The travellers who slow down in Australia – who take the train through the Red Centre, or a light aircraft into the Kimberley, or a few days in the Outback with someone who knows it – tend to come back talking about it differently. Here’s how to plan a tour that makes the most of the scale.
The Indian Pacific and The Ghan are the two journeys worth knowing about. The Indian Pacific crosses the continent east to west – Sydney to Perth via Broken Hill, Cook and Kalgoorlie – over four nights and across what’s said to be the world’s longest stretch of straight railway track. The landscape shifts from Blue Mountains escarpment to red desert to the goldfields of the west.
The Ghan runs north–south between Adelaide and Darwin via Alice Springs and Katherine – 2,979 kilometres of Red Centre, gorge country and tropical Top End. Journey Beyond’s Aurora Australis Suites are the most luxurious option on either train: your private bar stocked before you board, a helicopter over Katherine Gorge reserved for suite guests, and Bollinger poured for the length of the journey.
The Kimberley is the other destination worth knowing. The gorges, the Bungle Bungles, the horizontal waterfalls reachable only by light aircraft – a part of Australia that opens up considerably with guided access.
The Red Centre – Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Kings Canyon – is the most visited part of the outback, and one where Indigenous cultural interpretation adds something memorable. The light on Uluru at dusk, explained by someone who understands what it means, tends to stay with you.
Tasmania suits a different pace – a compact, walkable landscape where a well-structured tour can take in the Overland Track, Freycinet Peninsula and the southwest wilderness in a week. The food and wine circuit – Coal River Valley, Bruny Island, Bream Creek – has made it one of Australia’s more rewarding culinary touring destinations.
The Red Centre is most comfortable April to September. The Kimberley dry season runs May to October. Tasmania and the east coast work year-round. The Ghan and Indian Pacific both run year-round, though winter departures on The Ghan tend to be the most sought after.
