Corner Country Adventure

Today we depart Adelaide and head north through Gawler and the Barossa Valley to join the Sturt Highway. Enjoy a picnic lunch on the banks of the Murray River at Renmark before trekking further east through to Mildura. From here we head into the Mungo National Park, where we overnight at the Mungo Lodge.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

This morning we explore Mungo National Park which was World Heritage Listed in 1981 in recognition of its rich Aboriginal heritage. Remains of the earliest humans to inhabit the Australian continent have been found in Mungo National Park and have recently been dated at more than 60,000 years old.

After departing Mungo National Park we travel through Pooncarie and on to Menindee, a town of 1,000 people on the banks of the Darling River and home to the ‘Menindee Lakes’. The town has ties to several Australian Explorers, including Burke and Wills, Charles Sturt and Major Mitchell.

Later this afternoon we arrive into Broken Hill and check in to the Royal Exchange Hotel for our two night stay. This charming boutique hotel dates back to 1889 and has been tastefully refurbished over the years. We enjoy dinner this evening in the hotel restaurant.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast this morning we visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) Visitor Centre, which also acts as a working RFDS base.

Enjoy a tour of the base and learn about one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world. Enjoy the rest of the day exploring Broken Hill, the ‘Capital of the Outback’ and the surrounding areas.

From here we head to Silverton, the star of countless films including Mad Max II, Mission Impossible II and the Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. After a good look around, we return to Broken Hill and visit the Sulphide Street Railway & Historical Museum, followed by the Living Desert Reserve and Sculpture Symposium before returning to the Royal Exchange.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast this morning we head up to the Line of Lode Miners Memorial. Straddling the mullock heap that divides the city of Broken Hill, the memorial was built for the 800 or more miners who lost their lives on the job.

Depart Broken Hill and head north along the Silver City Highway to Milparinka. Here we’ll visit some of the town’s old colonial buildings, including the courthouse and police barracks, that have been lovingly restored as part of the Milparinka Heritage Precinct. Continue west to Depot Glen, named by Captain Charles Sturt on his 1845 expedition to find an inland sea. The stranded expedition team camped at this waterhole for months on end, waiting for the summer heat to abate.

This afternoon we arrive at the small outback village of Tibooburra where we spend the night at The Family Hotel, or the Granites Motel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

We depart Tibooburra this morning to venture into the vast Sturt National Park en route to Cameron Corner, where QLD, NSW and SA all meet. The area was first surveyed by James Cameron from the NSW Lands Department in 1879. It's also home to the longest fence in the world, The Dog Fence, stretching from the Great Australian Bight to Jimbour near Brisbane (5,600km).

After lunch at the Corner Store, we continue heading west towards the Strzelecki Track and then onto the village of Innamincka, set on the banks of Cooper Creek. We spend the next two nights at the Innamincka Hotel in comfortable motel units.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Innamincka is a small village with a population of no more than fifty people. The township once played a major role in early explorations of Australia’s unknown interior. With its reliable water source, it made an ideal base camp or resting place for expeditions and cattle drives from the east and the south.

This morning we cross the border into QLD to visit the ‘Dig Tree’, located on the banks of Cooper Creek. This is where explorers Burke and Wills returned to after their expedition to the Gulf of Carpentaria, only to discover their party had left just nine hours earlier.

After returning to Innamincka for lunch at the hotel, we embark on a cruise of Cooper Creek. The cruise operates for an hour and a half and is a highlight of your expedition through the Corner Country. Enjoy expert commentary from your cruise guide and learn about this incredibly unique river system – one of the last unregulated systems in the world.

We return to the hotel late afternoon for our second and final night at the Innamincka Hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

This morning we depart Innamincka and travel south along the Strzelecki Track. This famous outback track was created by infamous cattle thief Harry Readford in 1870, who blazed the trail out of necessity whilst attempting to move 1,000 head of cattle from Queensland into South Australia. He learned to navigate by the stars from the local Indigenous, earning him the nickname of Captain Starlight!

Today the track is named after Polish explorer, Paul Edmund de Strzelecki. The explorer and scientist arrived in Australia in 1839 to complete a geological survey across New South Wales and the Australian Alps to name the highest point on mainland Australia. We traverse the Strzelecki Track through to Lyndhurst before joining the Oodnadatta Track to Marree where we overnight at the iconic Marree Hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today we embark on another famous outback trail, The Birdsville Track. It traverses three deserts along the route, the Strzelecki, Sturt Stony and Tirari Deserts. The track was opened in the 1860's to walk cattle from northern Queensland and the Northern Territory to the nearest railhead in Port Augusta, which was later moved to Marree.

Over the years it became one of the country's most isolated and best-known stock routes, as well as the mail route made famous by outback legend Tom Kruse. This was eventually replaced in 1963 by air services.

We enjoy a visit to Mungerannie, travel to Clifton Hills, Pandie Pandie, before arriving at the Birdsville late afternoon.

Enjoy two nights here in quality accommodation with friendly Outback hospitality.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Birdsville was originally named Diamantina Crossing in 1881 after the Diamantina River, which runs to the east of the town. However, the township was renamed Birdsville in 1885 by the owner of Pandie Pandie Station who was amazed by the diversity of birdlife which inhabited the area. The town only has a population of around 100 people, but during the Big Red Bash and the Birdsville Races it swells to over 7,000!

Birdsville is also situated on the edge of the Simpson Desert National Park, which is characterised by huge red sand dunes. There are approximately 1,100 sand dunes running North-South across the Simpson, the most famous being 'Big Red', also known as Nappanerica. This massive sand dune is a popular place for tourists to put their four-wheeldrive vehicles to the test.

This morning we'll have a look round town and visit the Wirrarri Visitor Centre, home to an extensive gallery. This afternoon, visit 'Big Red' before returning for our second and final night in Birdsville.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today we continue north through Queensland’s Channel Country to the small township of Bedourie. Bedourie is the main administrative centre for the Diamantina Shire, the second largest shire in Queensland after the Cooktown Shire. After some lunch we continue onto Boulia, known as the capital of the Channel Country.

The area is also known for the mysterious Min Min Light which has now been sighted for almost half a century. This afternoon we visit the Min Min Encounter Visitor Centre where we enjoy a unique theatrical experience and learn the story of the Min Min Light. We overnight at the Boulia Desert Sands Motel or the Australian Hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

An early start this morning as we make our way west towards the Northern Territory Border. Travel along the Plenty Highway through Harts Range and Gemtree to arrive into Alice Springs late this afternoon. We spend the next two nights at the Mercure Alice Springs Resort.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today we take a leisurely tour around Alice Springs which includes a visit to the Alice Springs Desert Park, The Royal Flying Doctor Base Museum and the Old Telegraph Station. Those who have previously experienced these attractions can spend the day at their leisure. Tonight we celebrate our trip through the Corner Country and enjoy our final dinner together.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

This morning we all enjoy breakfast together before being transferred to the airport or to your accommodation if you are staying on in Alice Springs.

Meals: Breakfast