Southern Wine & Wildlife 2024

Today, you’ll set off from Brisbane on your adventure covering Australia’s south-east. Settle into your cabin and prepare for your first meal on train before arriving into Coffs Harbour for a spectacular beachside dining experience in the evening. (L,D)

OVERNIGHT: 3 nights Great Southern

After your first night on the train, wake up to a sumptuous breakfast that will set you up for a day of exploring. Choose from wine tasting in the Hunter Valley, exploring Port Stephens by sea or by land, or perhaps opt for a walking tour in Newcastle, discovering its history, vibrancy and stunning coastal views. (B,L,D)

After enjoying a delicious breakfast on board and a relaxing start to the day travelling through Victoria’s high country, you’ll have a choice of Off Train Experiences.  Discover regional Victoria or visit cosmopolitan Melbourne. See the city from high above at Melbourne Skydeck, take a tour of the Melbourne Cricket Ground or Old Melbourne Gaol, or enjoy free time to explore the city yourself. (B,L,D)

Upon arrival into Adelaide, you will be transferred to your hotel. The day is yours to explore the city. Home to over 900 restaurants, pubs and cafes, and a lively food and wine scene, you’ll be spoilt for choice. (B)

OVERNIGHT: 4 nights Sofitel Adelaide

Today, your boutique wine and food touring continues with a visit to the historic Northern Barossa, with its 80 cellar doors. Enjoy running commentary from your driver as you make your way towards the fabulous Barossa Valley region and prepare to visit one of the oldest vineyards in the world, where Shiraz vines were planted in 1843. Throughout the day, you will be guided through some of the best wines South Australia has to offer. Tours are small groups up to 8 people only, to ensure a relaxed and unhurried day. Whether you prefer red or white, there will be something to tantalise and delight, with tastings at three wineries and a delicious lunch with an accompanying glass of wine. (B, L)

As far as gourmet experiences go, today you are about to indulge in one of Australia’s best. The legendary Penfolds Magill Estate, where some of the world’s great wines are produced, is your venue for an epicurean adventure you’ll never forget.

Make your way from the hotel to Penfolds Magill Estate by your own arrangements, ready to enjoy tastings, including Grange, in the Estate’s private rooms, before heading to the Magill Estate Cellar Door for a sumptuous lunch. (B, L)

Explore more of Adelaide at your leisure. If you’d like to get to the source of that gourmet experience by visiting another wine growing region, McLaren Vale is the perfect option. (B)

Please note: Day 8 and 9 may be interchanged.

Depart from Adelaide Airport for your flight to magical Kangaroo Island, where you will be met by your guide. Then, begin your two days on Kangaroo Island enjoying the ‘Island Life’ tour. Island Life provides a taste of the way of life in this bucolic spot, where things take time, drivers’ wave as they go by and passers-by stop for a chat.

Have a cuppa with some home-made treats before taking a walk down a country track through towering Eucalyptus trees, where koalas snooze overhead or chew languidly on leaves. Listen for the sounds of the bush – brightly coloured honeyeaters and brilliant parrots, cicadas or perhaps just the sound of silence. You’ll travel through the Island’s most productive countryside to the north coast and walk through the bush with your guide, learning what makes that noise and whose tracks those are. Watch for small wallabies, a kangaroo found only on Kangaroo Island, and a variety of other birds, plants and animals.

Lunch is at a private bush camp, where you’ll enjoy a delicious meal featuring King George whiting – a local sea fish, fresh salads and fine South Australian wines. At Seal Bay Conservation Park, take a private tour with your guide among Australian sea lions on a beautiful sandy beach. Watch pups nursing or playing in the surf and old bulls bearing the scars of territorial disputes and learn about their unique breeding biology.

After a day of touring, you will return to your accommodation, with dinner included at your hotel. (B,L,D)

OVERNIGHT: 2 nights Mercure Kangaroo Island Lodge

Begin the day travelling through some of the regenerating landscapes of Kangaroo Island. Learn about fire ecology and how nature deals with this natural hazard. Some of the native flora species only flower following fire.

Travel into Flinders Chase National Park and explore the massive shapes of Remarkable Rocks, a natural sculpture perched impossibly on top a granite dome plunging into the ocean. Then you’ll break for an elegant picnic lunch in the bush, or if weather permits, on a spectacular clifftop. Evidence of the power of the Southern Ocean swell continues at Admirals Arch – a coastal grotto that provides a haul out for a large colony of Long-nosed Fur Seals, which swim effortlessly through the crashing waves.

After your last day of touring, you will return to your accommodation, with dinner included at your hotel. (B,L,D)

This morning, you’ll be transferred to the airport for your return flight to Adelaide. Arriving in Adelaide, you will be transferred to your city accommodation to leave your bags and spend the remainder of the day at your leisure.

The evening is free to explore some of Adelaide’s many dining and entertainment precincts. (B)

OVERNIGHT: 1 night Sofitel Adelaide

After breakfast, check out of your accommodation, bringing your epicurean adventure to an end. (B)