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Katherine Gorge & Edith Falls Day Trip: Intimate Exploration of Nitmiluk National Park from Darwin
4.5
112 Ratings
Darwin City
Embark on an intimate day trip to Katherine Gorge and Edith Falls in Nitmiluk National Park. Explore stunning landscapes, take a boat cruise through the gorge, and learn about the rich history and culture of the Jawoyn people.
Embark on an intimate day trip to Katherine Gorge and Edith Falls in Nitmiluk National Park. Explore stunning landscapes, take a boat cruise through the gorge, and learn about the rich history and culture of the Jawoyn people.
Duration:
13 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Darwin - We depart Darwin’s inner-city early, so we can make the most of our time exploring the Nitmiluk National Park and surrounding areas onboard our Katherine Gorge & Edith Falls day trip.
- Adelaide River - After leaving Darwin in the morning, we travel south along the famous Stuart Highway through Adelaide River and Pine Creek towards…
- Darwin - We depart Darwin’s inner-city early, so we can make the most of our time exploring the Nitmiluk National Park and surrounding areas onboard our Katherine Gorge & Edith Falls day trip.
- Adelaide River - After leaving Darwin in the morning, we travel south along the famous Stuart Highway through Adelaide River and Pine Creek towards Katherine.
- Nitmiluk National Park - Discover the endemic flora and fauna of this fascinating region of the Northern Territory with your guide’s historical and cultural commentary as we journey through Nitmiluk National Park. The Katherine River and Edith Falls are two of the most famous attractions in this region
- Nitmiluk (Katherine) Gorge - There is no better way to experience Katherine Gorge (Nitmiluk) than with the NitNit Dreaming boat cruise. On the NitNit Dreaming cruise, you will travel through the middle of cliff faces 70m high as the sun’s natural lighting changes the colours of the landscape and rock formations as you travel through the gorge.
- Edith Falls - Edith Falls (Leliyn), with its huge natural plunge pool, is a great place to take a refreshing dip or simply relax and enjoy your surroundings. (*swimming is subject to seasonality) Views over the escapement can be seen from several lookout points along the walk
- Darwin - After enjoying an action-packed day of natural beauty, we slowly make our way back to Darwin arriving sometime between 7:30pm and 8:00pm.
What's Included
- Air-conditioned comfortable mid-sized coach travel
- Guided bush walks (1-2km, subject to fitness level)
- A boat cruise through Katherine Gorge
- Comprehensive local tour commentary
- Hosted by an accredited outback driver guide
- Air-conditioned comfortable mid-sized coach travel
- Guided bush walks (1-2km, subject to fitness level)
- A boat cruise through Katherine Gorge
- Comprehensive local tour commentary
- Hosted by an accredited outback driver guide
What's Not Included
- Meals not included. Guests will have an opportunity to support locals and buy lunch along the way.
- Hotel transfers pre/post tour itinerary to a nominated pickup point.
- Meals not included. Guests will have an opportunity to support locals and buy lunch along the way.
- Hotel transfers pre/post tour itinerary to a nominated pickup point.
Additional Information
When visiting the Top End, be sure not to miss this day trip! Our journey takes us south on the renowned Stuart Highway, passing the communities of Adelaide River and Pine Creek, and heading towards Katherine and Nitmiluk National Park.
Discover the beauty of this area in the Northern Territory. Sit back and listen as your tour guide shares historical…
When visiting the Top End, be sure not to miss this day trip! Our journey takes us south on the renowned Stuart Highway, passing the communities of Adelaide River and Pine Creek, and heading towards Katherine and Nitmiluk National Park.
Discover the beauty of this area in the Northern Territory. Sit back and listen as your tour guide shares historical facts and cultural insights. The tour includes the unmissable NitNit Dreaming two-hour Katherine Gorge (Nitmiluk) boat cruise. You’ll find yourself travelling amid 70m high cliff faces, the changing hues of the sun illuminating the landscape and rock formations in a constantly shifting display.
Immerse yourself in the lore of the land’s original inhabitants, the Jawoyn people of Katherine, as you explore this impressive site. Afterwards, we travel to the beautiful Edith Falls (Leliyn).*Based on the schedule of the boat cruise, Edith Falls (Leliyn) may be visited either before or after the Katherine Gorge (Nitmiluk) boat cruise. Our trip concludes with a leisurely journey back to Darwin.
- A minimum moderate level of fitness is required to complete the walks.
- Child policy 6 years old and over, not suitable for children 5 years old and under.
- This itinerary may vary to adapt to seasonal changes and occasionally spots in the parks close or do not allow swimming. As safety is our top priority we plan accordingly to ensure our guests have the most fun and best experience possible while on tour.
- Please ensure you have checked the average temperatures for the time of year you are travelling and have packed adequate clothing.
- Prior to booking, we strongly recommend guests purchase travel insurance.
Location
Travelodge Resort Darwin
Cavenagh Street
Our main meeting point for this tour will be outside the entrance to the Travelodge Darwin, 64 Cavenagh Street at 6.30am. Please wait out the front gates and not in the hotel foyer, to avoid missing the bus.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.5
(112 Ratings)
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Banester1989
Apr 27, 2025
Unforgettable Day in Katherine! - I joined this tour on April 20, 2025. There were two guides with us throughout the day—unfortunately, I’ve forgotten their names, but I believe one of them might have been Dani (apologies if I got that wrong! 😊).
The tour was absolutely fantastic, and both guides were knowledgeable and informative about the area. Every stop along the way was memorable—from the beautiful Edith Falls to the scenic gorge cruise, which was definitely the highlight of the day. The visit to the art gallery added a nice cultural touch and rounded out the experience perfectly.
I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone wanting to explore the main highlights of Katherine in a single, well-organized day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Melita
Apr 20, 2025
Well worth it! Stunning - A very long day so be prepared!
Plenty of short stops to stretch your legs and see things of interest along the way.
Edith Falls stunning with a lot of water coming down from fresh rains, couldn’t walk to the top because of that, plan B was just as good.
Went to an art gallery .. amazing works to purchase and view.
Nitmiluk Gorge was breathtakingly gorgeous.. do both gorges as the 2nd one is where it’s at!
You can feel ‘country’ here.
Our guides Dani and Adrian were insightful, and had lots of stories to tell.
Loved it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carolynr900
Apr 18, 2025
Katherine Gorge - Well worth a visit - Katherine Gorge - outstanding with good commentary and two boat rides. Edith falls were spectacular and would have loved longer there but hard as on tighter schedule even leaving at 6.30am. Chris the driver was friendly, informative and attentive and ensured all present after every stop. Gave clear instructions and expectations to enable everything to run very smoothly. Great trip!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Catherine_g
Mar 2, 2025
It's a long way to Katherine, but worth it - Definitely a very long day, and a lot of time on the bus. As it is wet season less stuff is open, but our driver managed to make our breaks down to Katherine interesting and educational. Once AT Katherine, the gorge(s) are of course GORGEous. Truly a beautiful part of Australia, and I would love to come back in the dry season and experience more of it, including water sports in the later gorges, and view rock art in the area. Also say the water buffalo of Crocodile Dundee fans, and learned that it was loosely based on a real person!
Review provided by Viator
307kamalp
Nov 3, 2024
Well organised and very enjoyable - A day tour with a hike to Leliyn - Edith Falls which included a quick dip at the natural pool and then to Nitmiluk National park to see the Katherine gorge inclusive of a boat ride sounded exhaustive, but this was exactly what the Autopia tours have nicely compressed into their package to this part of the Northern Territory. Distance from Darwin was several hundred kilometres and our group comprised of a mix of young and elderly. We were picked up from the hotel around 6.30 in the morning while it was still dark and we were able to witness the sunrise along our way on the Stuart Highway heading to Adelaide River where we broke journey at the "Adelaide River Post office and store" for refreshing and picking up food items for breakfast and or lunch. This was an interesting rural café, post office and a store where we were able to get coffee and pick up some delicious Sandwiches to take for our lunch on-the-go. Our driver guide “Rick” gave us a fantastic commentary about Darwin during the second world war and the consequences of bombings and he explained many other things of tourist value in the areas we were crossing during the journey. He took us passing the World War II cemetery in Adelaide River which was supposed to be the only one in Australian soil, which appeared to be very well maintained and then to the old causeway across Adelaide River showing us the level to which this river rose during the last devastating floods which submerge a large land mass. We had another stop at Pine Creek to refresh ourselves and finally arrived at Leliyn “Jawoyn Leliyn Kiosk” where we refreshed again and began our hike, first to the Bemang lookout of Edith falls and then to the upper pool for a quick dip and thereafter proceeded to get back to the bus. Rick took care of us by joining us on the hike and always remained closer to the weaker elderly to make them feel safe and assisted. The hike was a bit strenuous in warm weather, a bit more than expected for some but with a slower pace everyone was able to complete the loop to hurry to the next destination. Edit Fall was very pretty cascading down in two tiers. Water temperature was extremely soothing for the bathers.
Boat operators were ready and waiting to welcome us for the boat ride and Autopia travels have pre-booked our tickets and it was a quick transfer on a ramp to the awaiting boat to commence the tour. The Katherine gorge tour was excellent and memorable. The pre-historic rock art were marvellous. The tour was well organised and we were in safe and caring hands of the driver guide “Rick” who did an excellent job.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Francisr_a
Oct 26, 2024
A beautiful bumpy ride to a beautiful gorge - Edith Fall was great and we had lots of time to swim. Then the Gorges. Always beautiful. The weather was too hot for more. The smaller 4WD bus was good but it was hard on the back at highway speed for a group of advanced seniors. A beautiful
Review provided by Viator
Tour55211193883
Apr 21, 2025
A long day on a bus, but the Gorge is worth it - Be prepared for a long day! The itinerary states you’ll be back by 8pm (with an early 6:30am departure) however we were back closer to 8:30pm and that was with quick pit stops.
We did enjoy this tour and Katherine Gorge is stunning. The only feedback I would have is that a light lunch isn’t included, we had to purchase ourselves at the pitstops on the way (which were more servo truck stop places). I feel that with this price point a light lunch, like salad sandwiches with some proteins could have sufficed. Secondly, after reading the requirements for the tour it stated that an NT parks day permit is required to enter Nitmiluk Gorge and that this is also not included in the price, but an additional cost to the customer. We purchased our permits and then didn’t even need them, or weren’t checked for them at all. It was only $20, but annoying when it didn’t seem to be required for this tour.
Otherwise than that, we were happy with this tour and our guide was great too. The stop off at Edith falls was quite quick however, it’s a long way to Katherine from Darwin and you to need to make it in time for the cruise. The Nitmiluk cruise was incredible though, well worth it! Only recommendation would be that you don’t do this tour, if you have an early flight the next day (only due to the late finish time).
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jan
Dec 15, 2024
A very long and hot day but worth it - It was a long day and Tim the bus driver kept us going with bits of information as we drove down "the track" but to me the highlight was the boat trip and a huge shout out to the young woman who was our guide and boat driver on the Gorge. I'm so sorry I can't remember her name but she was engaging, funny and knowledgeable and had nija boat driving skills.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shelleymills_m
Oct 3, 2024
Great trip with lovely people - Fabulous tour guide! Naomi was well informed, friendly and had great stories to tell. We did a bonus detour to Katherine Springs.
A great day !
Review provided by Viator
Anna_a
Sep 29, 2024
Don’t miss Katherine Gorge - Loved Katherine gorge, beautiful peaceful cruises, the walk between the two boats is also nice.
Edith falls a bit disappointing, but really nice to have a dip and a cool off. Grounds are well kept and clean.
Great driver tour guide. Well organised
Thanks
Definitely recommend.
Review provided by Viator
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