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There’s much more to deserts than meets your eye.
In the space of a few hours see how the desert comes alive! No longer think of deserts as empty barren wastelands but understanding that they are rich diverse environments, rich with life and full of thousands of stories waiting to be explored.
Take easy walking trails through three desert botanical habitats including Desert Rivers, Woodland and Sand Country. Explore a living culture with Aboriginal guides, witness free-flying birds of prey in the Nature Theatre, see rare and endangered animals in the spectacular Nocturnal House, and take a cinematic journey through four and a half billion years of desert creation.
Alice Springs Desert Park is only 7km from the centre of Alice Springs. Your essential introduction to Central Australia
Day entry only 7:30am – 6pm (last recommended entry at 4:30pm)
Opening hours7:30am to 6pm every day.
Last entry 4:30pm.
Nocturnal House open 9am to 5:30pm.
Suggest a minimum of 3 to 4 hour visit.
Closed 25 December.
Cashless transactions preferred.
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The tour is held in a very large predator proof enclosure and is home to 6 threatened species and a healthy echidna population. Mala are extinct in the wild but thriving here. We saw dozens and dozens as well as many Golden Bandicoots, many Brush-Tailed and Burrowing Bettongs, a Bilby and a Giant Stick Rat. The Mala, golden bandicoots and bettongs all came very close to us and one echidna even checked. out my boot with his probiscis.
I could not recommend this tour highly enough. The daytime self-guided tour we did was also fabulous especially from a bird-watching perspective.
The on-site cafe is also great, some of the best priced meals we’ve had our whole NT trip (with kid friendly options that aren’t “nuggets and chips”!)
I found it very easy to walk around, and loved seeing the bird show, the emu, and the aviaries of beautiful birds. I was also lucky enough to see a wild perentie lizard.
The nocturnal house is amazing, as are all the talks with the knowledgeable guides.
I was lucky enough to do a Dusk tour as part of Parrtjima with the lovely Ann who I enjoyed hearing and learning from about the country and culture here.
Highly recommend if you're a nature fan, and enjoy gardens, aviaries, animals, and learning.
Take advantage of the water fountains and the cover offered at various places.
An interesting selection of animals.
One recommendation would be some additional lighting or signage from the car park, hard to work out where to go when you get there in the dark.
A huge thank you to the guides, Stef and Cassandra, who made the night unforgettable.
Our guide Stef was warm, knowledgeable, and passionate, and her stories brought the desert to life. Stef answered all our questions with so much care and made the whole group feel engaged and included.
Highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting—it's a unique way to experience the desert and learn about the incredible animals that call it home!
Cafe was classy, with good coffee.
Great facilities - impressed by the function centre, and the fact they hire out mobility scooters.
Alice Springs should be pretty proud of Desert Park.




























