Journey to the Kimberley - Australia's Land of Boabs and Natural Wonders

Local guides in Australia invite you on a fascinating multi-day tour of the fairytale Kimberley

Duration: 5 days / 4 nights

For lovers of active holidays and adventure, a trip to Australia's north-west - the Kimberley - can become the most unique addition to your travel collection.

In the vast, sparsely populated Kimberley (about 20,000 people), which could easily fit three Englands or the whole of Germany, you will find varied exotic landscapes and extraordinary flora and fauna, and feel like an explorer of new lands. You will see red mountain ranges and roaring cascading waterfalls, abundant rivers and crystal-clear lakes, unusual rock and gorge formations, and picturesque bays and lagoons along the ocean coast.

This unique north-western region of Australia is world-famous for its pink diamond mining and for growing the world's largest South Sea pearls.

Of Australia's 48 wild rivers, most are in the Kimberley (33 rivers), and they are considered the largest and most abundant on the continent. The huge man-made Lake Argyle (1,000 sq km) has also been created here, and is called Australia's 'inland sea'.

For more than 20,000 years Aboriginal people lived on this land as nomads. Ancient Aboriginal rock art and ceremonial sites can be seen across the Kimberley plateau.

The Kimberley has a sub-equatorial climate with an average temperature of 27 degrees Celsius and two distinct seasons: the wet (November to April) and the dry (May to October - the best time for tours and excursions).

Day 1

Fly from Darwin, Broome or Perth to Kununurra

Arrive in Kununurra - the main gateway to the Kimberley's national parks

Hotel accommodation

The small, modern town of Kununurra (population 7,000) was built in the 20th century near the rivers and the man-made Lake Argyle. It is here that the main tours and excursions of north-western Australia often begin and end.

Rest

Sunset dinner on the shore of Lake Kununurra at the Pumphouse restaurant.

Day 2

Air tour 'An Unforgettable Flight over the Bungle Bungles, a 4WD Safari and Walks at the Foot of Unusual Rock Formations' (in a group)

Duration: 8-10 hours

Included: picnic lunch and tea/coffee with biscuits, hotel-airport-hotel transfers, flight, 4WD trip and a guided walk

If you are travelling in Western Australia, Purnululu National Park, home to the ancient Bungle Bungle Range, at least 350 million years old, must be on your list. The air tour gives you a complete picture of this geological wonder of Australia from different angles.

This hard-to-reach place in the Kimberley was kept secret by the Aboriginal people until the 1980s, when the world learned of it and it was added to the World Heritage List.

The dome-shaped rock formations, painted in alternating bands of orange, black and green, look like giant beehives from above, while at the foot of the giant 300-metre cones you will be amazed by theatrical gorges, crystal-clear pools, palm groves and a wealth of birdlife.

The Bungle Bungle air tour includes:

A panoramic flight over the picturesque terracotta landscape of the Kimberley with its huge lakes, rivers and national parks, and over the world-famous Argyle diamond mine
Fantastic aerial views of the colourful rock domes of the Bungle Bungles
A 4WD trip through Purnululu National Park
A 3-kilometre guided walk among the huge cone-shaped rocks to Cathedral Gorge. In this vast gorge amphitheatre with superb acoustics you will have a picnic lunch by a natural pool
A stop for tea/coffee with biscuits at a picturesque lodge
A return flight to Kununurra via the world-famous Argyle diamond mine and the national parks

Day 3 (your choice)

Option 1: An unforgettable Ord River cruise combined with a coach tour (in a group)

Included: transfers, Ord River and Lake Kununurra cruise, riverside picnic (tea/coffee with biscuits and fruit), coach tour

Duration: 6 hours (11:30 to 17:30)

On this exciting tour you will see the main natural attractions of Kununurra, which is considered one of Australia's major water reservoirs. You will visit the strikingly beautiful man-made Lake Argyle, called the continent's inland sea because of its colossal size and volume of water.

You will cruise along the scenic, mirror-like Ord River surrounded by pristine nature and its wild inhabitants. This 55-kilometre cruise is considered the longest in Australia.

The tour includes:

A coach trip to Lake Argyle (70 km)
A stop at the Durack Homestead Museum with the story of this extraordinary family (told in Mary Durack's book 'Kings in Grass Castles')
A visit to Lake Argyle Resort on the shore of Lake Argyle. Here you can take stunning photos of Australia's famous inland sea from the infinity pool, which is among the ten most scenic pools in the world
A drive across the remarkable Dam Wall, which, despite its modest size, holds back up to 10,700,000,000 cubic metres of water
A panoramic cruise along the Ord River to Kununurra (55 km) among red gorges and wilderness (cold drinks provided). Your captain-guide will make short stops to watch animals and birds (crocodiles, rock wallabies, buffalo and many others)
A riverside picnic (tea/coffee, homemade biscuits and fruit)
A cruise on Lake Kununurra past unusual rocks (the 'Sacred Buddha'), cosy lagoons, picturesque bays and a colourful sunset

Option 2: 4WD tour to El Questro Wilderness Park (in a group)

Duration: 12 hours (6:30 to 18:30)

Included: transfers

El Questro is a unique private reserve about 110 km west of Kununurra. The little-explored, vast territory of this park with its wild, pristine nature (10,000 sq km) attracts eco-tourism lovers seeking thrilling experiences.

The tour includes:

A walk through lush rainforest in Emma Gorge, with a swim (you will need a good level of fitness, sturdy comfortable footwear, 1.5 litres of water and a hat). Anyone who prefers not to walk can relax in the shade in the gorge and wait for the group
Morning tea at the Emma Gorge restaurant
A visit to the thermal and mineral springs of Zebedee Springs. In this picturesque hilly area the pools lie one above another, spilling from fresh-water falls. Here you can rest and relax in warm natural baths
A lunch stop at The Steakhouse in Township
A panoramic gorge cruise on the Chamberlain River with a glass of champagne and fruit

Day 4

Panoramic air tour to Mitchell Falls (in a group)

Duration: 8 hours (6:00 to 13:30)

Price on request (included: transfers, picnic lunch, tea/coffee with biscuits, plane and helicopter flights, guided walk)

Far from civilisation, in untouched wilderness, lies one of Australia's highest and most powerful waterfalls. Rushing water spills from one huge basin into another, dropping from a height of 80 metres into a deep emerald pool to form a mesmerising four-tiered waterfall. The rich colours of the surrounding landscape, with its many shades of red, blue and green, lend this place its special character.

Despite the difficulty of getting to this unique place in Mitchell River National Park (only by 4WD or helicopter), lovers of eco-tourism and exotic photography are drawn to this ancient land to see the cascading wonder.

The Mitchell Falls air tour includes:

Hotel-airport-hotel transfers
Panoramic flights by plane to Mitchell Falls and back, passing the vast Ord River reservoir, the red Cockburn Range, King George Falls, Cambridge Gulf and the picturesque coastal shoals of Wyndham
A landing in Mitchell River National Park
A helicopter flight with breathtaking views of the famous Mitchell Falls
Guided walks through the reserve to Mitchell Falls

The air tours use new, air-conditioned aircraft.

Air tours depart from Kununurra from May to September on Thursdays and Saturdays.

Day 5

Fly to Darwin, Broome or Perth

Price on request