Enjoying summer in the NT

December until early March is the time the Northern Territory’s top end experiences a tropical summer, a period considered by many to be the region’s most beautiful time of year.  Suggestions for enjoying the surroundings of the Northern Territory during its tropical summer, include:

• Sipping wine on a harbor cruise and basking in the tropical summer sunsets
• Treating your taste buds at the weekend markets of Parap, Nightcliff and Rapid Creek
• Enjoying a meal at one of Darwin’s many restaurants and waterside cafes
• Holding a juvenile crocodile at Crocodylus Park and watching the frenzy at feeding time
• Strolling through the monsoon forest at the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
• Viewing the Aboriginal art at The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory
• Dining on barramundi and chips at Stokes Hill Wharf
• Investing in a unique piece of art from one of Darwin’s numerous Aboriginal art galleries
• Hiring a boat, joining a guided tour or fishing alone along Darwin’s coastline or river systems.

What’s new

Desert Oaks Wilderness Lodge – Australian Pacific Touring (APT) is building a camp, in partnership with Kings Creek Station, scheduled to open on  April 1, 2007. Desert Oaks Wilderness Lodge, which will be located on a remote site on the Station, will feature 10, four-star deluxe tented cabins with full en-suite facilities, a dining/lounge area plus an outside area around a feature campfire for dining under the stars.

The new camp, which will provide an alternative accommodation option to Kings Canyon Resort, can be experienced on an APT short break packages but is also available for self-drive holidays, special tours and charters.  Activities include touring to the surrounding region where ancient Aboriginal rock carvings are sited, station activities, escorted quad bike rides and helicopter scenic flights. 

Visitors to the Northern Territory interested in exploring the Finke Gorge National Park in the comfort of a 4WD vehicle can now join a new day tour offered by Ossies Outback 4WD Tours. The Finke River – Boggy Hole Journey takes in little known Finke Gorge National Park , the  Finke River, the oldest river course in the world, red sand hills covered in juvenile and adult desert oaks, and Coolibah swamp country.  Participants visit Hermannsburg, founded by Lutheran Missionaries and home of the Aboriginal artist Albert Namitjira, and enjoy spectacular riverine and desert scenery.  The 12-hour day tour covers 800kms and includes transfers to and from the accommodation, plus morning tea and lunch. Visit  http://www.ossies.com.au/

Waramungu Cultural Experiences is a new Aboriginal tourism venture based in Tennant Creek.  The tours operated by Warumungu interpretive guide Jackie Hingston-Namikili, give visitors an insight into the culture of the local Partta people.  Options include guided tours to Myil Purnurru, the spectacular rock formation on the outskirts of Tennant Creek, a bushwalk through the country of the Three Sisters dreaming sites and a trip to Kunjarra, a women’s sacred site.  Visit:  http://www.nyinkkanyunyn.com.au/

New from Great Southern Railway is the “Ghan to the Never Never” tour, which retraces the steps of Jeannie Gunn, author of the best selling novel, We of the Never Never  which recounts the author’s journey to the Northern Territory and her life at remote Elsey Station, 400 kms south of Darwin.  Mike Keighley, a Savannah Guide and the only guide granted access to this area, enjoys introducing guests to his friends from the Mangarrayi Aboriginal community.  Other tour highlights include Katherine Gorge, Darwin, Adelaide River township, Pine Creek, the original Katherine township and Mataranka and Jeannie Gunn’s memoria.The tour departs from Sydney on 10 – 20 March 2007 and from Adelaide on 11-20 March 2007.  Visit: http://www.trainways.com.au/

A new two-and-a-half hour dinner cruise on board the Robert Lee giving visitors the opportunity to enjoy Katherine Gorge at sunset.  The dinner cruise, which departs daily at 5.30pm from the Nitmiluk Visitors’ Centre, offers guests a choice of hot and cold dining options which includes a selection of black Russian beef roast with Idaho potatoes, local barramundi with rice, a cold buffet of prawns, roasted leg of ham and seasonal salad dishes.  The meal is finished off with dessert, tea and coffee.  Visit: www.nitmiluktours.com.au

Just 4kms from Katherine, the new Jurassic Cycad Gardens are now open to the public.  Set in a dramatic prehistoric landscape of giant red boulders and grey limestone rocks, this is home to an impressive collection of native and exotic, rare and endangered plants from around the world. The 2.5-hectare property, which has been established as a conservation resource, features more than 1.4km of walking tracks, allowing visitors to view the cycads, succulents, cacti and euphorbias. Visit: http://www.cycadinternational.com.au/

Jetstar, part of the Qantas Group, is now running a daily flight on the Cairns-Darwin-Singapore route to replace the previous five-weekly Qantas B767 services.  The  flights  are being operated by Jetstar Asia for and on behalf of Jetstar under the Jetstar brand. Visit: www.qantas.com

For further information on the Northern Territory visit http://www.australiasoutback.com/