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An Australian Food Odyssey
Eat and drink your way across the Australian states while ticking off these one-of-a-kind bucket list foodie experiences. Whether you decide to start with one area or combine locations by domestic flight, a wealth of gourmet finds wait to be uncovered.
Truffle hunting in Western Australia
The south west of Australia is blessed with beautiful parks, with Pemberton sitting at the heart of karri country, surrounded by the Gloucester and Warren National Park. It’s here, surrounded by the towering forest, that you’ll also find woodland of another kind – the hazelnut and oak trees of truffle hunting ground cultivated by farmers who also make their own products, like truffle salt, using the fresh Perigord truffles foraged on the land. Several truffle farms in the area offer truffle hunting experiences during the winter months, too. Truffle Hill in nearby Manjimup is among these producers. Here, the foraging experience is followed with a guided truffle and wine tasting at the farm’s cellar door.
In search of oysters in New South Wales
The waterfront village of Mooney Mooney lies around 45 minutes north of Sydney’s CBD on a peninsula stretching into the Hawkesbury River on New South Wales’s Central Coast. Sydney Rock and Pacific oysters thrive in these nutrient-rich, clean and calm waters, with oyster farmers working along the river. Sydney Oyster Farm Tours introduces food lovers to the second and third-generation oyster farmers of the sustainable, family-run Broken Bay oyster farm, taking visitors out to the oyster leases by boat and including a lesson in opening oysters along with in-water shucking and tasting (waders included).
Meeting artisan makers in Queensland
Leave the Noosa beaches behind you for a 30-minute cruise into the hills. The scenery shifts to rolling green hills and rainforest. Welcome to the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. Enjoy Queensland’s characteristically sunny weather as you wind through the Glass House Mountains, volcanic peaks pop against the blue sky. It’s a paddock-to-plate dream; think fresh local produce, along with dairy products, coffee and wine. The Sunshine Coast Culinary Experience with Trailfinders allows you to hop between artisan markets while soaking in those "stop-and-stare" panoramic views.
Sampling single-malt whiskies in Tasmania
Discover Tasmania’s ‘liquid sunshine’ on a drive around the island taking in any of the 70 distilleries dotted across this landscape from internationally renowned distillers like Hellyers Road Distillery, Sullivans Cove and, Tasmania’s oldest, LARK Distillery at the historic Pontville Estate, to small-batch makers putting their own spin on the traditional process. Tour the ring of distillers circling Hobart and head east to Cambridge before turning north-east to Spring Beach or south to Port Arthur. Stop by the distilleries of Launceston and venture out to those of Lulworth, Hillwood and Perth in its surroundings. Wherever you head, tours and tasting flights bring these distillers’ work to life.
A taste of the coffee culture in Victoria
An obsession that began with the arrival of Italian and Greek immigrants after World War II, Melbourne’s coffee culture has long drawn global recognition. More than 2,000 sites now contribute to this ever-flourishing café scene, with some of the world's best baristas whipping up top-quality espresso, pour-over, cold-drip coffees as well as Australia’s coffee house staple, the flat white. Time in Melbourne is well spent getting to know this side to the coffee-obsessed city. Seek out cafés with their own coffee roasters like Wide Open Road in Brunswick and Seven Seeds in Carlton, take a masterclass at Code Black in Brunswick and try the seasonal and organic, single origin beans of individual farms around the world at Dukes Coffee Roasters on Flinders Lane.
Hopping between the cellar doors of South Australia
As many as 18 distinct wine regions grow across South Australia. One of Australia’s oldest, with vineyards dating back to the 1840s, Barossa Valley stands apart for both the visitor experience of its wineries and the premium wines produced here – in particular, powerful, full-bodied Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache. More than 150 wineries–including prestigious labels like Henschke and Yalumba–and 80 cellar doors make their mark on the region, with a well-paired culinary scene specialising in artisan produce such as cured meats. Make the journey to this area - just an hour from Adelaide - to tour the vineyards, dine at renowned restaurants and explore the region’s picturesque landscape and villages.
A stellar dining experience in Northern Territory
The four-hour Sounds of Silence dinner takes place upon a dune top overlooking the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Canapés and sparkling wine flow as the sun sets over Kata Tjuta and Uluru, then, as darkness falls, diners tuck into a meal of Australian delicacies, to the sound of a didgeridoo, under the sparkling outback sky. An interactive chef’s station presents a bush tucker inspired menu incorporating indigenous ingredients. As dessert arrives at the table, a local storyteller then maps the stars of the southern night sky in which planets and galaxies come into sight with the dark sky’s exceptional clarity.
To plan your Australian odyssey, call Trailfinders on 020 7084 6500 or visit one of their travel centres. Click here to view Trailfinders' Australia holidays & latest offers and book your getaway today.
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