense South Australia and the Northern Territory into two weeks? With the kind of skill that comes from operating in Australia for more than a century. This epic exploration traverses record-breaking canyons and gorges, national parks and World Heritage Sites. It’s nature writ large – small wonder TV and movie directors find inspiration here, as you will, too. And then there are the cities, from multicultural Adelaide and the wine country it covets, to steamy Darwin, where sunsets are as brash as the characters that call it home.

Departure dates

From 11/06/2024 to 20/08/2024

What's included

Highlights.
Discover the beauty of the Australian outback over a Be My Guest dinner at Earth Sanctuary, plus tours with the Royal Flying Doctor Service and School of the Air.
From Uluru to Kakadu, nothing puts life in perspective quite like glimpsing 40,000-year-old rock art with an Aboriginal guide.
Sleep soundly at Wilpena Pound Resort knowing your stay contributes directly to the local Adnyamathanha people and regional conservation projects.
Ancient red rock cliffs encircle desert palms at Kings Canyon, the spectacular heart of Australia and a place that will make your pulse race.
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• Specialist team of two highly experienced Travel Director and Driver that are accredited with Uluru and Kakadu National Parks • 2 UNESCO World Heritage Sites - Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park and Kakadu National Park • Centrally located premium hotels • Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park and Kakadu National Park entrance fees • Private Arrival and Departure Transfers.
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Itinerary / more information

  • Day 1 At once cultured yet cool, Adelaide attracts foodies, historians and art aficionados in equal measure. Explore at your leisure, before meeting a local gourmand to tour the city's legendary Central Market. This place has been selling cheese, green ant gin and artisan bread for 140-plus years, before joining your Travel Director for a Welcome Dinner.
  • Day 2 One of Australia's oldest wine regions, the Clare Valley is all rounded hills, rippling vines and native forest. It's the postcard-perfect setting for historic Knappstein Enterprise Winery, producing sweet-scented rieslings and mineral-rich reds. The route north lands you at Hawker, the gateway to the Flinders Ranges, but there are plenty of reasons to linger, including well-preserved heritage buildings and the Jeff Morgan Gallery. The best is yet to come, as you arrive at Wilpena Pound Resort in the shadows of a staggering natural amphitheatre. Know that your MAKE TRAVEL MATTER(R) Experience visit to the resort helps by contributing towards the sustainable economic future of the Adnyamathanha who in turn work with the resort to minimize the environmental footprint and participate in the conservation of the region.
  • Day 3 The river red gums that envelop Hills Homestead will leave you lost for words. You get here on a leisurely walk along Wilpena Creek and continue to Wangarra Hill Lookout for views over the pound's peaks and curves. The drama is echoed as you climb to Pichi Richi Pass and the historic town of Quorn, where with a Local Guide, you'll hear the importance of this town in the ANZAC's Gallipoli Campaign, before easing into Port Augusta.
  • Day 4 The main attraction in Woomera is a former rocket-testing site, today stocked with disused rockets and missiles. Speaking of space, you'll think you've landed on the moon as you travel through sun-baked country to Coober Pedy, known as 'the opal capital of the world'. Things get deep as you travel underground to visit the town's head-scratching subterranean facilities.
  • Day 5 Emerge from your cave and cross the border into the Northern Territory. Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park has World Heritage status for a reason; under the gaze of the world's mightiest monolith, toast the end of the day with a glass of bubbles and a camera full of sunset photos. Help protect the highlights of Australia's wilderness through your bucket list visit to Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park.
  • Day 6 Pre-dawn wake-up calls are worth it when you get to enjoy a Red Centre sunrise. On this MAKE TRAVEL MATTER(R) Experience you'll encounter the iconic Uluru, or 'The Rock,' half a billion years old, standing 348 meters high and taller than the Eiffel Tower. Marvel at the majesty of Uluru as you circumnavigate its base or join a guided walk to Mutitjulu Waterhole. This landscape takes you back to the beginning of time, a sacred place among the Anangu people. More soul-salving landscapes await at Kata Tjuta, cool relief provided as you walk amid its domes to Walpa Gorge.
  • Day 7 Another sunrise excursion awaits, with this morning's optional tour to Bruce Munro's Uluru Field of Light - a blanket of 50,000 glowing bulbs. Next chance to stretch your legs is at Kings Creek Station, the largest exporter of wild camels in Australia. All your senses will be activated at Kings Canyon, 440-million years in the making.
  • Day 8 Things are bigger in the NT outback, from the cattle stations to the MacDonnell Ranges, which stretch like a dinosaur spine toward Alice Springs. Aside from its plethora of Aboriginal galleries and art stores, Alice makes Australian history for her 1872 Telegraph Station, one of 12 along the Overland Telegraph Line between Adelaide and Darwin.
  • Day 9 Aboriginal culture is strong in Alice, as you'll fast find on a tour revealing the history of the Arrernte people at the Alice Springs Desert Park. The other thing that's mighty is community spirit - it's essential when there are so few people scattered over such a vast area of land. Enter the Royal Flying Doctor Service, its base a museum that goes behind the scenes of the life-saving health services delivered to people in remote realms. One of the benefits of being this far-flung is the lack of light pollution. And at Earth Sanctuary World Nature Centre, this equates to epic stargazing. Your Be My Guest BBQ dinner here with the Falzon family is enlightening and uplifting.
  • Day 10
  • 1 - 3 million square kilometers - that
  • Day 11 Since the 1930s, the Daly Waters Historic Pub has been dishing up schnitzels, barramundi burgers and hearty steaks. The walls are lined with treasures that passers-by leave behind. 'Land of the Never Never' awaits at Mataranka. Visit a replica of the Elsey Homestead, used in 1982 Aussie drama We of the Never Never. Or wander palm-lined walkways to take a dip in the region's thermal springs.
  • Day 12 The Jawoyn have called Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge home for millennia. You can feel their presence as you cruise the waterway, home to more than a few resident crocs. They'll make another appearance in Kakadu, when you explore Yellow Water Billabong. You don't need binoculars to spot the sea eagles, brolgas and kingfishers; they're everywhere you look.
  • Day 13 Decisions, decisions: optional morning flight over Kakadu and Arnhem Land, or a sleep in. We vote for the former before you venture toward Ubirr and its ancient Aboriginal rock art. The night is yours in steamy Darwin, where the characters are as large as the shadows cast at sunset.
  • Day 14 Nature rules today, your explorations into Litchfield National Park revealing magnetic termite mounds standing two metres tall. And then there are the waterfalls: Florence, for its dreamy cascades, and Wangi, where youcan cool off in a crystal-clear waterhole (swimming is seasonal). See the NT capital in a new light when you venture out on a Darwin Harbour Cruise, your sparkling wine glass full to toast your last evening on this epic adventure.
  • Day 15 Time to bid adieu and head home to sort through all those photos. Even better are the memories; two weeks of wild outback adventures.
  • Prices quoted valid for sale until 05 May 2024 unless otherwise stated or sold out prior.
  • Price is per person and subject to availability. Accommodation (if included) is based on twin share unless otherwise stated.
  • Airfare (including internal flights) is not included unless otherwise stated and, if included, is economy class unless otherwise stated.
  • Local payments, "trip kittys" or food funds may apply and may be payable direct to the supplier on arrival or to your travel agent prior to your departure. Where applicable, these payments are included in the total price quoted.
  • Gratuities are not included unless otherwise stated.
  • Additional conditions and travel restrictions may apply. Please enquire for further details.
  • Prices shown are fully inclusive of taxes, levies and government charges current at time of publication.
  • Additional levies, government charges and other applicable fees may apply and are beyond our control.
  • Seasonal surcharges and blackout dates may apply depending on date of travel.
  • Payments made by credit card will incur a surcharge.
  • Prices shown are for payments made by cash in store or Bpay.
  • These prices are a guide to the best price. Prices are correct as at 30 April 2024 and are subject to change without notice, due to matters outside our control, such as adverse currency fluctuations, fuel surcharges, taxes and airfare increases. Please enquire for further details.

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