Guide to Darwin

Darwin, how long should you stay in this 'village' like city? And what to do while you are there? The best hotspots, restaurants, cafés, nature and the worlds famous, prettiest sunsets.. Darwin has it all! I spent 4 weeks in this beautiful place last summer and guess what... I was still not bored after those 4 weeks. It can't be a surprise that I have plenty of recommendations for yall (two people that read my blog, LOL).

Here is my guide to Darwin!

What to do?

THE Darwin sunset

1. Watch THE famous Darwin sunset at the beach

Sorry I just HAVE to start with this one! You can not leave Darwin before you have seen THE iconic Darwin sunset. The entire sky just colors orange, pink, purple ish, for about an hour. It is absolutely gorgeous!

2. Markets!

Of course, visit the sunset markets held every thursday and sunday night (4pm-9pm) at Mindel beach. But also the Nightcliff markets and Parap village markets are well worth a visit. So many arts and crafts, live music and lots of yummy Asian foods. Also if you are lucky and the Dragon fly market is on, I would also pay it a visit. This market excels in the arts and crafts area.

3. Bike to East Point Reserve

The bike ride up to East point, takes you along the coast line. On the way you'll be surprised with beautiful sights of the sea and lookout points such as Dudley Point lookout. Well worth the ride!

On the route you'll also pass the Darwin military museum, if you're interested in a visit. Also the world war II tunnels in the city centre are another popular, interesting attraction to visit.

4. Fannie bay Gaol

Not that famous but so worth it, the Fanniebay Gaol. Scan the QR code at the entrance and follow the guided audio tour. Cruel and shocking stories await you.

5. George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens

Just 2 kilometers North of the city centre, lays Darwin's botanical gardens. Take a walk in the secret Rose garden, tropical area or Africa Madagascar garden. There is an inside information centre as well with movies and audio tours.

6. MAGNT: Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory

Even my little Au-pair kiddos got extremely excited for this museum, and I do understand why. The museum exhibits different forms of arts, aboriginal history, boats, information about cyclone Tracy (and interactive sound room!) and skeletons, images and information about all different Darwin animals. Including a statue of the largest crocodile named Sweetheart. They also organise different events, like turtle feeding in the Moonsons Gardens of the museum. For an actual events schedule click here .

View nightcliff - Leepoint hike

7. Hike nightcliff to Lee Point

This 9.5 kilometer long hike takes you along big empty beaches, through mangrove walks and beautiful nature areas. Gotten hungry from all that walking? Take a pit stop at De La Plage café for a smoothie or a bite.

8. Street art

Darwin is also pretty well known for its beautiful street art. If you start in Austin Lane and just walk around you will see lots of it. You can also do a guided audio tour.

Street art in Darwin

9. Cafés

Darwin has so many cute, beautiful cafés. I visited Wonder Coffee and tried their "Taiwanese Chicken croissant", surprisingly what an amazing combo. Other cute cafés I visited are: The 1995, Alberto's Café, Coffee man (more grab and go type) and the General. That last one is close to...

10. The Burnett House

This house is official heritage monument for Darwin (means a hundred years old). It is beautiful to see the typical tropical style house and learn about the story behind it. Together with some interesting but cruel Aboriginal history that happened on that piece of land makes this an interesting sight to visit.

Jumping crocs tour

(Multi) Day tours from Darwin

With no doubt one of the best things I did in Darwin, the jumping crocs tour (via backpacker deals (2) website). I combined it with a Litchfield national park day trip as well. 

Also the big brother of Litchfield, Kakadu national park, is a beautiful park you don't want to miss. I recommend touring this park yourself or booking a multi day trip.

View on Florence falls, Litchfield National Park

ARE YOU LUCKY??

One of the best things ever was the airplane show. Military aircrafts from all over the world flew over the city and performed cool tricks and military exercises. Also a few days later all the airplanes got displayed at the RAAF centre. Apparently this happens once only every two years!

How long should I stay in Darwin?

I loved Darwin so much so I might be a bit biased. As mentioned, I stayed there for a month and still wasn't bored! (while also "working" some days). But if I combine all my favorite activities and must do's in Darwin, I would say you definitely need 5 days to explore all that Darwin has to offer. 

Public transport

While public transport is pretty good organised in Darwin (and it was free in dry season 2024!), it isn't is regularly as you are probably used to. For example the last buss on sunday departs at around 9 pm. I had to find out the hard way. After a nice evening out at the deckchair cinema I had no way to get home (Fanniebay). Yea.. you can't exactly hope for a handsome buss driver that calls you an uber everyday so.. Do your research before you go and keep room for delays.

Resources

1. https://worldpopulationreview.com/cities/australia/darwin

2. https://www.backpackerdeals.com/australia/darwin/jumping-crocodile-tour-from-darwin