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Didier Moutia's Travels
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1. This is definitely an ultimate family holiday. We planned 18 days and did the trip comfortably i.e. a good blend of moving but also seeing the important or interesting things. At the bottom of this tips page is our itinerary, you may find it useful.
2. If you are looking for a guide to Northern Territory we highly recommend the Lonely Planet "Central Australia – Adelaide to Darwin" book. It was seriously useful for planning our trip and we referred to it often during the trip if not daily.
3. We went on the 'shoulder' of the tourist season. This was recommended by Lonely Planet and we are glad we went at this time. Speaking to staff, peak tourist season is crazy busy. The risk with travelling on the shoulder is that some attractions may be closed or only open wet season hours (limited hours). There were some things not open but it was not that many. Conversely we had some attractions almost to ourselves which was great!
4. Never been in a campervan or caravan before? If you have never been in a camper before we suggest you maybe hire one for a weekend and get used to how they operate before embarking on a remote 4,000km+ odyssey. Also think about whether to hire a 4WD or 2WD camper. We hired a 6 berth campervan which was 2WD. There were some places we could not get to like Litchfield and Kakadu. However we do not feel as though we really missed out. The 2WD camper was great in that when you pull up you are pretty much ready to go, connect the power, open the awning and you are all sorted. We saw others who had 4WD campers and these required a lot of mucking around. Whatever you choose, get some experience with it first before doing a long trip.
5. Before you leave make sure to get yourselves some head fly nets. Flys around Uluru can be intense! As you move north mosquitos take over from flies when it comes to annoying you.
6. This trip means lots of driving. If you have small kids make sure you bring lots and lots of DVDs etc. We were lucky, we had a camper with a TV but even then there were places with no TV reception and where we relied on DVDs to keep the kids amused late at night.
7. Indigenous Art. Wherever you go you will find a multitude of galleries that offer aboriginal art. For us it was challenging to work out which galleries were ethical and rewarded the artists appropriately for their work. For us it was important that the aboriginal community benefited from our purchases. In the Red Centre try to buy from the communities directly. If you are heading through Katherine on your trip then we recommend purchasing any aboriginal art at the Mimi Gallery in Katherine. This is an awesome place as the gallery is 100% owned and operated by aboriginals, the gallery features artwork from across the Northern Territory, especially communities which cannot easily be visited. There is a choice of styles from Central Australian right through to modern pieces. The prices are good also when compared to similar items in places like Sydney. Buying from Mimi gallery means you can purchase in good faith knowing the art is authentic and the artists are given a fair amount for their art.
8. Uluru – Accommodation. The whole Uluru area known as Ayers Rock Resort is one Accor managed property but with different accommodation types. You can move around the Ayers Rock Resort thanks to a free shuttle service. The camp ground itself is great, there is a small kiosk, pool and decent amenities. The camp ground also has some observation platforms to view Uluru which was cool.
9. Uluru – Food. Catering for yourself? There is an IGA at the Town Square. Be aware prices for some items may shock you. If you are coming through Alice Springs first then maybe do your shopping at Coles in Alice Springs which is more reasonable. There are good restaurants in Ayers Rock Resort, we especially liked Kulata Academy Café and Arnguli Grill restaurants in Town Square. They have good meals, reasonably priced and both places are training restaurants for indigenous people. There are limited options for food in the Uluru National Park itself. There is one café so we suggest bringing in your own food.
10. Uluru – Tours. Our suggestion is not to do the tours. You can do them all yourself and save some money. The Uluru and The Olgas Sunrise and Sunset viewing areas are well marked out. You can easily get to them yourself and we found that ironically we got the best photos as tours were pushed along before the sun actually hit the rock on our sunrise day. The only place you cannot get to is the Uluru Sunset area specifically for tour buses. However we found the public viewing area just as good. There are lots of walks around the rock. We recommend doing at least the Mala walk and also the Valley of the Winds at the Olgas. We did the Base Walk which is 10kms, it is a good walk but be prepared! If your kids like astronomy the Astrohub night astronomy tour is a must!
11. Kings Canyon – We highly recommend Kings Canyon and especially Kings Creek Station. Kings Creek Station is a very basic campground 30 minutes away from Kings Canyon. It is basic but feels very authentic and is well maintained. It is quiet with lots of wildlife around. We loved the place for its real outback feel. The fuel here is cheap BTW. Definitely do the Kings Canyon Rim Walk … it was a highlight of our trip to the centre. If you are doing the Rim Walk leave EARLY. It gets crazy hot out there and by 10am it is already heating up. We started at 8am and that was a smart move. Bring loads of water and don’t miss the Garden of Eden … truly spectacular. The walk is 5.5kms long and the first part is a steep climb (500 rocky steps).
12. Alice Springs – Alice has loads to see. The Ghan Museum, the Alice Springs Transport Heritage Centre and Royal Flying Doctor Service are well worth a visit. Give Alice Springs Reptile Centre a miss, you will see better later in the trip, especially in Darwin! We did not visit the Alice Springs Desert Park but it looked quite good and may be worth a visit. Don’t miss visiting ANZAC Hill. The highlight in Alice for our boys was the Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park. The pools are heated, there is a 25 metre water slide, pedal cars and a bunch of activities targeted to keeping the kids amused. For us adults we were very impressed with the individual shower/toilet blocks for each powered site.
13. This type of trip is all about hitting the open road. So when heading north of Alice make sure to stop in at all the small stops especially Aileron and Wycliffe Well Roadhouse. These places are random but an experience in themselves. Aileron has some rather unique signs and pictures in the roadhouse. Next to Aileron Roadhouse there is a great indigenous art gallery which is very reasonably priced and well worth a visit.
14. Tennant Creek is a good place for a stopover but not much is happening there. My biggest boy loved the Battery Hill Mine Tour which we did before heading out of town late morning. We did the first tour at 9am so we could get to Mataranka at a reasonable time.
15. Mataranka. Awesome place. Try and stay at the Mataranka Homestead, the springs are located there so you only need to walk 50 metres to access them. Mataranka Homestead has good amenities as well as a bar/restaurant.
16. Katherine. A MUST do is the Katherine Gorge cruise, it was one of the highlights of our trip. Also the Hot Springs are awesome. Mimi Aboriginal Art Gallery is located here and good place to buy aboriginal art ethically.
17. Litchfield National Park. In terms of accommodation give Litchfield Safari Park a wide berth. The Litchfield Tourist Park is our recommendation, it has a restaurant, great facilities and pool and situated 4 kilometres outside the park. In terms of the park Wangi Falls is a must see. However Florence Falls Plunge Pool and Buleys Rock Pools are better than Wangi when it comes to swimming. Consider going to Buleys Rock Pool early as there is limited car parks and remember the Buley car park does not accommodate caravans.
18. Kakadu National Park. Simply this place is awesome! Kakadu is basically three zones being Ubirr/Jabiru, Cooinda and Mary River Area (South of the park). Ubirr is a must for Aboriginal Rock Art, the Ubirr site has an impressive collection of rock art and also an amazing lookout over Kakadu Savannah. Cooinda is our pick for accommodation. We cannot say enough about Cooinda … the facilities including the restaurant is great and the pool is simply outstanding. We did not explore the southern Mary River park of the park, it seems you need a 4WD and we did not have a capable vehicle. The Yellow River cruise is a must, make sure you book into the sunset tour it is simply breathtaking. Photographers try and snatch the first row of the boat as you will get unobstructed amazing views.
19. Darwin. There is so much to do. One suggestion we have is to go to Crocosaurus Cove and NOT Crocodylus Park. Our kids found Crocosaurus a LOT better that Crocodylus and it is conveniently located in the centre of Darwin. A must do is the Darwin Military Museum, it is an important part of Australian history and for the kids it is quite interactive.
Day 1 – Arrived in Alice Springs
Accommodation: Alice on Todd Apartments
Activities: Alice Springs Reptile Centre
Swimming
Day 2 – Alice Springs to Uluru
Travel: 463kms (5-6 hours)
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Sunset Olgas
Day 3 – Uluru
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Sunrise Uluru
Base Walk Uluru (10.3kms)
Swimming Ayers Rock Resort.
Astrohub Night Astronomy Tour
Day 4 – Uluru
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Town Square Breakfast/Morning.
Uluru Camel Tours
Valley of the Winds Walk
Sunset Uluru
Day 5 – Uluru to Kings Canyon
Travel: 321kms (4 hours)
Accommodation: Kings Creek Station
Activities: Kings Canyon Creek Walk
Swimming at Kings Creek Station
Day 6 – Kings Canyon to Alice Springs
Travel: 474kms (5 - 6 hours)
Accommodation: Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park
Activities: Kings Canyon Rim Walk (5.5kms)
Swimming at Big 4
Day 7 – Alice Springs
Accommodation: Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park
Activities: Ghan Museum
Transport Heritage Centre.
Royal Flying Doctor Service
Swimming at Big 4
Day 8 – Alice Springs to Tennant Creek
Travel: 508kms (5 - 6 hours)
Accommodation: Outback Caravan Park Tennant Creek
Activities: ANZAC Hill Alice Springs
Tropic of Capricorn Marker
Aileron Roadhouse
Outback Art Gallery (Aileron)
Barrow Creek Hotel
Wycliffe Well
Devils Marbles
Swimming at Outback Caravan Park
Swimming at Big 4
Day 9 – Tennant Creek to Mataranka
Travel: 567kms (6 hours)
Accommodation: Mataranka Homestead
Activities: Battery Hill Mining Centre – Mine Tour
Newcastle Waters Ghost Town
Daly Waters
Day 10 – Mataranka to Katherine
Travel: 106kms (1 hour)
Accommodation: Big 4 Katherine
Activities: Mataranka Hot Springs
Swimming at Big 4 Katherine
Day 11 – Katherine
Accommodation: Big 4 Katherine
Activities: Katherine Gorge
Katherine Museum
Mimi Aboriginal Art Gallery
Day 12 – Katherine to Litchfield National Park
Travel: 262kms (2-3 hours)
Accommodation: Litchfield Safari Park
Activities: Katherine Hot Springs
Pine Creek
Batchelor Butterfly Farm
Litchfield National Park – Termite Mounds
Swimming Litchfield Safari Park
Day 13 – Litchfield National Park
Accommodation: Litchfield Tourist Park
Activities: Litchfield National Park – Wangi Falls
Litchfield National Park – Florence Falls (Swimming)
Litchfield National Park – Buley Rockpools (Swimming)
Swimming at Litchfield Tourist Park
Day 14 – Litchfield National Park to Kakadu National Park
Travel: 333kms (3-4 hours)
Accommodation: Cooinda (Gagudju Lodge)
Activities: Adelaide River War Cemetary
Mary River Road House
Swimming at Cooinda Resort Pool
Day 15 – Kakadu National Park
Accommodation: Cooinda (Gagudju Lodge)
Activities: Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre
Anbangbang site (Nourlangie) Aboriginal Rock Art
Yellow Water Sunset Cruise
Swimming at Cooinda Resort Pool
Day 16 – Kakadu National Park to Darwin
Travel: 305kms (3-4 hours)
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Jabiru Township
Ubirr Aboriginal Rock Art
Bark Hut Roadhouse
Day 17 – Darwin
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Crocodylus Park
Aviation Heritage Museum
Swimming at Darwin Wave Pool
Day 18 – Darwin
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Darwin Military Museum
Crocosaurus Cove
1. This is definitely an ultimate family holiday. We planned 18 days and did the trip comfortably i.e. a good blend of moving but also seeing the important or interesting things. At the bottom of this tips page is our itinerary, you may find it useful.
2. If you are looking for a guide to Northern Territory we highly recommend the Lonely Planet "Central Australia – Adelaide to Darwin" book. It was seriously useful for planning our trip and we referred to it often during the trip if not daily.
3. We went on the 'shoulder' of the tourist season. This was recommended by Lonely Planet and we are glad we went at this time. Speaking to staff, peak tourist season is crazy busy. The risk with travelling on the shoulder is that some attractions may be closed or only open wet season hours (limited hours). There were some things not open but it was not that many. Conversely we had some attractions almost to ourselves which was great!
4. Never been in a campervan or caravan before? If you have never been in a camper before we suggest you maybe hire one for a weekend and get used to how they operate before embarking on a remote 4,000km+ odyssey. Also think about whether to hire a 4WD or 2WD camper. We hired a 6 berth campervan which was 2WD. There were some places we could not get to like Litchfield and Kakadu. However we do not feel as though we really missed out. The 2WD camper was great in that when you pull up you are pretty much ready to go, connect the power, open the awning and you are all sorted. We saw others who had 4WD campers and these required a lot of mucking around. Whatever you choose, get some experience with it first before doing a long trip.
5. Before you leave make sure to get yourselves some head fly nets. Flys around Uluru can be intense! As you move north mosquitos take over from flies when it comes to annoying you.
6. This trip means lots of driving. If you have small kids make sure you bring lots and lots of DVDs etc. We were lucky, we had a camper with a TV but even then there were places with no TV reception and where we relied on DVDs to keep the kids amused late at night.
7. Indigenous Art. Wherever you go you will find a multitude of galleries that offer aboriginal art. For us it was challenging to work out which galleries were ethical and rewarded the artists appropriately for their work. For us it was important that the aboriginal community benefited from our purchases. In the Red Centre try to buy from the communities directly. If you are heading through Katherine on your trip then we recommend purchasing any aboriginal art at the Mimi Gallery in Katherine. This is an awesome place as the gallery is 100% owned and operated by aboriginals, the gallery features artwork from across the Northern Territory, especially communities which cannot easily be visited. There is a choice of styles from Central Australian right through to modern pieces. The prices are good also when compared to similar items in places like Sydney. Buying from Mimi gallery means you can purchase in good faith knowing the art is authentic and the artists are given a fair amount for their art.
8. Uluru – Accommodation. The whole Uluru area known as Ayers Rock Resort is one Accor managed property but with different accommodation types. You can move around the Ayers Rock Resort thanks to a free shuttle service. The camp ground itself is great, there is a small kiosk, pool and decent amenities. The camp ground also has some observation platforms to view Uluru which was cool.
9. Uluru – Food. Catering for yourself? There is an IGA at the Town Square. Be aware prices for some items may shock you. If you are coming through Alice Springs first then maybe do your shopping at Coles in Alice Springs which is more reasonable. There are good restaurants in Ayers Rock Resort, we especially liked Kulata Academy Café and Arnguli Grill restaurants in Town Square. They have good meals, reasonably priced and both places are training restaurants for indigenous people. There are limited options for food in the Uluru National Park itself. There is one café so we suggest bringing in your own food.
10. Uluru – Tours. Our suggestion is not to do the tours. You can do them all yourself and save some money. The Uluru and The Olgas Sunrise and Sunset viewing areas are well marked out. You can easily get to them yourself and we found that ironically we got the best photos as tours were pushed along before the sun actually hit the rock on our sunrise day. The only place you cannot get to is the Uluru Sunset area specifically for tour buses. However we found the public viewing area just as good. There are lots of walks around the rock. We recommend doing at least the Mala walk and also the Valley of the Winds at the Olgas. We did the Base Walk which is 10kms, it is a good walk but be prepared! If your kids like astronomy the Astrohub night astronomy tour is a must!
11. Kings Canyon – We highly recommend Kings Canyon and especially Kings Creek Station. Kings Creek Station is a very basic campground 30 minutes away from Kings Canyon. It is basic but feels very authentic and is well maintained. It is quiet with lots of wildlife around. We loved the place for its real outback feel. The fuel here is cheap BTW. Definitely do the Kings Canyon Rim Walk … it was a highlight of our trip to the centre. If you are doing the Rim Walk leave EARLY. It gets crazy hot out there and by 10am it is already heating up. We started at 8am and that was a smart move. Bring loads of water and don’t miss the Garden of Eden … truly spectacular. The walk is 5.5kms long and the first part is a steep climb (500 rocky steps).
12. Alice Springs – Alice has loads to see. The Ghan Museum, the Alice Springs Transport Heritage Centre and Royal Flying Doctor Service are well worth a visit. Give Alice Springs Reptile Centre a miss, you will see better later in the trip, especially in Darwin! We did not visit the Alice Springs Desert Park but it looked quite good and may be worth a visit. Don’t miss visiting ANZAC Hill. The highlight in Alice for our boys was the Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park. The pools are heated, there is a 25 metre water slide, pedal cars and a bunch of activities targeted to keeping the kids amused. For us adults we were very impressed with the individual shower/toilet blocks for each powered site.
13. This type of trip is all about hitting the open road. So when heading north of Alice make sure to stop in at all the small stops especially Aileron and Wycliffe Well Roadhouse. These places are random but an experience in themselves. Aileron has some rather unique signs and pictures in the roadhouse. Next to Aileron Roadhouse there is a great indigenous art gallery which is very reasonably priced and well worth a visit.
14. Tennant Creek is a good place for a stopover but not much is happening there. My biggest boy loved the Battery Hill Mine Tour which we did before heading out of town late morning. We did the first tour at 9am so we could get to Mataranka at a reasonable time.
15. Mataranka. Awesome place. Try and stay at the Mataranka Homestead, the springs are located there so you only need to walk 50 metres to access them. Mataranka Homestead has good amenities as well as a bar/restaurant.
16. Katherine. A MUST do is the Katherine Gorge cruise, it was one of the highlights of our trip. Also the Hot Springs are awesome. Mimi Aboriginal Art Gallery is located here and good place to buy aboriginal art ethically.
17. Litchfield National Park. In terms of accommodation give Litchfield Safari Park a wide berth. The Litchfield Tourist Park is our recommendation, it has a restaurant, great facilities and pool and situated 4 kilometres outside the park. In terms of the park Wangi Falls is a must see. However Florence Falls Plunge Pool and Buleys Rock Pools are better than Wangi when it comes to swimming. Consider going to Buleys Rock Pool early as there is limited car parks and remember the Buley car park does not accommodate caravans.
18. Kakadu National Park. Simply this place is awesome! Kakadu is basically three zones being Ubirr/Jabiru, Cooinda and Mary River Area (South of the park). Ubirr is a must for Aboriginal Rock Art, the Ubirr site has an impressive collection of rock art and also an amazing lookout over Kakadu Savannah. Cooinda is our pick for accommodation. We cannot say enough about Cooinda … the facilities including the restaurant is great and the pool is simply outstanding. We did not explore the southern Mary River park of the park, it seems you need a 4WD and we did not have a capable vehicle. The Yellow River cruise is a must, make sure you book into the sunset tour it is simply breathtaking. Photographers try and snatch the first row of the boat as you will get unobstructed amazing views.
19. Darwin. There is so much to do. One suggestion we have is to go to Crocosaurus Cove and NOT Crocodylus Park. Our kids found Crocosaurus a LOT better that Crocodylus and it is conveniently located in the centre of Darwin. A must do is the Darwin Military Museum, it is an important part of Australian history and for the kids it is quite interactive.
Day 1 – Arrived in Alice Springs
Accommodation: Alice on Todd Apartments
Activities: Alice Springs Reptile Centre
Swimming
Day 2 – Alice Springs to Uluru
Travel: 463kms (5-6 hours)
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Sunset Olgas
Day 3 – Uluru
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Sunrise Uluru
Base Walk Uluru (10.3kms)
Swimming Ayers Rock Resort.
Astrohub Night Astronomy Tour
Day 4 – Uluru
Accommodation: Ayers Rock Resort Camp Ground
Activities: Town Square Breakfast/Morning.
Uluru Camel Tours
Valley of the Winds Walk
Sunset Uluru
Day 5 – Uluru to Kings Canyon
Travel: 321kms (4 hours)
Accommodation: Kings Creek Station
Activities: Kings Canyon Creek Walk
Swimming at Kings Creek Station
Day 6 – Kings Canyon to Alice Springs
Travel: 474kms (5 - 6 hours)
Accommodation: Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park
Activities: Kings Canyon Rim Walk (5.5kms)
Swimming at Big 4
Day 7 – Alice Springs
Accommodation: Big 4 MacDonnell Range Holiday Park
Activities: Ghan Museum
Transport Heritage Centre.
Royal Flying Doctor Service
Swimming at Big 4
Day 8 – Alice Springs to Tennant Creek
Travel: 508kms (5 - 6 hours)
Accommodation: Outback Caravan Park Tennant Creek
Activities: ANZAC Hill Alice Springs
Tropic of Capricorn Marker
Aileron Roadhouse
Outback Art Gallery (Aileron)
Barrow Creek Hotel
Wycliffe Well
Devils Marbles
Swimming at Outback Caravan Park
Swimming at Big 4
Day 9 – Tennant Creek to Mataranka
Travel: 567kms (6 hours)
Accommodation: Mataranka Homestead
Activities: Battery Hill Mining Centre – Mine Tour
Newcastle Waters Ghost Town
Daly Waters
Day 10 – Mataranka to Katherine
Travel: 106kms (1 hour)
Accommodation: Big 4 Katherine
Activities: Mataranka Hot Springs
Swimming at Big 4 Katherine
Day 11 – Katherine
Accommodation: Big 4 Katherine
Activities: Katherine Gorge
Katherine Museum
Mimi Aboriginal Art Gallery
Day 12 – Katherine to Litchfield National Park
Travel: 262kms (2-3 hours)
Accommodation: Litchfield Safari Park
Activities: Katherine Hot Springs
Pine Creek
Batchelor Butterfly Farm
Litchfield National Park – Termite Mounds
Swimming Litchfield Safari Park
Day 13 – Litchfield National Park
Accommodation: Litchfield Tourist Park
Activities: Litchfield National Park – Wangi Falls
Litchfield National Park – Florence Falls (Swimming)
Litchfield National Park – Buley Rockpools (Swimming)
Swimming at Litchfield Tourist Park
Day 14 – Litchfield National Park to Kakadu National Park
Travel: 333kms (3-4 hours)
Accommodation: Cooinda (Gagudju Lodge)
Activities: Adelaide River War Cemetary
Mary River Road House
Swimming at Cooinda Resort Pool
Day 15 – Kakadu National Park
Accommodation: Cooinda (Gagudju Lodge)
Activities: Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre
Anbangbang site (Nourlangie) Aboriginal Rock Art
Yellow Water Sunset Cruise
Swimming at Cooinda Resort Pool
Day 16 – Kakadu National Park to Darwin
Travel: 305kms (3-4 hours)
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Jabiru Township
Ubirr Aboriginal Rock Art
Bark Hut Roadhouse
Day 17 – Darwin
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Crocodylus Park
Aviation Heritage Museum
Swimming at Darwin Wave Pool
Day 18 – Darwin
Accommodation: Argus Apartments Darwin
Activities: Darwin Military Museum
Crocosaurus Cove
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