Australia
An Australian Odyssey: From the Outback to the Great Barrier Reef
Program No. 22754RJ
Marvel as you explore Australia’s unique heritage: astounding Outback, natural wonders, iconic architecture, Aboriginal art and the world-famous Great Barrier Reef.
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Protecting the Environment
We offset a portion of the emissions created by your travel. Learn more
Prefer to enroll or inquire by phone?
800-454-5768
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Price will update based on selection
Prices displayed below are based on per person,doubleoccupancy.
DATES
& starting prices
PRICES
Feb 27 - Mar 15, 2025
Starting at
8,399Mar 6 - Mar 22, 2025
Starting at
8,399DATES
& starting prices
PRICES
Feb 27 - Mar 15, 2025
Starting at
9,599Mar 6 - Mar 22, 2025
Starting at
9,599Mar 27 - Apr 12, 2025
Starting at
10,269Not seeing the date you're looking for?
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This date is available to book as a private experience for your group!
17 days
16 nights
34 meals
14B 10L 10D
1
In Transit to Program
In Flight
7
Fly to Alice Springs, Aboriginal Bush Tucker
Alice Springs
9
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Sunset at Uluru
Uluru (Ayers Rock)
17
Program Concludes
In Flight
At a Glance
Home to the largest reef system in the world, Australia’s natural wonders and unique species make it a land unlike any other. From cosmopolitan cities to impossibly expansive landscapes, explore the highlights of Australia on this educational adventure. Examine fragile ecosystems from desert to rainforest to coral reef, compare the personalities of Sydney and Melbourne and learn the often rough-and-tumble story of Australia.
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to three miles at a time at a normal public walking pace over varied terrain. Standing at least three hours daily; climbing stairs (at times without handrails), getting on/off buses and boats, carrying own luggage. If you believe you require wheelchair assistance to get through an airport you are not fit enough to participate in this program.
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Snorkel along the wondrous Great Barrier Reef or explore it via semi-submersible vessel.
- Discover the giant red rock formation known as Uluru and learn about its sacred meaning to the Aboriginal people.
- Go behind the scenes at the Sydney Opera House and take in a performance.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
David O'Brien
Originally from the island state of Tasmania, Dave O’Brien has lived in North Queensland for more than 30 years. Working as a biologist almost his entire career, Dave has been involved in reptile research, aquaculture, government organizations, private enterprise and owning his own business. Outside of work, Dave’s interests include birding, photography and long-distance running. He has been married since 1986 and has two adult children, presently living in Melbourne, Australia and Alberta, Canada.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
David O'Brien
View biography
Originally from the island state of Tasmania, Dave O’Brien has lived in North Queensland for more than 30 years. Working as a biologist almost his entire career, Dave has been involved in reptile research, aquaculture, government organizations, private enterprise and owning his own business. Outside of work, Dave’s interests include birding, photography and long-distance running. He has been married since 1986 and has two adult children, presently living in Melbourne, Australia and Alberta, Canada.
Ruth Pullin
View biography
Dr. Ruth Pullin wrote her Ph.D. thesis on the Australian colonial artist Eugene von Guérard and was guest curator of a major exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria in 2011, “Eugene von Guérard: Nature Revealed.” She is the principal author and commissioning editor of the book of the same title. She derives great joy in discussing with Road Scholars the relationship of Australians to the land as a key way in which Australian artists have established a sense of our cultural identity.
Sue Grebenschikoff
View biography
Sue Grebenschikoff is an instructor and site coordinator in Cairns. Originally from Sydney, Sue moved to Cairns 20 years ago after she fell in love with the tropical region. Sue has a bachelor’s degree in commerce with a concentration in marketing, is a keen gardener, and loves to travel and meet people. She has worked in various capacities for many years on award-winning wilderness adventure programs around tropical North Queensland.
Andrew Fitzgerald
View biography
Andrew Fitzgerald is a keen astronomer with considerable experience presenting information on stars, planets, our solar system, and the galaxy to large groups. He regularly presents a session on the local radio station informing locals and visitors of current astronomical features and events. Andrew’s wealth of knowledge enhances sessions exploring the features of Southern Hemisphere skies.
Robyn Kidd
View biography
A retired secondary school principal, during her career Robyn Kidd also lectured on teacher education at Wollongong University College. She lived abroad as a volunteer lecturer at a teacher’s college in Papua New Guinea, and she received the Public Service Medal during the Queen's birthday honours in recognition for her achievements in education. A keen walker, Robyn has walked the Inca Trail in Peru, the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, the Peace Walk in Slovenia and the Larapinta Trail in Australia.
Rayleen Brown
View biography
Rayleen Brown is an Aboriginal who worked as a project officer to help Aboriginals secure their traditional land. She now owns and operates a successful catering business that’s been specializing in traditional bush products and foods for the past 10 years. In addition, Rayleen is a member of the national Bush Foods Council, an educator for schools across Central Australia and a mentor with the local Desert Leadership Program. She continues to be a strong advocate for the Aboriginal people to this day.
Michael Kidd
View biography
Michael Kidd is a retired secondary school principal and teacher. After teaching mathematics at four Sydney high schools, he was appointed the principal of Hurlstone Agricultural High School, a school on 200 acres of farmland with 300 boarders, mostly from the country in New South Wales. He and his wife Robyn (also a retired secondary school principal and Road Scholar group leader) have traveled extensively with their two daughters. As group leader, Michael loves to share his passion for his homeland with Road Scholars.
Richard De Gille
View biography
Richard De Gille has recently retired after practising as a lawyer for the past 30 years. For the last 20 years, he was a partner of a large suburban legal practice in outer Melbourne. He holds degrees from Monash University in economics and politics, education and law. In his spare time he enjoys cycling, bushwalking, gardening and reading.
Mark Pugh
View biography
Born and raised in the Whitsunday region of North Queensland, Mark Pugh has lived in every state in Australia and worked in various arenas such as banking, engineering, hospitality, teaching, agriculture and aquaculture. He found his calling as a trek excursion leader in Tasmania nine years ago, and this has led to him basing himself in Cairns doing long-haul 4wd safaris during the cooler months. He also works with hot-air ballooning in the wetter season. In his free time, Mark enjoys trekking, diving and travel.
Martin Ludgate
View biography
Martin Ludgate was a lecturer at Charles Darwin University in Alice Springs, where he lectured and managed the educational travel program. Now semi-retired (although still doing some lecturing and leading educational excursions), Martin has a keen interest in local history and culture as well as the landscapes, flora and fauna of the Northern Territory. “The great pleasure of enabling Road Scholar participants to bring alive their desire to experience a sense of Outback Australia, which they have heard so much about, makes my involvement so rewarding,” Martin says.
Les "Harry" Day
View biography
Les Day has had a 40-year career working in the customer service, marketing and promotions fields. For a lot of that period, Les was running his own businesses. Les has many years' experience leading groups of overseas visitors throughout Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. He has also led groups of Australians throughout parts of the UK, Europe, Asia and the U.S.
Mary Gordon
View biography
Mary Gordon has had a career full of variety, with university qualifications in science, wildlife and park management, and occupational health and safety. Her roles across Australia have ranged from caring for reptiles at the Museum of South Australia and looking after visitors to the Northern Territory Wildlife Park to running an ecology project at the University of Melbourne and setting up her own vineyard. Having returned to South Australia, Mary is thrilled to be able to educate visitors about her homeland.
Russell Boswell
View biography
Russell Boswell is the manager of Savannah Guides and Savannah Way Limited. A long-term Cairns resident, Russell’s background is in education and marketing. His travel career has included group and safari operation, magazine publishing, and training local experts. Russell sits on several industry committees and has been the proud recipient of a Cassowary Award for services to Wet Tropics nature-based travel.
Jennifer Maree Regan
View biography
Jen Regan, born in Sydney, worked for the New South Wales State Government for 40 years, primarily in customer relations, policy development and workplace safety roles. Since retiring, she has been involved in community-based advocacy, which has included implementing a weekly social support network program to improve the quality of life for veterans, their spouses, and war widows/widowers. In her spare time, Jen enjoys exploring new travel destinations, learning from and meeting with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, and spending time with her grandchildren.
Karen Chopping
View biography
Karen Chopping has been introducing international visitors to Australia for over 20 years. She holds the sought-after certified accreditation qualifications for both Kakadu National Park and Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Travel is both a personal and career life passion. When she is not working, she is travelling the world with her own two children, introducing them to the worldwide classroom. When COVID-19 hit Australian shores, Karen relocated to Outback Queensland to continue working in the travel industry while homeschooling her children.
Ken Rimmer
View biography
Ken Rimmer is a site coordinator for Melbourne and a group leader. Ken graduated from Victoria University in Wellington and worked for many years in administration and sales for companies such as IBM, Polaroid, and Xerox. He has lived in Melbourne since 1982, as does his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson. Ken is an enthusiastic cook and follower of sports, especially rugby and cricket.
Jill Bunning
View biography
Jill Bunning originally trained as a school teacher before moving into travel over 40 years ago. For many years she was based in the UK and Europe, organizing and personally leading groups for various companies. Now back in Australia, Jill enjoys welcoming Road Scholar visitors to Sydney. She speaks conversational German and Italian and loves spending time with her family and attending the many shows that Sydney has to offer.
Elspeth Kyle-Little
View biography
Elspeth Kyle-Little is an Adelaide-based group leader and site coordinator. During the Road Scholar offseason, she cooks at a local restaurant and operates a small business making handmade soap. After studying silversmithing at art school in Adelaide in her 20s, Elspeth moved to Darwin and then remote Arnhem Land in Australia's far north until her mid-forties. Now settled in the Southern Adelaide Hills, she dabbles with watercolor painting, pottery, and gardening.
Sandy Greenwood
View biography
Sandy Greenwood was born a Novacastrian but lives in Sydney, Australia. She has worked extensively in the Australian and international tourism industry, specializing in managing small group expedition companies. Sandy holds postgraduate degrees in business management and education, and a bachelor’s degree in visual arts. Sandy has been on the Boards of Oxfams International Youth Parliament and The Young Endeavour Youth Scheme, and was co-chair of the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO). She collaborated with the Mawson's Huts Foundation and the Australian Antarctic Division to instigate the restoration of Mawson's Huts in Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica in 2006. Her interests include the visual arts, hiking, live music, Scrabble, house renovation, and traveling to remote locations.
Denise Hanlon
View biography
Denise Hanlon lives in the Inner West of Sydney, Australia. Denise is a career HR director who is now keen to explore her other loves. She has an MBA with another master's degree in finance, and is a part-time teacher of human resources as well as a singer/comedienne and golf addict. Denise enjoys combining her loves of travel, people, and exploration as a Road Scholar group leader.
Suggested Reading List
(21 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
An Australian Odyssey: From the Outback to the Great Barrier Reef
Program Number: 22754
Chasing Kangaroo
An ode to the kangaroo in all their splendid diversity and oddity. Revisiting his early love of kangaroo fossils, Flannery weaves engaging tales of his adventures on the trails of marsupials past and present with his travels and encounters with eccentric scientists and Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Bradt Australian Wildlife
A guide not just to kangaroo and koala, this compact, illustrated survey, featuring 250 color photographs, takes in habitats, parks and conservation, marsupials, birds and bats.
My Place
In 1982 Sally Morgan travelled to her grandmother's birthplace, Corunna Downs Station in Western Australia. She wants to trace the experiences of her childhood andolescence in Perth in the 1950's. Through memories and images, hints and echoes begin to emerge and another story unfolds - the mystery of her aboriginal identity. Gradually her whole family is drawn in to the saga and her great-uncle, her mother and finally her grandmother tell their stories in turn. My Place is a work of great humour, humanity and courage.
Journey to the Stone Country
Betrayed by her husband, Annabelle Beck retreats from Melbourne to her old family home in tropical North Queensland where she meets Bo Rennie, one of the Jangga tribe. Intrigued by Bo's claim that he holds the key to her future, Annabelle sets out with him on a path of recovery that leads back to her childhood and into the Jangga's ancient heartland, where their grandparents' lives begin to yield secrets that will challenge the possibility of their happiness together.
Dark Emu : Aboriginal Australia and the birth of agriculture
History has portrayed Australia's First Peoples, the Aboriginals, as hunter-gatherers who lived on an empty, uncultivated land. History is wrong. Using compelling evidence from the records and diaries of early Australian explorers and colonists, Bruce Pascoe reveals that Aboriginal systems of food production and land management have been blatantly understated in modern retellings of early Aboriginal history, and that a new look at Australia's past is required - for the benefit of us all. Dark Emu, a bestseller in Australia, won both the Book of the Year Award and the Indigenous Writer's Prize in the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards.
Cotter: A Novel
A strong story of banishment, displacement, and crucial first contact, Cotter tells of a moving friendship between two very different men, ultimately powerless against the forces of history.
Songlines
Rory Stewart provides the introduction to this 25th anniversary edition of Bruce Chatwin's celebrated travelogue, which is as much about its gifted author - and the meaning of travel - as about the Aboriginal people and their ways of life. Chatwin transforms a journey through the Outback into an exhilarating, semi-fictional meditation on our place in the world.
Batavia
The Shipwreck of the Batavia combines in just the one tale the birth of the world's first corporation, the brutality of colonisation, the battle of good vs evil, the derring-do of sea-faring adventure, mutiny, ship-wreck, love, lust, blood-lust, petty fascist dictatorship, criminality, a reign of terror, murders most foul, sexual slavery, natural nobility, survival, retribution, rescue, first contact with native peoples and so much more.
Peter Fitzsimons has long maintained that this is "far and away the greatest story in Australia's history, if not the world's."
In A Sunburned Country
Bill Bryson revels in Australia's eccentric characters, dangerous flora and fauna, and other oddities. As has become his custom, he effortlessly imparts much fact-filled history in this wildly funny book. Included at the end is a short bibliography. This book is published as "Down Under" in Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain.
Aboriginal Art
This well illustrated survey of Aboriginal art, ancient and modern, focuses on the spiritual and geographic sources of art and ritual traditions in Australia. It covers the range of art from all parts of the continent, including a chapter on the Wandjina rock art of the Kimberley region. The concise text is augmented by 187 well produced black-and-white and color illustrations.
The Tears of Strangers
A family memoir charting the political and social changes of Aboriginal Australians over the past 40 years.
A Commonwealth of Thieves, The Improbable Birth of Australia
With drama and flair, novelist Keneally illuminates the birth of New South Wales in 1788, richly evoking the social conditions in London, the miserable sea voyage and the desperate conditions of the new colony. His tale revolves around Arthur Phillip, the ambitious (and bland) captain in the Royal Navy who would become the first governor of New South Wales. You may be familiar with Keneally as the author of the acclaimed work (made into an equally-renowned film) "Schindler's List".
Position Doubtful
Since the publication of her prize-winning memoir Craft for a Dry Lake, in 2000, writer and artist Kim Mahood has been returning to the Tanami desert country in far north-western Australia where, as a child, she lived with her family on a remote cattle station. The land is timeless, but much has changed- the station has been handed back to its traditional owners; the mining companies have arrived; and Aboriginal art has flourished. Comedy and tragedy, familiarity and uncertainty are Mahood's constant companions as she immerses herself in the life of a small community and in groundbreaking mapping projects. What emerges in Position Doubtful is a revelation of the significance of the land to its people - and of the burden of history.
My Brother Jack
The Miles Franklin award-winning classic. Through the story of the two brothers, George Johnston created an enduring exploration of two Australian myths: that of the man who loses his soul as he gains worldly success, and that of the tough, honest Aussie battler, whose greatest ambition is to serve his country during the war. Acknowledged as one of the true Australian classics, My Brother Jack is a deeply satisfying, complex and moving literary masterpiece.
A Town Like Alice
Nevil Shute's most beloved novel, a tale of love and war, follows its enterprising heroine from the Malayan jungle during World War II to the rugged Australian outback.
True History of the Kelly Gang
A powerful, daring novel, steeped in the colonial history of late 19th-century Australia. Outlaw, folk hero, thief and patriot, the Irish immigrant Ned Kelly and his clan figure large in the Australian mindset. Carey's Booker Prize-winning novel (his second after "Oscar & Lucinda") takes the form of a series of rough, captivating letters by the barely literate gang leader to his young daughter. Kelly was hanged in Melbourne in 1880, where his mother was also imprisoned.
Tirra Lirra By The River
One of Australia's most celebrated novels: one woman's journey from Australia to London and back again. A book about the sweetness of escape, and the mix of pain and acceptance that comes with returning home. Winner of the 1978 Miles Franklin Award.
A Fortunate Life
The is the extraordinary life of an ordinary man. The autobiography of Albert Barnett (Bert) Facey - farmer, labourer, jackaroo, WWI veteran - lived from 1894 to 1982, predominantly in Western Australia's frontier territory. Facey's story, published at the age of 87, brings to life his experiences as a child labourer, itinerant rural worker, soldier and Depression-era farmer. Despite the trials faced, he always considered he led "a fortunate life". It is considered a classic of Australian literature. It is one of Australia's favourite books.
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia
A handbook and field guide to Australia's birds with 2,000 vivid color illustrations, each accompanied by a brief description and revised range map. This more compact seventh edition features 16 new or revised color plates, new maps and condensed information.
Deep Time Dreaming: Uncovering Ancient Australia
In this important book, Griffiths investigates a twin revolution - the reassertion of Aboriginal identity in the second half of the twentieth century, and the simultaneous uncovering of the traces of ancient Australia by pioneering archaeologists. Deep Time Dreaming is about a slow shift in national consciousness. It explores what it means to live in a place of great antiquity, with its complex questions of ownership and identity. It brings to life the deep time dreaming that has changed the way many Australians relate to their continent and its enduring, dynamic human history.
My Brilliant Career
A fierce, irreverent novel of aspiration and rebellion that is both a cornerstone of Australian literature and a feminist classic. Miles Franklin began the candid, passionate, and contrary My Brilliant Career when she was only sixteen, intending it to be the Australian answer to Jane Eyre. But the book she produced - a thinly veiled autobiographical novel about a young girl hungering for life and love in the outback - so scandalised her country upon its appearance in 1901 that she insisted it not be published again until ten years after her death.
Program
At a Glance
Duration
17 days
Program Begins
Melbourne
Program Concludes
Sydney
Group Type
Small Group
Meals
34
| 14B |
10L |
10D |
Activity Level
Home to the largest reef system in the world, Australia’s natural wonders and unique species make it a land unlike any other. From cosmopolitan cities to impossibly expansive landscapes, explore the highlights of Australia on this educational adventure. Examine fragile ecosystems from desert to rainforest to coral reef, compare the personalities of Sydney and Melbourne and learn the often rough-and-tumble story of Australia.)
Best of all, you'll...
- Snorkel along the wondrous Great Barrier Reef or explore it via semi-submersible vessel.
- Discover the giant red rock formation known as Uluru and learn about its sacred meaning to the Aboriginal people.
- Go behind the scenes at the Sydney Opera House and take in a performance.
Featured Expert
David O'Brien
Originally from the island state of Tasmania, Dave O’Brien has lived in North Queensland for more than 30 years. Working as a biologist almost his entire career, Dave has been involved in reptile research, aquaculture, government organizations, private enterprise and owning his own business. Outside of work, Dave’s interests include birding, photography and long-distance running. He has been married since 1986 and has two adult children, presently living in Melbourne, Australia and Alberta, Canada.
Please Note:
This expert may not be available for every date of the program
Ruth Pullin
Dr. Ruth Pullin wrote her Ph.D. thesis on the Australian colonial artist Eugene von Guérard and was guest curator of a major exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria in 2011, “Eugene von Guérard: Nature Revealed.” She is the principal author and commissioning editor of the book of the same title. She derives great joy in discussing with Road Scholars the relationship of Australians to the land as a key way in which Australian artists have established a sense of our cultural identity.
Sue Grebenschikoff
Sue Grebenschikoff is an instructor and site coordinator in Cairns. Originally from Sydney, Sue moved to Cairns 20 years ago after she fell in love with the tropical region. Sue has a bachelor’s degree in commerce with a concentration in marketing, is a keen gardener, and loves to travel and meet people. She has worked in various capacities for many years on award-winning wilderness adventure programs around tropical North Queensland.
Andrew Fitzgerald
Andrew Fitzgerald is a keen astronomer with considerable experience presenting information on stars, planets, our solar system, and the galaxy to large groups. He regularly presents a session on the local radio station informing locals and visitors of current astronomical features and events. Andrew’s wealth of knowledge enhances sessions exploring the features of Southern Hemisphere skies.
Robyn Kidd
A retired secondary school principal, during her career Robyn Kidd also lectured on teacher education at Wollongong University College. She lived abroad as a volunteer lecturer at a teacher’s college in Papua New Guinea, and she received the Public Service Medal during the Queen's birthday honours in recognition for her achievements in education. A keen walker, Robyn has walked the Inca Trail in Peru, the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, the Peace Walk in Slovenia and the Larapinta Trail in Australia.
Rayleen Brown
Rayleen Brown is an Aboriginal who worked as a project officer to help Aboriginals secure their traditional land. She now owns and operates a successful catering business that’s been specializing in traditional bush products and foods for the past 10 years. In addition, Rayleen is a member of the national Bush Foods Council, an educator for schools across Central Australia and a mentor with the local Desert Leadership Program. She continues to be a strong advocate for the Aboriginal people to this day.
Michael Kidd
Michael Kidd is a retired secondary school principal and teacher. After teaching mathematics at four Sydney high schools, he was appointed the principal of Hurlstone Agricultural High School, a school on 200 acres of farmland with 300 boarders, mostly from the country in New South Wales. He and his wife Robyn (also a retired secondary school principal and Road Scholar group leader) have traveled extensively with their two daughters. As group leader, Michael loves to share his passion for his homeland with Road Scholars.
Richard De Gille
Richard De Gille has recently retired after practising as a lawyer for the past 30 years. For the last 20 years, he was a partner of a large suburban legal practice in outer Melbourne. He holds degrees from Monash University in economics and politics, education and law. In his spare time he enjoys cycling, bushwalking, gardening and reading.
Mark Pugh
Born and raised in the Whitsunday region of North Queensland, Mark Pugh has lived in every state in Australia and worked in various arenas such as banking, engineering, hospitality, teaching, agriculture and aquaculture. He found his calling as a trek excursion leader in Tasmania nine years ago, and this has led to him basing himself in Cairns doing long-haul 4wd safaris during the cooler months. He also works with hot-air ballooning in the wetter season. In his free time, Mark enjoys trekking, diving and travel.
Martin Ludgate
Martin Ludgate was a lecturer at Charles Darwin University in Alice Springs, where he lectured and managed the educational travel program. Now semi-retired (although still doing some lecturing and leading educational excursions), Martin has a keen interest in local history and culture as well as the landscapes, flora and fauna of the Northern Territory. “The great pleasure of enabling Road Scholar participants to bring alive their desire to experience a sense of Outback Australia, which they have heard so much about, makes my involvement so rewarding,” Martin says.
Les "Harry" Day
Les Day has had a 40-year career working in the customer service, marketing and promotions fields. For a lot of that period, Les was running his own businesses. Les has many years' experience leading groups of overseas visitors throughout Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. He has also led groups of Australians throughout parts of the UK, Europe, Asia and the U.S.
Mary Gordon
Mary Gordon has had a career full of variety, with university qualifications in science, wildlife and park management, and occupational health and safety. Her roles across Australia have ranged from caring for reptiles at the Museum of South Australia and looking after visitors to the Northern Territory Wildlife Park to running an ecology project at the University of Melbourne and setting up her own vineyard. Having returned to South Australia, Mary is thrilled to be able to educate visitors about her homeland.
Russell Boswell
Russell Boswell is the manager of Savannah Guides and Savannah Way Limited. A long-term Cairns resident, Russell’s background is in education and marketing. His travel career has included group and safari operation, magazine publishing, and training local experts. Russell sits on several industry committees and has been the proud recipient of a Cassowary Award for services to Wet Tropics nature-based travel.
Jennifer Maree Regan
Jen Regan, born in Sydney, worked for the New South Wales State Government for 40 years, primarily in customer relations, policy development and workplace safety roles. Since retiring, she has been involved in community-based advocacy, which has included implementing a weekly social support network program to improve the quality of life for veterans, their spouses, and war widows/widowers. In her spare time, Jen enjoys exploring new travel destinations, learning from and meeting with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, and spending time with her grandchildren.
Karen Chopping
Karen Chopping has been introducing international visitors to Australia for over 20 years. She holds the sought-after certified accreditation qualifications for both Kakadu National Park and Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Travel is both a personal and career life passion. When she is not working, she is travelling the world with her own two children, introducing them to the worldwide classroom. When COVID-19 hit Australian shores, Karen relocated to Outback Queensland to continue working in the travel industry while homeschooling her children.
Ken Rimmer
Ken Rimmer is a site coordinator for Melbourne and a group leader. Ken graduated from Victoria University in Wellington and worked for many years in administration and sales for companies such as IBM, Polaroid, and Xerox. He has lived in Melbourne since 1982, as does his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson. Ken is an enthusiastic cook and follower of sports, especially rugby and cricket.
Jill Bunning
Jill Bunning originally trained as a school teacher before moving into travel over 40 years ago. For many years she was based in the UK and Europe, organizing and personally leading groups for various companies. Now back in Australia, Jill enjoys welcoming Road Scholar visitors to Sydney. She speaks conversational German and Italian and loves spending time with her family and attending the many shows that Sydney has to offer.
Elspeth Kyle-Little
Elspeth Kyle-Little is an Adelaide-based group leader and site coordinator. During the Road Scholar offseason, she cooks at a local restaurant and operates a small business making handmade soap. After studying silversmithing at art school in Adelaide in her 20s, Elspeth moved to Darwin and then remote Arnhem Land in Australia's far north until her mid-forties. Now settled in the Southern Adelaide Hills, she dabbles with watercolor painting, pottery, and gardening.
Sandy Greenwood
Sandy Greenwood was born a Novacastrian but lives in Sydney, Australia. She has worked extensively in the Australian and international tourism industry, specializing in managing small group expedition companies. Sandy holds postgraduate degrees in business management and education, and a bachelor’s degree in visual arts. Sandy has been on the Boards of Oxfams International Youth Parliament and The Young Endeavour Youth Scheme, and was co-chair of the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO). She collaborated with the Mawson's Huts Foundation and the Australian Antarctic Division to instigate the restoration of Mawson's Huts in Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica in 2006. Her interests include the visual arts, hiking, live music, Scrabble, house renovation, and traveling to remote locations.
Denise Hanlon
Denise Hanlon lives in the Inner West of Sydney, Australia. Denise is a career HR director who is now keen to explore her other loves. She has an MBA with another master's degree in finance, and is a part-time teacher of human resources as well as a singer/comedienne and golf addict. Denise enjoys combining her loves of travel, people, and exploration as a Road Scholar group leader.
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to three miles at a time at a normal public walking pace over varied terrain. Standing at least three hours daily; climbing stairs (at times without handrails), getting on/off buses and boats, carrying own luggage. If you believe you require wheelchair assistance to get through an airport you are not fit enough to participate in this program.
Small Group
(13 to 24)
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.
Suggested Reading List
View Full List
(21 Books)
You can also find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
HAVE QUESTIONS?
Prefer to enroll or inquire by phone?
We can help. Give us a call, and we can answer all of your questions!
Call
800-454-5768
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
17 days
16 nights
What's Included
34 meals | 14B | 10L | 10D |
8 expert-led lectures
22 expert-led field trips
4 flights during the program
1 hands-on experience
2 performances
An experienced Group Leader
14 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
Day
1
In Transit to Program
Location:
In Flight
Day
2
In Transit to Program, Crossing International Dateline
Location:
In Flight
Day
3
Arrive Melbourne, Orientation, Shrine of Remembrance
Location:
Melbourne
Meals:
L,D
Stay:
Melbourne Marriott Hotel
Activity Note
Hotel check-in from 2:00 p.m. As tap water is drinkable in Australia, upon your arrival in Melbourne you will be given a Road Scholar water bottle to use throughout your program. This is yours to keep.
Morning:
Welcome to Melbourne! Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, is the capital of Victoria, a state in the south-eastern corner of Australia. During the gold rush era, Melbourne possessed great wealth and many of the city’s fine buildings were built during this period of prosperity. Its magnificent streetscapes and extensive parks and gardens provide an ideal setting for its many elegant buildings. In the past, Melbourne was a larger business centre and city than Sydney, and today the two cities continue a friendly rivalry. Both are cosmopolitan and multicultural, and Melbourne has many strong ethnic communities from three major periods of migration: Chinese and German (after the gold rushes), Italian, Greek, and southern European (post-World War II) and, more recently, Asian. Participants who booked their flights to and from Australia through Road Scholar will be met and transferred to our hotel to join those participants who arrived earlier. From the hotel, we will have a walking orientation to parts of the city before returning to the hotel for lunch. Those participants who have arrived in the city earlier or who are making their own travel arrangements should ensure that they are at our Melbourne hotel by 10:30 a.m.
Lunch:
At hotel.
Afternoon:
After lunch we will walk through the Royal Botanic Gardens. We will visit the Shrine of Remembrance, a National War Memorial of great significance to Melburnians. During our field trip, our Site Coordinator will give us an overview, introducing us to Melbourne and the State of Victoria. We transfer to our hotel and check in with some time to freshen up before our Orientation session. Orientation. Our Group Leader and local Site Coordinator will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule and any changes, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer any questions you may have. The Group Leader and local Site Coordinators will provide information and lead field trips at most study sites. Ground travel and transfers will be via private motorcoach unless noted otherwise. The format of meals will vary based on each venue, with some meals being buffets, others plated and served, and some ordered in advance. Beverages typically include coffee, tea and water, with other beverages available for purchase depending on location. Free time is reserved for your personal exploration. Evenings at leisure offer opportunities to make the program more meaningful and memorable through independent exploration, attending performances or other events on your own, or simply relaxing and making new friends among fellow Road Scholars. The Group Leader and local Site Coordinators will always be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local conditions/circumstances. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding.
Dinner:
At the hotel. We will have “Welcome to Australia” wine with dinner tonight.
Evening:
At leisure. We have an early night tonight to rest up following our long flight.
Day
4
Contemporary Australia, Melbourne Skydeck, Penguins
Location:
Melbourne
Meals:
B,D
Stay:
Melbourne Marriott Hotel
Activity Note
Walking approximately 2 miles; flat, paved surfaces. The drive to Phillip Island is about 90 miles (140 kilometres), approximately 2.5 hours each way. Please note that tonight will be a late night - the penguins do not start to come ashore until dusk.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will begin today with a lecture on contemporary Australia, touching on areas of interest such as health, education, and the political system. With our local Site Coordinator we will then walk from our hotel through some of Melbourne's famously funky laneways. As we wander through the back streets and laneways, we will gain an understanding of how liveable Melbourne is and how the city interacts with its river. We will conclude our morning exploration at the Melbourne Skydeck, on the 88th floor of the Eureka Tower, where the expansive views will give us an understanding of the city’s layout and allow us to track where we have walked.
Lunch:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. There are a multitude of options along the river and throughout the central business district.
Afternoon:
We will have some time to explore on our own before returning independently to the hotel. We will then board our motorcoach bound for Phillip Island.
Dinner:
At a small-town bistro in San Remo near Phillip Island, we will have pre-ordered, plated meals with water included; other beverages available for purchase.
Evening:
We will move on to Phillip Island Nature Park in time for the Penguin Parade. Here we can watch the gorgeous little penguins come ashore at dusk after their day out fishing. After viewing these wonderful creatures, we will board our motorcoach and return to our hotel and bed.
Day
5
Healesville Sanctuary, Yarra Valley Wine
Location:
Melbourne
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Melbourne Marriott Hotel
Activity Note
The drive to the Yarra Valley is about 40 miles (65 kilometres), approximately 1 hour.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will board our motorcoach and head into the Yarra Valley. Our first visit will be to the Healesville Sanctuary where we will get to meet some more of the local wildlife. A local expert will introduce us to some of the conservation work the Sanctuary is undertaking. It is also home to the Australian Wildlife Centre that trains wildlife veterinarians and treats more than 2,000 sick and injured native animals every year.
Lunch:
At a local winery in the Yarra Valley, we will have lunch and an expert-led wine tasting, giving us an introduction to Australian wine varieties and wine-making techniques.
Afternoon:
We return to Melbourne on our motorcoach. We will have some time to freshen up and relax prior to dinner.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
6
National Gallery of Victoria, Australian Art, Free Time
Location:
Melbourne
Meals:
B
Stay:
Melbourne Marriott Hotel
Activity Note
Walking approximately 2 miles.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
At the hotel, a local art historian will give us a lecture on Australian art. We will then walk the short distance to the National Gallery of Victoria where our art historian will lead us on an exploration of the Australian art collection.
Lunch:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost so you are on your own to enjoy what you like.
Afternoon:
Free Time. Take this opportunity for independent exploration to see and do what interests you most in this cosmopolitan city. Your Group Leader and local Site Coordinator will be happy to offer suggestions.
Dinner:
On your own to enjoy what you like. Your Site Coordinator will be happy to offer suggestions for Melbourne's renowned restaurant scene.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for hotel check out and transfer tomorrow.
Day
7
Fly to Alice Springs, Aboriginal Bush Tucker
Location:
Alice Springs
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Mercure Alice Springs Resort
Activity Note
The flight from Melbourne to Alice Springs is approximately 2 hours 55 minutes. Qantas typically uses Boeing 737 aircraft on this route.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will check out of our hotel and transfer to Melbourne Domestic Airport for our flight to Alice Springs, gateway to the Red Centre. Alice Springs is located almost exactly at the geographic centre of Australia and has been a home for Aboriginal Australians for in excess of 30,000 years. Many of the physical features of the land have great cultural significance. Originally established in 1888 as Stuart, the town developed due to the need for an overland telegraph line to assist Australia with its communications to the world. Today, “The Alice” is a pleasurable, modern town and is a major access point for the many tourist attractions of central Australia. On arrival we are met by our Red Centre Site Coordinator and have an overview of Alice Springs and the Red Centre on the way to our hotel.
Lunch:
At the hotel, we will have lunch before we check in to our rooms.
Afternoon:
After check-in, we have an orientation to our Red Centre program. Our local Site Coordinator will follow the orientation with a lecture introducing the culture, art, and heritage of the Indigenous Australian peoples of the Red Centre. After our lecture we have some free time to settle in to our surroundings. Those who wish may choose to take the short walk into the town centre.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant, an Aboriginal caterer and businesswoman will introduce native Aboriginal bush foods, describe their traditional use and explain how they are being incorporated into contemporary cuisine. We will have dinner at the restaurant where our taste buds will discover for themselves just how contemporary Australian cuisine is utilising traditional Aboriginal flavourings.
Evening:
Weather permitting, a local astronomer will introduce the stars of the southern sky. We can look for the Southern Cross and other southern constellations in the clear air of Australia's Red Centre. We return to the hotel on our motorcoach.
Day
8
Desert Wildlife, Flying Doctors, ASSOA, BBQ, Bush Ballads
Location:
Alice Springs
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Mercure Alice Springs Resort
Activity Note
On our feet most of the morning, walking approximately 2.5 miles; well-cared-for dirt surfaces. In the afternoon, walking approximately 1 mile; fairly even surfaces, some sand.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will visit Alice Springs Desert Park where our local Site Coordinator will help us gain an understanding of the beauty and mystery of the Australian desert and the life that exists there.
Lunch:
At Alice Springs Desert Park, we will have a platter lunch.
Afternoon:
Next, we will we travel to Simpson’s Gap in the Western MacDonnell Ranges and view the permanent waterhole in its stunning location under the towering cliffs of the Simpson Range. Returning to Alice Springs, we will learn about the ways in which inhabitants of the Red Centre have addressed the challenges of living spread across vast distances. We visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and learn how aircraft and technology are used to deliver medical services in the huge distances of central Australia. Founded in 1928, the RFDS is now one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world, providing primary health care and 24-hour emergency service to people over an area of nearly 3 million square miles (7.3 million square kilometres). We move on to the Alice Springs School of the Air (ASSOA). In Australia’s vast territories, most people live near the coast. Those in the Outback — remote, rural, sparsely populated interior regions — often suffered from a lack of educational opportunities. The School of the Air was established in 1951 as a radio network for two-way teaching and learning broadcasts. New technology and the internet have since made things much easier. We will visit the School of the Air Visitor Centre to gain an understanding of the techniques employed to provide education across the isolated and remote expanse of the Outback.
Dinner:
At a local café, we will have a BBQ dinner. As we dine, a local musician will entertain us with ballads and yarns of the Australian bush. From the official Australian government website: “The bush has an iconic status in Australian life…especially as expressed in Australian literature, painting, popular music, films and foods. The bush was something that was uniquely Australian and very different to the European landscapes familiar to many new immigrants…revered as a source of national ideals.”
Evening:
We return to our hotel via motorcoach. Prepare for hotel check out and transfer in the morning.
Day
9
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Sunset at Uluru
Location:
Uluru (Ayers Rock)
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Outback Hotel & Lodge
Activity Note
The drive from Alice Springs to Uluru is about 310 miles (500 kilometres), approximately 6.5 hours. Walking approximately 2 miles in a series of short walks; flat surfaces.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will check out of the hotel and board our motorcoach for the journey to Uluru. We will pause for morning tea at a typical Outback roadhouse. Rising from the arid heartland of Australia are the haunting geological marvels of Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). They lie within Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, which is owned by the local Aboriginal Australian people. Uluru is a red sandstone monolith, the world’s second largest at 5.5 miles (8.9 kilometres) around, with smooth slopes rising to 1,098 feet (335 metres). For thousands of years this rock has been the focus for religious, cultural, territorial and economic inter-relations among the Aboriginal peoples of the Western Desert. Caves around the base of the rock were used by Aboriginal peoples for shelter and were decorated with their paintings. Kata Tjuta is a collection of smaller, more rounded rocks that are very captivating. The tallest rock, Mt Olga, is nearly 656 feet (200 metres) higher than Uluru.
Lunch:
At Uluru, we have a plated lunch.
Afternoon:
We will explore Uluru by motorcoach and on foot. This sacred Aboriginal site is truly awe-inspiring. Our Red Centre Site Coordinator will explain something of the significance of the Rock to the local Aboriginal peoples. We will then transfer to our hotel and check in. In the late afternoon we will take in a sunset viewing of Uluru, watching the amazing colours of the Rock as the sun sets.
Dinner:
In the hotel, we will have pre-ordered, plated meals.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
10
Kata Tjuta, Fly to Cairns via Melbourne
Location:
Cairns
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort
Activity Note
Walking approximately 2 miles, 1 hour; gently climbing surface. We fly from Uluru to Cairns via Melbourne. The flight from Uluru to Melbourne is approximately 2 hours, 40 minutes. The flight from Melbourne to Cairns is approximately 3 hours, 20 minutes. Jetstar utilises Airbus A320 aircraft on these routes.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We check out of the hotel and travel out to Kata Tjuta, the spectacular formation of 36 rounded domes. Kata Tjuta means "many heads" in the local Aboriginal language. Here we will walk up Walpa Gorge, affording wonderful views across the Outback.
Lunch:
We will have a packed lunch today.
Afternoon:
We transfer to the airport for our flight to Cairns via Melbourne.
Dinner:
At own arrangements at Melbourne airport, although a [very] light snack will be served on board your flight to Melbourne.
Evening:
Cairns, on the east coast of Australia, is the most northerly city in the state of Queensland. It is always green and lush with abundant tropical plants and flowers. It is also one of Australia’s fastest-growing cities and, in addition to its role as a regional centre for dairy, timber and sugar production, it is an important tourist destination. Cairns is uniquely situated between two UNESCO World Heritage-listed areas: the Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics Rainforest. Upon our arrival, we transfer to our hotel. We check-in and head to bed.
Day
11
Rainforest, Kuranda, Skyrail, Great Barrier Reef Lecture
Location:
Cairns
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort
Activity Note
Getting on/off gondolas; walking approximately 2 miles; flat surfaces, some stairs at cable car.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We begin this morning with a lecture introducing us to one of Cairns’ World Heritage-listed features, the Wet Tropical Rainforests of North Queensland. We will gain an understanding of the abundance of life in the tropical rainforest. We board our motorcoach and transfer to the village of Kuranda, a mountain retreat surrounded by rainforest. We will have some time for self-directed exploration around lunch.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant in Kuranda, we will have pre-ordered, plated meals.
Afternoon:
We will have a walk with our local expert, exploring the local environment. We then walk to the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway to take the stunning cableway journey sweeping above the canopy of the rainforest. At the Rainforest Interpretive Station, our lecturer will lead a walk on a circular track of boardwalk as we learn more about this special environment. We head to our hotel and check in.
Dinner:
At our hotel.
Evening:
We are joined by a local marine biologist for a lecture on the Great Barrier Reef. We will gain insights into what we might encounter on our study cruise out to this natural icon.
Day
12
Great Barrier Reef Study Cruise & Snorkel
Location:
Cairns
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort
Activity Note
Getting on/off a large catamaran and on/off a small tender shuttling between the boat and the cay. Walking on a sandy cay, snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef. Snorkels, masks, flippers, flotation jackets and lycra sun suits provided.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
Sure to be one of the highlights of our program, we will have a full day study cruise on the Great Barrier Reef where we can view the coral reef in the company of our dedicated marine biologist. We will be able to snorkel among the spectacular coral reef and/or view the reef from a semi-submersible vessel. As UNESCO notes, “The Great Barrier Reef is a site of remarkable variety and beauty on the north-east coast of Australia. It contains the world’s largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusc.”
Lunch:
Aboard our cruise vessel, we will have a buffet lunch.
Afternoon:
Our study cruise continues. We will return to Cairns in the late afternoon.
Dinner:
On your own to enjoy what you like. The Esplanade's wide range of restaurants is only a block or two from our hotel.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
13
Mandingalbay Hands on Country, Fly to Sydney
Location:
Sydney
Meals:
B,D
Stay:
Mercure Sydney
Activity Note
Getting on/off a river vessel. The flight from Cairns to Sydney is approximately 3 hours. Qantas typically uses Qantas 737 aircraft on this route.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will begin with a 15-minute walk to Cairns wharf. We board our vessel and cruise across the gentle waters of Trinity Inlet. As we cruise we learn of the cultural landscape and the creation stories of the Yidinji Nations. We cruise along Hills Creek through a regenerated mangrove forest as we keep an eye out for freshwater fish, crocodiles and numerous bird species. We are welcomed ashore with a traditional smoking ceremony conducted by the Mandingalbay Yidinji Rangers. They then introduce us to their Indigenous Protected Area. Here we learn of the conservation programs they have instigated to take care of Country since being recognised as Traditional Owners in 2006. We cruise back across to town and return to our hotel to check out. We transfer to the airport for our lunchtime flight to Sydney.
Lunch:
On your own although a light snack will be served on your flight.
Afternoon:
Welcome to Sydney! Sydney’s stunning natural harbour forms the centrepiece of a dynamic city that has grown dramatically since its beginnings as a prison colony. Situated in the temperate area of Australia, Sydney is surrounded by National Parks and has a beautiful range of flora and fauna. It is Australia’s largest city with over 5 million citizens thriving in a multicultural society in a congenial climate. Sydney is dominated by Sydney Harbour, of which Port Jackson is only a small part. The city covers a large area, twice the size of London with half the population, and has large parks and sparkling sandy Pacific Ocean beaches, such as the well-known and very popular Bondi and Manly. Upon our arrival in Sydney, we will be met by our Sydney Site Coordinator and transfer to our hotel for check in. We will have an overview of our program in Sydney on our motorcoach en route to our hotel. We have time to freshen up and relax before dinner.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
14
Sydney History, Bondi, Sydney Harbour
Location:
Sydney
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Mercure Sydney
Activity Note
On our feet most of the morning, walking approximately 3 miles; undulating, paved, urban surfaces. Getting on and off ferries.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will be joined by a local educator who will present a lecture on Sydney's history. We then join our lecturer for a walk through Sydney's central business district. We visit the Macquarie Street and Hyde Park area, home to many Sydney institutions - the Australian Museum, St Mary's Cathedral, the New South Wales Parliament and the State Library. We will have time to explore the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Hyde Park Barracks. We then board our coach to visit Sydney's sought-after eastern suburbs. Our exploration concludes in the renowned beach-side suburb of Bondi.
Lunch:
At a typical, local Australian RSL (Returned Services League) club in Bondi, we will have pre-ordered, plated meals.
Afternoon:
After lunch, we board our motorcoach and transfer to Watsons Bay wharf. Here we board a ferry to take in the splendour of magnificent Sydney Harbour. From the ferry we take in the stunning scenery and gain an understanding as to how Sydneysiders interact with their gorgeous natural highlight. The remainder of the afternoon and evening is at leisure. You might choose to get off at Circular Quay and make your way back to the hotel on foot or via tram or you may change ferries to Darling Harbour and walk to the hotel from there. Your Site Coordinator will be happy to offer suggestions.
Dinner:
At own arrangements.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
15
Taronga Zoo, Sydney Opera House, Performance
Location:
Sydney
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Mercure Sydney
Activity Note
On our feet most of the morning, walking approximately 3 miles at zoo; undulating, paved surfaces. Walking approximately 2 miles in the afternoon and evening; undulating paved surfaces and stairs. Depending on the theatres available to visit, the Opera House guided visit involves between 150 and 200 stairs. This program was finalised well before the release of the Sydney Opera House's performance schedule. Detail of tonight's performance will be included in your final information packet.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We will take our motorcoach across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to Taronga Zoo, located on the north shore, with delightful views across the harbour to the city. Here we will begin our study of Australian fauna. As well as meeting kangaroos, koalas and wallabies — and hoping for a glimpse of the rather more elusive wombat, echidna, and platypus — we will have a lecture from one of the keepers introducing some of Australia’s more dangerous inhabitants: spiders and snakes.
Lunch:
At Taronga Park Zoo, we have a packed lunch.
Afternoon:
Next, we will take a ferry back across Sydney Harbour to Circular Quay. We will walk around the Quay to the magnificent UNESCO World Heritage-listed Sydney Opera House, where we will have an expert-led exploration of this truly wonderful, iconic building, a masterpiece of late modern architecture. Exactly which areas of the Opera House we see will depend upon what performances and rehearsals are taking place at the time. There are five main performance spaces at the Sydney Opera House — the Concert Hall, the Dame Joan Sutherland Theatre (formerly the Opera Theatre), the Drama Theatre, the Playhouse and the Studio — and the availability of these spaces for public visits changes from day to day. We will then return to our hotel and have some time to freshen up and relax before an early dinner.
Dinner:
We will have an early buffet dinner at our hotel allowing us to get to tonight's performance at the Opera House in plenty of time.
Evening:
We will attend a performance at the Sydney Opera House. We will return to the hotel via motorcoach.
Day
16
Sydney Harbour Bridge, Farewell Dinner
Location:
Sydney
Meals:
B,D
Stay:
Mercure Sydney
Activity Note
On our feet most of the morning, walking approximately 4 miles; undulating, paved urban surfaces.
Breakfast:
Hotel buffet.
Morning:
We join our Site Coordinator for a walk through Darling Harbour to Pyrmont Bay Wharf. From here we take the ferry across the harbour to Milsons Point. From Milsons Point we walk under the roadway and up to the pedestrian walkway along the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We walk back across the bridge taking in the stunning views of Sydney Harbour, the city and the suburbs of the lower north shore. At the bridge's southern end, we visit the Harbour Bridge Pylon Lookout & Museum. We walk down off the bridge and commence a walking exploration of The Rocks area, giving us further insight into Sydney’s colonial past. The Rocks was the area of Sydney first settled by the British, and it has a fascinating history and wonderful sandstone buildings. At the conclusion of our walking exploration, you have the remainder of the afternoon at leisure so you can spend your final afternoon in Sydney as you see fit.
Lunch:
At own arrangements.
Afternoon:
Your afternoon is free until we come together for a pre-dinner meeting back at our hotel to review our program. We walk along Darling Harbour to a local restaurant for our farewell dinner.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant, we have pre-ordered, plated meals.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for departure in the morning.
Day
17
Program Concludes
Location:
In Flight
Meals:
B
Activity Note
Hotel check out is by 10:00 a.m. For those participants who have booked their long-haul flights through Road Scholar, please see your program’s travel details regarding transfers. If you are an independent traveller (POP status), see “For participants NOT taking the group transfer.”
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Our program concludes with breakfast. After breakfast, we check out of our hotel. Those participants who have booked their flights through Road Scholar will be transferred to Sydney Airport. If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Please join our Facebook page and share photos of your program. Visit us at www.facebook.com/rsadventures. Best wishes for all your journeys!
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MEALS
34 Meals
14 Breakfasts
10 Lunches
10 Dinners
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Participant Reviews
Based on 35 Reviews
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No review at this time.
— Review left October 27, 2024
Road Scholar is an excellent way to see new places in the world and not have to do a large amount of planning. The tours are great. This was our 4th and certainly not our last.
— Review left October 22, 2024
The Australian Odyssey: From the Outback to the Great Barrier Reef is a superb
program and will not disappoint. The leadership and guides are knowledgeable
and extremely helpful. My wife and I took the trip in September,2024 and were
very pleased with the experience and knowledge we gained.
— Review left September 29, 2024
One element of this fabulous trip that I had forgotten to put in my original submission, is that I would have liked to have had some presentation (part of a lecture?) from a sociological and anthropological perspective on aboriginal history, current conditions, and the relationship with the politically dominant population. We learned quite a lot about aboriginal traditions throughout the program, particularly in the Alice Springs area, and about the Indigenous Vote referendum during other history presentations. However, I felt that in upholding the deep traditional knowledge of the aboriginal people, a bit of the current reality of the aboriginal people within the Australian state was given a bit of a whitewash. I'm not sure that the often stated view the the whole bush is the aboriginal home is a sufficient answer to how they actually live on the land today. Is it possible to live in traditional ways anywhere in the country? How does segregated education work in practice, i.e. just indigenous language training or English language and skills training for being able to obtain jobs in the dominant culture (however one might feel about that)? There must be more to the indigenous economy than selling art to tourists. What types of economic support from the various governments are needed/provided? No villages or no villages that they want foreigners to see? Thanks.
— Review left May 10, 2024
Australia's raw nature, tumultuous history, and cultural growth is shared with you by its everyday citizens of both Aboriginal and European descent. This is an unforgettable discovery of the Land Down Under from the Southern Ocean where penguins come ashore and Uluru,the very heart of the country; to the Cairns, home of the oldest rainforest on the planet and the Great Barrier Reef; and finally to Sydney, The Rock! A journey worth taking!
— Review left May 8, 2024
We had a great trip to Australia and thought the program provided the perfect amount of sightseeing and classroom learning. We were also very impressed with our Group Leader, and had a great group of people on our tour. Half the fun was getting to know the rest of the people we were traveling with!
— Review left March 24, 2024
The journey down under was spectacular. Met so many great people. Experienced diverse cultures and customs. Thank you Road Scholars!
— Review left March 21, 2024
This trip to Australia was fantastic. We experienced the big cities of Melbourne and Sydney as well as life in the outback. Special favorites were Hluru Rock and the Sydney Opera.
— Review left March 18, 2024
Uluru in the rain!!!
— Review left March 11, 2024
Terrific way to see "The Land Down Under". Very satisfied with my experience.
— Review left February 10, 2024
This trip is an excellent sampling of what Australia has to offer, which is extensive.
— Review left February 5, 2024
This program was terrific, interesting and I am so glad I attended it.
— Review left October 31, 2023
A comprehensive tour of the highlights of Australia with excellent local guides and instructors.
— Review left October 29, 2023
We understand a 14 day trip is just not enough to spend more time, this was a good introduction to knowing about Australia. Only negative was half the 24 people kept to themselves and were not friendly after 1st day.
— Review left October 12, 2023
Hilary Basile and all of the guides/Lecturers were outstanding . Hotels were adequate and suitable. Meals were good with a couple of exceptions at the Sydney Hotel.
Quantas inability to provide direct flights from city to city was a problem . Always connecting thru Sydney was a waste of time. Hard to believe no other airline could have accomodated our schedule.
I realize the trip's activity description was Keep the Pace and I appreciate RS effort to provide a comprehensive experience. However, there was not much free time or even time between activities to gather oneself and get organized for the next day. Early mornings and late nights were ill timed so as to provide consecutive long exhausting days especially the long days in Alice Springs, going from Cairns to Sydney and in Sydney. Also not enough time allowed in Uluru to spend time at the Native Cultural Center.
— Review left May 16, 2023
I would highly recommend this program. Well worth the money and time spent in Australia. So much to learn and see. Truly, a life-time experience.
— Review left February 9, 2023
Australia Odyssey...From the Outback to the Great Barrier Reef was an opportunity of a lifetime and for those who yearn for travel, wish to expand educational knowledge, and enjoy interacting with like minded travel partners; this RS trip should be made a PRIORITY. Exceeded our expectations on a daily basis...Good on ya mate!
— Review left January 31, 2023
For the first time visitor, I great way to see Australia and understand its culture and history.
— Review left December 1, 2022
I would have to say that this trip will go down as one of the worst trips I've been on. Not that it was your fault. I tested positive for covid-19 in Alice Springs and had to isolate for 5 days. The motel where I had to stay was not that helpful; had to ask for menus and then they weren't always delivered, coffee was delivered cold so I quite asking for it, asking for a single roll didn't work, you always two or more. I think I and the other person who was isolated here sort of felt abandoned and left on our own. Some of the instructions we received were confusing and/or contradictory. Such as whether another Covid-19 test was required before we could exit our isolation. Anyway after five days I tested negative for the virus and left Alice Springs for Sydney. That means that I spent five days in isolation, one day traveling on my own from Alice Springs to Sydney, and the last of the seven days I spent alone walking through Sydney and touring the city. The rest of the group didn't arrive at the hotel until later that evening. So out of a fourteen day tour I missed exactly half of it. And I missed the middle part of the tour that I was most interested in. Again as I said it wasn't your fault I got sick, even though I exhibited no symptoms, I followed the regions protocol and isolated for five days.
I do appreciate the help the tour leader and other participants gave to my wife who continued with the group. She was having some discomfort with her hip and knee so help with luggage and walking on uneven surfaces was a great help. Thanks.
— Review left October 21, 2022
If you want to learn about and see a lot of Australia in two weeks, you can't beat this Road Scholar trip for its variety of high quality experiences.
— Review left March 5, 2020
An Australian Odyssey was a wonderful tour! Everything was well organized, the sites were well chosen, there was a real mix of different things to visit (cultural, in nature, and so on), the historical background provided was a huge help, and, very importantly, the participants were enthusiastic and involved. We were all stimulated by the program, and enhanced each other's experiences.
— Review left March 4, 2020
Great trip. Good lecturers and local guides. Absolutely splendid with one exception, the BBQ at Alice Springs. Something went wrong there.
— Review left March 4, 2020
Thank you for asking for and gathering information about the trip. We added 5 days in Tasmania and really enjoyed the Bruny Island Tour. You may want to offer the extension but understand if you don't. Best to you all.
— Review left February 29, 2020
What a wonderful journey through Australia - from cosmopolitan cities to the outback to the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest. The program might look a little daunting at first glance, but the domestic flights and transfers between locations were relatively stress free, and it was so interesting to experience the contrasting areas of Australia. Our experience at the Great Barrier Reef was particularly memorable, and snorkeling was easy for everyone - our entire group participated. Our group leader, Ruth, was organized, friendly, caring, and made sure we optimized our experiences. The local instructors were also very knowledgeable and did a great job of helping us understand the history of Australia and the current issues facing the country. Put this journey on your wish-list!
— Review left February 10, 2020
Excellent adventure. Will highly recommend
— Review left February 2, 2020
If at all possible be sure to take this amazing trip! I learned & experienced so much about Australia. More than met my expectations. This was my first Roads Scholar trip and I am planning another trip already.
— Review left December 16, 2019
Get outside of your comfort zone and meet Australians on their homeground.See, hear and truly experience an amazing country.
— Review left December 4, 2019
The program is brilliantly planned and well executed. Australia become a fascinating place for me. I would recommend this trip to anyone. Peter and Rose were terrific. I loved this trip.
— Review left April 22, 2019
Loved it! Exceeded expectations. Logistics handled expertly by organizers.
— Review left April 14, 2019
This program exceeded our expectations! Our program leader was wonderful, our activities were well planned and smoothly implemented, and the other participants were interesting, entertaining, and upbeat.
— Review left April 12, 2019
My first Road Scholar trip even surpassed my high expectations. I look forward to my next journey with them.
— Review left April 6, 2019
This is a great Road Scholar program. There is no better way to understand Australia in a couple of weeks. The big cities (Melbourne, Sydney), the Outback, the rain forest, the barrier reef. It is all there. The guides were all great and really knew their portion of the trip and were able to convey it to us in an engaging, frequently funny manner. Highly recommended.
— Review left April 4, 2019
We highly recommend the Australian Odyssey (From the Outback to the Great Barrier Reef) trip! It was informative, inspiring and fun. From great lectures to great outings to great accommodations to great food, our trip was a fabulous addition to our "bucket list".
— Review left March 17, 2019
We loved this tour. The group we were with were fun, friendly and interesting. All the sites we visited did not disappoint. Our instructors were well informed and professional. If you should have a sudden health issue, Road Scholar takes care of your needs. We have seen how efficiently they respond to such needs twice on different tours. Ian, our tour director, took charge of the situation to get the needed care.
— Review left March 17, 2019
This program provides a delightful and broad insight, particularly for first-time visitors to Australia. It’s an outstanding introduction to this part of the world.
— Review left February 24, 2019