Indian Pacific celebrates centenary with new tours

The Indian Pacific, the cross-continental rail journey from Sydney to Perth, is offering new off-train activities to mark 100 years since the line was completed.

New excursions include a foodie tour in Adelaide Hills, featuring artisan cheese and chocolate producers, followed by dinner in historic town Hahndorf; a theatre performance of Paddy Hannan’s Ounce of Luck, tracking the boom and bust of mining in Kalgoorlie; and an outback breakfast hosted in the remote Nullarbor town of Rawlinna.

Sister train The Ghan, which travels between Darwin and Adelaide, has doubled the number of extended departures to 26 for this year. The four-day extended journey is a day longer than standard departures, allowing a full day in opal mining town Coober Pedy, a longer tour of Alice Springs, with an optional upgrade to a scenic flight around Uluru, and dinner under the stars.

Weekly departures of The Ghan run from May 3 to October 25, with fares from £1,550 for a single Gold Service ticket from Darwin to Adelaide. Fares on The Indian Pacific start from £1,482 for a one-way Gold Service fare.