Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip: Distance, drive time & best stops

The best stops on a Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip are Lake Lefroy and Norseman. The distance from Kalgoorlie to Balladonia is 377km, which makes for a driving time of around four hours.

This guide is aimed at travellers planning a Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip itinerary through Western Australia into South Australia, probably as part of a longer road trip from Perth to Sydney or Perth to Uluru.

To look for the best Kalgoorlie accommodation, book here. To work out the best stops on a Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip, read on…

Kalgoorlie to Balladonia distance and driving time

By car, the distance from Kalgoorlie to Balladonia is 377km. That makes for a driving time of around four hours.

The best stops to add to a Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip itinerary are Lake Lefroy and Norseman.

Gold town Kalgoorlie has several pleasingly good attractions, including the Museum of the Goldfields and Hannans North Tourist Mine.

The best thing to do, however, is see the Super Pit, one of the planet’s biggest open cut mines. There are three ways to see it, with the free option being the Super Pit Lookout. Alternatively, you can take a tour that goes part-way inside the mine or on a scenic flight overhead.

Kalgoorlie also hosts two holes of the Nullarbor Links golf course – the longest golf course in the world. It stretches from Kalgoorlie to Balladonia, with holes at most roadhouses along the way.

Where should I stay in Kalgoorlie?

Specialist Australian accommodation website Wotif offers Kalgoorlie accommodation for from $133 a night. Check out the deals page to search for the best value stay.

However, you should consider these options first.

For central location and a pool: Plaza Hotel.
For best quality: Quest Yelverton apartments.
For proximity to the railway station: Quality Inn Railway Motel.
For pool, free parking and good value: Hospitality Inn (part of the Best Western group).

Kalgoorlie to Balladonia drive: Boulder to Norseman

The first leg of the epic journey from Kalgoorlie to Balladonia is from Kalgoorlie to Norseman.

In Boulder, the Old Boulder Cemetery commemorates those who died in the Western Australian gold rush. But most travellers will opt to keep going until another tiny mining town, Kambalda.

The best thing to do in Kambalda is take in the views from the Red Hill Lookout. From here, you can see the vast salt flats of Lake Lefroy.

The road keeps going via a few forgettable nature reserves and salt pans, before crossing Lake Cowan and entering Norseman.

Things to do in Norseman include admiring the views from the Beacon Hill and Lake Cowan lookouts, and having a bizarre picnic amongst Phoenix Park’s old mining equipment.

Norseman accommodation possibilities include the motel-like Great Western Travel Village and the affordable Acclaim Gateway Tourist Park.

Kalgoorlie to Balladonia road trip: Norseman to Balladonia

Norseman is also where the Eyre Highway starts. It stretches all the way to Port Augusta in South Australia and it is one of the loneliest roads on earth.

The first section isn’t quite as bleak as the Nullarbor’s reputation suggests. It heads through relatively sparse woodland towards Balladonia. 190km from Norseman, this is the first fuel stop. It’s also the best one, as there’s a mini-museum on site telling the hugely entertaining tale of what happened when the Skylab space station crashed here in 1979.