Day 1: Cairns - Hughenden (LD)
Your 2,067km road trip into the heart of the Australian desert begins early today. Say goodbye to traffi c lights and switch off your mobile phones - they won't work again until Alice Springs! Our morning is spent travelling through the lush green grass, volcanic soil and dairy farms of the Atherton Tablelands before the landscape changes from Rainforest to Eucalypt forest as we continue westward. Visit Australia's smallest bar at the Oasis Roadhouse and stop for a picnic lunch.

There is approx. 275klms of unsealed roads on our journey today, providing a great opportunity to spot our native wildlife through this unique Ironbark eucalypt country. Our next stop is Porcupine Gorge, Australia's mini Grand Canyon and best kept secret where time is allowed to hike through this natural wonder.

Our destination tonight is the Western Hotel at Hughenden, where we enjoy a buffet dinner and air-conditioned multi-share accommodation.

Day 2: Hughenden - Boulia (BLD)
Your road trip starts with a complete change of landscape this morning as we travel through the fl at black soil plains. We make a stop at Winton, rich in Australian history including the 1895 birthplace of our unoffi cial national anthem, Waltzing Matilda. Winton is also famous as the birthplace of Qantas in 1920 (Qld and NT Aerial Service), the 1894 great shearer's strike and once held the world record for the longest road train - 34 trailers towed by 1 truck!

Carisbrook Station is our next stop where time is allowed to view the basement of the original inland sea from the ochre red escarpments before viewing authentic aboriginal rock art. Enjoy a BBQ lunch here before continuing to Middleton Pub, built in 1876 - population 5 (including kids and pets!). Continue on through Boulia, to our overnight accommodation at Wirrelyerna Station, an authentic working sheep/cattle station. Enjoy a warm welcome, comfy multi-share beds, a hearty meal and lots of animals to meet - a fantastic experience!

Day 3: Boulia - Alice Springs (BL)
Your road trip today between Boulia and Alice Springs is approximately 800klm, mostly unsealed roads, with no townships at all on the way. If you've never had a feeling of remoteness before, you will on this day! Take a "nothing walk" and experience fi rst hand the eeriness of this remote area in the middle of nowhere. Traffic is almost non-existent, with hours between passing cars.

During today's travel, we pass through cattle stations larger than many European countries, crossing through Western Queensland into the sparsely populated Northern Territory, stopping at Tobermorey Station en route. We skirt the top of the Simpson Desert (largest in Australia) with its spectacular red sands, stopping to view a 5 metre termite mound.

Lunch today is at Jervois Station, a working cattle station. Late afternoon we arrive at Alice Springs in the Red Centre of Australia, where it's time to farewell our new friends after venturing across ‘The Real Australia'.

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