Sydney to Alice Springs road trip: Distance, driving time & top stops
The drive from Sydney to Alice Springs is 2,773km long, with a driving time of around 28 hours. There are plenty of good stops to add to a Sydney to Alice Springs road trip itinerary, however.
This guide is aimed at helping travellers plan a Sydney to Alice Springs road trip.
Most people visiting the Red Centre of the Northern Territory choose to fly there. This is mainly because it’s in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by largely uninhabited outback. People may choose to go by road from South Australian capital Adelaide to Alice Springs, or drive south from Darwin in the Northern Territory’s Top End. After all, the enormous drive up the Stuart Highway is one of Australia’s great road trips. But to visit the Red Centre by road from almost anywhere else requires not just a long drive, but a massive detour as well.
Sydney’s enormous collection of experiences includes all-inclusive sunset dinner cruises, behind-the-scenes tours of the Opera House, jet boat thrill rides and historic walking tours. To get the best deals on Sydney accommodation, book here. To find Sydney tours and experiences that suit your tastes, step this way.
Alice Springs offers hot air ballooning over the rugged outback, spectacular adventures in the West MacDonnell Ranges and quirky camel rides. For a bigger range of Alice Springs activities, step this way, and for Alice Springs accommodation, book here.
Seven essential Alice Springs activities to add to your trip.
- See imposing red rock cliffs and stunning swimming holes – on a West MacDonnell Ranges day trip.
- Glide across the changing morning colours of the outback – on a hot air balloon ride.
- See how education works across the outback – at the School of the Air.
- Take in the epic outback scenery – on a scenic flight.
- See the outback wildlife come to life – on a Desert Park nocturnal tour.
- Try camel rides through the red dirt landscape – and learn the weird history of Aussie camels.
- See stunning, often unvisited outback sites – on a Palm Valley 4wd tour.
Sydney to Alice Springs drive
To get to Alice Springs, the main hub town of the Red Centre, you generally have to get to the Stuart Highway first. And there aren’t too many sealed roads that connect to the Stuart Highway. Journeys that don’t look too bad as the crow flies start looking horrendous when you take into account how far you have to divert by road.
The drive from Sydney to Alice Springs is a classic case in point. There’s simply not a vaguely direct road. Logic would dictate heading through north-western New South Wales, through the north-eastern corner of South Australia and then into the Northern Territory. But such a route doesn’t exist.
Instead, you have to go roughly due east via the Southern Highlands, where you can stop at the Bradman Museum in Bowral.
5 great Southern Highlands experiences to boost your visit
- Personalised private Southern Highlands wine and attractions tours – tailored to your tastes.
- Tutored wine-tasting and canapes experience.
- Beekeeping experience – learn how honey is made.
- Guided wine-tasting at the Mill – with tasting notes procided.
- Behind the scenes tour of a sustainable winery in Berrima.
Then it’s Goulburn, Jugiong, Wagga Wagga and Balranald, before crossing into Victoria at Mildura. Then there’s a substantial stretch through underwhelming parts of South Australia, passing through South Australian towns Renmark, Burra and Port Pirie before joining the Stuart Highway at Port Augusta.
Click through to the next section: Distance and driving time.