Ultimate trip

Ton

New Member
We looking for a trip across Australia for the next year.
Start/finish in Melborne for about 2-3weeks somewhere around juli/august.

Were wanted to go by train and car but doesn't know wat's the best thing to do.

Take the train heading Darwin and drive back through Queensland ?

Or rent a car in Melbourne and take the train back 'home'?

Somebody familiar about this combined way of traveling?
 

Grumpy

Moderator
Personally I would rent a car and drive, going by train you only see what is on either side of the tracks. I would also extend the trip to a month or longer to make it worthwhile, lets face it your probably not going to get the opportunity very often to do something like this.
 
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millsy

4x4 Earth Contributer
What about a train, or bus, from Adelaide to Melbourne ( about 12 hours ). If you can get a bus through the day you can see 700km of country between Melbourne and Adelaide, and there will be a few rest stops where you can get out and sniff the air and stretch your legs.

Then the Ghan from Adelaide to Darwin ( not sure exactly, but probably about 31/2 days ). Of course The Ghan is one of the world's great train adventures. The track from Alice Springs to Darwin was only just laid about twelve or fifteen years ago.

From Darwin, hire a car and make your way back towards Melbourne. There are many ways to choose to come back south, but the 'classic' tourist drive would be across from Darwin to Townsville, via Mount Isa, and then down the east coast through Brisbane and Sydney. A lot to see between Townsville and Melbourne. A beautiful drive! But the exact opposite of the first half the journey. Lots of towns and cities. Fast, new highways, with four lanes ( 2 each way ) for much of it ( Brisbane to Melbourne ).

You would need about 7 or 8 days from Darwin to Melbourne if all you did was drive from morning into the night, 12 or more hours every day, with just a few short rest stops each day. So if you took two weeks you can see that it is still a pretty quick driving holiday, but possible.

You could save a day by driving south from Mount Isa, through Longreach, Roma and direct to Brisbane. The road from Brisbane to Sydney, the Pacific Highway, follows the coast quite closely. And you get to see some more great 'outback' towns, and a lot of classic 'cattle country' through central Queensland. Some great landscapes through this part of the country from Mount Isa to Brisbane.

You would see five capitals - Melbourne, Adelaide, Darwin, Brisbane and Sydney. Also the iconic outback town, although briefly, of Alice Springs ( not sure how long the train stops there - hopefully for a couple of hours at least. ) And many great towns and sights in between.

This trip would let you see a big variation in landscapes and also types of towns, from the smallest outback towns, with just one or two buildings and a handfull of residents, to the two largest cities - Sydney and Melbourne. You will see the great wheat fields of the south, the deserts of the outback, the tropical greenery of the north coast of Queensland, and Australia's Great Dividing Range that runs right down the east coast, and even around the corner into the middle of Victoria.

Also July and August are great for touring through the top half of Australia, since it is the dry season. There are just too many cyclones and too much rain to risk going through from Darwin to Brisbane on a fairly tight schedule in the summer. Plus it will be a bit cooler for you.

So if you love driving, and covering a lot of km in a short time, as I do, you could actually see a lot of this big country in three weeks. You would definitely need three weeks minimum, or you will be driving while very tired in the last few days and it would not be safe or fun! If time was running short, you can drop the car off in Sydney, or before if you have to, and jump on a jet to get back to Melbourne quickly.

Good luck with your planning, and have a great holiday which ever way you go.
 
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deepop

4x4 Earth Contributer
You've got to take longer or else cut down the distance.

You know about travelling long distances by train or car across Europe but out there you can be stuck for 2-3 days easily through no fault of your own - and it can be a very quiet and lonely place if you're outback.

Maybe do yourself a favour and take the Ghan from Adelaide to Darwin, hire a 4WD and take 3-4 weeks at least to get back to Melbourne or else go to Sydney and fly home direct from there.

I know you want to see lots but you need to take some time to sit by a river or out in the desert and just stop and absorb the place. This could be 2-3 days in only a couple of spots and then you're out of time.

Keep us updated.
 

Grey Ghost

5th Annual Victorian Gathering member
Maybe take the Ghan train from Adelaide to Darwin and then hire a 4wd and spend some time exploring the top end and fly back to Melbourne at the end???
 
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