Travel to Northern Territory

Flying to Northern Territory

The Northern Territory can be reached by international flights to Darwin from Bali, Brunei, East Timor, Europe, Singapore and the UK. There are several international carriers operating to the Northern Territory, including British Airways, Garuda Indonesia, Qantas, Tiger Air and Royal Brunei.

There are several domestic airlines, including Airnorth (website: www.airnorth.com.au), Qantas (website: www.qantas.com.au) and Virgin Blue (website: www.virginblue.com.au), that cover the territory from all capital cities within Australia with connections from most other towns. Smaller commuter airlines connect some of the remoter areas within the territory.

Airport Guides

Flight times

From London to Darwin is 20 hours. Connections are available from most Asian airports.

Departure tax

None.

Travelling to Northern Territory by Rail

The main rail service to the Territory is by the Ghan from Adelaide, which travels to Darwin via Alice Springs; see Getting Around in the main Australia section for more information. There is no internal network.

Driving to Northern Territory

From Alice Springs, the nearest major town in any direction is Tenant Creek, 504km (313 miles) away, and consequently any car or caravan must be in prime mechanical condition. During the tropical summer from November to April, travel in the outback is advisable only in suitable cross-country vehicles, as many conventional roads become impassable for 2-wheel drive cars.

Getting to Northern Territory by boat

Main portDarwin (website: www.nt.gov.au/dpa), the Northern Territory's only large port.