Alice Springs Travel Guide
For details of what to do and see in Alice Springs check out our Alice Springs guide to car hire in Alice Springs.
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Alice Springs lies roughly in the geographic centre of Australia, surrounded by hundreds of miles of barren desert. Home to less than 30,000 people, the fact that it is the second largest city in the Northern Territory (behind Darwin) is testament to just how sparsely populated this part of the world is. Best known around the world as the gateway to Australia's famous "Red Centre", Alice Springs is the place that any visit to Ayers Rock must begin.
This part of the country is a region steeped in the mythology of the Arrente Aborigines' dreamtime, and sacred sites abound in the desert. Although Uluru is the most famous of these legendary places, there are many other monolithic rocks and deep symbolism to be taken from the landscape.
Despite its comparatively small size, Alice Springs is a town where tourists can feel really welcome, and there is plenty going on to entertain you during your stay. A sometimes rowdy nightlife is only one attraction, and another is most certainly the chance to buy some of the locally mined opals.
Whether you arrive by air in Alice Springs, or stop on the famous Ghan railway as it passes through the seemingly endless desert from Adelaide to Darwin, it is imperative that you hire a 4x4 in Alice Springs and take time out to explore the region in order to best appreciate all that it has to offer.
