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Alice Springs City GuideAlice was founded in 1871 as a sub-station for the telegraph line from Adelaide to Darwin. The 'Todd' River is named after the head of the postal service at that time, Mr. Charles Todd. The city was named after his wife, Alice. Alice Springs is now a small town with approximately 20,000 inhabitants located in the middle of the flat desert and surrounded by the Mac Donnell mountain ranges. The city has a bit of a 'pioneer's' atmosphere', probably because it's so far from the large cities in the south or east. The sunshine casts an almost heavenly glow on the white buildings in the red and yellow landscape. The bright rays of sunlight are always beating down on the sand and river that runs straight through the city is always dry. All of this creates a very unusual looking city. |
About Alice SpringsUnfortunately distances in this area are too great for you to be able to walk around from one place to the next. Go for a ride with one of the mini busses and let them drop you off where you want to be. Entertainment in Alice is limited to a number of backpacker pubs, restaurants and simple shows in the larger hotels.If you would like to know more about Aboriginal culture, the best way to do this is to simply have a chat. You can also take a half day trip in the area - your hotel will have plenty of brochures and options. Another alternative would be to take a special Aboriginal trip through the desert. However, these can be difficult to book and expensive. |
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Transfers and transportAfter you arrive at the airport in Alice, your best means of transport to your accommodation will be a shuttle bus. There are always several lined up waiting for you and they will take you straight to your hotel. If you're with a group of 3 - 4 people, you could also choose to take a taxi cab to your accommodation. Alice Springs is approximately 15km away from the airport.The city's centre which lies by the dry bed of the Todd River, can be explored on foot. However, most hotels are just a little too far away to walk to. Many hotels, and even restaurants, have shuttle busses that will take you where you need to be. As you can imagine, Alice is quite a familiar tourist city since most travellers to Australia come here at one point or another during their trip. |
Camels of the desert...Odd, but true.... you will come across here is that there are more camels living here in the Australian desert than in all Arabic countries put together. While at the Frontier Camel Farm you can go for a ride on a camel or go on a longer camel tour along the Todd River. If you just aren't that into camels, just move on and leave the camel ride for your next trip to the Middle East.You'll see plenty of desert outside of Alice Springs as well. The city is home base when visiting Ayers Rock, The Olga's and the unique Kings Canyon. You'll have to go for quite a drive though, they are 500km away. If you would like to visit these top Australia attractions and more, Ayers Rock Camping tour. |
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Hot Air Balloon RidesGoing on a hot air balloon ride may not have been the first item on your to-do list when you decided you wanted to visit Australia. It's quite expensive and costs approximately AU$ 100 for a 30-minute flight and breakfast in the morning or AU$ 150 for an hour flight. On the other hand, when going on such a spectacular trip to Australia why not make it even more special by enjoying the view from high up in the sky? If you have time to do it and the budget to do it, we really recommend having this extraordinary experience. Since most people need time to think about whether or not they want to spend so much money on this, we don't offer it prior to your departure. There are three companies in the area that offer hot air balloon rides; if you want to do it, be sure to call one of them and book your flight as soon as possible (preferably more than one day prior since it can be quite popular during some periods). |