Tourism operators go the extra mile
Tours that deliver insider knowledge and access.
Before 2020, Australians were increasingly tapping into small-scale overseas tours, where experts create bespoke experiences according to guests’ interests, be it history, hedonism or hoofing it across the highest trails. In contrast, we tended to DIY our domestic holidays, perhaps in the belief we know our own backyard well enough to wing it.
But with anywhere other than our girt-by-sea homeland officially off the radar until further notice, it’s time to admit we’re not au fait with all things local. Maybe someone with inside knowledge can lead us to fresh discoveries.
Tour operators in Australia are creating the kind of exclusive experiences for which we’d normally travel halfway around the world. They’re small-scale, uber-comfortable and often combine destinations you might not otherwise have connected. Many are adding extra departures as demand rises, and a lot will tailor itineraries to suit the individual.
Here are some options for travellers seeking a deeper understanding of their own country.
A touch of Tiwi
The Tiwi Islands are culturally and linguistically different from the people of Arnhem Land just across the Timor Sea near Darwin, and they’re an exclusive detour on one of Ponant’s regular Broome-Darwin route next September. While the voyage, which is a partnership with National Geographic, ticks off the usual Kimberley coast highlights — King George Falls, the croc-rich Hunter River and the incredible tide changes — the focus is on art, from ancient rock art at sites such Ngumbre and Ngula to modern works in the Warungarri and Artlaandish galleries in Kununurra. But Ponant then diverts to the Tiwis and galleries on Melville and Bathurst Islands that showcase the Tiwi people’s affinity with their saltwater surroundings. This 13-night cruise from Broome to Darwin departs on September 17 next year aboard Ponant’s Le Bellot, where all 92 staterooms have private balconies or terraces; from $15,500 a person, twin-share.
Eyre from the air
Swooping over the icons adds a fabulous dimension to Outback travel, and the best of South Australia’s comes via Abercrombie & Kent’s eight-day Outback Adventure, reducing a lot of driving to a few hours in a private plane limited to seven guests. Wilpena Pound, the salty expanse of Lake Eyre and Australia’s greatest underground town, Coober Pedy, head the highlights, but there’s time on the ground for walks, 4WD tours, glamping and some outback pub experiences. The outlook and the aura changes with a few days in Port Lincoln, where the seafood shines, including at a masterclass with chef Kris Bunders and a twilight canal cruise. Departs Adelaide on November 10, March 1, March 10, April 26 and May 5; from $14,900 a person, twin-share.
The wild isle
International brand Butterfield & Robinson’s focus on walking and wildlife in Tasmania is popular with its overseas clients, and now it’s packaging the island’s wonders for local consumption, with a focus on eco-luxury. Most B&R trips are organised around clients’ wishlists, and in Tasmania that will usually include the Maria Island walk, to which the transfer from Hobart is by helicopter or small plane along the spectacular sea cliffs of the Tasman Peninsula, instead of by the usual launch. Accredited naturalists lead guests around the island, which is a veritable sanctuary for endangered species such as Tamar wallabies, Flinders wombats and even Tasmanian devils. B&R also has a high-end version of the popular Three Capes Walk near Port Arthur, utilising new fully catered private lodges, and time at the exquisite Saffire Freycinet is often in the mix. B&R’s group size is usually 12-16 guests; Sample 13-day tour from Hobart, from $13,365 a person, twin-share.
Underground Sydney
Battleground touring is common in Europe, but you need only go as far as Hyde Park to see that Sydney got closer to World War II than many believe. Historian Peter Hobbins leads a tour below Sydney streets and behind normally closed doors. The midget submarine attacks in 1942 are well documented, but not many know the navy shot down a plane threatening the city at the height of the Cold War or that an air defence HQ was built beneath St James Station. The tour will inspect underground command stations that would have run the battle had Sydney been attacked, go behind the scenes at Anzac Memorial in Hyde Park, and visit air raid shelters in the Domain, the RAN Heritage Centre on Garden Island and have a private viewing of memorabilia and documents at the State Library. Wartime Sydney is one of Renaissance Tours new series of Day Tours. November 14, $475, including two-course lunch with drinks.
King for a week
Twenty of the 23 vineyards in Victoria’s King Valley are run by people of Italian stock, so it wasn’t hard for Simon Tancred to apply his Hidden Italy gourmet walking concept closer to home. The seven-day trip includes acclaimed food and wine centres Milawa and Beechworth, but the “hidden” angle kicks in further up the King Valley, where sangiovese and prosecco lead the charge. After a cooking lesson at Pizzini winery, there’s a curated vineyard stroll before Simon leads guests along unmarked forest trails. The walks are serious only on alternative days, including through the granite outcrops atop Mount Buffalo. Departs Milawa November 8, with more planned for December and April. Guest numbers are limited to 10; $3660 a person, twin-share.
The long way around
Silversea’s 144-berth Silver Explorer has made many Arctic and Antarctic visits, and it brings this aura of expedition cruising coated with luxury to a 25-day jaunt between Melbourne and Darwin. The itinerary avoids city ports to drop into places such as Port Lincoln (where the quality and price of oysters have big-city folk drooling) and Busselton for a private tour with an Indigenous guide to story-rich caves. The expedition feeling kicks in along the Kimberley coast, and Silver Explorer’s zodiacs can accommodate all passengers on shore excursions, always led by an expert marine biologist or rock art historian. Wyndham brings the option of a full-on Ord River cruise or a flight over the incredible Bungle Bungle domes. Departs February 24, from $17,820 a person, twin-share.
Way out west
Beyond the mountains, there’s a lot of NSW not easily accessed, so the Classic Safari Company gets you to its corners by small plane (10 passengers). First stop is Mungo National Park, where the other-worldly landscape would be the star even without the anthropological history that has traced human existence back 50,000 years. The skies and the hats get bigger over the next few days as you hop via Broken Hill and Tibooburra to a pair of sheep stations on the Darling. Then it’s home through the Mudgee wine region. The six-day Outback Air Safari NSW leaves Sydney on November 4, with more departures planned for next year. Classic also tailors personal itineraries. From $6950 a person, twin-share.
Deep into norfolk
Norfolk Island is small but it runs deep, historically, culturally and botanically; more than a quarter of Norfolk’s plant species are endemic to the island. On its eight-day trips next year, garden touring specialist Botanica visits several sites not otherwise open to the public such as Hidden Valley, a naturalist garden with many unique Norfolk species. They can include the eponymous pine and palm to the spectacular flowering white oak, a unique hibiscus and the world’s tallest tree ferns. There are also plenty of touchpoints to Norfolk’s convict and Bounty past, plus its unique customs. Departs Sydney in April, May and October next year, from $4995 a person, twin-share.
North or south?
Captain’s Choice has recently launched a scaled-down version of its epic air trips with Interludes, shorter journeys to Australia’s far-flung regions, including across multiple states. On January 22 the focus is Tasmania and its main satellite islands, with a four-day Southern Wilderness & Gourmet Islands tour from Melbourne that packs in a lot. There’s a lobster lunch on Flinders Island, ahead of two nights in Tasmania’s west coast marvel Strahan to explore the rainforest by river and rail, finishing on King Island for a gastronomic overnighter. From $5700 a person, twin-share. For a different mood, you can get around the lack of scheduled transport services to Birdsville for its iconic Outback race meeting (September 3 next year) on Captain’s Choice VIP day trip, sandwiched between two nights in Brisbane. From $3400 a person, twin-share.
