Development Opportunities Franchise Opportunities Contact Us 1800 334 033
Through the Heart of Australia NTSA (1)

Roadtrip

Through the Heart of Australia, NTSA




The map may show that the road-trip from Adelaide to Darwin is almost a straight line, but it’s a journey that’s full of awe-inspiring turns. Start in Adelaide, a city steeped in history and culture, before following the road to seaside Whyalla. Here, introduce yourself to South Australia’s many marine wonders before your trip takes you through the dusty Outback. In Alice Springs, explore under the desert sun then make your way to the tropical heat of Darwin, where frangipanis are a backdrop to spectacular sunsets.

Read on for your travel guide filled with the best things to eat drink and do, and the best places to stay, at every stop.



Explore our local picks


Through the Heart of Australia_Click

 


Adelaide

In the heart of the CBD, Quest on Franklinmakes venturing out to enjoy the Adelaide’s best attractions a cinch. Moments from Adelaide Central Marketand the dining precincts of nearby Gouger and Waymouth streets, our accessible-accreditedproperty is also just around the corner from Her Majesty’s Theatre.

Adelaide Central Market
With over 70 produce traders and a cornucopia of street food on offer, Adelaide Central Market is all the best elements of South Australia’s food scene condensed into a city block. Sourdough donuts, Italian panini and fresh cheese as far as the eye can see – be sure to drop by this foodie heaven with an empty tote bag and plans for a picnic or a night in.
Adelaide City Cultural Tour
Millennia before it was the City of Churches, Adelaide was linked by sacred sites of an ancient kind, as the traditional lands of the Kaurna people. Southern Cultural Immersion's City Cultural Tour walks visitors through some of the wonderful and tragic colonial history of the city, taking in culturally significant sites through a First Nations lens that will leave you with a rich perspective of the SA capital.
Hahndorf
A 30-minute drive from Quest on Franklin, Hahndorf is a village in the Adelaide Hills where German-inspired architecture, tree-lined streets and cellar doors make for a picturesque stroll any time of the year. On Fridays and Saturdays the streets are filled with the scent of fresh-baked pretzels from Brezel Bakehouse, which draws locals hankering for their fix.
Waterfall Gully to Mt Lofty Trail Hike 
Adelaide’s favourite hike is a challenging one, starting near the pristine First Falls in Waterfall Gully, where the Eucalypt-scented trailhead spirals upwards to Mt Lofty summit. The 7.8km return hike should take between 1.5 - 3 hours, depending on how long you stop to admire the view over the city from the summit, where you can also pick up a coffee and some breakfast at the The Summit Café.
Seamore’s at Henley Beach
Glenelg gets a lot of the glory when it comes to Adelaide’s famed sunsets, but watching the horizon turn to liquid gold from Seamore’s, a modern take on retro surf clubs, will put Henley Beach right at the top of your list. Nab a seat on the balcony and order the blue swimmer crab spaghetti for the perfect evening by the water.

Alice Springs 

Accredited for accessible use and with 68 bright, spacious apartments, Quest Alice Springs is a cool oasis a short distance from where galleries, bars and boutiques cluster under the shade of eucalypts in the outback sun. You’re a short distance from Epilogue Lounge & Rooftop Bar, where drinking a frosty schooner is the perfect afternoon pastime, while back at Quest you can take advantage of the pool and BBQ area.

The Goods
One of the best coffee spots in Mparntwe (Alice Springs) uses beans from local roastery DuYu, and provides the ideal meeting spot for locals before work. A range of jaffles pepper the menu and from Quest, you can be here in under 25 minutes’ walk in the early morning desert air.
Standley Chasm
The ancient rock seabed that forms Standley Chasm (Angkerle Atwatye) is less than an hour’s drive outside of Alice, and if you time your visit for midday you’ll experience a natural phenomenon – just as the sun is positioned overhead, the 80 metre-high quartzite walls light up like molten lava, creating fractals and wedges of dazzling light.
Araluen Arts Centre
Four galleries and a 500-seat theatre combine to form the hub of Central Australian culture that is the Araluen Arts Centre, where, built around a 300-year old culturally-significant corkwood tree, you’ll find some of the most important Arrernte works on display. See Albert Namatjira’s original watercolours of the West MacDonnell ranges with the geological wonder itself nearby, and absorb the stories from over 1100 artworks in the centre’s collection. 
Alice Springs Desert Park
Holding special significance for the local Arrernte people, Alice Springs Desert Park embraces parts of the Akngwelye Artnwere and Yeperenye Altyerre (Wild Dog and Caterpillar) Dreaming stories. A ten-minute drive from Quest Alice Springs, the park is teeming with wildlife like dingoes, emus and echidnas, but for a truly unforgettable experience, come at night: the nocturnal tour, where visitors are given a head torch and guided through an after-dark encounter with desert-dwelling animals is something you – and the kids – won’t soon forget.
Bella Alice
From a wildly popular food-truck to a permanent shopfront in Todd Mall, the woodfired pizza and fresh pasta from the team behind Bella Alice has a consistent fanbase in the Alice community. Check the website for their opening hours which change slightly from day to day, and don’t skip the ‘Hey Honey!’ – a tomato and mozzarella base slathered with salami, garlic and chilli honey.

Darwin 

Accessible-accredited, Quest Palmerston is also pet-friendly, which means fur-babies can come along for the holiday as well. Every Friday night throughout the dry season (end of April to end of October), the Palmerston Marketsare held just two blocks down the street – a twilight meander will bring you to a hub of fresh produce, local arts and crafts, food trucks and live entertainment: the best way to spend a balmy tropical evening.

Ray’s Café and Patisserie
Come for the coffee, stay for the loaded croissants: Ray’s menu is packed with crowd favourites and peppered with some truly unusual offerings to keep things fresh. While specials rotate seasonally, the cafe recently put its own twist on Darwin’s annual laksa festival with a fresh-baked croissant stacked with peanut karaage chicken, spinach, hollandaise, laksa sauce and a poached egg. Yes please.
The Darwin Sailing Club
Australia’s northernmost capital can feel more like a tropical island outpost at times – and nowhere are the holiday vibes more real than at The Darwin Sailing Club. Perched above the beach at Fannie Bay, the venue is known for being one of the best sunset-watching spots in the city. Nab a table on the lawn and order a half-kilo of chilled king prawns to go with your glass of wine (ice cube recommended – this is the NT after all).
Mindil Beach Sunset Market
The natural light show on Darwin’s Mindil Beach, just 20 minutes in the car from Quest Palmerston, is so impressive an entire market has sprung up around it. The Mindil Beach Sunset Market has the best atmosphere in town: grab a steaming, fragrant bowl of laksa (Darwin’s signature dish) and wash it down with homemade mango ice cream as the sun drops below the horizon.
George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
A little further north of Mindil Beach Sunset Markets lies the Museum and Art Gallery Northern Territory and its collection of First Nations art and cultural history, but sprawled beyond it you’ll find the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens. Here, make your way to the Matboerrma Walk, where you’ll be guided through the native plants and trees used by the Larrakia people, Darwin’s Traditional Custodians, for bush food and medicine. 
Berry Springs Nature Park
Less than half an hour’s drive south of Quest Palmerston, you’ll find the lush top-end oasis of Berry Springs: a spring-fed paddling creek, shady gums and a kiosk where you can grab essentials like icy poles and pool noodles for the kids. Better yet? Five minutes down the road is Territory Wildlife Park, where a shuttle train and meandering paths take you past saltwater crocs, Darwin carpet pythons and bandicoots, to name just a few.