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Days
11
Price from
$1,460AUD
Map of Alice Springs to Melbourne Overland (Basix) including Australia

Travel through Australia's amazing Red Centre, Oodnadatta Track and famou Great Ocean Road.

Embark on a Northern Territory and Southern Ocean adventure, from Alice Spings to Melbourne, taking in the region's biggest and best-known drawcards along the way. Witness Uluru during a stunning sunrise, wander through the majestic canyons of Kata Tjuta and admire the views from Kings Canyon. Drive the famous Oodnadatta Track, and the famous Great Ocean Road. A region of exceptional landscapes and intriguing cultural attractions, this top to tail exploration of our country is a trip that will leave you with a profound appreciation of Australia's raw and rugged natural beauty.

Start
Alice Springs, Australia
Finish
Melbourne, Australia
Destinations
Northern Territory, Uluru, Outback, South Australia, Victoria, Great Ocean Road
Style
Basix
Theme
Overland
Code
PBOAC
Physical rating
Ages
Min 18
Group size
Min 1, Max 24

Why you'll love this trip

  • Get back to basics with this classic seventeen-day overland adventure. See the highlights and national parks of Australia's Great Ocean Road and Grampians, Flinders Ranges and Red Centre in rugged, authentic style

  • Cruise the world famous Great Ocean Road

  • Enjoy the flexibility of a private vehicle, the local knowledge of a passionate guide and the magic of camping under the great southern sky

  • See some beautifully remote places in the Flinders ranges

  • Check out one of the strangest towns in Australia - built underground

  • Get up early and see the sun rise over Uluru

Is this trip right for you?

  • This is a basic trip, covering the highlights of Australia's Great Ocean Road and Grampians, Flinders Ranges, and the Red Centre.

  • You'll spend some nights of the trip sleeping in outback camping grounds. While conditions can be basic and facilities are minimal, this is all part of the adventure. You'll also need to pitch in with preparing meals and cleaning. This is part of the experience of travelling in a group.

  • This trip requires a moderate level of fitness as it involves a lot of walking, allowing you to truly enjoy the surrounding nature. Some hikes are longer and more challenging than others. Please bring sturdy, comfortable walking shoes and comfortable clothing.

  • This trip is BASIX and we use mixed gender multishare accommodation. This means, the minimum age for the trip is 18 years old because minors aren't able to sleep in mixed gender rooms.

  • During the day the weather can be hot (and the Australian sun is strong) so please bring appropriate clothing, use sun protection and drink plenty of water. In the evenings temperatures really drop, so ensure you have base layers and warm clothing.

Happy friends watching sunset over Uluru
Sunset over Uluru in the Northern Territory
Windmill in the Flinders Ranges, South Australia
Melbourne city view, hot air balloon
Koala on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria
Dinner under the stars at Yulara, Northern Territory

Itinerary
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Welcome to Alice Springs. Kick off your adventure with a visit to an authentic outback camel farm where you can choose to ride a camel (at your own expense). From here it’s off to Uluru (Ayers Rock) for lunch, before exploring the 36 rocky landforms of Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). In the evening, watch the sun set over Uluru with a glass of wine and a 1,000 star dinner awaits you back at camp. With the red earth beneath your feet and the starry sky overhead, sit down to a candlelit spread of local food and wine.

Note: Total driving time today is around four and a half hours. Total walking time is approximately one hour.

Accommodation
  • Permanent tented camp (with shared facilities) (1 night)
Included Activities
  • Uluru & Kata Tjuta National Park Entrance
Meals Included
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

An early start this morning is rewarded with an Uluru sunrise. While the morning is fresh enjoy a walk around the base of the rock, gaining insights into the land and the local Aboriginal people on an interpretive cultural walk to the Mutijulu waterhole with an Aboriginal guide. Once you’ve had lunch, perhaps purchase some Indigenous art and craft at the Uluru Cultural Centre. Travel onto the exclusive campsite within Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon), where the group will eat and sleep for the night.

Note: Total driving time today is around three and a half hours. Total walking time is approximately two hours.
Accommodation
  • Permanent tented camp (with shared facilities) (1 night)
Included Activities
  • Uluru Cultural Centre
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

Put your hiking shoes on after breakfast and head out to explore the formations and towering rock faces of Kings Canyon. The sheer size of the canyon is breathtaking. Trek for 6 kilometres along the Rim Walk, which takes you through a natural amphitheatre, past the striped sandstone domes of the ‘lost city’ and into the green oasis of the Garden of Eden. Stop for lunch before making your way to a campsite on the homestead of Erldunda, where you’ll spend the night at the Desert Oaks campsite at Erldunda, where you can meet one of Australia most unique wildlife species, the Emu at the Erldunda emu farm.

Note: Total driving time today is around three hours. Total walking time is approximately two and half hours hour.
Accommodation
  • Permanent tented camp (with shared facilities) (1 night)
Included Activities
  • Kings Canyon Rim Walk
  • Erldunda Emu Farm
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

Depart early this morning and make your way to Coober Pedy, crossing the Northern Territory/South Australian border on the way (approximately five hours in total). Take a break to stretch your legs and enjoy lunch in the outback town of Marla. Coober Pedy is known as ‘The Opal Capital of the World’ and was one of the locations used to film the third Mad Max movie. Due to extremely hot temperatures in the area most of the town is constructed underground, with residents living in cave-like houses carved into the hillsides.

Upon arrival, take a guided tour of the town, underground opal mine and museum. End the day hanging out with some rescued joeys at Josephine’s Gallery and Kangaroo Orphanage. Tonight stay in a multi-share underground bunkhouse in Coober Pedy.

Note: Total driving time today is around four and a half hours. Total walking time is approximately half an hour.

Accommodation
  • Underground Multishare (1 night)
Included Activities
  • Josephine’s Gallery and Kangaroo Orphanage
  • Underground Mine & Opal Tour
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

Today after breakfast we will travel into areas seldom seen by most tourists as we leave the sealed roads of the Stuart Hwy behind us and travel on unsealed roads to one of the remotest towns in the world, William Creek. On the way we will travel through the largest Cattle Station in the world, Anna Creek. As we drive gaze out at the endless horizons as we pass by the lake with the longest name in the world, Lake Caddibarrawirracanna. Arriving into town we will set up camp and have dinner. After dinner lay down in your swag and fall asleep as you count the shooting stars.

Note: Total driving time today is around two hours. Total walking time is approximately half an hour.
Accommodation
  • Dormitory (1 night)
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

Today will be a long day of driving as we travel the famous Oodnadatta track to Quorn. Along the way we will visit Australia’s Largest lake, Lake Eyre. Visit the outback towns of Marree, Lyndhurst and Hawker. Stay tonight in private accommodation at the Mill Lodge tonight, where you’ll also have dinner.

Note: Total driving time today is around six hours. Total walking time is approximately half an hour.
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner

In the morning, eat a big breakfast and hike up one of the many peaks in the Flinders Ranges. Make your way back to Adelaide through the rolling hills and vineyards of the Clare Valley, arriving in the early evening. As your journey comes to an end here, we will drop you at your Adelaide city accommodation.

Note: Total driving time today is around three and a half hours. Total walking time is approximately two hours.
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch

Spend two days exploring Adelaide and surrounds. Perhaps take a tour of the wine region, head to Glenelg foreshaw or check out Leigh Street and Peel street for some night life and people watching.
Accommodation
  • Permanent tented camp (with shared facilities) (2 nights)
Meals Included
There are no meals included on this day.

Leaving Adelaide in the morning, drive across the state border into Victoria and enter the Grampians. Go for a walk to view the Jaws of Death, hike down to McKenzie Falls and take in the incredible views from Reeds Lookout. Gain an insight into the customs of the land's traditional owners during a stop-in at the Brambuck Cultural Centre, then head into the heart of the Grampians, stopping en route for lunch. Last stop of the day will be a spot in the Grampians National Park where kangaroos, wallabies and koalas are often spotted. Tonight's accommodation is at either Brambuk Backpackers or the Grampians YHA.

Note: Total driving time today is about seven and a half hours (approximately 550kms)
Total walking time will be about two and a half hours (approximately 3.5kms)
Included Activities
  • Mackenzie Falls - Grampians
  • Reeds Lookout (The Balconies) & Boroka Lookout
Meals Included
  • Dinner

After an early morning start, begin the journey along Australia's glorious Great Ocean Road. Explore Port Campbell National Park, checking out London Bridge, Loch Ard Gorge and the iconic Twelve Apostles rock formation, then sit back and soak up the mesmerising coastal views en route. Stop at Kennett River for the chance to spot koalas before passing through the charming beach towns of Apollo Bay and Lorne. Take some snaps at some famed surf locations and hit the highway back to Melbourne.

Note: Total driving time today is about seven and a half hours (approximately 550kms)
Total walking time will be about two hours (approximately 2kms)
Included Activities
  • 12 Apostles & London Bridge
  • Koala spotting - Great Ocean Road
Meals Included
  • Breakfast

Meals

7 breakfasts, 7 lunches, 7 dinners

Transport

Minibus, Private vehicle

Accommodation

Camping (with basic facilities) (1 night), Dormitory (5 nights), Permanent tented camp (with shared facilities) (3 nights), Underground Multishare (1 night)

Included activities

  • Uluru & Kata Tjuta National Park Entrance
  • Uluru Cultural Centre
  • Kings Canyon Rim Walk
  • Erldunda Emu Farm
  • Josephine’s Gallery and Kangaroo Orphanage
  • Underground Mine & Opal Tour
  • Mackenzie Falls - Grampians
  • Reeds Lookout (The Balconies) & Boroka Lookout
  • 12 Apostles & London Bridge
  • Koala spotting - Great Ocean Road

Dates & availability

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Important notes

1. Tour commences in Alice Springs on day 1 at 6:30am and finishes in Melbourne day 11 at approx 6pm
2. Onward travel to be booked the following day
3. This trip requires a sleeping bag

Essential trip information

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