Golden West Rail Tour

Day 1

Brisbane - Sydney
Our tour begins with a flight to Sydney for an afternoon at leisure. On arrival, settle into our accommodation before some free time to explore Darling Harbour. Enjoy a relaxed dinner back at our hotel in preparation for an early morning departure.

Day 2

Sydney - Hawkesbury - Paterson
Your Golden West Rail adventure starts early morning at Sydney's Central Station. Once on board the Aurora Australis, you can choose to sit in the lounge or dining cars, or your private cabin while we travel to the spectacular Hawkesbury River. You'll then take a short walk to board the famous 'Riverboat Postman' for a luncheon cruise. After rejoining the train, you will see the whole length of the train as we round the curves and the line traces the waters edge at Mullet Creek. The waterside theme will continue after we go through Woy Woy Tunnel and alongside Brisbane Water. We skirt around Newcastle and on to Maitland in the Hunter Valley. This evening, the train will be stabled overnight at The Rail Motor Society, Paterson.

Day 3

Hunter Valley Gardens and Vineyards
Today you will visit the Hunter Valley, with three options to choose from.

Option 1: Hunter Valley Gardens and the Village - Visit the 10 amazing themed gardens with influences from all over the world. You will then have a choice of staying at the Gardens for longer, or walk/take the coach to the nearby Hunter Valley Gardens Shopping Village with it's unique collection of boutique retailers promoting the best local produce, artistic talent, contemporary café dining and cellar door wine tasting.

Option 2: Hunter Valley Gardens and Audrey Wilkinson Wines - After viewing the gardens, board a coach to visit this winery established in 1866, set on top of a hill with spectacular views overlooking the vineyards. You will enjoy a guided wine tasting.

Option 3: Margan Wines - Travel by coach to Broke (this option does NOT visit the Hunter Valley Gardens). Walk down the garden path through the kitchen garden, then past the olives and vineyards into the winery for a guided, behind the scenes tour. Learn how the single vineyard and sustainably farmed wines are made from vine to glass in this award-winning winery.

Later, reboard the train at Branxton Station before travelling the remainder of the Hunter Valley and on through Ardglen Tunnel to Werris Creek. Dinner will be served on-board the train as we travel to Werris Creek Station, where we will be stabled overnight in the rail yard.

Day 4

Werris Creek - Binnaway Junction - Orange
Enjoy breakfast on board the train, and take the opportunity to visit the Werris Creek Railway Journeys Museum, which the volunteers will open especially for you. We'll then board coaches to meet with locals and gain a greater understanding of the Liverpool Plains, which boasts some of the best and most productive agricultural land in the country. We'll spend the rest of the day travelling along the freight only line from Werris Creek, arriving at Binnaway Junction by mid-afternoon. At Binnaway Junction, you will have the opportunity to watch the locomotives go past the carriages while we change direction. We then make our way via Dubbo, enjoying dinner on board, before arriving into Orange Railway Yard, where we will be stabled for the night.

Day 5

Orange - Bathurst - Rylstone
We'll board coaches early this morning to enjoy breakfast hosted by Paula and Allen Charnock at Hillside Harvest. This is a third-generation family run orchard, and the family has been growing fruit in the rich volcanic soils of Mount Canobolas since their first orchard was established in 1947. After breakfast, the coach will take you on a tour around Orange before re boarding the train and travelling to Bathurst Railway Station. In Bathurst we will visit Abercrombie House, an outstanding example of Victorian Tudor style architecture, built by the Stewart family in the 1870's. Enjoy lunch before reboarding the train, and have the rare opportunity to ride the closed Gwabegar line from Wallerawang, up the Capertee Valley. Enjoy dinner on the train as we approach Rylstone where we will stable for the night.

Day 6

Rylstone - Sydney
On this the last day of our rail journey, enjoy breakfast on board the train. We'll then explore Rylstone and surrounds. The district was settled in the 1820's, making it one of the oldest settlements west of the Great Dividing Range. Rylstone's streetscape features 19th century sandstone public houses, cottages and government buildings. You'll enjoy a visit to either Rylstone Olive Press to see how cold pressed olive oil is made; or visit Kandos Museum to learn about the town's industrial heritage; including the production of cement that built the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Re-board the train in time for lunch, as we travel back up the stunning Gwabegar line and cross the Great Dividing Range to Wallerawang. At Lithgow we'll travel through the 10 tunnels that replaced the Lithgow Zig-Zag, then cross the Darling Causeway on the way to Katoomba, arriving back in Sydney late afternoon. Transfer to our accommodation for dinner.

Day 7

Sydney - Brisbane
Enjoy a breakfast this morning and after checking out from our accommodation, we will make our way to Sydney Airport for our flight home, and on arrival, your transfers will be arranged.

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner