Edge of the outback Broken Hill & Silo Art Trail 7 Days / 6 Nights Monday 4 th - Sunday 10 th September 2017 The Tour Includes: Door to door pick up and return Luxury coach travel (Daytripper Tours) 6 Nights Quality Motel Accommodation Meals as per itinerary (19 meals) All Entry Fees and Guides as per Itinerary Tour Highlights: Hanging Rock Picoli s Spannerman Flying Doctor Visitor Centre Historic Silverton Hotel Silverton School Education Museum Silverton Gaol Museum Living Desert State Park & Sculptures Mundi-Mundi Lookout Historical Railway Museum Whites mineral Art & Mining Museum Bells 150 s Milk Bar & Museum Pro Hart Gallery Silo Art Trail J Ward Guided Tour Silverton Broken Hill Sulphide St Railway & Historical museum Highlights of Broken Hill tour School of the Air Day Dream Mine Surface Tour Silver City Mint & Art Gallery Brim & Lascelles Silo Art Sheep Hills & Rupanyup Silo Art Patchewollock Silo Art
Day 1 - Monday: Melbourne Swan Hill - Lunch & Dinner This morning we begin the first leg of our journey towards the outback. As we head towards Swan Hill our first stop will be at Hanging Rock for Morning Tea. This 6.2-million-year-old rock was the inspiration and setting for the novel Picnic at Hanging Rock which also inspired the well-known film of the same name. We then head towards Bendigo for lunch. After lunch, we make our way towards Bort where we stop for a visit with the amazing Spannerman the creation of retired farmers John and Sonia Piccoli. Here we stroll through the two acre garden, home to many large sculptures made from old and antique spanners placed amongst trees and garden beds. Our next stop is our Motel in Swan Hill, to freshen up before heading out for a lovely dinner at the Swan Hill RSL. Overnight: Swan Hill Day 2 - Tuesday: Swan Hill to Broken Hill - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner This morning we have an early start as we continue to make our way towards Broken Hill at the edge of the outback. We will stop at Euston, a small town on the banks of the Murray River in southern New South Wales for morning tea before heading to Dareton to stop to stretch our legs and enjoy lunch at the Coomealla Club before making our way up the Silver City Highway to Broken Hill, travelling through and the vast inland and contrasting landscape of Australia before arriving in the Silver City. On arrival in Broken Hill we drive down Argent Street and realise that we have arrived in a special place. The architecture of the stately old buildings provides an extraordinary contrast to the outback wilderness of our journey. Broken Hill is a city of extremes. One hundred billion dollars of ore has been generated out of the mines in Broken Hill. It is the largest single source of lead, silver and zinc ore ever discovered on earth. After our arrival we check into out motel before enjoying dinner in the on-site restaurant.
Day 3 - Wednesday: Broken Hill - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner Our first port of call is the Broken Hill Tourist Information Centre to learn a little more about this magical town. Next on to The Flying Doctor Visitor Centre. Early last century, Flynn of the Inland dreamt of bringing medical help from the air to people in the vast outback. Of the 20 Flying Doctor bases around Australia, the Broken Hill base is the only RFDS base open daily to the public. We enjoy a fascinating tour of the base, see the new Mantle of Safety Museum and see for ourselves a remarkable organisation s contribution to life in our vast outback. We visit White s Minerals, Art Gallery & Mining Museum where Whitey himself gives a fascinating tour of one of Broken Hill s best attractions depicting current & past mining methods & equipment. Experience an underground mine without going underground. Then onto the Astra Hotel for lunch This heritage building was built in the 1890s and has now been meticulously refurbished. Next we take a look at the Sulphide Street Railway and Historical Museum Complex which houses the Silverton Tramway Company locomotives & memorabilia in the original 1905 magnificent station building and grounds. The Broken Hill Migrant Heritage Museum, Hospital Museum, Ron Carter Transport Pavilion and the Tess Alfonsi Mineral Collection are also onsite. Later this afternoon we take a Highlights of Broken Hill tour to discover more about this magnificent town. We return to our motel to enjoy another delicious dinner together. Day 4 - Thursday: Silverton - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner This morning, for those who would like to rise early, is the option to visit Broken Hills School of the Air. In the session you will be able to talk with a teacher, watch an information DVD and sit in on a live lesson with the students and see how education is addressed for those children living in remote areas. Then we are off to spend the day exploring the famous Silverton Ghost Town described by many to be the film capital of Australia and the nation s liveliest ghost town. We spend some time at the Historic Daydream Mine which was founded in 1881, before the beginning of the Broken Hill Mining Company (BHP). We will take fully-guided surface tour of the old mine workings to see how this mine once operated, mined by Cornish men and boys sorting the silver - some as young as eight years old. (Sturdy Footwear is required for this tour). We then head into Silverton and visit the Silverton School Education Museum and Silverton Gaol Museum. We will enjoy lunch with the characters at the legendary Silverton Hotel with its wall to wall memorabilia of Mad Max and Co. After lunch there is some free time to take a stroll around the Galleries and Museums. We travel a short distance to the Mundi Mundi Lookout where if ever you were to stand on the edge of the earth it would be here. Then it s up to The Living Desert and International Sculpture Site to view the huge carved monoliths then enjoying a magical outback sunset (Weather Permitting) before dinner at our Broken Hill motel.
Day 5 - Friday: Broken Hill to Mildura - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner This morning we head to the Pro Hart Gallery to view one of the largest private collections in the country featuring Australian and European works. We then pay a visit to Bells 1950s Milk Bar & Museum. For generations, people have been coming from far and wide to taste the famous sodas, spiders, and milkshakes from this magical shop. What a great place for morning tea! The we are off to The Silver City Art Gallery and Mint to immerse ourselves in the amazing landscape of the Big Picture. The magnificent Australia landscape is the Worlds Largest Acrylic Painting on Canvas measuring an amazing 100m in length x 12m in height. We also find original paintings and limited edition lithographs and Jewellery made from Broken Hill silver which are for sale as are the delights of the Silver City Chocolate Factory. We then bid farewell to this amazing edge of the outback town as we head towards Mildura, our destination for the night. Lunch and comfort stops along the way before we arrive at our motel with a chance to freshen up before dinner. Overnight Mildura Day 6 - Saturday: The Silo Art Trail - Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner This morning after a lovely cooked breakfast we head towards Horsham and begin our journey along the 200KM outdoor gallery of sky-high art the Yarriambiack Shire's fabulous Silo Art Trail, with visits to Patchewollock, Lascelles, Brim, Rupanyup and Sheep Hills to view the magnificent murals. We will stop at each of the sites and learn more about the folk who have been painted. We will visit the Patchewollock Community Store for morning tea and the Brim Hotel for lunch. A chance to chat with the towns locals and learn more about these small communities. After we take in the Silos at Rupanyup we head to our motel in Horsham where we will enjoy a restful nights sleep after a lovely meal. Overnight Horsham
Day 7 - Sunday: Horsham Home Breakfast & Lunch This morning we depart Horsham and begin our drive back home as we travel down to Ararat. Here we will visit J Ward Museum for a guided tour explaining the early history of the goldfield times and later, the incarceration of the criminally insane. A very interesting tour indeed!. We will then travel on to Ballarat where will celebrate our final meal together. We travel back down through Melbourne before arriving home on the Peninsula late in the afternoon after a delightful few days touring the Silver City of Broken Hill and the Silo Art Trail with Daytripper Tours. Tour cost: $1790.00 per person Twin Share ($460.00 single supplement) Minimum 20 Paying Passengers required. Tour Price is Valid until October, 2017. Please note that itinerary is subject to change without notice. All Activities, Highlights and Accommodation subject to availability Please send $100pp deposit & Booking Form provided to secure your seats.