Backpacker tours info

Where to meet

For Adelaide departures only:
Your driver & Bruce will be with the crew leaving from Adelaide at 7am Wednesday morning from Central Bus Station, 101 Franklin ST.

For Sydney departures only: Indian Pacific train Wednesdays-
Meet group at Countrylink Office Platform 1, Sydney Central Station at 1:45pm Wednesday (train departs at 2:45pm). Tickets are available for collection from the Staff at desk.

Once you have collected your tickets feel free to move around and sit next to who you like. Take your packs with you on the overhead luggage rack as you can have a shower on the train before you arrive in Broken Hill. The A/C is on all night so it would be worth taking your sleeping bag and a pillow on the train to make the O/Night journey a little more comfortable. There is a dining cart and  bar for those who are thirsty. To keep cost down it advised to take your own food on the train. Have a great journey.

Your driver will meet you at Broken Hill train station at 7am Thursday morning. (Keep an eye out for a white 4WD with a blue trailer, if they are a little late don’t stress as they will have been camping out in the bush the night before).

The Trip! – What you need to know…

Be prepared for anything! This is an overland adventure in a land of extremes, we pass through at least 6 different types of desert terrain between Broken Hill and Alice Springs. This is where the adventure is, across mountains, escarpments, sand dunes and water courses. We allow a bit more time than most tours to get out and really appreciate the outback. Expect the unexpected!

Oxford English Dictionary gives the definition of adventure as ...
"Adventure [ME. aventure -(O)Fr. aventure:- Rom.] ...
Chance of danger or loss; risk, jeopardy ...
A hazardous enterprise or performance ..."

The type of people that generally travel with us are those who want the thrill of "real travel," journeying in a manner and through areas that are not part of the usual holiday experience. Our trips are designed to be "adventure journeys", taking people off the beaten track. Many areas we visit do not have the infrastructure required by the package tourist. With adventure, comes an element of risk. You must be prepared to accept this element of risk prior to travel.  If you want guaranteed arrival times then the greyhound bus is the best bet.

Rather than being purely scenic, the time frame of this trip also allows us to travel way beyond the regular tourist traps into the real Outback. We travel self sufficiently (replenishing supplies every 3 days) and bush camp every night and in the warmer weather we try to get a swim in daily. Along the way we will drop in to meet several different groups of Aboriginal People and local business owners, we talk about the ways of life and beliefs. To really understand these people you need to make the effort to talk and ask questions ( Any people we come across on tour you should be talking to! Find out who they are and why they are out there?)

Our ten day tours begins with encouraging our passengers to take off their watches and forget about the usual scheduling we work to in our "normal" everyday lives – we are now on Outback time. That means day time, night time and now time, and often beer time.

There is not enough time to be shy. Don’t be thinking after we have left, never to return, about the effort you should have made to talk to a local.

You will get out of it  What you put into it.

We say  “The Outback is not a place on the map, It’s a way of life”  we’ll give you the opportunity to get the feel of it.

Aboriginal Cultural Activities

There will be optional activities at the Aboriginal community of Iga Warta in the Northern Flinders ranges. We will enjoy their cultural program and optional activities may include Plant and Bush tucker walk, Ancient painting sites (10, 000 - 20,000 yrs Old), Hunting, Make a boomerang or music sticks and a visit to Ochre Pits. These optional activities are at an extra cost to you if you choose them. Your driver will inform you of the options. Most passengers choose to do the extra activities as they are an excellent opportunity to indulge further into Aboriginal Culture. We encourage you do the package as you will not get this kind of experience anywhere else in Australia. The three/four full day of activities for $55 fits best. It is $55 for one activity so The BATTOURS package of three/four is best value. This way money goes directly to the community.Please note that this special package price is only open for BATTOURS passengers.

There are over 250 different Aboriginal Languages in Australia!!!!! – Plus a few hundred dialects. Here are a couple of words that maybe of some use. Don’t be shy to use them as English may be a second or third language for some aboriginal people that we meet.

Adnayamathanha (Iga Warta, Flinders Ranges)

Hello - Nangga
Hello Mate - Nangga Nina

Pitjantjatjara (Central Australia)

Hello - Palya
Hey There - Awai

Terms and Conditions

Please read the terms and conditions on the brochure before travelling.- Disclaimer is to be signed. The Terms and Conditions are not just for legal purposes they also refer to the style and environment in which we camp and travel in.

Weather Conditions

NB.June, July, August are the coldest month with often freezing temperatures overnight. November, December, January, Feburary, March, are the hottest months with temperatures often exceeding 45 degrees plus.

What to take

• A water bottle at least 1.5 litres. Your standard Evian,Mt Franklin bottles from any shop O.K.
• Comfortable sturdy shoes for walking, Thongs (or flip flops)/sandals,   
• Camera/Low speed Film 50-100 & Polarizing lens Filter. Low speed films best for daytime photos.
• Summer: Shorts, Light long trousers, Long sleeve top, Swimwear
•  Winter: Warm clothes, Thermals, gloves, water proof jacket.    
• Torch (flashlight)      
• A heavy jacket for at night around the fire,            
• Tapes / Cds Music for the travelling.
• A big hat for night and day.A woollen beanie (hat) is great for winter    
• Insect Repellent & Sunscreen, Fly Net ( can be purchased enroute for $5)
• Travel Pillow
• Personal Medication including pain relief
• Sunglasses   
• Sleeping Bag to go inside the Swags which we provide. You can Hire sleeping bag for $20. Please advise at time of booking to hire one.

Please note: As of 1st April 2004 Passengers are required to pay $25 Uluru ( Ayers Rock ) Park Entry fee. This is to be paid to driver on the morning of departure.