Attractions

Barramundi Feeding: Territory Manor, Martins Road, Mataranka. View these famous fighting fish and watch them strike when they come to feed. Open 7 days with feeding sessions at 9.30am and 1pm daily, an entry fee applies.

Cutta Cutta Caves This Park features a series of caverns displaying spectacular limestone formations. The caves are home for a variety of wildlife including the Brown Tree Snake and the rare Orange Horseshoe Bat and Ghost Bat. There are Ranger guided tours of Cutta Cutta Caves available, operating 7 days a week during the dry season. The Park is 27km south of Katherine on the Stuart Highway, open all year round (except Christmas Day) 8.30am-4.30pm, and entry is $7.50 for adults and $3.75 for children.

Edith Falls: 61km north of Katherine, Edith Falls is situated in the Nitmiluk National Park's north-western corner. The paperbark and pandanus fringed natural pool at the base of the falls is safe for swimming most of the year, making this an idyllic spot for camping. Open all year round, entry is free but camping fees apply. Access from the Stuart Highway is via a 20km sealed road.

Elsey Homestead Replica: Within the grounds of the Mataranka Homestead tourist resort, this authentic replica was especially constructed for the film, 'We of the Never Never'. Every detail is duplicated, down to the hand-hewn local cypress pine. Nearby are Aboriginal gunyas, or wurlies, built with the advice of local Aboriginal elders. Open 7 days per week all year round, entry is free.

Elsey National Park: This is a newly developed park where the crystal clear waters of the Roper River provide areas for swimming, fishing, canoeing and pleasant riverbank walks through pockets of rainforest. Small waterfalls and the popular Mataranka Thermal Pools surrounded by a forest of paperbarks, pandanus and palms make this Park a relaxing and enjoyable spot to stay. The Park is off the Stuart Highway just south of Mataranka township 110km south of Katherine.

Flora River Nature Park: The Park includes 25km of the Flora River and adjacent floodplain and savannah woodland. The principal attraction of the Park is the river itself, with its springs, tufa dams, and unique riverine vegetation. Many opportunities exist for fishing, boating and canoeing. It is 122km west of Katherine off the Victoria Highway.

Gregory National Park (Proposed): This new 1333600ha Park is in the early stages of development and features tropical and semi-arid plant life, spectacular range and gorge scenery, significant Aboriginal cultural sites and evidence of early European exploration and pastoral history. The unique wildlife and plantlife provide excellent photographic opportunities, however abundant saltwater crocodiles make swimming unsafe.

Access to the Park is from the Victoria Highway 270km south-west of Katherine, or from Kununurra. A four-wheel drive vehicle is required to drive within the Park. All roads including the Victoria Highway may be impassable at times during the wet season and drinking water must be carried.

Katherine Hot Springs: 3km along the Victoria Highway from Katherine these natural thermal springs are right on the bank of the Katherine River. Spend hours here, enjoying the pools, picnic grounds and walking tracks. Open all year round, entry is free but camping fees apply.

Katherine Low Level Nature Park: 2km from Katherine, this area is very popular for picnics, swimming, canoeing, wildlife observation and riverbank walks. Swimmers must take care during the wet season as strong currents are often present.

Katherine Museum: In Gorge Rd, Katherine, it was originally built as an air terminal for the Deptartment of Civil Aviation during 1944-45. The Museum houses a collection of artifacts, photographs, maps and historical items relating to the Katherine region. The Clyde Fenton Hangar houses a Gypsy Moth aircraft plus photographs and text pertaining to the famous "Flying Doctor" Clyde Fenton. Opening hours from March to September are Mon-Fri 10:00am to 4:00pm and Sunday 2:00pm to 5:00pm. During October to February, Mon-Fri 10:00am to 1:00pm, and Sunday 2:00pm to 5:00pm.

Katherine School Of The Air: The largest classroom in the world, broadcasting daily to children over a distance of 300,000 sq km. Located in Giles St, Katherine, tours are available.

Keep River National Park: Keep River National Park is situated on the Western Australian border on the northern side of the Victoria Highway, 540km from Katherine. It offers rugged escarpment and gorge scenery, Aboriginal art sites and fascinating geology.

Enormous boab trees and a variety of wildlife including the rare Gouldian Finch make photography and bushwalking excellent activities throughout the cooler months of May to September. The Park is off the Victoria Highway on two-wheel drive gravel roads.

Knotts Crossing: 5km from Katherine (Giles St), Knotts Crossing was the site of Katherine's Overland Telegraph station and was also the original river crossing when Katherine was first settled. 2 pylons, remnants of the once vitally important Overland Telegraph Line, can still be seen.

Mataranka Thermal Pool: 10km from Mataranka township, and within Elsey National Park, the water in Mataranka Thermal Pool is spring fed and bubbles up from deep within the earth at an amazing 30.5 million litres per day and at a fairly constant temperature of 34 degrees Celsius. A raised boardwalk leads you through the rainforest to the river. Open 7 days per week all year round, entry is free.

Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park: 30km north of Katherine, Katherine Gorge is a series of 13 spectacular gorges separated by rapids. The best way to appreciate its scale and beauty is from the water, and boat tours go as far as the fifth gorge, stopping to examine the Aboriginal rock art high on the cliffs.

The 3,000 sq km Park has over 100km of walking tracks, with trails you can cover in anything from one hour to five days. The Park is home to barramundi, freshwater crocodiles, rare birds like crimson and double-barred Finches, as well as goannas, bats and wallabies. Open all year round, entry is free but camping fees apply.

NT Rare Rocks: At 1809 Zimmin Drive, Katherine, the rocks and gems of the Northern Territory are transformed right here into vases, business card holders, candlesticks and even coffee tables. NT Rare Rocks specialises in rare collectors' specimens, minerals and gold nuggets, as well as being an agent for Lightning Ridge Opals. Open 7 days 6am - 7pm, but closed May and November-January, entry is free.

O'Keefe House: Originally constructed as an officers mess in 1942, then later the residence of Sister Olive O'Keefe, a Territory identity, this is a classic example of bush architecture using bush timber, corrugated iron and flywire. Located in Riverbank Drive, it is open Monday to Friday from May to October, but times vary.

Railway Station Museum Craft Gallery: In Railway Terrace, the gallery is housed in the historic Katherine Railway Station. All goods are handmade and locally produced, and the gallery also houses a display by the National Trust about Katherine's WWII involvement. Open daily.

Rowlands Dairy: For a unique self-drive experience visit Rowlands Dairy, the only dairy in the Northern Territory. Situated on 3,642 hectares complete with it's own processing plant, giant silos tower over the huge complex where 1,000 cows are housed in their own style of air-conditioned motel. Opening hours are Mon, Tues, Thurs from 10:00am to 3:30pm daily. Florina Rd, Katherine.

Springvale Homestead: On Shadforth Road, 8km from Katherine, this is where Alfred Giles built his home in 1878 at the end of a 19 month cattle drive from Adelaide and today it is the oldest homestead still standing in the Northern Territory. It has a swimming pool, motel and camping ground attached and runs corroboree and croc-spotting tours from May to November. Open 7 days per week all year round, entry is free but camping fees apply.

Timber Creek: 285km from Katherine on the Victoria Highway, you can visit the Timber Creek Police Station Museum, built in 1908, and see evidence of the Victoria River region's early pastoral industry. The Gregory National Park rangers headquarters are also located here. With a range of accommodation and caravan parks it's a good place to stop on the way across to Western Australia.