Australia

Journey Beyond Rail ExpeditionsThe Ghan, the Indian Pacific and the long middle

Journey Beyond runs four long-distance trains: The Ghan, the Indian Pacific, Great Southern and The Overland. Between them they link Darwin, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney and Brisbane. Each turns a continent-sized distance into a few days on board, with sleepers, regionally sourced meals and stops where you step off.

The network reaches from Darwin in the north down to Adelaide, and right across the country from Sydney to Perth, with Brisbane and the southern routes on individual services. You board at a city-centre station.

Discuss this journey Before you go

Read this page in Chinese

PlaceAustralia

TypeLong-distance train

SuitsSlow inland travel

Stay3–4 nights

Red centre and Nullarbor, one window at a time

Australia — Long-distance train.

The trains join the inland to the big cities. The Ghan runs north to south through the Red Centre; the Indian Pacific goes east to west. Choosing a train here means choosing a direction across the continent first, and the scenery follows from that. There is no neutral option.

Off the train, the journeys reach places that are hard to get to any other way, and the stops belong to the product rather than interrupting it. Nights, classes and time ashore differ between the four trains, so no single set of activities covers them all.

It suits a first look at Australia's inland scale, and travellers who like slow movement without long drives. If you would rather have a car and your own schedule, this is the wrong shape of trip; the timetable belongs to the train. Choose the train or the road, not both.

A passenger lying back beside a sleeper window, curtain half drawn, dry country passing outside at speed — Resting by the window of a sleeper cabin

A train seen from a distance running through low grey-green scrub, no buildings and no hills on the plain — The train crossing a wide stretch of scrub

A red locomotive standing on a single track in open desert, heat haze above the rails and a hard blue sky

The size of the continent, in days

Red earth, dry grass and plains with no visible edge follow one another across several days rather than one flight. The distance is the point, and it is best watched from a seat with nothing else to do. That has become a rare kind of travel.

People gathered at outdoor tables beside a train stopped near a river, string lights and a wide evening sky

Getting off at a remote stop

Depending on the train, you step out for a gorge, an old mining town or a night sky with no light around it. These are the parts glass cannot show you, and they are built into the route rather than offered as an optional extra.

A train passing between pale-barked trees and red rock outcrops, autumn colour on the ground beside the track

Regional food and a regional list

The kitchen and the wine list follow the states and wine regions the train crosses, so dinner late in the trip tastes of somewhere else entirely. Menus, dining rooms and service levels sit with the class you book, which is worth comparing alongside the cabin. Both decide how the days feel.

A long train winding through open country at sunset, dust and warm light around the carriages as it curves away

Route

A skeleton for a long Australia trip

The Ghan can hold the Northern Territory and South Australia together; the Indian Pacific can string Sydney, Adelaide and Perth onto one line. A full crossing takes three to four nights, so give the cities at either end two nights each and let the train carry the middle.

Choosing the train before the flights

Each train keeps its own seasonal calendar. Confirm the departure you want, then book the domestic flights and hotels around it.

Stay

A full transcontinental route usually takes three to four nights. Add two nights in the city at each end, so the train sits inside the trip rather than at its edge.

Getting there

You board at a city-centre station. The routes are seasonal, so arrange domestic flights around a confirmed departure rather than the other way round.

Season

The Ghan, the Indian Pacific and Great Southern each keep their own seasonal timetable. Settle the train dates first, then buy the internal flights.

Watch out

Off-train experiences, cabin classes and the number of nights all change with the route. Compare them train by train instead of assuming one format carries across.

Plan this into a journey

The train decides the dates and the direction. The cities at each end, and how many nights you give them, are the decisions still open.

[email protected]

Read this page in Chinese

Discuss this journey