The Ghan

Billed as one of the great railway journeys of the world The Ghan certainly lives up to its reputation. This I km long train winds itself from Adelaide to Darwin and back again once a week. Its the only continental crossing rail journey that runs north to south in the world. It gets its name from the camel trains used pre railroad to service the inland communities in Aus and supply the telegraph stations (most famously Alice Springs) dotted across the newly found continent. Any one running a camel train was called an Afghan which shortened leads to the name. Ironically the camel trains were used to build the rail road that put them out of business. Many of the camels were turned loose and now the country has around 1 1/2 million living wild.

If you are lucky enough to be on Gold Service and we were :) its fine dining and complementary drinks across a continent in the company of many interesting fellow travellers. Its a bit like the train in Murder on the Orient express apart form the dress code which being Oz is far more relaxed. An epic experience that will live in the memory for years to come:)