Sitting pretty in the Clare Valley, Knappstein Enterprise Winery produces sweet-scented rieslings and mineral-rich reds. The only thing that distracts from your glass is the setting: all rolling fields of vines and wide blue skies. Hawker lies just to the north, the town inspiring artist Jeff Morgan to paint enormous panoramas capturing the outback. Drop in to see his works, plus the memorabilia he has collected over the years. The best is yet to come, as you arrive at Wilpena Pound Resort in the shadows of a vast natural amphitheatre, a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience.
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 travel 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.
Secrets are revealed at former rocket-testing site Woomera, today home to a park where you can glimpse Australia’s aerospace innovations. Speaking of space, you may will think you’ve landed on the moon as you travel through sunbaked country to isolated Coober Pedy, aka ‘the opal capital of the world’. Things get deep as you travel underground with a local to see how these gleaming gems are mined, and visit the town’s head scratching subterranean facilities.
Once you emerge from your Coober Pedy cave, first stop in the Northern Territory is, fittingly, Australia’s spiritual heart: World Heritage-listed Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Come sunset, you’ll want a full camera SD card – with every “click”, the countryside around the world’s mightiest monolith changes colour. Toast the day with a glass of bubbles while you mingle with your fellow adventurers. Ask us about pre-booking our exclusive Uluru Barbecue Dinner for tonight (own expense).
Pre-dawn wake-up calls are worth it when you get to enjoy a Red Centre sunrise. 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. More outback experiences await at Kata Tjuta, cool relief provided as you walk amid its domes to Walpa Gorge. Enjoy sparkling as you take in the sunset at Kata Tjuta.
If you’re an early bird (or even if you’re not), we highly recommend an optional pre-dawn call to glimpse the Uluru Field of Light – a blanket of 50,000 glowing bulbs (own expense). What a way to start the day. There are so many record-breaking rock attractions in this part of the country that you may not have heard of Attila (Mt. Conner) before – but once you’ve glimpsed the table-like formation, you certainly won’t forget it. Stretch your legs again on another outback experience at Kings Creek Station, the largest exporter of wild camels in Australia. Guess what meat stars in the burgers for lunch? All your senses will be activated on the Kings Canyon rim walk, 440-million years in the making and forged through layers of sandstone and hard shale creating soaring domes and plateaus that plummet to an oasis of natural rock pools.
Things are bigger in the NT outback, from the cattle stations to the MacDonnell Ranges, which stretch like a caterpillar toward the town of Alice Springs. Alice Springs makes Australian history for her 1872 Telegraph Station, one of 11 along the Overland Telegraph Line that traverses a whopping 3,200 kilometres between Adelaide and Darwin. Glimpse it up close, then from afar as you ascend Anzac Hill for panoramic views that inspired many of those paintings in Alice Springs’ galleries.
Aboriginal culture is strong in Alice, as you’ll fast find on a tour of the Alice Springs Desert Park. It’s home to a vast range of plants and wildlife native to the area. You can really experience the beauty and diversity of this incredible landscape. The Arrernte people, traditional owners of the park, are also on hand to share their local wisdom and knowledge. 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 - think stories of self-sufficient living, astronomy and even a tune or two on the didgeridoo.
1.3 million square kilometres – that’s the eye-watering distance the School of Air’s lessons are broadcast across daily. If touring during the school term, you may be lucky enough to observe live educational sessions featuring children who otherwise may not have access to public education. Approximately an hour south of Tennant Creek is Karlu Karlu, the Devils Marbles, a collection of hundreds of boulders that vary in size, with some 6 metres high. These boulders have formed over millions of years and continue to crack and change over time. The most prized rock found in this part of the world is, however, gold, which is why your base for the night, Tennant Creek, exists.
Since the 1930s, the time-tested Daly Waters Historic Pub has been dishing up schnitzels, barramundi burgers and hearty steaks. The walls here are lined with treasures that passers-by leave behind, from bras to boots. What can you contribute over lunch? ‘Land of the Never Never’ awaits at Mataranka. Yes, you can visit a replica of the Elsey Homestead, used in the filming of 1982 Aussie drama We of the Never Never, an autobiographical flick about life in the outback. Or wander palm-lined walkways to take a dip in the region’s steamy thermal springs – the ultimate antidote to weary limbs before arriving in Katherine.
The Jawoyn have called Nitmiluk Gorge home for millennia. Find out about the ancient story of the cicada, embodying the spiritual connection between the Jawoyn people and their land. Traversing across the land in into Kakadu National Park. The Yellow Water billabong cruise is a mesmerising journey through pristine wetlands, teeming with diverse wildlife and breathtaking scenery, offering a truly unforgettable experience of Australia’s natural beauty. Witness the majestic crocodiles, colorful birdlife, and lush vegetation while immersing yourself in the tranquility of this ancient landscape, guided by knowledgeable locals. We challenge you to spot the sea eagles, brolgas and kingfishers that colour this part of the Top End.
The best way to appreciate the immensity of Kakadu is from the air. A morning flight swoops low over these beauties, giving you a feel for its Indigenous significance (own expense). On the ground, meanwhile, Aboriginal art awaits at Ubirr. Scamper to the top of the rocky outcrop for seemingly endless views over floodplains backdropped by sheer escarpments. If your backdrop looks familiar, that’s because it features in Crocodile Dundee. The night is yours in steamy Darwin, where the characters are as large as the shadows cast at sunset. First stop: the Mindil Beach Sunset Markets, where there is a melting-pot of multi-cultural cuisines (own expense).
It’s fitting that your final full day on this Northern Territory Top End tour is sultry – the steamy climate demands it. Today, go your own way. That might mean sleeping in, then heading out for a delicious tropical breakfast. Or signing up for optional experiences, like explorations into Litchfield National Park. This pocket of the NT is a staggering union of magnetic termite mounds and waterfalls, not to mention the waterholes where you can cool off with a refreshing dip (swimming is seasonal). Alternatively, head north to the Tiwi Islands, where you take a deep dive into Indigenous history and art with First Nations guides (both own expense). Whichever route you go, we’ll see you at dinner.
Time to bid adieu and head home to sort through all those photos. Perhaps even better – and longer lasting – are the memories; two weeks of wild outback adventures.