Darwin to Broome in 4 weeks?

by Sheena
(Ocean Shores NSW)

My husband and I plan to spend 4 weeks driving from Darwin to Broome, touring the Kimberleys in a hire 4wd camper. We are flying to Darwin late August and will be travelling to Katherine stopping off at Kakadu for a few days. Then travelling the Gibb River Road through the Kimberleys. We were planning on flying out of Broome but are wondering if we should travel back to Darwin via Great Northern Highway so we can do the Bungle Bungles? We also would like to travel to Cape Leveque.

What do you suggest as we do not want to be pulling up camp everyday. We obviously want to make the most of our time and get to see and experience as much as we can. Do you have a suggested itinerary for a 4 week period? Also
do you also have any advise on reputable 4wd camper hire companies or mainly the ones to avoid!

Lots of questions B!! Thanks for your help and your great website.

Regards
Sheena

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Darwin to Broome in 4 weeks?

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by: Birgit

Hi Sheena,

No, I don't think it makes sense to drive back to Darwin. You can visit the Bungles from Kununurra. That's a much smaller detour than going all the way back to Darwin. And you wouldn't even have to backtrack. You can use the Duncan Road for one leg. The drive will not be as stunning as it is early in the season, but it's still a nice drive and there are a few pools and gorges on the southern end of it that would make a good camp for a night.

I can't suggest an itinerary. With that much time there are so many options and choices, and a lot of it depends on personal preference.

Most people have a lot less time than you do. If all you do in the Territory are the few days in Kakadu, and then head west from Katherine, you should have plenty of time to see everything you want to see. If you are camping then you are also very flexible and can make adjustments on the way. And you certainly won't need to move camp every day! If you are in a campervan, then moving camp isn't a big deal anyway. Nothing much to set up and pull down...

Have a look at some of the itineraries from other readers here. That might help you to get started when putting together an outline for yours.

The Derby Visitor Centre also has itineraries for the Gibb River Road here. You see, it's possible to spend anything from 3 to 20 days!

Just grab a map, decide the places you want to stop at, put a rough outline together and see what you end up with. Then tweak until you have about 4 weeks there. Then we can work from that.

As for the 4WD hire companies, I obviously have no personal experience and you see good and bad comments about all of them. And usually the people who had a bad experience are the most vocal...

It's rather a question of what size vehicle and what comforts you are after, what they have available, and what they can offer in terms of one way hire fees, insurance etc.

Just make sure you clarify what exactly the insurance covers and also where you are allowed to take the vehicle and where not.

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Submitted by: Birgit

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Hi Sheena, No, I don't think it makes sense to drive back to Darwin. You can visit <a href="http://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/bungle-bungles.html">the Bungles</a> from <a href="http://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/kununurra.html">Kununurra</a>. That's a much smaller detour than going all the way back to Darwin. And you wouldn't even have to backtrack. You can use the <a href="http://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/duncan-road.html" rel="nofollow">Duncan Road</a> for one leg. The drive will not be as stunning as it is early in the season, but it's still a nice drive and there are a few pools and gorges on the southern end of it that would make a good camp for a night. I can't suggest an itinerary. With that much time there are so many options and choices, and a lot of it depends on personal preference. Most people have a lot less time than you do. If all you do in the Territory are the few days in Kakadu, and then head west from Katherine, you should have plenty of time to see everything you want to see. If you are camping then you are also very flexible and can make adjustments on the way. And you certainly won't need to move camp every day! If you are in a campervan, then moving camp isn't a big deal anyway. Nothing much to set up and pull down... Have a look at some of the <a href="http://www.kimberleyaustralia.com/kimberley-trip-itineraries.html">itineraries from other readers here</a>. That might help you to get started when putting together an outline for yours. The Derby Visitor Centre also has <a href="http://www.derbytourism.com.au/pages.asp?code=55" target="_blank">itineraries</a> for the Gibb River Road here. You see, it's possible to spend anything from 3 to 20 days! Just grab a map, decide the places you want to stop at, put a rough outline together and see what you end up with. Then tweak until you have about 4 weeks there. Then we can work from that. As for the 4WD hire companies, I obviously have no personal experience and you see good and bad comments about all of them. And usually the people who had a bad experience are the most vocal... It's rather a question of what size vehicle and what comforts you are after, what they have available, and what they can offer in terms of one way hire fees, insurance etc. Just make sure you clarify what exactly the insurance covers and also where you are allowed to take the vehicle and where not.

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