Northern Territory Top end. 10 day road trip itinerary.

The ‘Top End’ of Northern Territory is frontier country, a tropical oasis that consists of Darwin, World Heritage-listed Kakadu National Park, remote Arnhem Land in the north-east corner, and the Katherine region where the tropics meet the outback. It is Australia’s most rewarding indigenous homeland, home to art centres, isolated communities and rock art. 1 in 4 Territorians identify as Indigenous, compared to only 3% of NSW and 1% of Victorians. NT is abundant in iconic Aussie wildlife, from salt and fresh water crocodiles to the flood plain birds of Kakadu. Darwin is an interesting place, Australia’s only tropical capital city and gate way to the Top End with an end of Australia feel. It is closer to Bali than Bondi and feels very removed from the rest of the country.

When to go?

There are only two seasons in the the Top End- the wet and the dry. Shoulder season is a good time to go to get the best of The Wet with a bit of The Dry, lower crowds and better prices. A lot accommodation, tours and restaurants are not open or reduced opening times during the wet so I would avoid going in the height of the wet season. April -May and September is the best time to go to experience The Wet whilst having good weather and tours still operating.

End of Apr- Sep: Mindil markets (only start last weekend in April), fine weather and festivals. This is the dry season, dry season doesn’t fully kick in until June. Some of the watering holes are closed until then to unsure there are no salties ( what salt water crocodiles are known as by the locals). The waterfalls are still full and flowing in April and May following the wet season.

Oct-Nov: the ‘build up’ brings very hot and humid temperatures with high chance of rain. Avoid going at this time.

Dec- Mar: The Wet is in full swing which brings floods, monsoonal rains and fewer tourists. Many tours do not run at this time. Again, not a good time to visit the Top End. Temperatures get well into the 40s (degree Celsius).

Campervan or car?

There are plenty of campsites and free campsites in NT. There is plenty of accommodation in the bigger towns such as Katherine but less options near the national parks such as Litchfield and Kakadu. There are tourist parks, guests houses and cabins in Jabiru and Litchfield but options are not plentiful and they are expensive for how basic they are. They book up around holidays and during the dry season.

4WD or 2WD?

We made the mistake of not getting a 2WD campervan which would be best during The Wet. During the Wet the tracks are completely closed so you cannot access them anyway so we didn’t use our 4WD once. Even though we went mid-end April, these tracks are closed well into June so you will be staying on sealed roads the whole way if you go between Oct-Jun. We hired our 4WD trough Travel Playground and got $100 discount off our car hire.

To sum it up: 4WD camper van/ roof tent from Jun-Sep, otherwise a 2WD campervan would be the best option.

Day 1

Darwin

Arrive to Darwin, capital city of the NT. Start your day trying out one the cafes for brunch, hire a neuron, Darwin’s electric scooters, and head down towards the waterfront for a swim in the lagoon. The lagoon is the only place in Darwin to swim in the sea safely, filtered sea water and nets provide a natural seawater lagoon free from box jelly fish and crocodiles.

In the afternoon head to the George Brown Botanical Gardens for a wander around the Top End’s plants and exotic palms from around the world. The gardens are are an easy 2km bike ride or walk from Darwin.

Crocosaurus Cove is right in the centre of Darwin and as close as you can get to these incredible creatures . Six of the largest crocs in captivity can be seen in the state of the art aquariums and pools. You can opt to be lowered into the pool with the crocs in a transparent cage, the cage of death. We didn’t go in as I didn’t fancy seeing the crocs in captivity when we had seen them in the wild.

For sunset, head to Mindil Beach markets on between 29th Apr- Sep every Thursday and Sunday. The sunset is stunning there, NT do sunsets differently. If you are there on a Saturday or Sunday, Mindil Beach Casino and Resort hold a pool party over looking Mindil Beach from an infinity pool. We went to the beach club twice and the sunsets from here were magical with a cocktail in hand from the pool.

Chill out under the stars at night and catch a film at the Deckchair Cinema at the Darwin Waterfront. The open air cinema screens Australian, popular, family, foreign and classic films during the dry season (April–November). Make the most of the experience and relax under the stars while enjoying their onsite bar and food stalls.

Day 2

Sample some of Darwin’s cafes for breakfast or The Vue if you are staying in the Mindil Beach Casino Resort, breakfast is great here overlooking Mindil Beach.

Check out some of the museums such as the Royal Flying Doctor Museum. This is how museums should be done, the hologram cinema and virtual- reality glasses that enable you to relive in vivid detail the 1943 Japanese bombing of Darwin Harbour.

For the evening, take a cruise on the Darwin Harbour for sunset and enjoy bottomless champagne and canapés. We went with Sunset Sail and Champagne cruise which leaves from the wharf at 5pm-8pm. This is one of the best things we did in Darwin and highly recommend watching the sunset over the harbour on a catamaran. $139 pp for bottomless champagne and canapes. It is a BYOB cruise also. I booked this through Travel Playground also for a discounted price.

Darwin: Where to stay and eat

Stay: We stayed in Mindil Beach Resort and Casino which is only fabulous but its not cheap ($330 per night) and its a bit out of the city. We also stayed in Darwin City Hotel which had a pool, a gym, great air con and right in the city centre. Rooms here start at $135 per night for a double room.

Eat:

• Rays Patisserie and Cafe: Incredible for brunch, lunch and coffee. They do an unbelievable selection of baked goods and pastries.
• The Rabbithole: Such friendly staff, the manager here is a legend and invited us to the pool party and coffee the next day. Brunch is great here.
• Four Birds: Another great brunch spot with your breakfast classics.
• Cafe 21: Great deserts, all day breakfast and extensive selection.
• Postie: Amazing toasted sandwiches. h bar with good live music and surprising good food. They do an amazing Sunday roast.

Day 3

Get up early and head to Litchfield National Park. If you’re smart about it and leave Darwin by before 7am, you could get everything done in Litchfield. Litchfield is only just over an hour drive from Darwin so also very do able in a day trip if you don’t plan on doing a road trip or are tight on time. I recommend spending two days if you have the time to enjoy some of the watering holes and cool down. There are plenty of one day tours leaving Darwin but I recommend having your own car or campervan and being able to go at your own pace. Here are the main stops in Litchfield National Park:

Berry Springs: The first stop from Darwin on the way to Litchfield National Park. It is home to one of NT’s best zoos, a café and a gorgeous watering hole. There is plenty of shaded spots and BBQ areas. It is closed for The Wet and usually reopens for The Dry in the end of May.

The Cascades: To get to these beautiful series of small falls and pools requires a bit of a steep uphill walk. There are two pools, the Upper Cascades and Lower Cascades. It is possible to do a 3.3km loop walk between them but when we visited the lower cascades were closed. It is a 2.6km return walk from the car park to the Upper Cascades. It a hot and uneven walk up but worth it. Spend an hour cooling off in the pools. Swimming in the Lower Cascades is during The Dry only, Upper Cascades is open all year round for swimming.

Wangi Falls: (pronounced wong-guy) is about 7km further on from The Cascades. It is the big ticket attraction of Litchfield National Park. The falls flow all year around but is closed for swimming due to croc risk in The Wet. The enormous swimming hole is surrounded by rainforest. Its very popular for swimming in The Dry. It is only about 300m walk from the car park so no hiking required for this stop.

Tjaetaba Falls. This was my favourite of all the spots in Litchfield. It requires a bit of a hike to it and I think that makes it even more rewarding. The Greenant Creek Walk is 2.7km return walk following the creek upstream through beautiful rain forest. The plunge pool is the perfect way to cool off after the hike.

Tolmer Falls (best at sunset): A beautiful spot to watch sunset, a very easy 400m walk to the lookout point from the carpark. You can’t get any closer to the falls or swim here.

Florence Falls: Take the turn off for Bluey Rockhole and continue past to the Florence Falls car park. You can descend 135 steps down to the beautiful swimming pool or alternatively take the shady creek walk (950m) if you don’t fancy the stairs on the way back up. The walk starts by the water hole and climbs gently through the forest. There is also a track (1.7km one way) connecting Bluey Rockhole and Florence Falls.

Bluey Rockhole: Water cascades over large rocks forming a series of rock pools, deep and big enough to jump into. stop before Batchelor (17km away), it looks like giant tombs stone from a distance but they are mounds built by tiny termites. Not much to look at but pretty amazing that these tiny creatures.

Stay: Litchfield Tourist Park. This is the closest accommodation to the National Park but there is no service here and also no shops around. They have cabins, powered and unpowered campsites, a cafe and a swimming pool. The cabins were gorgeous and had everything you needed including a microwave, kettle, fridge, tv and really good AC.

Litchfield Outback Resort: If you’re looking for somewhere near the town, this is a nice hotel with a great bar and bottle shop attached to it. They are the only place to get a meal after 3 pm and the food is decent.

Hideaway Litchfield: If you have the budget to spurge on a unique experience in the national park, look no further. These are shipping containers turned luxury escapes in the heart of Litchfield National Park starting at $420 per night and there is a minimum stay of 2 nights.

Day 4

30 minute drive from Kathrine and also has a café and a campsite here. It is beautiful and well worth stopping and hiking in if n30 minute drive from Kathrine and also has a café and a campsite here. It is beautiful and well worth stopping and hiking in if not also staying in. The campsite has toilets, showers and fresh water. There are a few hikes to do around Edith Falls (Leliyn), the moderate Leliyn Trail (2.6 km loop) which climbs into escarpment country and past scenic lookouts to the Upper Pool, where the Sweetwater Pool Trail (8.6km return, 3-4 hrs) branches off. You can swim in the Upper Pools all year round and only during The Dry in the Lower Pools.

Katherine

After a morning hiking and cooling off in the pools head into Katherine to check out the town and grab some lunch in the best café in the NT, Madien’s Lane. It is out of town in an industrial estate but don’t let that but you off. They are open 6am-2pm so make sure you get there before they close. A constant issue we run into when we are travelling in Australia is we miss the cut off for lunch and can’t get anything to eat then until 5 pm. Most cafes in Australia close at 2 and finish serving food at 1 or 1.30 pm. These guys serve right until 2pm (internet says 3pm but it’s 2pm). This café is a brilliant, sophisticated cafe serving top notch burgers, as well as waffles, salads, cakes and brilliant vegan food.

There is not much happening in Katherine, its a bit of a dump to be honest but there are plenty of hotels, campsites, grocery stores and some restaurants and cafes. The restaurant scene isn’t up to much. The best bits of Katherine are the hot springs and the Nitmiluk National Park about 20 minute drive outside.

Katherine is an important meeting point in this part of the world, it stands where the traditional lands of the Jawoyn, Dagoman and Wardaman Indigenous peoples come together. Katherine is rich in Indigenous culture and offers some great tours.

Spend the afternoon at the Top Diji Cultural Experience and Art Gallery. It is run by the owners of the on site Katherine Art Gallery, a great place to see Indigenous artist at work. The cultural experiences are hands-on, with fire sticks, spear throwing, painting and basket weaving. The cultural experiences run twice daily (9.30am and 2.30 pm) from May-Oct. Prices: $85 adult, $55 child (3-15 yrs).

Where to stay

Katherine Holiday Park is a good option for campers, they also have cabins on site and great facilities.

Knott’s Crossing Resort and another good options with powered , unpowered sites and rooms. It has a good restaurant on site.

Day 5

Head for breakfast in Black Russian Caravan Bar, in the visitor centre. Serving Katherines best coffee and fabulous, thick-cut toasties as well as cakes and pastries. First stop of the day will be to Katherine Hot Springs, these natural thermal springs are located on the banks of the Katherine River. These series of clear pools are a warm 28-30 degrees year round and very inviting. Get here early to beat the crowds. They are free and quite small compared to Bitter Springs so 30 minutes is plenty of time here. 

About an hour drive from Katherine is Elsey National Park, comprising of Bitter Springs and Mataranka Gorge. This was one of the most beautiful places in the NT for us. Bitter Springs is a palm fringed thermal pool that is 34 degrees year round. The water is so impossibly clear and an almost unnatural green-blue colour. The thermal stream is like a lazy river, you can bring a floatie and let the water take you down stream.

10 minute drive from Bitter Springs is Mataranka Homestead and the thermal pools are at the back the homestead. The homestead serves good food and has accommodation options. Bring your goggles as there are little turtles in the thermal pools.

After lunch in Mataranka Homstead and a swim in the thermal pools, drive back towards Katherine to Nitmulik National Park and stay overnight near the gorge. There are a few accommodation options:

• Camping power and unpowered sites in the Nitmulik National Park. Good camp kitchens, fridges and a beautiful pool on site.
• Cabins and permanent tents in the National Park
• Cicada Lodge. A luxury hotel option with a pool and restaurant on site. Rooms start from $583 per night.

Day 6

Sunrise is beautiful here and it gets extremely hot in the gorge during the day so the only time to do hiking is early in the morning. Set off 1 hour before sunrise to catch the best of the colours from the Baruwei Lookout. It takes about 20-30 minutes to walk to the lookout from the campground. There is plenty to do in Nitmulik National Park, from mountain biking, to kayaking, boat cruises and hiking.

Day Hikes:

Baruwei Lookout and Loop: You can choose just to go to the lookout (1.8km climb) or continue on the longer 4.8km loop. The look provides amazing views over the Katherine River. You can continue a little further on to take the steep rocky path down to the Southern Rockhole for a swim. It is safe year round to swim. It adds on about another 2 km to the loop but is well worth it.

Butterfly Gorge: A challenging 12 km return (4 hour) walk through a pocket of rainforest, the walk leads to midway along the second gorge and a deep water swimming hole. After a morning hiking, choose from one of the amazing tours run by Nitmulik They operate the accommodation and from the visitor centre. They run all of the parks activities including scenic flights, boat cruises and the Malappar Traveller caneoing tour. If you are visiting between Jun-Oct I would definitely recommend spending the afternoon on this canoeing tour. We ended up finishing our hike and the boat cruise by 2pm so we opted to get on the road and head onto Kakadu the afternoon of day 6 but it depends on how fast you want to move and time of year. If you visit in The Dry, you may have the option of doing the canoeing tour and hiking as it is cooler.

Get up early and head for Kakadu National Park, the highlight of the Top End road trip. Kakadu is a massive area encompassing about 20,000 sq km. It holds within its boundaries a spectacular ecosystem, periodically flooded and scorched and mind blowing ancient rock art. Kakadu is one place that is very season dependent on what activities and hikes are open. During The Dry is about the only time you really need to have a 4WD in the NT top end road trip. YOU DON’T, ONLY BETWEEN JUN-OCT. We had read various things and believed we needed a 4WD and spent a fortune on hiring one. I have done two options on how to spend 3 days in Kakadu, during The Dry and Wet. *The Dry really doesn’t start here until mid-late June, we thought it started in April and were very wrong. Although it didn’t rain once when we were there in mid to late April.*

In The Wet:

Day 7: Aim to leave Nitmulik Gorge before sunrise as it takes 2 and a half hours to reach the car park for Motor Car Falls. Motor Car Falls is a beautiful waterfall with huge swimming pool that is suitable for swimming during the Wet. It is one of the few places you can swim in Kakadu year round. The 6km return walk from the car park is an easy and flat trail that is well marked. Getting to Motor Car Falls car aprk is not as well sign posted. Take the Gimbat Road off the Kakadu Highway and it is 30 minutes down this road.

After a hike and swim, head towards Ubirr to see some salties and the locals fish at Cahills Crossing, Ubir Rock art and the best sunset in the NT. Stop in Cooinda Lodge, about an hour drive from the Motor Car Falls carpark, for some lunch. The food here is excellent. It is a good option to stay here if you are camping, the Yellow Water campground is right beside the lodge and the lodge has beautiful luxury glamping safari style cabins.

After lunch head towards Cahill’s Crossing, a dramatic frontier between Arnhem Land and Kakadu National Park. It becomes unpassable during high tide. A high clearance 4WD with a snorkel is required to cross but you won’t be able to cross into Arnhem Land without a permit which takes several days to be processed. People usually visit Arnhem Land with a tour. The rangers have not been giving permits for over two years due to COVID. The population is almost solely indigenous here and would be vulnerable to any COVID outbreaks. The river is known for its very healthy population of salt water crocodiles. You can walk see the locals fish from the viewing platform and the crocodiles that line up to catch the fish at the mouth of the water. DO NOT be tempted to cross the river on foot, people have died doing this by salties.

Cahill’s crossing is only a few minute drive from Ubirr. Ubirr is one of the jewels in Kakadu’s well studded crown. Ubirr is best known for NT’s best sunset and magnificent aboriginal rock art that is some of the best preserved in Australia. The sunset point, Nardab Lookout is a 250 m scramble accessed from the main gallery. The sun sets over the exotic floodplains and it is so quiet and peaceful here. The gates to the car park close 30 minutes after sunset so make sure you don’t hang around too long admiring the colours after the sun goes down. Mosquitoes are rife here so make sure you carry some spray with you.

Day 9: The wildlife on the Yellow river cruise is best seen at sunrise or sunset but seeing as there are so many beautiful spots for sunset, I would advise getting up early before dawn and booking onto the Yellow Water Cruise. Sunrise is the most popular time so you must book ahead ($104 per person, 2 hours). This was one of the highlights for us in Kakadu, we saw salt water crocodiles so many difference species of birds and the sunrise over the Yellow Water Billabong.

After the sunrise cruise grab a buffet breakfast in Cooinda Lodge. The breakfast here is excellent and very reasonable for a buffet. Head to the Warradjan Aboringinal Cultural Centre which opens at 9 am and is only 1 km from the Cooinda Lodge. This was one of the best aboriginal museums I have visited and was so informative and interesting.It depicts creation stories and has an exhibition that includes tools, clothing and rock art samples. You will learn about the 6 seasons of Kakadu, how people get their name, who they can marry and life working the land.

Drive back towards Jabiru for a scenic scenic flight with Kakadu Air. They run every 2 hours from Jabiru airport and start at $220 per person for a 60 minute scenic flight taking in Arnhem land, Jim Jim and Twin Falls. It is the only way to see the falls during the \wet as the roads are closed to them until min June but it depends on the season. This was amazing to see Jim Jim and Twin falls in full flow and appreciate the amount of water and power of them. Flying over Arnhem Land showed just how vast an area it is. During the Dry the scenic flights don’t go over the waterfalls as they are dried up and not flowing then. During this time you can hike up to them and swim in the rock pools. To properly see the waterfalls you need to go by air and during the Wet.

After the scenic flight, drive up towards Nourlangie Rock art and climb the short but steep rock face to view sunset at Nawurlandja Lookout.

Day 10: Have a more chilled start to your last day and stop off at Mamukala wet lands on your way back to Darwin. Mamukala wetlands is a bird-lover’s dream. There is a short walk and a viewing platform which allows bird-watchers to see an astonishing variety of bird life.

In the Dry:

Day 8: Explore Jim Jim Falls and Twin Falls. For this you must have a 4WD. Camp overnight in the Garnamarr Campground. To reach the campoground turn east off the Kakadu Highway 43km south of the Bowali Centre. Engage 4WD and travel 50 km along the Jim Jim Falls access road. Jim Jim Falls car park is an additional 15 km along the access road . It’s worth the 900 metre walk across the rocks to take a dip in the crystal clear water of the plunge pool.

From the Jim Jim Falls Car Park clear signage will direct you to the Plunge Pool Walk (approximately 2 kilometer return). The initial part of this walk is an easy to moderate marked track, approximately 400 m, where you can enjoy a stunning view of Jim Jim falls from afar. It is worth that tougher 500m to reach the majestic waterhole up close. The walk will take you through the monsoon forest along the Jim Jim Creek, to the deep waterfall plunge pool. Don’t underestimate this walking track, it involves scrambling over increasingly large boulders which can be sandy and slippery. Allow 3 hours (return) to complete. Depending on the time of year and how wet The Wet has been, Jim Jim Falls will gradually cease to flow.

The more energetic can take on the Barrk Marlam Walk. The rugged 3km ascent to the top of Jim Jim Falls will have you captivated by the spectacular view of the escarpment. The marked track is difficult and steep and to head off before 10 am to avoid the intense midday heat.

After tackling Jim Jim Falls, head for Twin Falls which lies a further 10 km from Jim Jim Falls in 4WD, allow 30 mins to reach it from Jim Jim Falls. The last section involves a deep water crossing at Jim Jim Creek which requires a high clearance 4WD with snorkel. Allow half an hour from Jim Jim Falls, one way. During the dry season the waterfall slows to a trickle.

Allow 2 hours to explore the Twin Falls Gorge. Access is by boat shuttle service, a walking track over boulders and sand and a boardwalk. Their is a gorge plateau walk which is 6km (4 hrs) where you can access the swimming pools.

Allow about 2 hours return for the boat trip and walk to the gorge. The boat shuttle service charges $12.50 per person return, children under 16 years travel free. The service departs at least every half hour (depending on demand) from 7.30am. The last boat service departs at 4.30pm and returns to the carpark end of the gorge at 6pm.

Day 9: Maguk and sunset in Ubirr.

Located an hour’s drive south from Cooinda, Maguk is accessed from a 14km four-wheel drive track off the Kakadu Highway (4WD is a must) followed by a one kilometer walk through monsoon forests, crossing Barramundi Creek. Previously known as Barramundi Gorge, Maguk is a gorgeous swimming hole of crystal clear water that is fed by a waterfall. It is a 14 km drive from Cooinda, 12km of which is off road, and a 2km return hike. if you are up for exploring a bit more, there is an unmarked track which will lead you up to the top of the waterfall. You will be rewarded with a birds eye view of the gorge and a series of rockpools that you can swim in. Be careful though as there is one swim hole which once in, you can only get out of by swimming down a couple of meters and through an underwater tunnel. Not for the faint of heart. The hike to the top is very short but considered more moderate to hard as it is quite steep at times.

After hiking and swimming in the watering holes of Maguk, head on the 1.5 hour drive towards Ubirr to enjoy the best sunset in NT and take in the magnificent rock art.

Day 10: Yellow River Cruise and Mamukala Wetlands. Get up early for the Yellow River Cruise at dawn, the best time as sunrise over the river is magical and the wildlife are most active then. Enjoy a buffet breakfast in Cooinda Lodge after and then start making your way back towards Darwin. It will take just over 3 hours from here. Break the journey up with a stop off at Mamukala wet lands. Mamukala wetlands is a bird-lover’s dream. There is a short walk and a viewing platform which allows bird-watchers to see an astonishing variety of bird life. Grab lunch 40 min drive from Darwin on your way back in the Humpty Doo Hotel. Stopping off here for lunch and a drink is a must. First ’cause there is a township called Humpty Doo and secondly they serve decent pub grub and cheap drinks.