Many travellers taking cheap flights to Alice Springs have just one thing on their minds - Uluru. The monolith of enormous, cultural, importance to the local Anangu people, is 440km south-west of Alice Springs. But if you do whizz in and out of the airport at Alice, you're missing a town with a beautiful setting, fascinating history and heaps of culture.
John McDouall Stuart, the explorer, camped close to Alice Springs in 1860, and the small settlement that grew around the telegraph station was known as Stuart Town for a time. Romantically, it was named Alice after the wife of Charles Todd, then superintendent of telegraphs. It officially became Alice Springs in 1933.
The town is nestled among the MacDonnell ranges (climb Anzac Hill for beautiful views of Alice Springs). To the west of Alice are Simpson’s Gap, Standley Chasm and the Finke Gorge National Park. To the east is Emily Gap, Trephina Gorge Nature park, Arltunga Historic Reserve, Ruby Gap Nature Park and N’Dhala Gorge.
Alice itself is a town of wide streets shaded by eucalyptus trees. It has a strong cultural and artistic tradition that matches its natural beauty. Along Todd Mall, art galleries exhibit and sell Aboriginal art works from local artists, including the renowned Albert Namatjira and Rex Batterbee, Namatjira's mentor.
Visitors should remember that Alice was home to Afghan cameleers, flying doctors (Alice is a major base of the Royal Flying Doctor Service) and tough outback explorers. None tougher, perhaps, than the women who settled here. Today, the National Pioneer Women's Hall Of Fame celebrates their contribution to life in the Northern Territory.
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This continental desert is, as you'd expect, dry, with hot summers and cool winters. Rainfall is sporadic. Summer temperatures range between the high 30s and 45 degrees, while winter temperatures can hover between 8 and 10 degrees during the day. Night-time temperatures can fall below zero degrees. The spring months (September and early October) can have very changeable weather - big variation in temperatures, thunder storms, dust storms and hail. The autumn months are, perhaps, the best time to take cheap flights to Alice Springs. The days are warm and the nights are cool and temperatures stay fairly static between day and night.
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Peak Season:
April to September is high season, when most travellers arrive on cheap flights to Alice Springs.
Off Season:
October to March is the low season.
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Avis, Budget, Hertz and other major car-rental companies have desks at Alice Springs Airport. There's an Airport Shuttle that operates 365 days per year, taking passengers to their accommodation. The cost is $18 single, for one person, or $29 for a couple (single fare). A taxi fare to the CBD costs about $32.
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It's easy to get around Alice Springs on foot and the ASBUS runs four services - North, South, East and West. Buses operates on weekdays and Saturday mornings (except public holidays). A $2 ticket (adult, $0.50 concession fare) entitles passengers to unlimited bus travel for three hours.
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- Alice Springs is a dry city except for the Telegraph Station picnic area and Namatjira's camp.
- The Reverend John Flynn was a Presbyterian minister and aviator who established the world's first air ambulance - the famous Royal Flying Doctor Service (the interactive museum is at 8-10 Stuart Terrace). The Flynn Trail is a self-guided heritage walk in and around Alice Springs. Some of the stops include Adelaide House, one of the oldest buildings in Alice Springs. It was built in 1920 by the Australian Inland Mission and has been, in its past, a hospital and a nurses' home. It's now a museum of local history. John Flynn Memorial Church was built after Flynn's death and fulfills his dream of a cathedral in Central Australia where people of different faiths could pray.
- There are several quirky festivals held in Alice Springs. The Henley-on-Todd Regatta is held in August, a race along the dry Todd River bed. The Bangtail Muster harks back to when cattle was the biggest industry in the Centre. Stockmen would cut the end of the cattle's tails to record the number of animals mustered. Today, there is a parade of colourful and humourous floats that starts near the Memorial Club and ends at Anzac Oval.
- Pitchi Richi Sanctuary was established in 1955 by Leo Corbet. It was originally proposed as a bird sanctuary, but Pitchi Richi has become better known for its collection of sculptures by William Ricketts, rock displays and items, such as old wagons, relating to pioneering times.
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