What are the best things to do in Kakadu National Park?

The best things to do in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, include climbing Ubirr, Aboriginal rock art at Nourlangie and a crocodile cruise on Yellow Water.

Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory’s Top End is the biggest national park in Australia. Kakadu is World Heritage-listed on both cultural and natural grounds, and it is an undisputed highlight of a Northern Territory holiday.

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Don’t expect Kakadu National Park to be the sort of place you can tick off in a highlights reel day tour from Darwin, however. The Litchfield National Park is much more suited to that. Kakadu needs two or three days of exploring, and is better fitted into a Top End driving route that includes both Litchfield and Katherine Gorge. There’s also a good quality four day tour available.

Darwin to Kakadu drive

The drive to Kakadu from Darwin is largely along the Arnhem Highway. Stopping at Corroboree Billabong on the Mary River system for a wetlands cruise is a good bet on the way. Otherwise, the drive from Darwin to Kakadu National Park’s entrance will take around an hour and 40 minutes.

Jabiru is the main settlement in Kakadu, and is towards the eastern end of the national park. The drive from Darwin to Jabiru is mainly about floodplains and wetlands. On the way, the Mamukala Wetlands is one of the best places in Australia for birdwatching. There are interpretive signs around the specially-designed bird-watching hide.

Bowali Visitor Centre and other Jabiru attractions

Many of the best things to do in Kakadu National Park cluster around Jabiru. The Bowali Visitor Centre, where you can buy your Kakadu Park Pass, is here. It gives strong oversights into the Top End ecology as well as traditional Aboriginal beliefs and practices. It’s a great place to learn how the Top End has six seasons, rather than four or merely a wet and dry season.

Jabiru is where most of Kakadu’s accommodation clusters, including the crocodile-shaped Mercure hotel. It’s the best place for an overnight stop. That makes it easy to get to Ubirr, arguably the best single sight in Kakadu National Park, the next morning.

Best things to do in Kakadu National Park: Ubirr

Ubirr is a big rock outcrop overlooking the East Alligator River floodplain towards the Arnhem Land Escarpment. The views from the top are exceptional, but it’s the rock art galleries on the lower levels that are culturally important. The Indigenous rock art dates back thousands of years, and is a historical record. Different styles and objects depicted come from different eras.

Near to Ubirr is Cahills Crossing, one of the most notorious river crossings in Australia. The East Alligator River teems with crocodiles, and abandoned 4WDs are a common site. Even if you’re not crossing over into Arnhem Land, it’s worth turning up to watch others try. You can also see the crossing (and the crocs) from the water on the Guluyambi Cultural Cruise.

Best things to do in Kakadu: Nourlangie

Nourlangie (also known as Burrungkuy) is just off the Kakadu Highway south of Jabiru. It’s another hugely important destination for rock art. The Anbangbang Gallery is arguably more impressive than that at Ubirr. A 1.5km walk from the car park takes in the Anbangbang Gallery and Kunwarddehwardde lookout.

If you’ve got time, the nearby Nawurlandja lookout is another easy walk from the Nourlangie car park.

Best things to do in Kakadu National Park: Waterfalls

Further down the Kakadu Highway come the turn-offs for waterfall country. Several big waterfalls plunge off the escarpments, but the trouble is reaching them. 4WD vehicles are needed, and even then the access roads to the likes of Jim Jim Falls and Twin Falls are closed off for much of the year. Unless you hit that perfect June to October window, you’ll need a scenic flight to see them.

Similar applies to Gunlom Falls, although here the main attraction is the pools at the top of the falls. Before opening every year, rangers make sure the pools are free of crocodiles before allowing the public to take a quite spectacular bath.

An alternative for swimming is the plunge pool at Maguk, a gorge south of Cooinda.

What to do in Kakadu National Park: Crocodile cruises

Crocodiles, however, are the star attraction of the Yellow Water billabong in Cooinda. The Yellow Water cruises run from Cooinda take in waterlogged paperbark forests and giant lily pads. But the real magic comes in gliding up close to big saltwater crocs. The Yellow Water Cruise makes a fine last stop in the Kakadu journey.

Kakadu accommodation

Kakadu accommodation options are thin on the ground. You can pick between the Anbinik Kakadu Resort, the Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel and Aurora Kakadu Lodge in Jabiru. There’s also the Cooinda Lodge in Cooinda.

For more information on Kakadu National Park, visit the Parks Australia website.

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