According to the World Meteorological Organization, Darwin is one of the sunniest cities in the world, together with Johannesburg, South Africa, Amman, Jordan and a few others.
Darwin is located in the Northern Territory, the northern region of Australia, also called Top end, where the climate is tropical and therefore it is always very hot. The best season to visit is from April to October (from November to April there is high humidity due to monsoon rains). It is the Australian city closest to Europe, as it is only a four-hour flight from Singapore.
The city overlooks the sea and the Darwin Waterfront it is the seafront area where many of the daytime and evening activities take place: there is a beautiful park to relax in, many restaurants with cuisine from all over the world, a wave pool, which is where the inhabitants go to swim, since you can't do that in the ocean because of the giant crocodiles and deadly jellyfish that infest him.
In these parts, in fact, there are the largest crocodiles in the world that live in salt water, they reach up to 6 meters in length and meeting them is not a pleasant experience. To admire them, however, a visit to Crocosaurus Cove, in the center of the city, is unmissable. The more adventurous will also be able to immerse themselves in the crocodile tank by being lowered into a cage (Cage of Death). It will be the most terrifying 15 minutes of your life!
Most hotels and clubs are located in the Central Business District (also called CBD), while the main street of the center is Mitchell Street, where the highest concentration of pubs, restaurants, clubs and accommodation for those coming from outside the city resides. It is also very popular Cullen Bay, where the city's new port is located.
Darwin is famous for his intense red sunsets. A walk along the seafront in the late afternoon, an evening cruise in Darwin Bay (also for dinner) or a stop in Mindil Beach, the most beautiful beach in the city. Here, from the end of April to October, every Thursday and Sunday, from 16.30pm until late at night, you can get lost in the Mindil Beach Sunset Markets, the market with lots of street food and souvenir stalls.
Darwin is a very new city, still under development, with modern buildings, new roads and new parks. In fact, it has been rebuilt twice in recent decades: the first time after the Second World War, when it was bombed by the Japanese (1942); the second, when it was partially destroyed by Cyclone Tracy in 1974.
Which is why there aren't many historic and colonial buildings left. To savor a bit of the spirit of the old days, stop at Char, a restaurant whose building was once the Admiralty office.
Among the most curious activities to do there is certainly an evening at the cinema. But not just any cinema: the Deck Chair Cinema it is an outdoor room where, instead of armchairs, you sit on deckchairs. If you happen to be here in August, from the 4th to the 21st the Darwin Festival, with lots of art and music shows for both adults and children. The Darwin area was originally inhabited by Aboriginal people. Even today, many of them are still found in the city centre.
Darwin is the ideal gateway to discover theAustralia's "wildest" and authentic. To get around you can take the train or even the Greyhound Australia bus, with a hop on hop off pass (you get on and off at each stage), kilometer-long or lasting six months. Otherwise you rent a car, preferably a 4Ă4.
From here you can easily reach the Litchfield National Park, with its natural water pools and giant termite mounds. It is an excellent excursion to do even in a day.
From Darwin you can also leave in the direction of Kakadu National Park, the largest natural park in all of Australia where there are many sites where you can admire rock paintings, such as Nourlangie and Ubirr. In the latter, admiring the sunset is a spectacle.
Darwin also begins Eplorerâs Way, a straight road that cuts the continent in two and leads to Alice Springs, the heart of Red Center (1.500 kilometres), and which continues up to Adelaide, on the southern coast for a total of 3.000 km.
Finally, the route of one of the most scenic trains in the world, the Goal, which crosses the whole of Australia up to Adelaide, passing through the Red Centre, the Nitmiluk Katherine Gorge National Park â one of the most visited parks in Australia with its beautiful canyons â and the city of Alice Springs, where the train stops and you can take an optional tour. The journey lasts four hours and covers 2.979 kilometres.
