48 hours in Longreach: the heart of the outback

Given that the town is the spiritual home of Qantas, it makes sense to fly two hours from Brisbane into Longreach on QantasLink, or you can board the Spirit of the Outback, Queensland Rail’s bi-weekly service into town.

For roadtrippers, get your playlists ready for a journey that promises plenty of photo ops with red dirt and tufts of spinifex. Longreach is 1200km from Brisbane, and 700km from Rockhampton, Townsville and Mount Isa.

No matter how you get here, be sure to soak up the atmosphere of Artesian Country, which although gripped by years of drought, still puts on some of the best sunrises, sunsets and star trails in the world. 

12pm: Check in to your digs

Think the outback is all swags and country motels? Think again.

Capturing the essence of the outback, five-star Mitchell Grass Retreat is the ultimate luxury glamping retreat, equipped with air conditioning, ensuite bathroom, private outdoor deck, and stunning views from your canvas tent. Take time out to swim in the saltwater pool and relax around the evening fire pit under a starry night sky. 

Alternatively, over at Saltbush Retreat, there’s not a 1980s patterned bedspread or long-life milk sachet in sight at this rustic lodge. You'll fine the Outback Queensland spirit blends beautifully with comfort and style, from reclaimed stable headboards and copper sinks, to an outdoor bathtub that’s just calling for a soak.

Hotel amenities aside, Saltbush Retreat’s location scores major points. It’s mere steps from the Qantas Founders Museum, the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and just 25 minutes by foot to the centre of town.

2pm: Visit the QANTAS Founders Museum

Pay a visit to the most iconic brand to come out of the Outback, at the Qantas Founders Museum.

Australia’s national airline took off for the first time from Longreach, and the museum offers fun for young and young-at-heart with interactive aircraft exhibits, a flight simulator to put your pilot skills to the test, as well as decommissioned aircraft.

The highlight for most visitors is walking along the wing, going inside into the cockpit and standing inside the engines for photo opportunities to excite any aviation lover. 

5pm: Take in sunset from the Thomson

Whether you want to wet a line, take a dip or relax on a cruise, the Thomson River is where sunsets are best soaked.

Choose to spend sunset on the water, or overlooking it, for views of the puffy white outback clouds turning orange like cotton wool balls dipped in dye.

To see the sunset from the water, join Outback Pioneers for their Starlight’s Cruise Experience. This four-hour cruise motors down the river on a historic paddlewheeler, the only paddlewheeler west of the Great Divide. The tour is complete with stockman’s campfire dinner accompanied by bush poetry, a sound and picture show, and transfers to your accommodation.

Alternatively, you can join the award-winning Drover’s Sunset Cruise and Smithy’s Outback Dinner & Show. Take your seat on the top deck of the fully licensed Longreach Explorer as you cruise to Sunset Bend to capture an incredible outback sunset.  The cruise docks at Smithy’s Outback Dinner & Show, for an entertaining live show on the river stage while you tuck into a two-course camp oven dinner under the starry night sky.

But here’s a true local secret if you want to experience the bright sky of the outback. Just an hour from town, you’ll find a small rise called Starlight's Lookout. The road there is dirt, but graded. Arrive an hour or so before sunset, climb up the top with some drinks and snacks and watch the sunset over big sky country. When you get back to town, head to award-winning Harry’s Restaurant at Longreach Motor Inn for a hearty and heart-warming feast. 

Day 2

8am: Break bread, then go to school

Nothing beats a country-baked meat pie, so start your day as they do in Longreach: at Merino Bakery. With a population of 3,000 but home to over a million sheep, it makes sense that a crowd favourite is their roast lamb with caramelised onion pie. Grab some pastries for later: you’ve got a big day ahead.

And it begins in the world’s biggest classroom.

Pay a visit to Longreach School of Distance Education to see how students who live too far away to attend their local school receive their education and connect with their teacher and peers. We promise you’ll come away with a new appreciation for this type of learning, which is conducted by only 16 schools of this kind in Australia.

12pm: Visit the Stockman's Hall of Fame

Take your education to the next level and brush up on early Australian history at The Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre.

It’s not all pioneering theory – you’ll get the opportunity to fine-tune your whip cracking skills. Delve into 40,000 years of Aboriginal history, the establishment of farming and watch the live Outback Stockman’s Show. Not to mention, its recently rebuilt entranceway is a gorgeous architectural feat that does justice to its informal nickname "the Opera House of the outback".

4-8pm: Catch sunset on a station

Coming to the outback and missing a station tour is a bit like going to London and missing the London Eye. It’s an iconic experience, and at this Longreach station, you’ll score spectacular sunsets with an equally impressive dinner.  

Visit Camden Park Station to meet Dan Walker, a young grazier who is now managing 18,000 acres that makes up his family’s sheep and cattle station.

Outback Aussie Tours provide access to Rosebank Station where you can learn the incredible family stories of the McKenzie and Smith partnership era and be immersed in the atmosphere and exceptional hospitality of the homestead.

Want to get to know station life a little more? Here’s a few you can stay at in Outback Queensland. 

Day 3

6am: Soak in sunrise

How does an early morning soak in a tub, overlooking the sunrise while kangaroos nibble the grass sound to you? 

Make the most of the quiet outback mornings, and set your alarm early for a quiet moment in the tubs available to Saltbush Retreat’s Stables guests. 

10am: Ride a Cobb & Co Stagecoach

Feel the surge of adrenaline as you’re transported full-tilt in a restored Cobb & Co stagecoach, following the original mail route from Longreach to Windorah.

Set off for a 45-minute gallop through the bush, on a bumpy but unforgettable ride with Outback Pioneers. Although the steel-springed suspension offers little in the way of comfort, you’ll be all smiles as you race through the outback in this open wagon pulled by five stock horses.

1pm: Enjoy lunch at The Welcome Home

One thing’s for certain – you’re always guaranteed to meet a Kinnon somewhere in Longreach.

If you haven’t run into one just yet (if you’ve followed this itinerary, you’ve probably met at least three already: they run Outback Pioneers), get down to The Welcome Home for lunch to meet the family who’ve turned their farming business into a tourism one in response to the drought.

They have an array of biscuits, slices and cakes, right through to more substantial meals in the form of the Bushmans Burger, lamb shanks, or stuffed potatoes.

With a satisfied stomach, the only thing to decide is where to next on your Outback Queensland journey? Dig for dinosaur bones, challenge yourself in a grueling triathlon, or take a million dollar swing in the Outback Masters. There’s plenty more to experience out here.