Day 1 Sydney - Wagga Wagga

Meet your friendly and professional tour leaders this morning at 8.15am in Bay number 4, Eddy Avenue, Central Railway Station Sydney. After taking the M5 out of Sydney we stop off at Mittagong for morning tea and then at Yass for a picnic lunch. We continue on to Wagga Wagga for our overnight stay at the Country Comfort.

Day 2 'Shear Outback' Hall of Fame - Mildura

This morning we depart Wagga Wagga and make our way along the Sturt Highway following the Murrumbidgee River to Hay, home to the 'Shear Outback' Hall of Fame and the historic Murray Downs Woolshed. Here we learn about shearing history and look through the historic Woolshed. After some morning tea and some time to explore the museum we continue on to Balranald. We arrive in Mildura late in the afternoon and spend the night at the luxurious Mildura Grand Hotel.

Day 3 Mildura - Mungo - Menindee - Broken Hill

Today 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. Later today we visit 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 2 night stay in Broken Hill. Dating back to 1889, the Royal Exchange is a charming boutique hotel which has been tastefully refurbished over the years.

Day 4 Broken Hill Sightseeing

This morning we visit the Broken Hill Geocentre which gives us an insight into Broken Hill's unique geology. We then visit Silverton which has starred in many films, including Mad Max and Mission Impossible 2. We head back into town for lunch before enjoying a free afternoon in Broken Hill.

Late this afternoon we visit the Sculpture Symposium before dining in Broken Hill's premier restaurant, Broken Earth. The centre is located on the highest point of the Line of Lode remnant mullock dumps which transverse the City of Broken Hill.

Day 5 Broken Hill - Milparinka - Depot Glen - Tibooburra

This morning we head north along the Silver City Highway through the village of Packsaddle to Milparinka. The town's colonial buildings, including police barracks and cells have been lovingly restored as part of the Milparinka Heritage Precinct. They now provide an insight into life in Milparinka in its heyday during the gold rush of the late 1800's.

After lunch and a visit to some of the old buildings we head 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 continue on to the small outback village of Tibooburra. We overnight at the Family Hotel/Motel which has a fantastic outback atmosphere.

Day 6 Cameron Corner - Innamincka

We depart Tibooburra this morning to venture into the vast Sturt National Park. We make our way west through the park to a place called Cameron Corner, where QLD, NSW and SA all meet. The area of Cameron Corner was first surveyed by James Cameron from the NSW Lands Department in 1800. The area is also home to the longest fence in the world, The Dog Fence, stretching from the Great Australian Bight to Jimbour near Brisbane (5600km).

After enjoying some 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 the Cooper Creek. We overnight at the Innamincka Hotel in comfortable motel units.

Day 7 Strzelecki Desert - Birdsville Track - Mungerannie

Innamincka is a small village with a population of no more than 50 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. Not far from Innamincka is a place called the "Dig Tree" where explorers Burke and Wills tragically perished after returning from their expedition to the Gulf of Carpentaria in 1861. Today the town services the ever busy tourist industry and local pastoralists.

We depart Innamincka this morning making our way west through the oil and gas fields to the Birdsville Track. Once we're on the Birdsville Track we head south down to the small village of Mungerannie. We spend the night here in motel units with shared bathroom facilities.

Day 8 Kalamurina Wildlife Sanctuary - Birdsville

This morning we venture out to Kalamurina Wildlife Sanctuary, owned and operated by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Kalamurina is a vast desert wilderness, stretching from the northern shore of Lake Eyre to the southern boundary of the Simpson Desert reserves. Kalamurina covers a remarkable 1.7 million acres and is a property of exceptional conservation value, providing a haven for several endangered species and containing a range of habitat types not represented in any national park. Kalamurina thus provides a vital link from Lake Eyre National Park to the Simpson Desert reserves.

Upon our arrival we are given a briefing from one of the sanctuary's managers in regards to past and present conservation projects on Kalamurina. You'll learn about the significance of this conservation work and the AWC's mission to halt the appalling rate of species extinction across Australia.

We return to Mungerannie for lunch before departing for Birdsville. We head north up the Birdsville Track, arriving at the Birdsville Hotel late this afternoon. Enjoy modern, quality accommodation at the pub along with friendly outback hospitality.

Day 9 Simpson Desert & "Big Red" - Birdsville

Birdsville is a township of approximately 100 people and was originally named Diamantina Crossing in 1881 after the Diamantina River, which runs to the east of the town. The town however 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 hosts a famous outback horse race on the first weekend of September which boosts the town's population from 100 to 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, the most famous and photographed being "Big Red". This massive sand dune is a popular place for tourists to put their four-wheel-drive vehicles to the test. After inspecting a number of these huge sand dunes in our 4WD coach we return to Birdsville to visit John and Judy's Birdsville Museum before returning to the pub for our second and final night in Birdsville.

Day 10 Bedourie - Boulia

This morning we bid farewell to Birdsville and continue our travels 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 to 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. Enjoy a unique theatrical experience and learn the story of the Min Min Light. Tonight we overnight at the Desert Sands Motor Inn.

Day 11 Boulia - Northern Territory Border - Alice Springs

We depart Boulia this morning to make our way west towards the Northern Territory Border. We stop for morning tea at the Tobermorey Store before continuing 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 4.5 star Alice Springs Resort.

Day 12 Alice Springs

Today we take a leisurely tour around Alice Springs which includes a visit to the Alice Springs Desert Park, The Old Telegraph Station and the Royal Flying Doctor Base Museum. This afternoon can be spent at your leisure. Tonight we celebrate our trip through central Australia and enjoy our final dinner together.

Alice Springs - Home

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. Bon Voyage!