Must-see attractions in Northern Territory

  • Uluru (Ayers Rock) Sunset

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    Northern Territory

    Nothing can really prepare you for the immensity, grandeur, changing colour and stillness of 'the Rock'. It really is a sight that will sear itself on to…

  • Kakadu National Park

    Northern Territory

    Kakadu is one of the world's great national parks, combining an astonishing array of attractions. Its wetlands and escarpments shelter abundant wildlife,…

  • Ubirr

    Kakadu National Park

    It takes a lot more than the busloads of visitors to disturb Ubirr's inherent majesty and grace. Layers of rock-art paintings, in various styles and from…

  • Trephina Gorge Nature Park

    Northern Territory

    If you only have time for a couple of stops in the East MacDonnell Ranges, make Trephina Gorge Nature Park (75km from Alice) one of them. The play between…

  • People at food stall at Mindil Beach Sunset Market.

    Mindil Beach Sunset Market

    Darwin

    Food is the main attraction here − from Thai, Sri Lankan, Indian, Chinese and Malaysian to Brazilian, Greek, Portuguese and more − all at around $6 to $12…

  • Saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus) lounging in pool at Crocosaurus Cove.

    Crocosaurus Cove

    Darwin

    If the tourists won't go out to see the crocs, then bring the crocs to the tourists. Right in the middle of Mitchell St, Crocosaurus Cove is as close as…

  • Simpsons Gap

    Northern Territory

    One of the prettiest corners of the West MacDonnell Ranges, Simpsons Gap, 22km by road from Alice Springs and 8km off Larapinta Dr along a paved road,…

  • Arltunga Historical Reserve

    Northern Territory

    At the eastern end of the MacDonnell Ranges, 110km east of Alice Springs, the old gold-mining ghost town of Arltunga (33km on an unsealed road from the…

  • Territory Wildlife Park

    Northern Territory

    This excellent park showcases the best of Top End Aussie wildlife. Pride of place must go to the aquarium, where a clear walk-through tunnel puts you…

  • Ormiston Gorge

    Northern Territory

    If you've only time for one stop in the West MacDonnell Ranges, make it here. There's a waterhole shaded with ghost gums and the gorge curls around to the…

  • Cahill's Crossing

    Kakadu National Park

    It may be small, but there can be few more dramatic frontiers in Australia. This shallow causeway, which is impassable when the tide's in, crosses the…

  • Maguk

    Kakadu National Park

    Though it's unlikely you'll have dreamy Maguk to yourself, you might time it right to have the glorious natural pool and falls between just a few of you…

  • Tnorala

    Northern Territory

    Protected by a combination of remoteness and difficult access, Tnorala, as it's known to the Western Arrernte people, is a lost and beautiful world. The…

  • Palm Valley

    Northern Territory

    Top attraction Palm Valley is famous for its red cabbage palms (up to 12,000 of them!), which exist nowhere else in the world. These relics from…

  • Gunlom

    Kakadu National Park

    Gunlom is a superb escarpment waterfall 40-odd kilometres south of Maguk and 37km along an unsealed, though well-graded, gravel road. The reward is a…

  • Royal Flying Doctor Service

    Darwin

    This outstanding museum on Stokes Hill Wharf is the way all museums should be. There's a 55-seat hologram cinema, virtual-reality glasses that enable you…

  • Rainbow Valley Conservation Reserve

    Northern Territory

    One of the more uplifting sights accessible off the Stuart Hwy south of Alice, Rainbow Valley consists of freestanding sandstone bluffs that turn from…

  • Field of Light

    Yulara

    This extraordinary installation by artist Bruce Munro will be open until at least 31 December 2020. It consists of over 50,000 poppylike stems topped with…

  • Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre, just 1km from the Rock, is a fabulous introduction to your Uluru experience. Displays and exhibits focus on tjukurpa …

  • Talinguru Nyakunytjaku Lookout

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    Much loved for its sunrise views in particular, with Uluru in the foreground and Kata Tjuta far away on the southwestern horizon. It also has two great…

  • Nardab Lookout

    Kakadu National Park

    The magnificent Nardab Lookout is a 250m scramble from the main Ubirr rock-art gallery. Surveying the billiard-table-green floodplain and watching the sun…

  • Mt Sonder Lookout

    Northern Territory

    Just 1km northwest of Glen Helen Gorge, the Mt Sonder lookout has sweeping views out over the West MacDonnells; sunrise and sunset are the best times to…

  • Car Sunset Viewing Area

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    The main parking area for cars and minivans for watching the sunset at Uluru. Some travellers the far southeastern end of the car park, but everyone's…

  • x-default

    Kata Tjuta

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    No journey to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is complete without a visit to Kata Tjuta, a striking group of domed rocks huddled together about 35km west…

  • Uluru

    Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    Uluru is a beautiful, charismatic place. Its dimensions are one thing: Uluru is 3.6km long and rises 348m from the surrounding sands (867m above sea level…

  • Nourlangie Area

    Kakadu National Park

    The sight of this looming outlier of the Arnhem Land escarpment makes it easy to understand its ancient importance to Aboriginal people. Its long, red…

  • Chambers Pillar

    Northern Territory

    The eerie, sandstone Chambers Pillar, southwest of Maryvale Station, towers 50m above the surrounding plain and is carved with the names and visit dates…

  • Wangi Falls

    Litchfield National Park

    Litchfield's big-ticket attraction, Wangi Falls (pronounced wong-guy) flow year-round, spilling either side of a huge orange-rock outcrop and filling an…

  • Ellery Creek Big Hole

    Northern Territory

    Ellery Creek Big Hole, 91km from Alice Springs, has a large permanent waterhole and is a beautiful spot. It's a popular place for a swim on a hot day (the…

  • Litchfield National Park

    Northern Territory

    Welcome to one of Australia's best national parks, a stunning world of striking rock formations and rock pools, high cliffs and waterfalls, croc-free…

  • Ruby Gap Nature Park

    Northern Territory

    This remote park rewards visitors with wild and beautiful scenery. The sandy bed of the Hale River sparkles with thousands of tiny garnets. It's an…

  • Florence Falls

    Litchfield National Park

    Florence Falls is one of Litchfield's more agreeable waterholes, accessed by a 15-minute, 135-step descent to a deep, beautiful pool surrounded by monsoon…

  • Jim Jim Falls

    Kakadu National Park

    A sheer 215m drop, Jim Jim is awesome after rain (when it can only be seen from the air), but its waters shrink to a trickle by about June.

  • Twin Falls

    Kakadu National Park

    Twin Falls flows year-round (no swimming), but half the fun is getting here, involving a little boat trip (adult/child $15/free, 7.30am-5pm, last boat 4pm…

  • Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre

    Kakadu National Park

    About 1km from the Cooinda resort (an easy 15-minute walk), the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre depicts Creation stories and has an excellent…

  • N'Dhala Gorge Nature Park

    Northern Territory

    Just southwest of the Ross River Resort, a strictly 4WD-only track leads 11km south to N'Dhala Gorge. More than 5900 ancient Aboriginal rock carvings …

  • Magnetic Termite Mounds

    Litchfield National Park

    About 17km after entering the park from Batchelor you come to what look like tombstones. But only the very tip of these magnetic termite mounds is used to…

  • Crocodylus Park

    Darwin

    Crocodylus Park showcases hundreds of crocs and a minizoo comprising lions, tigers and other big cats, spider monkeys, marmosets, cassowaries and large…

  • Hermannsburg Mission

    Northern Territory

    The whitewashed walls of the old mission are shaded by tall river gums and date palms. This fascinating monument to the NT’s early Lutheran missionaries…

More destinations you need to see