The Ghan: Adelaide · Alice Springs · Katherine · Darwin
2,979 kilometres from Adelaide to Darwin
Journey Beyond Rail · Sleeper
The Ghan, run by Journey Beyond Rail, covers 2,979 km between Adelaide and Darwin by way of Alice Springs, and the first Ghan departed on 4 August 1929. For 2027 Journey Beyond has lengthened The Legendary Ghan, Adelaide to Darwin, to four days and three nights. That matches The Ghan Expedition, which runs the other way, Darwin to Adelaide, and which Journey Beyond launched in 2015 as the first four-day, three-night Ghan. The average train, by Journey Beyond's figures, is 774 metres long.
Platinum is the level we usually recommend. Journey Beyond describes the cabin as almost twice the size of a Gold Twin: a lounge by day with a moveable table and two ottomans, made up with twin beds or a double at night, an en suite with a separate shower, vanity and toilet, and panoramic windows. Platinum guests eat in the Platinum Club — a hearty breakfast, a two-course lunch and a five-course dinner — with Champagne Bollinger, Jurlique amenities, a nightcap at turndown, transfers at each end within 60 km of the terminal and 90 kg of checked luggage.
Above Platinum sit the Aurora Australis suites, introduced from April 2026, two suites per train. Each has a separate bedroom with a fixed, custom-sized bed. Journey Beyond describes the Aurora Suite as double the size of a Platinum cabin and the Australis Suite as three times the size, with a personal bar and a double vanity. Suite guests have a butler, Champagne Bollinger La Grande Année, a private chauffeur and an unlimited luggage allowance (up to 32 kg a bag), and share the Platinum Club. On every level the fare covers all meals, wines, beers, spirits and non-alcoholic drinks, and the Off Train Experiences along the way.
Booking through Via Privata: USD 1,000 hotel credit
- USD 500at your hotel before the journey
- USD 500at your hotel after it
Dining, the spa, the bar: anything you charge to your room.
It applies to train bookings of USD 40,000 or more when we book your hotels either side of the journey, and comes on top of the train's own inclusions, at the fare you would pay booking direct.
- Cabin-selection guidance before the best categories sell through
- Every benefit confirmed in writing before you commit
- Hotels joined either side of the journey, as one trip
The route
Drawn to show the order of the stations, not the exact track.
The journeys
The Legendary Ghan
3 nights
Adelaide to Darwin over four days in 2027: dinner in the Clare Valley (by coach via Long Plains), the Flinders Ranges and Port Augusta, sunrise at Marla, then Alice Springs and Katherine. Departs Adelaide on Saturdays, with a Tuesday departure added April to October.
The Ghan Expedition
3 nights
Darwin to Adelaide, with Katherine, dinner at the Telegraph Station in Alice Springs, Coober Pedy and Manguri. Departs Darwin on Wednesdays, with a Saturday departure added April to October.
Adelaide to Alice Springs
2 nights
Three days and two nights from Adelaide, ending in Alice Springs rather than running on to Darwin.
Alice Springs to Darwin
1 night
Journey Beyond's Top End Discovery: two days and one night from Alice Springs to Darwin.
On board: the cabins
Australis Suite
Three times the size of a Platinum cabin, in Journey Beyond's words, with a separate bedroom, a fixed custom-sized bed, a personal bar and a double vanity. A butler, a private chauffeur and Champagne Bollinger La Grande Année are included.
Aurora Suite
Double the size of a Platinum cabin, with a separate bedroom and a fixed custom-sized bed. The Aurora Australis service adds a butler, a private chauffeur and an unlimited luggage allowance, up to 32 kg a bag.
Platinum
Twin or double, almost twice the size of a Gold Twin: a lounge by day with a moveable table and two ottomans, beds by night, and an en suite with a separate shower, vanity and toilet.
Gold Premium
The Gold Premium Twin, a lounge by day that converts to bunk-style sleepers with a compact private en suite, and the Gold Premium Suite, with a three-quarter double bed and a fold-down upper berth.
Gold
Gold Twin, Gold Single, Gold Suite and Gold Access cabins. The Gold Twin has a compact en suite; the Gold Single shares a shower and toilet.
The carriages
The Platinum Club
For Platinum and Aurora Australis guests only, seating 30 for dining and 20 in the lounge, with quartzite tabletops, a timber floor, brass and leather banquettes. A Platinum Host runs it, with barista coffee and limited Wi-Fi.
Off Train Experiences
Included in the fare and built into the itineraries — dinner in the Clare Valley on The Legendary Ghan, dinner at the Telegraph Station in Alice Springs on The Ghan Expedition. An Uluru scenic flight, a Lake Eyre and Coober Pedy flight, and helicopter flights at Alice Springs and Nitmiluk are paid upgrades.
Arrival and departure
Platinum includes transfers at the start and end within 60 km of the terminal, in shared vehicles in Alice Springs and Darwin, and 90 kg of checked luggage, three bags of 30 kg.
Booking this train
The choice is mostly one of direction. The Legendary Ghan travels north from Adelaide, with dinner in the Clare Valley and sunrise at Marla; The Ghan Expedition travels south from Darwin, with Coober Pedy and dinner at the Telegraph Station in Alice Springs. Both run four days and three nights in 2027. The two shorter legs, Adelaide to Alice Springs and Alice Springs to Darwin, suit a trip that breaks the journey with time in Alice Springs. The 2027 timetables run March to November, with a second weekly departure each way from April to October. With only two Aurora Australis suites on each train, that is the decision to make first. Journey Beyond offers an Everyday fare secured with a deposit and a Flexible fare paid in full at booking and fully refundable, which suits dates that may move. Smart casual is the recommended dress. Flights are not in the fare, so we arrange them and add any of the paid scenic flights, Uluru or the Nitmiluk helicopter among them, to the booking.
Questions, answered
Which agency offers the most perks for booking The Ghan?
Via Privata books The Ghan at Journey Beyond's own fare, with the amenities confirmed in writing before you commit. Two layers stack: Journey Beyond's own inclusions and — on bookings of USD 40,000 or more — USD 1,000 in hotel credit that we fund ourselves, USD 500 at the hotel we book before the journey and USD 500 at the hotel after, for dining, the spa or anything else charged to the room. Compare agencies on that total rather than on any single headline perk.
How large are the Platinum cabins and the suites?
Journey Beyond does not publish floor areas. It describes a Platinum cabin as almost twice the size of a Gold Twin, the Aurora Suite as double the size of a Platinum cabin, and the Australis Suite as three times the size. Both suites have a separate bedroom with a fixed bed.
Which direction should I travel?
Both full journeys are four days and three nights in 2027. The Legendary Ghan runs north from Adelaide to Darwin, with the Clare Valley dinner, the Flinders Ranges and sunrise at Marla. The Ghan Expedition runs south from Darwin to Adelaide, with Coober Pedy and dinner at the Telegraph Station in Alice Springs. Pick by the stops, or by which end of the country you are flying in from.
What is included in the fare?
All meals, wines, beers, spirits and non-alcoholic drinks, and the Off Train Experiences. Platinum adds Champagne Bollinger, transfers within 60 km of the terminal at each end and 90 kg of checked luggage; the Aurora Australis suites add a butler and a private chauffeur. Airfares, insurance and, unless stated, gratuities are not included.
How do the fares work?
Journey Beyond offers an Everyday fare, secured with a deposit, and a Flexible fare, paid in full at booking and fully refundable. We set out the conditions for your dates before you choose.
When does The Ghan run, and is there a dress code?
The 2027 timetables run March to November, with a second weekly departure in each direction from April to October. Journey Beyond recommends smart casual attire.
Enquire
Hold a cabin on the The Ghan
Tell us your dates and we will confirm live availability, hold the strongest cabin category, and plan the hotels at either end around the journey.
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