South Australian Outback Adventure
The South Australian countryside dials up natural drama, whether glimpsed from the sky atop prehistoric escarpments, or studied below ground, where opals gleam.
Members from: $5,360 P.P Twin ShareNon-members from: $5,415 P.P Twin ShareSolo traveller from: $6,610
Type
Escorted Touring
Destination
Australia
Supplier
AAT Kings
Departs
7 October 2023
Flexible Holidays
South Australia dazzles, whether from the sky on a flight over Lake Eyre, or from below the ground ogling opals in Coober Pedy. Do either – or both.
Time For You
The South Australia countryside is humbling, as you’ll discover when you leave the world behind and hike the Flinders Ranges or gaze at the heavens on an astronomy tour.
Iconic Sites
Tick off ‘only-in-Australia’ locales: the world’s oldest vines in the Barossa, a subterranean community in Coober Pedy, Australia’s largest inland sometimes-lake.
Sustainable Travel
When you check into Indigenous-owned Wilpena Pound Resort, your room rate contributes to a sustainable economic future for the Adnyamathanha people.
Day 1 Welcome to Adelaide
The South Australian capital often flies under the radar – locals like it that way, happy to keep their buzzing dining precincts, glorious gardens and on-your-doorstep wineries to themselves. But the secret is well and truly out, and over the course of the afternoon you’ll discover just how diverse Adelaide really is. Touring the city you’ll cover every interest base: sports (Adelaide Oval), horticulture (the Botanic Garden), culture (the Art Gallery of South Australia) and food (Adelaide Central Market). Make a note to book a table at the Meat & Wine Co tonight – a premium steak restaurant with a unique Afro-centric twist. The city offers plenty of other eateries in which to while away your evening.
Hotel: Adabco Boutique Hotel
Day 2 Adelaide – Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park
Day 3 Wilpena Pound – Arkaroola
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 outside Lyndhurst, where an artist’s smudge of fiery hues paints the countryside all the way to the horizon. It’s as sacred as it is spectacular, with the Indigenous community having utilised the rich clay soil in ceremonies for centuries. You can see why this part of Australia was attractive to the 1800s settlers of nearby Farina – but you’ll also learn why they departed, leaving an eerie ghost town on the outskirts of Marree, where you’ll lay your swimming head for the night.
Hotel: Marree Hotel
Included Meals: Lunch, Breakfast, Dinner
Day 5 Marree – Coober Pedy
Day 6 Coober Pedy
The self-proclaimed ‘opal capital of the world’, Coober Pedy’s many attractions lie primarily below the earth’s surface. Due to the aboveground heat (temperatures can soar) many locals choose to take up a subterranean residence as well. Once you’ve explored this fascinating community – including fossicking for opals in surrounding mines – look further afield to Aboriginal owned Kanku-Breakaways Conservation Park, where you’ll travel along a stretch of the ancient Dog Fence: a barrier spanning 5,300 kilometres across three states. As mind-boggling as the construction is, it pales in comparison to the setting’s moonscape of fossilised shells and cracked grey clay. It has provided the ideal setting for Hollywood blockbusters like Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. The only thing more surreal than the natural landscape is the constructed one this afternoon at Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Club, where the fairways are dirt and sand. That’s one for the record books. Pick up a club to thump balls around the oil-soaked putting green.
Included Meals: Dinner, Breakfast
Day 7 Coober Pedy – Port Augusta
It’s hard to imagine landscapes more dramatic than those you’ll have experienced so far. But the bar is officially raised by those at Lake Hart, another vast saltpan that sparked a community in the 1930s. Today, it’s all but deserted, the isolation reminding you that Mother Nature always rules. The vastness of the South Australian outback here was no doubt one of the reasons why it – specifically Woomera – was chosen to become the world’s largest military land base. Established by the British in 1947, the countryside here has been a testing base for atomic bombs, ballistic missiles and satellite boosters. It’s a piece of Australian history few know of, but that you will leave appreciating, as you head toward your evening’s repose in the natural harbour of Port Augusta.
Hotel: Majestic Oasis Apartments
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 8 Port Augusta – Depart Adelaide
The Barossa needs no introduction – your journey today will take in one of Australia’s oldest wine regions, and local makers know a thing or two about creating memorable vintages. The South Australian Company Store reveals some of the finest regional drops, your lunchtime tipples complemented by glorious views over the vines. Cheers to that! You’ll arrive in plenty of time for your Adelaide flight, your heart, mind and spirit filled with the natural and human wonders of a region that exudes superlatives.
Included Meals: Lunch, Breakfast
Legendary Longreach & Winton
Members from: $4,216 P.P Twin Share
Great Ocean Road and Kangaroo Island Escape
Members from: $3,437 P.P Twin Share
All prices are per person in Australian Dollars unless specified. Prices are based on costs,
charges, tariffs, rates, prices, taxes, levies, exchange rates and other considerations.
All are subject to change. For up-to-date pricing contact your Travel Agent or check on
AATKings.com.
No surcharges regarding cost or currency fluctuations will be made to the land only price
once the deposit is received. No refund will be made on account of reduction of any of the
above. If the total holiday price increases by more than 10% guests will have the option to
cancel the holiday within 7 days of notification of the surcharge without penalty