The Top End is home to some of the country’s most picturesque national parks, with Litchfield and Kakadu being among the most popular. Within day-tripping distance to Darwin, both are packed with wildlife, waterfalls and walks. But if there’s only time to visit one, which one is better? Having been to both, we compare Litchfield vs Kakadu to see which is the ultimate Top End park.
TL;DR: If we had to pick one… Kakadu
Why? Although it is further away from the city, it’s much larger and more diverse. There’s billabong cruises, rugged walking trails and plenty of waterfalls to swim in.
Although, admittedly, if we were short on time, Litchfield offers plenty to do too and has more open during the wet season. If that’s all you have time for, you’re still in for quite a treat.
Location
When we had just two nights to spend in one of the parks on a recent weekend away, we opted for Litchfield. It was closer to Darwin and just about all the attractions were accessible via sealed roads.
Litchfield is about 1 hour and 30 minutes from Darwin to the Magnetic Termite Mounds, the first stop on many itineraries. While Kakadu is a bit further at three hours from Darwin to Jabiru, the park’s main township.
While both are able to be done as day trips, Litchfield is a much shorter drive from the city. Its attractions are also a lot more compact, so you’ll be spending less time on the road and more at the attractions.
Bushwalking and Hiking
According to All Trails, there’s 31 tracks in Kakadu National Park and 26 in Litchfield, so when it comes to the number of trails, Kakadu takes the cake. But Litchfield still has plenty to offer to keep you occupied all weekend long.
The majority of walks in Litchfield National Park are pretty short, which is great if you’re hoping to visit a few spots in a single day.
Here’s a list of the ones we’ve done:
- Florence Creek and Falls Loop: 1.6 kilometres
- Green Ant Creek/Tjaetaba Falls Walk: 3.4 kilometres
- Tolmer Falls and Creek Loop: 1.8 kilometres
- Upper Cascades Walk: 4 kilometres
We also wanted to do the Wangi Falls Loop Walk (2.1 kilometres), but unfortunately due to some minor flooding we weren’t able to as the track was closed.
While we did Litchfield National Park with our own car, we did a group tour in Kakadu, so were a bit more limited on what we could and couldn’t do. But, we still managed to squeeze in a few bushwalks here too.
- Ubirr Aboriginal Art Walk: 1.9 kilometres
- Nawurlandja Lookout and Burrunggu Walk: 1.9 kilometres
Swimming
With temperatures in both Litchfield and Kakadu soaring well above 30 most days of the year, having a place to cool off is vital. Especially after a steamy bushwalk.
If you’re after a park that offers plenty of swimming spots, we’d recommend taking a closer look at Litchfield. Here, there’s more swimming options to try all year round. Swimming in Kakadu is also a bit riskier due to presence of crocodiles, and many sites close during the wet season.
Where to swim in Litchfield National Park
- Buley Rockholes
- Florence Falls
- Tjaetaba Falls (Swim at the top only)
- Upper Cascades (Our favourite spot!)
- Wangi Falls
Where to swim in Kakadu National Park
- Jim Jim Falls (Dry season only at the base only)
- Maguk (Barramundi Gorge) (Dry season only)
- Twin Falls (Dry season only at the base only)
Seasonality does change a bit, and some spots may be open year-round except when there’s been particularly heavy rainfall. To find out which areas are open when, the Northern Territory government’s site lists this. See Kakadu’s openings here and Litchfield’s openings here.
Wildlife
If you’re expecting to see crocodiles in every watering hole and share walking tracks with kangaroos, unfortunately you probably won’t get either experience in Litchfield or Kakadu. But that isn’t to say there isn’t plenty to see. That doesn’t mean you won’t see them though.
In fact, we weren’t able to go into the water at Wangi Falls during our visit because the area was a bit flooded, which meant crocodiles had access to the water. They’d been seen recently there, too.
Your best bet to see crocodiles in the wild is actually outside of, but nearby, the parks. Along the way Arnhem Highway en route to Kakadu there’s a few cruises that go along the Adelaide River. We joined the Spectacular Jumping Crocodile Cruise and saw plenty of crocodiles during the trip.
There is a pretty extensive list of birds you can find in Litchfield, including eagles, herons, kites, falcons, honeyeaters, owls, wrens and lorikeets.
If we had to pick one, we’d choose Kakadu for a wildlife destination. Here, the ever-changing landscape allows for a really diverse range of animals. With dry plains, rugged waterfalls and humid billabongs, there’s a ton that you can see here — including eight different species of kangaroos.
Kakadu’s billabongs offer boat cruises that let you take in some of the most unique scenery in the country. Feeling more like the southern United States’ swamplands, here you’ll be surrounded by birds and trees growing right out of the water. Although we took a daytime ride, sunrise and sunset options are available which would be spectacular. A few to choose from are the Coroboree Billabong (on the way to Kakadu) and Yellow Water Billabong (inside the national park)
Culture
If learning a bit more about Australia’s indigenous culture is on your to-do list in the Top End, then Kakadu is going to tick that box.
While there are indigenous tours of Litchfield available, Kakadu offers a lot more opportunity to learn and experience the local culture.
There’s not one, but two visitors centres in Kakadu (there aren’t any in Litchfield). Both Bowali Visitors Centre in Jabiru and Warradjan Aboriginal Culture Centre in Cooinda offer cultural workshops.
You’ll also get the chance to see ‘kunbim’, or rock art, to the local Bininj/Mungguy people if you join the 1.9-kilometre Ubirr Aboriginal Art Walk in Kakadu.
Accessibility
Although we love hiking, one of the great things about Litchfield is that you don’t have to in order to see many of the sites. Hotspots like Wangi Falls, the Magnetic Termite Mounds and Buley Rockholes are within a couple hundred metres from where you can park your car.
And speaking of cars… almost all the roads in Litchfield are fully sealed, so you’re able to see the vast majority of the park with a 2WD and hire car. (Most companies won’t allow you to take hire cars down dirt tracks). Unfortunately, this isn’t the case in Kakadu. Spots like Jim Jim and Twin Falls require an almost-60 kilometre drive down an unsealed road.
Accommodation
If you’re looking to stay right in the national park, you’ll have the most options in Kakadu. Unfortunately your only option in Litchfield will be camping. While there are plenty of places to stay just outside the park (for example, we stayed at Litchfield Outback Resort in Bachelor)
Aside from campgrounds, cabins and lodges, Kakadu is also home to a crocodile-shaped hotel which we think is just fantastic.
Keen to explore either Litchfield or Kakadu? Check out these tour options.
