Southern Outback Tour

Touring Highlights in South Australia:

• Dramatic outback landscapes including the painted desert
• Wilpena Pound night sky astronomy tour
• Farina, one of Australia’s most famous ghost towns
• Coober Pedy where 70% of the population live underground
• Prehistoric river systems as you fly over Lake Eyre, Australia’s largest inland lake.

Day 1: Welcome to Adelaide, South Australia

The South Australian capital often flies under the radar – with its buzzing dining precincts, glorious gardens and nearby wineries. This afternoon discover how diverse Adelaide is, touring the city’s many sides including sports (Adelaide Oval), horticulture (the Botanic Garden), culture (the Art Gallery of South Australia) and food (Adelaide Central Market). Tonight join your Travel Director and fellow travellers.

Day 2: Adelaide – Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park

Fust 1.5 hours north of Adelaide lies the Clare Valley.  Here you will visit one of Australia’s most awarded wineries (Knappstein Enterprise Winery ) that goes back to 1878 and produces extremely tasty drops that you can discover at the cellar door. After lunch, travel to the wide-open spaces of the Flinders Ranges – 800 million years in the making and home to the Adnyamathanha people for tens of thousands of years. The First Nations community owns and manages your base for the night, Wilpena Pound Resort, and they’ll welcome you to Country with spirit and soul.

Day 3: Wilpena Pound – Arkaroola

The cliffs, craters and red rocks of the Flinders Ranges shine brightly in the morning sun providing an beautiful outlook from Wangara Lookout with extensive views over the natural amphitheatre that is Wilpena Pound. An incredible start to the day, before your journey north through dramatic Bunyeroo and Brachina Gorges. Keep your eyes peeled for endangered yellow-footed rock wallabies – only 2,250 remain in Australia, and most call this part of the country home. Arrive in Arkaroola, characterised by ancient granite mountains and golden spinifex-covered hillsides and providing a vantage over Lake Frome and the desert beyond. Tonight enjoy an astronomy tour that brings the dazzling night sky into full focus, a humbling experience!

Day 4: Arkaroola – Marree

What was happening in Arkaroola 1.6 billion years ago? Your guide will help decode the region’s mind-boggling geological history as you navigate the steep slopes and hair-raising ascents of the Ridgetop Track. Plants here are found nowhere else on the planet and gorges are so vast that they seem to cleave off the edge of the earth. A patina follows your journey northwest to the Ochre Cliffs, where an artist’s smudge of fiery hues paints the countryside all the way to the horizon. As sacred as it is spectacular, the Aboriginal community have used the rich clay soil in ceremonies for centuries. You can see why this part of Australia was attractive to the 1800’s settlers of nearby Farina – and learn why they departed, leaving an eerie ghost town on the outskirts of Marree.

Day 5: Marree – Coober Pedy

Much of the South Australian outback towns exist because of the old Ghan Railway that travels between Adelaide and Darwin. Plenty of history will be revealed on your morning’s journey down the line’s westward bend, as well as the natural scenery of Kati Thanda (Lake Eyre), Australia’s largest inland lake.  Most of the time this lake is a shimmering saltpan covering hundreds of square kilometres, occasionally  it is transformed into a thriving oasis by desert rains. Here you have the chance to experience a birdseye view of the area from the air, it looks like a work of art. Pass over the Anna Creek Painted Hills, a rocky outcrop that literally pops out of the flat desert, creating silhouettes resembling cartoon characters. Arrive in the quirky subterranean town of Coober Pedy where you spend the night.

Day 6: Coober Pedy

Coober Pedy is the self-proclaimed ‘opal capital of the world’, its attractions are all below ground due to the soaring temperatures above ground, many locals live underground. Explored this fascinating community, fossick for opals in surrounding mines, visit Aboriginal owned Kanku-Breakaways Conservation Park and travel along a stretch of the Dog Fence.  This barrier spans 5,300 km across landscapes that resemble a moonscape of fossilised shells and cracked grey clay. The local Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Club has fairways made of dirt and sand, pick up a club to thump balls around the oil-soaked putting green.

Day 7: Coober Pedy – Port Augusta

Discover new and even more dramatic landscapes at Lake Hart, another vast saltpan that sparked a community in the 1930s. The vastness of the South Australian outback here was no doubt one of the reasons why Woomera was chosen to become the world’s largest military land base, established by the British in 1947. The land here has been a testing ground for atomic bombs, ballistic missiles and satellite boosters. Head toward your Port Augusta where you will stay for the night.

Day 8: Port Augusta – Barossa Valley –  Adelaide

The Barossa needs no introduction – your journey today will take in one of Australia’s oldest wine regions. Lambert Estate offers some of the finest regional drops and glorious views over the vines. Cheers to that! Your tour finishes upon arrival back into Adelaide.

Important flight booking information for your tour:

Note: Flights are not included in the tour price. Ask your Downunder Travel Destination Specialist to assist with adding flights to this tour for you (additional cost).