Alice Springs to Darwin train: Timetable, prices & history
The Alice Springs to Darwin train runs twice a week. The Ghan service is not a regular passenger train, though – it is designed as a luxury great rail journey.
The Darwin to Alice Springs train is not something you take because you want to travel quickly or cheaply. Most people travelling from Alice Springs to Darwin will fly.
If you just want to get between the two cities quickly and relatively cheaply, search for the best flight deals.
Another alternative is driving. The drive from Darwin to Alice Springs or vice versa has some long empty spaces, but some fun road trip attractions.
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.
If you do just one thing in Alice Springs…
Make it a West MacDonnell Ranges day tour. It’ll show off many of the Red Centre’s most dramatic gorges, photogenic swimming holes, rugged landscapes and weird rock formations. (FIND OUT MORE).
Australia travel expert David Whitley.
Darwin, meanwhile, brings schooner cruises, airboat tours and cage-swimming with massive crocodiles. To search for the best Darwin accommodation deals, head here. To check out the full range of tours and experiences available, go here.
Best Alice Springs accommodation choices
These are the best Alice Springs accommodation picks:
- For a solid, relatively affordable motel: Elkira Court Motel.
- For villas, gardens and a lagoon-style pool: Desert Palms.
- For backpackers: Alice’s Secret Travellers Inn.
- For a kid-friendly holiday park: Discovery Parks Alice Springs.
- For business-friendly serviced apartments: Quest Alice Springs.
However, if you’d prefer to go by rail, then there are two Alice Springs to Darwin trains per week. The bad news is that it’s not a normal passenger service, and it is very expensive.
This guide covers the history, timetable and prices of the Alice Springs to Darwin train.
7 great Darwin experiences to book before arriving
- Swim face to face with an enormous crocodile in the Cage of Death.
- Enjoy the romance of Darwin Harbour on a sunset dinner cruise aboard a traditional fishing ketch.
- Explore Darwin’s food and art scenes on a 3.5 hour walking tour – with lunch or dinner included.
- Flit between Darwin’s top attractions with a hop-on, hop-off bus tour.
- Combine a wildlife tour with the famous jumping crocodiles cruise.
- Get a history fix on a Bombing of Darwin WWII tour and harbour cruise.
- Get the adrenalin pumping on a high speed airboat or jetski tour.
Next up: History of the Alice Springs to Darwin railway line.