Organized Tours

Around Town & Out in the Desert

The Alice Wanderer bus (tel. 1800/722 111 in Australia, or 08/8952 2111; www.alicewanderer.com.au) does a running loop of 14 town attractions every 70 minutes, starting at 9am, with the last departure at 4pm. Hop on and off as you please and enjoy the commentary from the driver. The bus departs daily from the south end of Todd Mall. Tickets are sold on board and cost A$40 (US$36/£18) for adults, and A$30 (US$27/£14) for kids 4 to 14. Call for free pickup from your hotel. The ticket lasts for 2 days and you can use it on nonconsecutive days. The company also runs full- and half-day tours to outlying areas, including to Palm Valley in the West MacDonnell Ranges, costing A$105 (US$95/£47) for adults and A$75 (US$68/£34) for kids; to Bond Springs Cattle Station, costing A$95 (US$86/£43) for adults and A$65 (US$59/£29) for kids; and to Santa Teresa Aboriginal Community. Here you can meet local Aboriginal artists and view and purchase their work. This half-day tour costs A$130 (US$117/£59) for adults and A$100 (US$90/£45) for kids.

The bus calls at most of the attractions above, plus the Old Ghan Museum & Road Transport Hall of Fame, housing the original Ghan train that plied the Adelaide-Alice Springs line from 1929 to 1980; and Panorama Guth, an art gallery housing a 360-degree painting of central Australian landscapes by artist Henk Guth. It's well worth checking out the Alice Wanderer website to help you plan your time before you visit.

Many Alice-based companies offer minicoach or four-wheel-drive day trips and extended tours of Alice and of outlying areas including the East and West Macs, Hermannsburg, and Finke Gorge National Park. Among the well-regarded ones are Discovery Ecotours (tel. 08/8956 2563; www.ecotours.com.au) and Alice Springs Holidays (tel. 1800/801 401 in Australia, or 08/8953 1411; www.alicespringsholidays.com.au).

Several companies run tours by motorcycle or four-wheel-drive ATV (all-terrain vehicle). One option is Central Oz Tours (tel. 08/8953 4755; www.centraloz.biz).

Aboriginal Tours

I recommend a visit to the Aboriginal Australia Art & Culture Centre, 86 Todd St. (www.aboriginalart.com.au). Tours, with Aboriginal leaders, are very pricey, but then Aboriginal tours often come with a premium attached. The half-day tour features an explanation of the Dreamtime creation era; a gentle bush-tucker walk; a chance to throw a boomerang and spear; talks about tools and weapons over billy tea and damper; and a dance performance where you can have a go yourself and have your photo taken with the dancers. Threaded through all this is an ongoing discussion of Aboriginal culture, beliefs, family relationships, and a view of history both ancient and modern through Aboriginal eyes. You have a chance to buy art. The experience wraps up with a didgeridoo lesson. The tour departs daily at 8am and costs A$94 (US$85/£42) for adults and A$56 (US$50/£25) for children under 12, including hotel pickup. A full-day tour, including the West MacDonnell Ranges, costs A$165 (US$149/£74) for adults and A$66 (US$59/£30) for kids. The center also advertises a "Red Centre Dreaming dinner," with lots of dancing, atmosphere, and twinkling stars. The performance, with dinner and wine, costs A$98 (US$88/£44) for adults and A$55 (US$50/£25) for kids. Call tel. 08/8950 4444 to book.

Camel Safaris

The camel's ability to get by without water was key to opening the arid inland parts of Australia to European settlement in the 1800s. With the advent of cars, they were released into the wild, and today more than 200,000 roam Central Australia. Australia even exports them to the Middle East! Frontier Camel Tours (tel. 08/8950 3030; http://cameltours.ananguwaai.com.au) runs camel rides daily, with pickup from your hotel. A 1-hour Camel Ramble with associated activities costs A$55 (US$50/£25) for adults and A$35 (US$32/£16) for kids ages 5 to 15. A 1-hour sunset tour with dinner at the company's camel farm, where you can browse its camel museum and shop, costs A$115 (US$104/£52) for adults and A$85 (US$77/£38) for kids 5 to 15. It departs daily at 4pm May through September, and at 5pm October through April, and gets back around 4 1/2 hours later. Kids under 5 are not allowed to ride the camels. A breakfast ride, leaving at 6:30am and returning at 9:30am, costs A$89 (US$80/£40) for adults and A$53 (US$48/£24) for children. The company also runs camel tours near Uluru (Ayers Rock). Make sure you wear comfortable, casual clothes and sensible shoes -- you are likely to get a bit dirty.

Hot-Air Balloon Flights

Dawn balloon flights above the desert are popular in central Australia. You have to get up 90 minutes before dawn, though. Several companies offer flights. Outback Ballooning (tel. 1800/809 790 in Australia, or 08/8952 8723; www.outbackballooning.com.au) is one of the most upscale. A 1-hour flight followed by champagne breakfast in the bush costs A$385 (US$347/£173), with a 20% discount for kids 6 to 16. A 30-minute breakfast flight costs A$265 (US$239/£119). Kids under 6 are discouraged from participating because they cannot see over the basket. Don't make any other morning plans -- you probably won't get back to your hotel until close to noon.