Holiday in Northern Territory

Click here for package holidays in Northern Territory >>

The Northern Territory (NT) is a revelation. It is a place of such natural and cultural distinction that, despite the best intentions of the local tourism industry, no amount of open-jawed crocodile photos, didgeridoo CDs or videos of 4-wheel-drive vehicles emerging from clouds of red dust can prepare you for it.

Sometimes you’ll be ambushed by visual splendour, such as when you stare into the grand maw of Kings Canyon, glance across a plain of spinifex to see Chambers Pillar stretching up from the horizon, or watch dozens of strartled flying foxes take flight from the canopy of a monsoon forest. But much of the Northern Territory’s beauty steals up on you only after days of exposure to its mesmerising, deceptive emptiness: the silhouette of desert oaks against a dusky sky, water lilies painting the surface of a billabong, a goanna ambling down a dry creek bed or ancient scratchings of Aboriginal art under a sandstone overhang.

This State, some would say is the raw, untamed heart of Australia and indeed much of the Outback is aboriginal-owned, alowing their ancient cultures and ways to continue and flourish.

Visitors quickly learn to savour the landscape, from the desert-pegged contours of Uluru and the sheer escarpment of Arnhem Land to the tropical Top End’s mangrove swamps. The Top End is a seductive, tropical region on the remote tip of the massive Northern Territory. Here you’ll find a turquoise coast with palm trees while inland are winding rivers, grassy wetlands and ochre escarpments.

Visitors love to cruise Yellow Water in Kakadu National Park, looking for the eyeballs of a saltie (saltwater Crocodile) off the muddy riverbank, walk the rugged gorges that indent the MacDonnell Ranges, and paddle across rock pools and under waterfalls in Litchfield National Park. They appreciate the fascinating complexities of Aboriginal culture by standing among burial poles on the Tiwi Islands, buying the artistic output of remote communities and viewing fine exhibitions in museums and cultural centres. And then they kick back in pubs in the Outback, beer gardens in Alice and foreshore cafes in Darwin, digesting past experiences and eager for more Territorial travel.

Darwin is the state’s capital and is a thoroughly likeable, modern place with many attractions for the visitor. Located as it is as an outpost location it is testament to some kind of determined, collective will that it has developed and flourished so well. Indeed Darwin almost disappeared from the map four times, having survived 3 cyclones and 60 air raids by Japanese forces during World War 2. Here you’ll find great views with its oceanfront position as well as it’s legendary, spirited nightlife.

The Alice, smack in the middle of the continent has transformed itself from a dusty outpost to an indispensable stop on the tourist itinerary. It is a pleasant town that makes an excellent base for exploring the Red Centre.

There is so much to see and do in this State, so much for the traveller to experience and take in. Bushwalking is a must here but whether you get seriously busy or just let take in comes your way, you’re sure to be gobsmacked by this vivid State and the sheer geographical wealth it possesses.