Journeys
Southern States, Southern Outback
17 nights - Melbourne, Uluru, Barossa, Flinders & Gawler Ranges, Kangaroo Island, Sydney
Discover the secret lanes & arcades of Melbourne with a local guide, spend a day wine tasting and getting to know the Yarra Valley, each evening try a different cuisine in Melbourne’s many excellent restaurants – we will be happy to make recommendations and bookings. En route to Ayers Rock Airport your flight lands at Alice Springs and there we have planned a scenic helicopter flight over the dramatic MacDonald Ranges with stop for a picnic lunch. Longitude 131 is perhaps Australia’s best known luxury tented camp and the ideal base from which to see Uluru & Kata Tjuta. Self-driving through the Barossa Valley and into the Flinders Ranges allows time to indulge in fine southern produce and then to experience life on an outback sheep station. With Lizzie & Dean at Arkaba – you may arrive as a guest but you will leave as friends!
Leaving the car in Port Augusta you join Geoff Scholz for a journey in to the Gawler Ranges. Kangaluna is a comfortable though basic tented camp, however the abundance of wildlife, the personalised hosting and the vast emptiness of the area will more than make up for the sacrifice of some traditional luxuries such as phones, televisions & spas. After a night in Adelaide you head to Kangaroo Island where you stay 2 nights at Australia’s new luxe-lodge, Southern Ocean Lodge. Be sure to indulge in a relaxing spa treatment as the Aboriginal inspired products are truly beautiful. Your journey ends with 3 nights in Sydney, staying at the Park Hyatt Hotel, right on Sydney Harbour. A glorious finale to a journey in which you will truly get to know the Southern States, the Southern Outback and many wonderful people.
| When & Where : | Available all year round, Spring and Autumn will be the most comfortable in the Outback 3 nights, Melbourne – Crown Towers 2 nights, Uluru – Longitude 131 1 night in the Barossa Valley - The Louise 2 nights Flinders Ranges – Arkaba Station 3 nights Gawler Ranges – Kangaluna Camp 1 night Adelaide’s Hyatt Regency 2 nights on Kangaroo Island, Southern Ocean Lodge 3 nights Sydney – Park Hyatt Hotel |
| Travel : | Private road transfers & touring, self-drive from Adelaide to Port Augusta via Barossa Valley and Flinders Ranges, scheduled flights |
| Ideal for : | Nature lovers, travelers who love spending time with the locals and those wishing to get to know the ‘real’ Australia! Not all places are ideal for children so let us suggest changes to suit family enquiries. |
| Inclusions : | 17 nights accommodation with breakfast, all meals for 9 nights, private airport transfers in each location except Kangaroo Island which is shared transfers, private touring with expert local guides, flights to/from Kangaroo Island, scenic helicopter flight from Alice Springs with picnic lunch |
| Activities : | City touring, wine tasting, wildlife viewing, helicopter picnic in the desert, visits to Ayers Rock (Uluru) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas), station life, bush walking, photography, spending time getting to know locals who are passionate about their corner of Australia! |
Day 1 – Melbourne, Crown Towers Hotel for 3 nights
Private transfer on arrival in Melburne- 3 nights Crown Towers, Executive Suite with breakfast & Crystal Club access
Beautifully located on the southern bank of the Yarra River in Melbourne, Crown Towers is lavishly appointed and offers an impeccable standard of customer service and attention to detail. All of the 482 oversized guest rooms have spectacular views to the city or Port Phillip Bay and feature an exceptional level of comfort and finish. Each room has the latest in room technology including a 42 inch plasma television.
The hotel’s facilities include an indoor swimming pool, business centre, gymnasium and the Crown Spa, which sets new standards in luxury spa surrounds. The hotel adjoins (and yet is quite separate from) the Crown Entertainment Complex which houses a number of superb restaurants, including Melbourne’s own Rockpool and Nobu. The complex also offers cinemas, nightclubs, bars, shopping, indoor entertainment theme park and the 24 hour excitement of the world renowned Crown Casino.
Day 2 – Yarra Valley Touring
Your guide will collect you for the one hour drive from Melbourne the Yarra Valley. Regarded as Australia’s leading cool climate wine region it is prized for its superb Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sparkling Wines. While the Yarra Valley has some well regarded large commercial wineries, our priority is for smaller 'out of the way' boutique wineries. This gives you the best opportunity to meet the people behind the wine while not having to compete with the crowds associated with larger group touring.
Your guide will plan the day to suit your interests, lovers of wildlife may wish to include a visit to Healesville Sanctuary, regarded as Australia's leading wildlife reserve, Healesville Sanctuary has over 200 species of Australian Birds & Animals including Koalas, Kangaroos, Platypus, Dingoes & countless rare & beautiful birds.
Day 3 – Guided Walking, Lanes & Arcades of Melbourne
The style capital of Australia, Melbourne, is best discovered with a local. On this half day walking tour your guide will reveal the city’s contemporary maze of designer boutiques, quirky galleries, historical lanes and arcades. The walk will take about three hours and will include specialty retailers, a little history, and attention to amazing architecture. Around about 50 interesting stores will be pointed out to you and in the afternoon you may return to those you like best. Share lunch and a glass of wine before you farewell your guide.
Day 4 – Longitude 131 at Uluru, 2 nights
Private transfer to Melbourne Airport- Flight: Melbourne to Ayers Rock (not included in cost)
- Arrival transfer form Ayer’s Rock Airport to Longitude 131
- 2 nights Longitude 131 includes all meals, a selection of beverages and scheduled touring
Longitude 131 is surely the ultimate tented camp in Australia and is located in the central desert country near Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (the Olgas). Each of the 15 individual tents is elevated and lavishly decorated - stone floors are covered in woven rugs, beds are made up with fine linens and feather duvets. Each tent has a view of Uluru as does the large open area in the central part of the camp where guests can relax and watch the changing colours of the rock.
Your guides at Longitude 131 will plan your days to include desert activities such guided walks at Kata Tjuta, an early morning Uluru experience or an ecological walk to learn about the native habitat, flora and fauna, bush food and medicine. For most guests a highlight of their stay is an evening sundowner atop a secluded sand dune, from there you are taken to an exclusive desert setting where dinner is served under a canopy of stars that stretches from horizon to the other.
During the siesta hour you might like to relax by the pool or in the Dune House where a guest library provides an interesting array of books on local topics. All meals are included during your stay and the specialty of the house is contemporary Australian cuisine, with an emphasis on fresh, quality produce. Communal dining in the Dune allows guests the chance to meet their fellow 'campers' and exchange stories of their desert encounters.
Day 7 – Barossa Valley, The Louise for 1 night
- Transfer to Ayers Rock Airport
- Flight: Ayers Rock to Alice Springs (not included in costing) flight arrives 10:45
- Met on arrival for a 2 hour scenic flight over the East MacDonald Ranges including picnic lunch
- Flight: Ayers Rock to Adelaide (not included in costing) flight departs at 14:30
- Collect hire car, 3 days rental car – full size sedan, Ford Falcon or similar
- Self-drive to the Barossa Valley (approx. 2 hours)
- 1 night The Louise, Marananga Suite with gourmet continental breakfast
The Louise is sited at the hilltop in Marananga and is central to the wineries, vineyards and touring activities of this internationally renowned wine region. Each of the fifteen suites offers a private terrace, contemporary furnishings, a spacious en suite bathroom and superb sunrise or sunset views. Guest suites feature king beds, luxurious linens, spa tubs, dual rain showers and a Bose CD; while the amenities include a heated swimming pool, spa & sauna, boules court, bicycles, internet workstation and wireless internet access.
The Louise’s restaurant - Appellation offers a causal fine dining experience in elegant surrounds. The menu changes daily and focuses very much on locally sourced seasonal produce. The Executive Chef and his team are keen to provide informed service and make suggestions from the extensive wine list. Please ask us to make a booking on your behalf.
Day 8 – Barossa Valley and on to Arkaba Station, 2 nights
Self drive to Arkaba Station (approx 4 hours)- 2 nights Arkaba Station Homestead, all meals, beverages and station activities
- Drive north discovering the the Barossa and Clare Valleys as you go, your destination today is Arkaba Station in the Flinders Ranges.
At the foot of the Elder Range, Arkaba Station is the home of Dean and Lizzie Rasheed, and is quite possibly the most beautiful outback property in the country! Spectacular panoramas are best enjoyed with a chilled glass of wine from a vantage point as the sun sets. The craggy sandstone bluffs and the dry creek beds lined with river red gums are a quintessential Australian scene, as the wildlife emerges in the cool light of dusk to drink at waterholes. Over 300 species of bird and unique mammal species abound in the Flinders Ranges but it is the region’s geology that makes it so special. The Flinders are an insight into the depth of Australia’s geological history, extending back more than a billion years, with long-disappeared mountain ranges, beaches, tidal flats, reefs and glacial moraines – the evidence remains in the rocks to this day.
Dean and Lizzie invite guests into their homestead; the accommodation comprises 2 bedrooms each with an en suite bathroom. On the private verandah there is a pleasant spot to sit and read or just take in the quiet. Lizzie prepares delicious home-style meals, lunch is often a picnic and dinner usually is shared in the homestead dining room.
During your stay learn about the activities of an outback station and visit the old woolshed, the focus of the station’s annual shearing since 1856. On bush walks, picnics and 4WD safaris explore the gorges and valleys of the Flinders Ranges and keep an eye out for wildlife - Red Kangaroos, Emus, Euros, Yellow-footed Rock Wallabies.
Day 9 – Gawler Ranges Safaris, 3 nights
Drive to Port Augusta (approx 2 hours)- Return the car to the local depot and meet your guide – Geoff Scholz
- 3 nights Kangaluna Tented Camp, Gawler Ranges with all meals, beverages and guided activities including swimming with the sea lions at Baird Bay
The Gawler Ranges are home to a profusion of wildlife, in numbers rarely seen elsewhere in Australia. With gorges, weathered rocky outcrops and seasonal waterfalls, the area has an extraordinary range of wildly beautiful outback country. The contrasting colours of the red sands, clear blue skies and the glistening white of Lake Gairdner’s massive salt pan is one of the great but rarely visited sights of the Australian outback. It is also one of the few places in the country where you can expect to see the three largest macropods in the one area, and you may well see them in their hundreds. Emus too are abundant and they scatter beside your vehicle as you travel through mile upon mile of woodland, an area where the sheep farmers failed and the wildlife has survived.
Your private guide and host, Geoff Scholz, was born and brought up in the area and has an intimate knowledge of the local bush. His camp on a private concession at the edge of the Gawler Ranges National Park is built and run on ecological principles, using natural air flows for ventilation and capturing rainwater naturally. Three large en suite safari tents have been designed in tune with the local environment and with comfort in mind. In the evening settle in to a BBQ dinner and a glass of wine with the sounds of the bush all around you and the stories of your guide for entertainment.
Day 10 to Day 11 – Gawler Ranges
Geoff operates each safari to take into account seasonal variations and your personal interests,
Wildlife viewing - it is possible to see hundreds of kangaroos in a day, such is the profusion of wildlife. This includes Red and Western Grey Kangaroos and Euros and in the more remote parts of the ranges, Yellow-footed Rock Wallabies. The area also has a large population of emus and Hairy-nosed Wombats
Bird watching - parrots, finches, eagles are just some of the 146 bird species that have been recorded in the area
Day trip to Lake Gairdner - one of the largest salt pans in Australia which stretches for over 100 kms northwards
Visit the Organ Pipes - a dramatic geological formation from a long gone age of volcanic activity
Sturt Lakes - are close by the camp and provide fabulous evening vistas and wildlife viewing
Aboriginal Heritage - Stop at natural ochre pits for face painting the Aboriginal way, the area is rich in Aboriginal sites and Geoff will explain the local lore
Wildflowers - at their best in September/October when a carpet of colour stretches across the plains
Baird Bay - this is the spot for boating and perhaps swimming with wild sea lions and dolphins
Day 12 – Hyatt Regency Adelaide, 1 night
- After a full day of touring and activities Geoff will transfer you to Ceduna Airport.
- Flight: Ceduna to Adelaide (not included in costing)
- Private transfer on arrival in Adelaide
- 1 night Hyatt Regency Hotel, breakfast and evening canapés and drinks in the Club Lounge
The Hyatt Regency is Adelaide’s best five-star hotel and is located on the River Torrens and surrounded by parklands. The décor is light and modern, many of the rooms have river views and naturally all have en suite bathrooms and such mod-cons as internet connection, personal bar, in-room movies etc. The hotel’s dining options include Japanese cuisine at Shiki, the Riverside Restaurant’s buffet and the Atrium cocktail lounge. Recreational facilities include a pool and fitness centre where services include massage, sauna, steam room, whirlpool spa as well as a range of computerised exercise machines. There is a 4km jogging track along the banks of the River Torrens.
Day 13 – Kangaroo Island, Southern Ocean Lodge for 2 nights
Private transfer to Adelaide Airport- Flight: Adelaide to Kangaroo Island (included in costing)
- Transfer to the Southern Ocean Lodge
- 2 nights Southern Ocean Lodge, Ocean Retreat – inclusive of gourmet breakfast, light lunch, four course dinner, selected drinks from the bar and scheduled daily activities
Southern Ocean Lodge provides more than an accommodation experience – expect serenely beautiful guest rooms, captivating coastal views, a sanctuary of comfort, exceptional cuisine based on the islands fresh and innovative produce as well as a high level of intimate and professional service. Located at Hanson bay on the Island’s south west coast, the Lodge site adjoins the Flinders Chase and Cape Bouguer / Kelly Hill National Parks. Set back from a cliff above the pounding surf the design showcases a full frontal panorama and is within easy reach of the Island's major attractions.
Each of the twenty-one luxurious suites features lavish king sleeping areas, sunken lounge, dramatic glass walled bathroom and outdoor terrace with occasional seating and daybed. The ‘little touches include’ complimentary room bar, twice daily housekeeping, heated floors and music system. A range of suite styles are available, with the premium Osprey Pavilion offering extra indulgences including open fire & private plunge spa.
Touring is included and will highlight the marine and terrestrial wildlife of this protected haven. During your stay you might like to try your luck beach fishing, the chef will be delighted to cook your catch for you. Cooking lessons focusing on island produce and fresh seafood will be offered and for those in need of a special treat, the signature spa menu will offer a range of traditional and cutting edge treatments.
Day 15 – Sydney, Park Hyatt Hotel, 3 nights
Transfer to Kangaroo Island Airport- Flight: Kangaroo Island to Adelaide (included in the costing)
- Flight: Adelaide to Sydney (not included in the costing)
- Private arrival transfer to Park Hyatt Hotel
- 3 nights Park Hyatt Hotel, Opera King Room with breakfast
The Park Hyatt flows in a gracious curve around Sydney Harbour and looks out to the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Behind the hotel is The Rocks, Sydney’s oldest district, while the main business district and Circular Quay are just a 5 minute stroll away.
A true five star hotel, all guest rooms are spacious and beautifully appointed with the necessities as well as the luxury touches. Many of the rooms have floor to ceiling glass doors that open onto a private balcony affording wonderful harbour and Opera House views. The hotel has a small rooftop, outdoor swimming pool, bar, a spa and a casual eatery offering all meals from an open plan kitchen. The décor throughout is classic and simple – allowing the spectacular views to shine.
Day 16 & 17 – Sydney
There will be plenty of free time to explore this vibrant city, we have included a half day private tour to get you orientated.
Morning collection from your hotel and the day begins with a visit to the charming and historic Rocks precinct, with its quaint old cottages, pubs and the first church in Australia. This drive takes in Observatory Hill overlooking Darling Harbour, Bridge Street and then continues through the financial precinct, Macquarie Street with the Parliament House of the NSW government, the Mint and Hyde Park Barracks. Traveling past St Mary’s Cathedral, you visit the Sydney Domain and Royal Botanic Gardens. Take a short stroll to view Mrs. Macquarie’s Chair and for an unsurpassed view of Sydney Harbour, the Opera House and Bridge.
Rejoining the vehicle continue along the shores of Sydney Harbour, around Woolloomooloo Bay, to Potts Point, Kings Cross, ritzy Double Bay and Rose Bay, passing by luxury homes and harbour side parks. After a stop for morning tea drive to Watsons Bay and South Head, with its breathtaking views of Sydney Harbour the Heads, the North Shore and the city. Take a short stroll along the cliff tops and then drive to Bondi Beach and Centennial Park before returning to your hotel or Circular Quay.
We will of course be happy to arrange additional touring – private gallery viewings, seaplane flights to beautiful restaurants, sailing on the harbour or even a surfing lesson at Bondi Beach.
Day 18 - Depart Australia
The journey ends with a private transfer from the Park Hyatt to Sydney Airport.