Australia is the country that appears on more people’s travel bucket lists than any other. Yet it is also a big place. The sixth-largest country in the world by area, it takes four and a half hours to fly from one side to the other.
It is a nation of contrasts depending on where you go, from the sophisticated night life of Sydney to the arts hub that is Melbourne to the sun, sea and surf culture of Queensland. But wait, something is still missing. What about the Australia depicted in the Crocodile Dundee movies, where real men wrestle crocodiles and communicate with bats?
It doesn’t pay to believe everything you see in the movies. Having said that, the Northern Territory provides its very own version of Australia, and while not an exact facsimile, it is somewhere that Mick Dundee would feel right at home.
The gateway to the Outback
With Kakadu National Park just a two-hour drive from the city, Darwin is a firm favorite among nature lovers. Park passes start at just $25 per person, depending on the time of year, and are valid for seven days. There is so much to take in, it’s certainly worth taking advantage of that and staying a few days. There’s a good choice of hotels. The most famous is the indigenously owned Kakadu Crocodile Hotel in Jibiru. There’s no other hotel that looks anything like it in the whole world!
If you envisage the Aussie outback as a dusty wasteland, you are in for a surprise. One of the reasons Kakadu is so popular is the way it showcases the true diversity of the Australian ecosystem. There is everything from spectacular waterfalls to lush forests to marshlands that teem with every imaginable kind of life. Kakadu also offers numerous opportunities to learn about aboriginal culture and maybe even buy yourself some artwork.
Las Vegas by the sea? Casino culture NT style
Australia is as famous for its casino culture as it is for its crocodiles. If you’ve visited Sydney or Melbourne, you might have seen their towering glass casinos, tens of floors in height. In the northern territory, they do things a little differently. Mindil Beach Casino Resort is an informal hang-out with a casual dress code, where locals and tourists alike can turn up in beachwear and choose from more than 600 pokies, as well as all the classic casino table games like blackjack, roulette, poker and so on. In an age when more Australian players are turning to cash wagering platforms online due to better promos and the wider choice of games, Mindil Beach provides an opportunity to play the old-fashioned way, but without the formality that is usually associated with physical casinos.
As well as the casino games, the 30-acre Mindil resort also incorporates 152 hotel rooms, including luxury suites that overlook the lagoon. There is a wide choice of dining and drinking options, from an informal sports bar offering beer and snacks to a fine dining restaurant specializing in locally caught seafood.
Plenty to see and do in Downtown Darwin
One downside to staying at Mindil Resort is that there is so much to do, you could easily spend a week there without straying beyond its 30 acres! Make sure you spend some time exploring the rest of Darwin, too.
Sunset markets are held just next door to the resort every Thursday and Sunday between April and October. These present a great opportunity to support the indigenous economy and buy yourself some unique Aboriginal art, jewelry and so on.
Darwin is also jam packed with bars, nightclubs, craft breweries and live music venues in an idyllic waterfront setting. Shenanigans on Mitchell Street is a popular starting point for an early evening drink in convivial surroundings. From there, it is fun to stroll along the waterfront and see where your feet take you.
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