Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

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CHAPTER 8 . THE TOP END
sit in on an 800,000-sq.-km (262,400-sq.-mile) “classroom” as children from the
Outback do their lessons by radio. Forty-five minute tours begin on the hour
from 9am up to and including 2pm (there’s no tour at noon). Tours also run during
school holidays and public holidays minus the on-air classes. The school is
open Monday through Friday 9am to 3pm from April until mid-December.
Admission is A$5 (US$3.25) for adults and A$2 (US$1.30) for school-age kids.
Mike Keighley of Far Out Adventures (& 0427/152288) runs upmarket
tailor-made tours which include areas around Katherine such as the 5,000-
sq.-km (1,930-sq.-mile or 1.2 million acres) Elsey Cattle Station, 140km (87
miles) southeast of Katherine, made famous as the setting of the Aussie book
and film We of the Never Never. Meet children of the Mangarrayi Aborigines,
sample bush tucker, learn a little bush medicine, and swim in a vine-clad natural
“spa-pool” in the Roper River. Mike has been accepted as an honorary family
member of the Mangarrayi people and is a mine of information about
Aboriginal culture and the bush.
WHERE TO STAY & DINE
The Nitmiluk National Park ranger station in the Nitmiluk Visitor Centre has
maps of available “bush campsites” throughout the park. These are very basic
sites—no showers, and no soaps or shampoos allowed because they pollute the
river system, and simple pit toilets or none at all. Most are beside natural swimming
holes. You must stop for a camping permit from the ranger station beforehand;
the camping fee is A$3.30 (US$2.15) per person per night.
Travel North runs the Nitmiluk Gorge Caravan Park (& 1800/089 103 in
Australia, or 08/8972 1253; fax 08/8972 3989) next to the Nitmiluk Visitor
Centre, where wallabies often hop into the grounds. Fees are A$8.50 (US$5.50)
per adult, A$5 (US$3.25) per child for a tent site, and A$21 (US$14) double
for a powered site.
Knotts Crossing Resort At this low-key resort, you have a choice of huge,
well-furnished motel rooms, some with kitchenettes, minibars, and in-room dataports
and fax machines; cabins with a kitchenette inside and their own private
bathrooms just outside the door; or campgrounds, all located among the tropical
landscaping. The “village” rooms are a good penny-wise choice, built in 1998 and
smartly furnished with a double bed and bunks, a kitchenette, and joint veranda
facing a small private pool with a barbecue. Locals meet at the casual bar beside
the pool, and Katie’s Bistro is one of the smartest places to eat in town.
Corner Giles and Cameron sts., Katherine, NT 0850.& 1800/222 511 in Australia, or 08/8972 2511. Fax 08/
8972 2628. www.knottscrossing.com.au. 123 units (some with shower only; cabins have adjacent private
bathroom), 75 powered and unpowered campsites. A$75 (US$49) double cabin; A$85 (US$55) double “village”
room; A$120–A$145 (US$78–US$94) double motel room; A$135 (US$88) family of 4, motel family
room. Extra adult A$10 (US$6.50), extra child under 13 A$5 (US$3.25) cabin or village room; extra adult A$10
(US$6.50) motel room. Unpowered site A$10 (US$6.50) per person per night. Powered site A$22 (US$14) per
night single or double. Extra adult A$10 (US$6.50), extra child A$5 (US$3.50). AE, DC, MC, V. Complimentary
transfers from airport or bus stop. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; 2 outdoor pools (1 large and attractive, 1
small); Jacuzzi; tour desk; car-rental desk; limited room service; self-service laundry; same-day dry
cleaning/laundry service; free barbecue. In room: A/C, TV w/pay movies, fridge, no phone in cabins.