A complete guide to a 5-day Katherine itinerary

Less visited than the national parks around Darwin or the rugged Red Centre, Katherine often gets passed right through on most Northern Territory Road trips. But with epic waterfalls, picturesque gorges and unbelievably blue swimming holes, it should be a staple on every outback itinerary.

While we spent five days/four nights in the area, this itinerary can be compressed into just four days/three nights. But we had extra time, so went at a slower pace for a change.

Day 1: Arriving in Darwin, driving to Katherine

With direct flights to Katherine only available from within the Northern Territory, the easiest way to get to the remote Top End town is by flying into Darwin and finishing up the journey by road. Plus, you’ll need a car when you get to Katherine. Most of the places we visited were a half hour or more away from town.

While day tours are available, they can add up quickly, so it’s probably cheaper to hire a car.

Our flight arrived into Darwin in the early afternoon, so by the time we picked up the car and hit the road we didn’t have time to stop off anywhere along the way. With a zippy speed limit of 130 up in the Northern Territory, the journey takes just over three hours between the two cities.

The daylight was fading by the time we arrived, so there was little time for anything but checking into our accommodation and popping over to the supermarket.

Day 2: Walking in Elsey National Park, swimming at Mataranka and Bitter Springs

Recommended things to do on day two of your Katherine itinerary:

• Mataranka Falls Walk in Elsey National Park
• Swim at Mataranka Thermal Pools
• Walk around and swim at Bitter Springs

Starting the day as early as possible before it got too hot to hike, we drove from Katherine to Elsey National Park. It’s a 120-kilometre trip along outback highways, and in the golden hour of morning playing with the orange hues of the ground and yellow-greens in the bush along the road, it was beautiful.

Mataranka Falls Walk

Length: 9km
Difficulty: Easy
Recommended? If you have time

While most people head out to Elsey National Park to relax in the natural pools, we felt like we needed to earn it first. So first thing we headed out on the Mataranka Falls Walk.

Clocking in at about 9 kilometres, the out-and-back track follows the Roper River from 12 Mile Yards and Jalmurark Campground to Mataranka Falls. Admittedly, the falls themselves are a bit of an anticlimax. But the walk to them is lovely. Following the palm-lined forbidden blue oasis of the river, the mostly sandy track is quite flat. And that’s perfect for somewhere that the weather is so warm.

There is a risk of crocodiles here, so as tempting as the water looks, it’s best to stay away. Just wait until you get to Mataranka and Bitter Springs. It’s worth it. We promise.

Mataranka Thermal Pool

After working up a bit of a sweat on the walk, we drove around to Mataranka Thermal Pools, which also sit within Elsey National Park.

Looking too good to be real (but we promise they are!), these brilliantly blue pools are striking against the reds and greens of the outback landscape.

Mataranka is fed by a natural hot spring and the waters are a delightful 34 degrees year-round. While they still have a sandy bottom and you will find the odd leaf or branch floating around, there has been a bit of work done to make these pools much more accessible. There are stairs to help you get in and out and bench seats in the pool.

Naturally, after the swim we did take a stroll along the 1.5 kilometre walk to Stevie’s Hole. But, if we went back, we’d skip it. Although it’s short, it’s probably not worth the time if you’ve already done the longer walk along the river.

Being in the outback and far from towns, if you’re looking for a bite to eat or a toilet, you’ll find those here too. Next to the pools sits Mataranka Homestead, which serves meals throughout the day. (This is also where you’ll park to access the pools, which are only about 100m away so it’s not at all out of the way to pop in.)

Bitter Springs

Less than 15 minutes down the road and we were ready for our next swim. Bitter Springs. A short-but-sweet loop walk around the natural pool gave us stunning views of the natural spring before we dove in.

With a gentle natural current, Bitter Springs was a bit like a natural lazy river. You can either float on your back or grab a pool noodle and just relax. The water here always flows to from left to right, so it’s recommended you start at the designated entry point. There’s stairs at the beginning and middle and a ladder at the end of the swimming area. You can always walk back to the beginning and start again.

The water colour and clarity is the only thing that’s similar between Bitter Springs and Mataranka and we think it’s well worth visiting both as you’ll get a totally different experience.

But, if we had to pick one… it would be Bitter Springs as we loved the experience of floating down the river.

Day 3: Hiking to Sweetwater Pool, swimming at Edith Falls and relaxing in Katherine Hot Spring

Recommended things to do on day three of your Katherine itinerary:

• Hike to and swim at Sweetwater Pool
• Walk the Leliyn Track loop to the pools at Edith Falls
• Relax in Katherine Hot Springs

Another early start to beat the peak of the heat found us heading toward the Edith Falls section of Nitmiluk National Park, about 60 kilometres west of Katherine town. With more outback tracks to explore and wild swimming holes, it was easy to spend an entire day here.

Sweetwater Pool

Length: 9km (from the car park)
Difficulty: Medium (because of the length and heat)
Recommended? Yes

An 8.6-kilometre (there and back) offshoot from the main Leliyn Track to Edith Falls, the walk to Sweetwater Pool may have been the loneliest excursion of the trip to Katherine. But, in the best way possible.

This spur-of-the-moment decision to get a bit more exercise ended up being a stunningly private little paradise. The walk there was hot, but not too difficult.

Along the way to Sweetwater, we did pass by other pools but weren’t sure if they were safe to swim in. Considering there was no one else on the trail (and we didn’t know when someone else would come by) we opted not to test our luck. But the wait was definitely worth it. The natural pool at the end of the track was pristine and didn’t have a single other swimmer in sight (human or reptilian).

Including the beginning of the Leliyn Track, it can be quite a trek in the Top End heat. You can camp here too, if you’d like.

Leliyn Trail and Edith Falls

Length: 3km (from the car park)
Difficulty: Easy
Recommended? Yes

Once delightfully refreshed and then all sweaty again for the walk back to Leliyn Trail, we re-joined the track for our next swim.

From the car park, the Leliyn Trail around Edith Falls is about 3 kilometres, and we rejoined it not too far into that. There’s a few viewpoints along the way that gave panoramic views of the falls and pools. (Perfect spots for us to stop for some much needed water after the longer walk, too).

At the half-way point, it was time for our next swim (before the rains came in, we’d soon find out). The Upper Pool was the smaller of the two swimming areas along the track, but we preferred it. The rugged red rocks surrounding the pool and views of the waterfall were a bit otherworldly. It was also pretty quiet during our visit, which made it a bit more relaxing.

You will need to watch out for rocks in the pools, and it may be a bit easier if you’re wearing water shoes (but not necessary if you don’t have them). Although the water is clean, it’s not super clear so it can be hard to see when it gets deeper or shallower and it’s easy to accidentally kick a hidden rock.

When the weather took a turn for the worse, we thought it would be best to head back down the track toward the lower Plunge Pool. Along the way, there’s views from high above the Middle Pool from Bemang Lookout. Unfortunately it was about here where it started to rain, so we weren’t able to enjoy it for long.

Knowing how torrential and quick rains in these parts can me, we waited out the storm under the roof of the kiosk by the car park. Once it passed, it quickly heated up again, and a quick dip in the Plunge Pool was in order before heading back to town.

Katherine Hot Springs

While many people come to the area to explore Mataranka and Bitter Springs, little do they know that right in town there’s more natural pools waiting to be explored.

Just a quick six minute drive from our hotel, is Katherine Hot Springs. They’re completely free to enter and are the perfect way to end any warm day in the Top End. And no, even after three swims today, we weren’t quite done in the water yet.

A bit cooler than Mataranka, these pools sit between 25 and 30 degrees, making a dip in them a bit more refreshing. There’s a few you can swim in, including one that’s wheelchair accessible via a ramp.

These pools are only open from 7am until 7pm daily in the dry season (May to September), but during our early October visit we were still able to swim. There’s also a pop-up cafe that’s open when the pools are.

Day 4: Kayaking through Nitmiluk Gorge and unwinding in Katherine hot spring

Recommended things to do on day three of your Katherine itinerary:

• Take a boat ride on the Katherine River
• Kayak through Nitmiluk Gorge

Nitmiluk Gorge (Katherine Gorge)

Saving the best for last, we waited until the last full day of our trip to visit Nitmiluk National Park’s main attraction: Nitmiluk Gorge (Katherine Gorge). One of the Top End’s most stunning natural wonders, the gorge is actually a series of 13. The first is only accessible to boats, while you’re able to kayak or swim in others.

Having been here once before in January (when kayaking wasn’t possible and restricted to the boat tour, this time we wanted to experience it in a new way. So, we booked Nitmiluk Tours’ Malappar Traveller self-guided kayak tour. Including kayak rental and a boat ride through the first gorge to where it was safe to kayak in the second and beyond.

When we were there toward the end of the season, the water was extremely calm and easy to paddle through. Not so easy, was getting the kayak between gorges. They’re a bit awkward to carry but luckily are quite thick and can be dragged a bit without causing much damage. (Or at least we hope!)

Once you’re past the first gorge, you are able to stop your kayak and jump in the water wherever you’d like. And you’ll want to stop a lot. The’s a few sandy beaches to park your kayak and take in the views of the soaring, rocky cliffs along both sides of the river that are nothing short of jaw-dropping. Just make sure to pull the boat onto the rocks or shore so it doesn’t drift away.

Full disclosure: there are some freshwater crocodiles in the river. Yes, even during the kayaking season from July to November. But, we didn’t see any and they don’t seem to be a concern at all to the tour operators.

Day 5: Walk to Pat’s Lookout, drive back to Darwin

If you’re short on time, you can definitely combine our Day 4 and Day 5 itineraries into one, and spend part of the day doing Pat’s Lookout (or a shorter hike) and the rest taking the kayak journey (or a shorter boat ride).

With a mid-afternoon flight back to Sydney to catch on day five, if we wanted to get in any more activities in the Katherine area we needed to start early. So, we were up before dawn and making the drive once again into Nitmiluk National Park.

Pat’s Lookout Walk

Length: 8.4km
Difficulty: Medium
Recommended? Yes

Wanting a chance to see the spectacular gorge from a different angle, and only a few hours to do it, Pat’s Lookout ticked a few of our boxes. There were a bunch of very tempting walks along the rim of the gorge, but at 8.4 kilometres, this one seemed to be just the right length for the time we had.

And we’re glad we chose it. The view from the top was just beautiful. It was still early enough in the day that the sun’s rays made the red rocks of the gorge glow and the water looked a deep blue rather than brown. But unfortunately we couldn’t admire it for long, as we did still have the long drive back to Darwin to make before our flight home.

The walk can be quite exposed in places and considering you do need to climb up to the rim to get the birds-eye view, we’re glad we did this one in the morning when it was a bit cooler. If you’re short of time or the idea of a walk this length in the Top End heat is too much, there are shorter walks in the area too.

How to get to Katherine and around once there

Driving from Darwin is the easiest way to get to Katherine if you’re just spending an extended weekend in town. It’s just over three hours away from the city or airport, and it’s just about all along the Stuart Highway.

Whether you’re driving your own vehicle or renting one, it will come in handy when you’re there too. Distances out here are far, and you won’t be able to get to the spots on this Katherine itinerary by public transport.

• Katherine to Nitmiluk National Park: 28 kilometres
• Katherine to Edith Falls: 63 kilometres
• Katherine to Elsey National Park: 120 kilometres
• Katherine to Darwin: 317 kilometres

Katherine’s airport is small and only has flights from within the Northern Territory. You can connect through Alice Springs or Darwin with Air North. However, flights here aren’t cheap. They’re currently about $300 each way from Darwin — a mere 55-minute flight away.

Where to stay in Katherine

Being a budget break like most of our trips, we stayed in the well-priced, but clean Pine Tree Motel. Our only criteria was that the stay was clean, well-located and had a pool… which we didn’t end up using in the end. The Katherine Hot Springs ended up being our local swim spot in the end!

All in all, the stay was just fine and we’d stay there again if the price was right.

What to know before you go

How many days should you spend in Katherine?

We felt four nights/five days was perfect. While we loved this Katherine itinerary, it can easily be done in just four if your flight times are favourable or if you’re already in Darwin. We didn’t feel this was too rushed, and the activities we did at Nitmiluk Gorge on days four and five can be done in just one.

Of course, if you have more time, there’s plenty more to do in the area. There’s many other walks to do in the Nitmiluk area, including the multi-day Jatbula Trail from the gorge to Edith Falls. Between Katherine and Mataranka, you can also stop at Cutta Cutta Caves for a tour. (Unfortunately we weren’t able to do during our visit, but would love to check it out if we’re back in the area.)

When is the best time to visit Katherine?

June to October, which is during the dry season (although October is a bit of a changeover month, so best to go earlier if you’re really set on swiming everywhere.)

Can you swim year-round in Katherine?

In some places you can, but not everywhere. Here’s all the wild swimming spots we visited on this itinerary and which ones are open when:

• Bitter Springs: Year-round, except during flooding.
• Edith Falls: Dry season only
• Katherine Hot Springs: Dry season only
• Mataranka Thermal Pools: Year-round, except during flooding.
• Nitmiluk/Katherine Gorge: Dry season only
• Sweetwater Pool: Year-round, except during flooding.

Are there crocodiles in Katherine?

Well… yes. But not saltwater crocodiles. Does that make it any better? We think so.

Katherine is pretty far inland, so those 1,000 kilogram reptiles that you’re picturing aren’t going to be found around here. However, there are freshwater crocodiles that live in the Katherine River and surrounding waterholes. These aren’t really harmful to humans unless provoked, but it’s still a good idea to be aware of your surroundings and careful when swimming. Only swim in areas that have been deemed safe by the government.

Do you need a 4WD for this itinerary?

Nope! We didn’t have one and certainly didn’t need it. Other than some short stretches into car parks, all the main roads we took were sealed.

Where to go next…