The Northern Territory is home to rich Aboriginal culture that spans back around 60,000 years. The history, culture, and stories of the dozens of Aboriginal nations that make up the area are an intrinsic part of every experience you will have here.
Located in the central north of Australia, the Northern Territory is three times the size of California, but has a population of only 250,000. It’s a land with a deep and sacred connection to its history, colorful deserts, and lush tropical rainforests.
Visit the Northern Territory to experience the ancient wisdom of Aboriginal astronomers, sample unique bush tucker, and see creatures found nowhere else in the world.
The Aboriginal people of Australia have been described as the world’s first astronomers, having traditionally used their deep connection to the stars and planets to navigate their way.
With special permission to conduct stargazing tours in the UNESCO world heritage-listed Kata Tjuta National Park, Uluru Astro Tours is the place to go to see the Milky Way against the majestic backdrop of Uluru (Ayers Rock), with barely a light from the township to be seen. Choose from the early family-friendly tour, or go out a little later with your astronomer guide, telescopes and binoculars for a night of education and wonder.
Leaving from Ayers Rock Resort, 170 Yulara Drive, Yulara, NT 0872
A short drive outside the town of Katherine, Nitmiluk Gorge (also known as Katherine Gorge) meanders around the Katherine River. Nitmiluk means ‘the place of cicada dreaming’ in the local Jawoyn language, and the gorge offers sensational stargazing because of the limited artificial light, and the wide open spaces. Find a quiet spot on the banks of the Katherine River for a barbecue as the sun goes down, or join the Nabilil Dreaming Sunset Dinner Tour on Nitmiluk Gorge to watch the colors of the rock change with the setting sun, along with a luxurious fine dining experience prepared with fresh local produce. While you’re there, head an hour or so south to Mataranka and Bitter Springs to bathe in the crystal clear thermal pools, which are said to have the power to ease aches and pains.
Katherine/Nitmiluk, Northern Territory
Earth Sanctuary, 15 minutes south of Alice Springs, offers a new perspective on the unique relationship between the desert life of the local Arrernte people, the native wildlife, and the night sky. The public and private astronomy sessions offer a sunset-to-sunrise tour, where you spend your night in a swag (a traditional Aussie roll-up bed), watching the skies transform – perhaps painting the night by the light of a full moon, or sharing in a dinner that combines culture and astronomy.
Colonel Rose Drive, Kilgariff, NT 0873
For tens of thousands of years, the land provided everything the Aboriginal people of the Northern Territory needed to survive, and their deep knowledge of the ecosystem and seasons meant they ate a bountiful and varied diet across all seasons. Today, some people still live off the land.
This one-of-a-kind authentic Aboriginal experience takes you on a one-hour short walk, where you’ll learn about the importance of bush tucker and natural medicines for spiritual healing and sustenance for the Luritja and Pertame people. Learn about the edible tree and grass seeds and how to grind them with traditional grinding stones, the bush medicine plants, and the meaning of traditional Aboriginal dot paintings. And for the brave: open wide for your very own live witchetty grub (said to taste like almonds, but you be the judge).
NTP 2424 Wanmarra Community, via Kings Creek, Petermann, NT 0872
Book ahead for this unique bush tucker experience and enjoy locally foraged seasonal food. Held on and around the full moon most months (check the Kakadu Tourism website for dates), the Kakadu Full Moon Feast explores Kakadu bush tucker in a four-course menu celebrating local Bininj ingredients, along with local stories, a star presentation, and traditional didgeridoo music. The menu varies to reflect the dramatic changes in the Kakadu seasons, but may include local native foods such as emu, buffalo, green ants, kakadu plum, native fig, or water lily.
Cooinda Lodge Kakadu, Kakadu Highway, NT 0822
For a once-in-a-lifetime fine dining experience that celebrates bush tucker with a modern culinary twist, try Tali Wiru and Wintjiri Wiru at Voyages, Ayers Rock Resort.
Tali Wiru – meaning ‘beautiful dune’ in the local Anangu language – will have you dining under the desert night sky with a view of Uluru and Kata Tjuta (a cluster of massive rock formations also known as The Olgas), and a four-course dinner infused with native ingredients, and paired with premium Australian wines. Settle into an intimate table for two (no children under 15, sorry kids), while an Aboriginal storyteller shares their culture, history and spiritual connection with the land.
Voyages’ latest experience, launched in May 2023, is Wintjiri Wiru – meaning ‘beautiful view out to the horizon’. Enjoy authentic native Australian ingredients from sustainable Indigenous suppliers in your gourmet hamper while you sit on a platform ‘floating’ above the desert. Come for the sunset dinner or after dark show, and relax with local libations while Wintjiri Wiru uses drones, lights and sound to tell stories of the local Mala (rufous hare-wallaby) people.
Voyages Ayers Rock Resort, 170 Yulara Drive, Yulara, NT 0872
Australia is well known for its unique wildlife, but the varied climate and terrain in the Northern Territory – from the tropical north of Darwin and Kakadu to the arid Simpson and Great Sandy deserts further south – has created a home for an odd mix of some weird and wonderful creatures.
The Northern Territory’s capital city Darwin is home to plenty of wildlife opportunities, both on land, and off the coast. Visit Crocosaurus Cove if you’re feeling brave enough to swim with crocodiles in the reassuringly named Cage of Death (make sure you book ahead). Or if you want to visit the Bare Sand Island (Njulbitjlk) turtles in their natural habitat, Sea Island Tours offers guided nesting viewings that get the eco tick of approval. Or visit Darwin’s Botanic Gardens, which is home to birds, snakes and possums, or take a cruise on Darwin Harbour where you might catch a glimpse of whales, turtles or dolphins.
Darwin, Northern Territory
Alice Springs is your gateway to the desert area known as the ‘Red Centre’, and despite what you might assume, the area is abundant with wildlife. The desert sands are home to kangaroos, wallabies, emus, dingos and reptiles – watch out for kangaroos at dawn and dusk if you’re driving. Alice Springs Reptile Park shares stories of the local Arrernte people, as well as the importance of taking care of the local ecosystem, and offering a glimpse of kangaroos, dingoes, nocturnal mammals, and birds. Or take a guided sunset tour of The Kangaroo Sanctuary (kangaroos sleep during the day so this is the best time to see them), where you can learn about kangaroos and the sanctuary’s work to rescue orphaned kangaroos from Chris ‘Brolga’ Barnes – plus you can moonlight as a ‘Kangaroo mom’ and lend a hand by holding a baby kangaroo.
Alice Springs, Northern Territory
The wetlands of World Heritage-listed Kakadu National Park are a bird watcher’s dream, being home to one third of Australia’s bird species. But if you’re boating around the billabongs (wetlands) taking in the jabirus, jacanas, spoonbills, kingfishers, magpie geese and egrets, keep an eye out for saltwater crocodiles. ‘Salties’ can grow up to 5 meters (16 feet), and weigh more than 450 kilograms (nearly 1000 pounds), and they have powerful jaws, so always follow the advice of warning signs. The safest approach is to join a local tour – ideally at sunrise or sunset – to see these, as well as a wide range of local wildlife, such as kangaroos and wallabies, flying foxes, water buffalo, quolls, bandicoots and turtles. If you’re in the Mary River region, look out for the giant ‘magnetic’ termite mounds, with their thin edges all pointing north-south, reaching up to 6 meters (18 feet) high.
Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory
This post is sponsored by Tourism Northern Territory. Start your next adventure here.