There’s no better way to see Australia than by rail. Carolyne Jasinski gets onboard with Great Southern for this hot-ticket experience
It’s hard to beat an experience that has become one of Australia’s favourite rail journeys.
But as I sip a glass of Grant Burge bubbles from the Barossa Valley with my feet up and the world gliding by outside, I have to say “cheers” to Journey Beyond for taking slow travel up another notch.
I’m on the new 11-day Southern Wine and Wildlife trek which starts with four days and three nights of classic rail travel full of Aussie scenery and an itinerary that mixes laid-back luxury with the chance to get out and explore some of the best bits.
To say the Great Southern offers a “snapshot” of Australia is not quite right. It’s more a long exposure landscape composition, from Brisbane in Queensland, to Adelaide in South Australia, or vice versa. The train crosses four states down along the east coast, then hugs the bottom of Victoria before heading west to SA. On show is the Aussie “bush”, farmlands, cities, wine regions and mountain ranges.
This is slow travel at its best – whether you like the solitude of your cabin or prefer to mingle in the Outback Explorer Lounge.
Cabins are ingeniously designed lounge rooms by day and bedrooms by night with big windows to make the most of the views. They are “intimate” but full of clever ways to use limited space. A coffee table folds out from the wall, there’s room for two carry-on-size cases under the couch, a tiny wardrobe, a cubby hole for books by the bed and hidden compartments for bins and a safe. And when you’re at dinner, it’s all transformed into bunk beds. You just have to fight about who climbs up top.
The Lounge carriage is the social hub where travellers from all over the world meet and chat over barista-style coffee or drinks from the open bar (included in the price). Right next door is the regal Queen Adelaide restaurant – the focal point for our mobile gourmet feast. This carriage reeks of old-world charm but the menu is thoroughly modern with chefs sourcing inspiration and ingredients from all over Australia.
Whether it’s sweet blood orange juice for breakfast, lemon myrtle adding tang to a fish dish or tart quandongs dressing up desserts, we get an innovative taste of Australia.
Excursions: The first stop is dinner by the beach at Coffs Harbour. Photo / Supplied, Journey Beyond Rail
Off-train excursions
It’s hard to leave the pampering of the train behind, but you’ll feel equally spoiled on the off-train excursions.
The first stop is dinner by the beach at Coffs Harbour. If Mother Nature decides to roll in a tropical storm, (like she did for us), Plan B for dinner is at the local golf course, watching lights reflect on tranquil ponds and sea dragons rest on the rocks.
On Day 2 you’ll have to choose between four-wheel-driving through sand dunes or a catamaran cruise at Port Stephens, exploring Newcastle or the Hunter Valley wine tour.
In Melbourne on Day 3, you can check out the street art on a guided laneway tour, learn about Australia’s famous bushranger Ned Kelly at the Old Melbourne Gaol or tour the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Then all guests meet sky-high at Eureka 89 for lunch, spectacular views and the chance to experience life on the Edge … a glass platform that extends from the Southern Hemisphere’s tallest public observation deck.
Wine lovers can swap this for a day at Clyde Park in the Moorabool Valley.
This might be Australia's longest wine-tasting trail. Photo / Supplied, Journey Beyond Rail
Australia’s longest wine-tasting trail
The wine focus of this journey begins on board the train with the wine list offering delicious drops from famous wine regions like the Hunter Valley, Barossa, McLaren Vale, Clare Valley, Coonawarra, Gundagai in NSW and Victoria’s Strathbogie Ranges and Nagambie. At 2885km, it could be Australia’s longest wine-tasting trail.
A tour of two Hunter Valley wineries in New South Wales is perfect for wine lovers. We discover semillon is the star at Brokenwood where all wines are made to drink immediately but designed to age well. And Tulloch Wines combines two of my favourite things – wine and chocolate. Five wines are matched with five chocolates. Mouth-watering mixtures like 2021 Cellar Door Prosecco with orange chocolate or a raspberry heart chocolate with a smooth NV 88 Red Shiraz Cabernet. Bliss.
But the gold medal for wine-tasting experiences goes to an exclusive tour of Penfolds Magill Estate Cellar Door in South Australia - the home of Grange. It starts at the heritage-listed Penfolds family cottage, still surrounded by grapevines planted in 1844.
Platinum Cabin accommodation aboard the Great Southern railway. Photo / Supplied, Journey Beyond Rail
This is where the Penfolds story began - when Dr Christopher and Mary Penfold arrived from the UK, bought 500 acres (200ha) of land, planted vine cuttings from South Africa and started making fortified wine.
Christopher started prescribing tonics (alias fortified wine) for early settlers suffering all sorts of ailments. His “doctor’s room” is preserved in the cottage which is named Grange after Mary’s ancestral home.
The tour then heads to the underground cellars – hand-dug in 1910. Max Schubert created his famous Grange wine back in 1951 and later hid entire vintages behind secret walls in these tunnels. The story goes that Grange was not appreciated when first presented and Max was told to stop production. Thankfully, he ignored that order and the result is wine-making history.
A structured tasting puts all that ingenuity, hard work and intrigue into perspective. And it includes my first sip of Grange – the 2017 vintage.
Rounding it all off is a leisurely lunch to mull it all over. What a day!
No better way to see Australia: Winding through Nana Glen. Photo / Supplied, Journey Beyond Rail
Going wild on Kangaroo Island
We fly to Kangaroo Island for the Great Southern wildlife focus, spending two days with Exceptional KI guides and meeting the “locals” - kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, Rosenberg goannas, glossy black cockatoos, echidnas, long-nose fur seals and Australian sea lions.
Almost half of the island was ravaged by bushfires in 2020 but the natural scrub has regenerated and the animals and birds are back. The tour takes you on to the beach at Seal Bay to watch seal pups play and their mums relax after days at sea hunting for food, and into Flinders Chase National Park to explore Remarkable Rocks and Admirals Arch.
It includes morning tea at beautiful Vivonne Bay where the sky and sea vie for the prettiest blue hues. You’ll take the roads less travelled to hidden pockets where koalas are almost guaranteed, then eat a barbecue lunch – often with a few of them watching on.
On the picturesque North Shore you might see dolphins swimming at Snelling Beach then climb through the cliffs to the “secret” beach at Stokes Bay. It’s another highlight on a trip full of them.
CHECKLIST: GREAT SOUTHERN
GETTING THERE
The Great Southern runs between Adelaide and Brisbane from December to February. Air New Zealand and Qatar fly direct from Auckland to Adelaide, and Air NZ, Qantas, and China Southern fly direct from Auckland to Brisbane.
