expatasia

http://www.adventuretours.com.au/


I found some reference to their tours in previous BE threads but like 7 or 8 years ago. Have you had any recent experiences with them good or bad?

Thanks

lou1003

They're a good quality tour, aimed at younger people/backpackers generally.


What trip were you thinking of doing?

expatasia

One out of Alice (Uluru, Kata Tjuta & Kings Canyon) - we're no spring chickens though.

Fancy a bit of the wild outdoors (hols mid-late Dec in Oz currently being planned) since cooped up here in the concrete jungle.

lou1003

They're fine for older people too - there are older people on the trips sometimes.
They're a bit more relaxed than other tours in my opinion - less regimented with a specific time to be where and at what time, everyone tends to help out with cooking the meals and cleaning up camp etc.
A bit more active - bit of walking involved, or a swim (not for the trips you're looking at though!)
I've only done one adventure tours tour and it was a day trip out the Blue Mountains. It was good though, they tend to more interactive than tours where they just talk facts to you. Give you a bit of an intro, a few facts here and there, otherwise just chatting where they give you info, rather than someone standing at the front of the bus talking for hours.

In terms of your trip, have you thought of maybe hiring a car and driving there from Alice yourself? Uluru is nice to see at sunset, and you can choose a variety of walks which might interest you more than the designated ones for the tour. The information centre there is very informative, and I believe they do free daily walks from there as well with a indigenous guide.
Kata Tjuta is a really good walk (Valley of the Winds), not particularly challenging in terms of hills or anything, but it gets very hot, so it closes at about 11am most days. You wanna get there for sunrise to do that. I really liked that walk though. More than Uluru!
Kings Canyon is a further drive away but also well worth the visit and the walk around the canyon rim. Long walk, challenging first 20 mins up the canyon edge, but spectacular walk and looks a bit like Mars on the top!

Just a thought - bit cheaper (yes you have to pay fuel/campsite/motel/food though), and gives you more flexibility to do the things you want to.

If you did want to go a tour though, Adventure Tours are one of the good operators.

expatasia

Yes, we usually rent a car when holidaying in Oz (eg Darwin some years ago) - how many hours is the drive to the places you just recommended? Would I have to book accommodation well well in advance since we're likely to be in the Alice vicinity from roughly Dec18-24(peak period)? We're planning to Ghan it or fly to Adelaide after Alice.

Thanks for the help.

lou1003

It's a fair bit of driving, and fuel prices are high there. (Nearly $2 a litre in some places).
I would guess at about 450km to Uluru.... Speed limit is 130kmph here.
So maybe 4 hours drive.
Then about another 3 hours (guessing) to Kings Canyon, and then you have to go back on yourself to get back to the highway and to Alice.

I loved the drive though. It's fascinating at how much of nothing there is there! You'll see a bit of wildlife, and I just love the massive space there is. I like driving though, so that's just me - not for everyone. Nice big empty roads, random locals and roadhouses, bit of music!

Have no idea about accommodation bookings... I was camping so just used rest areas for free at side of the road, or turned up at a campsite on the night.

At Uluru and Kings Canyon they hike the prices up a bit as there is only one "resort" at each place so they have the monopoly.
Both have a choice of camping, motel, hotel, backpackers etc.
Google Kings Canyon Resort and Uluru resort and you will prob be able to see availability/contact details.

expatasia

Yeah, I like the driving too - loved W.A. coast last time - but dreading the missus coming out with 'let's just fly to Uluru' - anyway, will have a good think & email Adventure Tours. Ta.