How to add a little Indigenous flavour to your Australian holiday
Overseas travellers want to experience Australia’s fascinating Indigenous cultures – but don’t always know how. Here’s an easy guide to immersing yourself in the ancient.
Aboriginal guide Juan Walker’s guests once included an American couple travelling with their teenage granddaughter, who wanted to learn more about Indigenous cultures on a dream birthday trip to Australia. Juan took them on a day out with Walkabout Cultural Adventures and showed them around Kuku Yalanji Country near Port Douglas, north of Cairns / Gimuy. Over the morning, the multi-generational family learned which plants make good bush medicine. On a remote beach, they twisted their feet into wet sand to unearth pipis – small shellfish that would go into their lunch.
At Juan’s home town of Cooya Beach, they picked up bamboo spears and cruised through the saltwater shallows towards a lone mangrove, scanning the clear water for mud crabs lurking on the rippled sand. They soon discovered spearing crabs isn’t as easy as Walker makes it look. After several crabs were bagged, everyone scrubbed their hands with silver wattle (or soap bush) and headed to watch Juan cook their lunch they’d gathered through traditional hunting practices.
Adding an unforgettable Aboriginal experience like Walkabout Cultural Adventures to an Australian holiday itinerary is not as daunting as it may first seem. For first-time visitors to Australia – who tend to explore the “golden triangle” of Cairns / Gimuy, Sydney / Warrane and Uluru – here are some suggestions on how to include a layer of ancient knowledge from each place while ticking off the must-see sights of rainforest, reef, city and desert.
Tropical North Queensland is also home to Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel. Departing from Cairns / Gimuy for the world-famous Great Barrier Reef, the day tour includes storytelling from First Nations cultural guides drawn from local Aboriginal groups and the Torres Strait Islands (scattered between Australia’s northern tip and Papua New Guinea).
Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel, Queensland
The guides share their connection to Sea Country and show passengers the tools used for hunting and making fire, as well as clap sticks played in ceremonial dances. The tour takes you to two Outer Reef sites where you can dive or snorkel and there’s also an optional helicopter ride over Moore reef.
In Sydney / Warrane, you can learn about the Aboriginal peoples’ spiritual connection to the harbour and its surrounds on a jaw-dropping ascent of the Sydney Harbour Bridge with a First Nations Guide. Book the Burrawa Aboriginal Climb Experience to see famous sites through historic eyes.
Ochre is smeared onto your face at the start of the tour and you’ll learn about the role of ochre in Indigenous ceremonies and the deep relationship between Aboriginal peoples and the land, water and seasons.
Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, is the landmark that symbolises Australia’s geographic and spiritual heart. The destination offers a multitude of ways to connect to desert cultures. At Ayers Rock Resort, you can browse incredible paintings and other artworks at the Gallery of Central Australia, or perhaps join a tour to discover bush tucker and traditional medicines. Journey deeper into desert cultures on a SEIT - Aboriginal experiences our where you will join the traditional Uluru family and hear how they survived in this desert environment before the advent of tourism in the region.
