“A trip to the Northern Territory is a trip to the vagaries of Australian nature,” summarizes Pierre Vivès, Northern Territory Representative in France for the Australian Northern Territory Tourism Office for nearly twenty years.
After working for a French tour operator, the fifty-year-old decided to devote himself fully to Australia and the Northern Territory. “These are spectacular landscapes,” he explains. All distances are large. In the Northern Territory, you can walk for miles and miles without any pollution or human construction. This is Australian nature in its raw state. »
His taste for the area, which had “ochre, pink, orange or mauve” colors depending on the time of day, led him to settle there for a while. For now he is content to continue traveling there.
Strong tribal culture
Also known as the “Red Centre”, the vast state covering the heartland north of Australia is one of the most visited by tourists. With less than 300,000 people – a third of them tribal – the Northern Territory is the place where tribal culture is most represented. “This is the specialty of this region: there are more tribals than other states, which gives a certain color to the local life and culture.
Certain natural sites are considered symbols of this, such as the monolith of Uluru, a rock formation in the middle of the Red Center Desert, which local Aboriginal people still consider a sacred place today,” continues Pierre Vives. Australian Aboriginals practice spiritual beliefs and live in harmony with nature.
Many cities in the Northern Territory regularly celebrate tribal culture with festivals, open air shows and art events. It is located in Alice Springs, the capital of the Red Centre, where locals enjoy many cultural and sporting events. Further away from the cities, there are some rare territories where 100% tribal people live. “This is the situation in both the islands of Divi. Some of the best players come from there foot Australian,” observes Pierre Vivès. The most popular discipline in the country is a mix between football as we know it in France and rugby. The game is also practiced on an oval ball.
The Northern Territory is also home to Kakadu Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for its exceptional nature and cultural significance… This is where the comedy “Crocodile Dundee” was filmed, a mutation of marine crocodiles, freshwater crocodiles. Only in this corner of Australia.
In the same park, rock paintings dating back more than 40,000 years have been discovered, some of which are easily visible.
“These are great places to go hiking and sleep under the stars,” said judge Pierre Vivès.
Close to Asia
Another specialty of the Northern Territory is that it is closer to some Asian cities than other major Australian cities. “Darwin has the same climate as Bali – 30 degrees year-round with intense heat in summer. This has consequences for the lifestyle of people who live in flip-flops and t-shirts all year round,” underlines Pierre Vives. Our expert recommends starting your trip with a short stopover in Singapore to “take a break” from your flight. Travel fatigueLess than 5 hours by plane before continuing to Darwin while enjoying other landscapes.
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