Festival of Outback Opera 9 Day Tour

Your Festival of Outback Opera begins today with a QantasLink flight from Brisbane to Longreach. On arrival at Longreach Airport, you’ll be met by your Outback Aussie Tours Driver/Guide before you head out to Winton for your first night in the Outback.

4 Nights at the Boulder Opal Motor Inn, Winton

After breakfast, we encounter the Rangelands, a perfect Winton landscape welcome, where erosion has created narrow channels (rifts) through the rock formation. After exploring this incredible ecosystem, enjoy the spectacular views from the lookout with smoko. Mid-morning, we take a tour of Winton, offering a fantastic introduction to this special community. Take in the nostalgia of the classic Tattersalls Hotel for lunch. Take your time to refresh at the accommodation, before we join the celebrations of the Festival of Outback Opera opening event at The Royal Theatre. Tonight, enjoy dinner at the famous North Gregory Hotel.

Start the morning with a short drive out of town to the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum, perched high on a spectacular mesa. Join a guided interpretive tour of the laboratory and collection room, while getting the chance to explore the March of Titanosaurs exhibition. After lunch, travel back to Winton for some leisure time prior to dinner. It’s time to head off to the Dustarena, hosted by the Crackup Sisters, to sit back and enjoy a performance celebrating opera and contemporary music.

After breakfast, enjoy a lazy morning around Winton and the chance to experience the Outback Opera Pop-up surprise appearances. Late morning, explore the Waltzing Matilda Centre, the only museum in the world dedicated to a song. We then join the ever interesting ‘Cultural Conversations’ opera event before lunch. This afternoon, enjoy a break before the signature event Outback Opera in Winton. Head back to the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum for some pre-event antipasto, and as night falls it’s time for the ‘Dark Sky Serenade’ outdoor gala concert. Under the dazzling night sky, with crystal clear air and glorious music, the stage becomes a cathedral of light. Post-performance, enjoy a light supper and Dinosaur Canyon night tour as a fun finish to an incredible day.

Enjoy time to reflect and explore downtown Winton, discover the Poet’s Café and enjoy a pop-up event, before joining the Winton ‘Long Lunch’ where you will dine in style with friends and other festival guests celebrating all things Outback cuisine. As the flavours dance on your palate, the music takes flight, with rich arias and delicious duets make this an afternoon to remember. Mid afternoon, travel to Longreach for another 3 great nights of your outback opera package.

3 nights at the Saltbush Retreat, Longreach

Receive a warm welcome at the historic Rosebank Station, originally settled as a sheep and cattle station some 100 years ago, for breakfast and a chat with the local Outback Aussie Tours owners, Alan and Sue Smith. After enjoying some leisure time downtown in Longreach, we visit Qantas Founders Museum for entry and an Airpark Tour including lunch. This afternoon, we retreat to our accommodation for a break, as tonight is the main Outback Opera event in Longreach, beginning with a champagne rail excursion to Camden Park Station to the spectacular ‘Singing in the Night’. This majestic concert showcases opera’s best loved hits among the spellbinding colours of the outback.

Enjoy a lazy start to the day with the renowned sing along event ‘Sing, Sing, Sing’. Revel in the backdrop that is the Drovers Place, with lunch before exploring the fascinating themed galleries at the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and discover inspiring stories of our pioneering heroes. Tonight, it’s time to dust off your riding boots and break out your ballgown for the Opera Ball. You’ll be treated to a cruise down the Thomson River, catching 360-degree sweeping, river and floodplain views as you travel. As the boat docks, enjoy an evening of fine dining, sublime singing, and dancing among the coolabahs on the famous river at Smithy’s Camp. This relaxed, yet stylish, gathering embodies the spirit and iconography of the Outback with its casual approach that adds just enough glitz to ensure the evening is a memorable one and fitting farewell to the Outback on our Festival of Outback Opera tour.

It’s time to board the famous Spirit of the Outback. Your train journey takes you east through the Great Diving Range and Central Highlands to Rockhampton and then south to Brisbane. Wonder at the ever-changing landscape – as the train travels through the very heart of Queensland and back to the coast. Your first-class travel includes your sleeper and the dining experience in the Tucker Box restaurant. As the Opera Queensland artists serenade you home to the romance of rail, reflect upon your unforgettable memories and once in a lifetime experience at Festival of Outback Opera.

1 Night on the Spirit of the Outback train

This morning, enjoy the final breakfast of the tour on board the Spirit of the Outback, as you arrive at Brisbane’s Roma Street Station with stories to tell your friends and family for years.