South Australia - Queensland Tour

Day 1 Perth - Balladonia	After leaving Perth we travel to Cunderdin for morning tea and visit the museum that is housed in one of the original pumping stations for the Goldfields pipeline. After passing through Merredin, Southern Cross and Coolgardie, we stop at Norseman for our evening meal. And then it is on to Balladonia and our motel accommodation for the night. (Entry to the museum is included in the fare. Evening meal is not included.)	Birdsville Track roadsign. Photo: Anne Atkinson
Day 2 Balladonia - Ceduna	Today we continue on across the Nullarbor to South Australia and Ceduna, our evening stop. During the day we will have the chance to see the magnificent scenery of the Great Australian Bight and experience the vastness of the Nullarbor Plains. (Evening meal is not included in the fare.)
Day 3 Ceduna - Coober Pedy	We now leave the bitumen and travel on gravel roads to the tiny town of Kingoonya which has a petrol station and telephone box and is typical of the small settlements we will be seeing in these remote areas. A little further on, we rejoin the Stuart Highway and drive on to Coober Pedy - the centre for opal mining in Australia. Our accommodation for the next two nights will be underground so you can experience what it is like for most of the Coober Pedy residents who escape from the extreme heat of summer and cold nights in winter in their dug-out homes.

Day 4 Coober Pedy	Coober Pedy revolves around opal mining so this morning we will go on a mine tour and see how 92% of Australia's opals are processed. Then we visit an underground church and typical resident's home. The afternoon is free to wander the town or go noodling to look for your own opal amongst the many piles of stones that have been discarded. You never know, an opal might have been overlooked and you could be in luck. If you can't find an opal, perhaps you could buy one at one of the reputable stores in the town. (Tour of the mine included in the fare. Evening meal is not included today.)
Day 5 Coober Pedy -Cooper Creek (bush camp)	Today we travel the Oodnadatta Track, passing many small settlements that once serviced the Ghan Railway. After morning tea at William Creek, we head on to Marree for our lunch stop and then begin the famous Birdsville Track. There is time to take a photograph of the signs warning travellers of the perils of the Track. We make our way to Cooper Creek and set up camp for the night.
Day 6 Cooper Creek - Birdsville	Our first stop today is at the Mungerannie Hotel and then we continue on the Track to the border between South Australia and Queensland and Birdsville, where we set up camp for the next two nights. (Morning tea is not included.)
Day 7 Birdsville	Birdsville is a great outback town and although it is small, it has several legendary attractions that are part of this morning's activities. Included in these are the working museum, the Birdsville Track Race Course and the famous Birdsville Pub. The afternoon is free to do as you wish. A visit to the pub perhaps!
Birdsville Pub. Photo: Anne Atkinson
Day 8 Birdsville - Longreach	This morning we pack up camp and head east to Betoota and then on to Windorah that was once a thriving cattle centre. It is a long day today and we arrive late in the afternoon at Longreach, where we will stay for the next two nights.
Day 9 Longreach	Longreach is in the heart of pioneering country and represents the character and spirit of the outback. In the morning we visit the Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame, which celebrates the Aboriginal peoples, explorers, poets, writers, and artists who have all contributed in some way to the history and culture of the outback. The afternoon is free. You may wish to visit the Qantas Founders Outback Museum that is housed in the hangar in which the first operational base for Qantas was located and the first six aircraft built between 1922 and 1934. (Entry to the Stockman's Hall Of Fame is included in the fare. Lunch and entry to the Qantas Founders Outback Museum is not included.)	Stockman's Hall of Fame
Day 10 Longreach - Cloncurry	Today we visit several places that were or still are the home of important Australian figures and legends. The first is Winton, the birthplace of Qantas, and then Kynuna, where it is believed Banjo Paterson wrote Waltzing Matilda. We next go to McKinley, where much of Crocodile Dundee was filmed, and take time out for a drink in the pub made famous by the film. Then to Cloncurry, which was the birthplace of the Flying Doctor Service - a facility essential to outback Australia. We set up camp in Cloncurry.
Day 11 Cloncurry - Normanton	We leave Cloncurry and arrive in Normanton in time to set up camp and have lunch. The afternoon is free to meander around the town but remember to get back to camp before we set out to Karumba on the Gulf of Carpenteria, as it is here that we will enjoy our evening meal while watching a spectacular sunset. We return to our camp in Normanton after this superb experience.
Day 12 Normanton - Atherton Tableland	We start the day with a train ride on the famous Gulflander Railway. Step back in time as we catch the steam train at a meticulously restored railway station and wend our way around the local countryside. Later, as we head towards the Atherton Tablelands, we pass the old goldmining town of Croydon.
Day 13 Atherton Tableland - Cooktown	Today we travel through Mareeba and then north to the old goldmining area of Palmer River where hundreds of Chinese miners worked alongside other prospectors seeking their fortune. As we head towards Cooktown we pass Black Mountain, a place of significance to local Aboriginal people. Cooktown has a very interesting past. It was founded in 1873 but more than 100 years before that, in 1770, Captain Cook spent 48 days here repairing his ship, The Endeavour, which had run aground. Some of his experiences are recorded in the James Cook Historical Museum, which also houses artefacts of interest and importance to the area. This museum, which is located in a convent overlooking the Cooktown Harbour, and the Cooktown Museum are both well worth a visit. We set up camp in the Cooktown caravan park for the next two nights.
Day 14 Cooktown	This morning we take a drive to the top of Grassy Hill, which gives magnificent views over the town and the harbour. The rest of the day is free. (Lunch is not included today.)
Day 15 Cooktown - Cairns	We travel south to the Daintree this morning and take a boat cruise on the beautiful Daintree River. As this is crocodile country, we will probably see a crocodile from the boat. After lunch we continue south on the coast road to Port Douglas and Cairns and our accommodation for the next two nights.
Day 16 Cairns	We start the day with a delightful train ride through the tropical mountains of Kuranda, a charming little town set in the rainforest. You will have time to explore the town and can choose to either return to Cairns in the bus with us, or take the Skyrail Cableway down the mountainside. This is highly recommended. The afternoon is free for you to explore Cairns. (Lunch and dinner not included in the fare. The Skyrail fare, which is approximately $45, is also not included.)
Day 17 Cairns - Townsville	Today we travel through some truly beautiful country and pass by the towns of Innisfail on the Johnstone River, and Ingham. Townsville, the largest provincial city in Queensland, is our home for the night. (Lunch is not included today.)
Day 18 Townsville - Airlie Beach	Passing by lush sugar cane fields and magnificent views of the coast, we travel to the beautiful town of Airlie Beach where we spend the next two nights.
Day 19 Airlie Beach	Today we take a boat cruise of the Whitsunday Islands where we have time to relax, explore, swim and just enjoy these wonderful tropical waters. (Lunch is not included in the fare today.)
Day 20 Airlie Beach - Rockhampton	Another stunning drive on the coast road, through Mackay to Rockhampton where we stay the night. Rockhampton is known as the Beef Cattle Centre of Australia and, in the past, as an important gold mining centre. Its elegant buildings reflect its past and present glory.
Day 21 Rockhampton - Buderim	We continue our journey south through the sugarcane fields and fruit orchards, through Nambour and Gympie. We stop to visit the famous Ettamogah Pub, which was modelled on a cartoon from the Pix Magazine. Then to Buderim for our night's accommodation.
Day 22 Buderim - Brisbane	Our first stop of the day is at the Big Pineapple and a working pineapple plantation. We have a tour of the plantation on a sugar cane train and see the numerous varieties of tropical fruits that are grown in the region. Then it is on to Noosa Heads for lunch and the opportunity to select a lunch café from the large range of eating-places in this delightful tourist town. We drive though Maroochydore to Brisbane where we stay for the next three nights. (Lunch is not included in the fare today.)
Day 23 Brisbane	This morning we drive down to Coolangatta and Tweed Heads on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. We have plenty of time to explore Surfers Paradise before returning to Brisbane via Southport in the afternoon. (Lunch is not included in the fare today.)
Day 24 Brisbane	Our first visit of the day is to Mt Coot-Tha lookout, which gives us a great view of the city of Brisbane. Then into Brisbane where you will be dropped off to have the rest of the day to explore the city as you wish. Pick-ups will be organised to return you to our accommodation later in the day. (Lunch is not included in the fare today.)
Day 25 Brisbane - Coonabarabran	Leaving Brisbane we travel over the Great Divide through Goondiwindi that is home to the legendary racehorse, Gunsynd. Then it is on to Moree and Coonabarabran - a difficult name to say in a hurry.
Day 26 Coonabarabran - Broken Hill	We are now well and truly in the New South Wales Outback as our tour takes us through the towns of Cobar and Wilcannia before arriving in Broken Hill where we stay for two nights. Broken Hill was established in 1883 when silver was discovered. In 1885, a syndicate of seven miners hit a rich vein of silver in what turned out to be the world's largest known silver-lead-zinc lode. The syndicate formed the Broken Hill Proprietary Company (BHP), one of the most important and influential companies in Australia in its heyday. The Silver City, as Broken Hill was called, is not only a mining town but also has a rich cultural and artistic history. It was the home or birthplace of a number of artists, writers and performers including June Bronhill, Pro Hart, CJ Dennis and Kenneth Cook, who wrote Wake in Fright. We stay in Broken Hill for two nights.
Day 27	The morning starts with a tour of a mine and then it is free time to discover the wonders of this city. You might wish to stroll down the main street and admire the wonderful buildings that date back to the city's foundation, or visit an art gallery or two. (Lunch is not included in the fare today.)
Day 28 Broken Hill - Ceduna	It is a long day today as we head for home. Our drive takes us through Port Augusta then on to Ceduna and our accommodation for the night.
Day 29 Ceduna - Balladonia	During the day we will have the opportunity to experience the vastness of the Nullarbor Plains and have a chance to see the magnificent scenery of the Great Australian Bight - definitely a photo stop here. We spend the night at Balladonia. (Evening meal is not included in the fare.)
Day 30 Balladonia - Perth	Today is our last day as we return to Perth. We pass by Norseman, Coolgardie and Southern Cross before hitting the home stretch. It is a long day but I am sure you will agree that it has been a fascinating tour and one you will never forget. (Morning tea and lunch not included in the fare.)

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