Day 1 – Journey to The Golden West

Join your air-conditioned luxury Coach at the designated departure point. You will travel through the beautiful Blue Mountains, making a morning tea stop along the way. Lunch is provided in Lithgow or Bathurst. After lunch, we continue through some of Australia’s most beautiful undulating sheep and wheat growing country before arriving at your accommodation at either the North Parkes Motel (Ph:02 6863 4333) or Club Cowra Motel (Ph:02 6341 1999). Enjoy a warm welcome on arrival. (L,D)

Day 2 – Forbes

This morning travel to the historical township of Forbes. Forbes is rich in the history of Australia’s growth and is the resting place of the notorious bushranger Ben Hall. Today includes a town tour & subject to the weather a visit to Eugowra just south of Forbes which has a number of painted Murals depicting aspects of the past in this historical village so the coach will drive past a few for you to see before a morning tea break. Next, we visit Aruma Aussie Biscuits. In 1976 a delightfully small and very Aussie biscuit business began in regional NSW with a single mission: to create employment for people with a disability. The same opportunity most of us don’t even think twice about. From a single Jam Drop, lovingly made with a recipe donated by Forbes local Noelene Hudson, their Aussie Biscuits grew and grew. In 1976 their employee’s hand-made 600 Jam Drops a day. By 2018 they’d outgrown the original factory and moved into a brand-new location, allowing them to create more jobs, and even more delicious bikkies! Today they produce thousands of biscuits a day, in six different flavours – still made with love – for the retail market, hospitality industry and fundraising groups. Lunch will be provided at Forbes Golf Club before touring sculptures down the Lachlan. A permanent, inland public art trail stretching 100 kilometres between Forbes and Condobolin, following the meandering Lachlan River. Featuring over twenty larger-than-life sculptures by leading Australian artists, set against the raw, unmanicured beauty of the rural landscape. (B,L,D)

Day 3 – Parkes & The Dish

Gain an insight into Parkes with a town tour this morning before a break to get a coffee & then visit to the Henry Parkes Centre including the unique Elvis Museum & the Parkes Motor Museum. There is also an interesting DVD showing in Moat Cottage, which is a replica of Henry Parkes family home in Coventry. England. It is only a short drive north of Parkes to the world-renowned Parkes Radio Telescope & CSIRO Visitors Centre. The giant steel dish of the Parkes Radio Telescope is a landmark in the paddocks just north of Parkes and a landmark in the scientific history of Australia. The telescope was used in conjunction with the Apollo 11 Moon landings, Apollo 13 rescue, and explorations of Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, and Haley’s Comet. It is the world’s most powerful single dish radio telescope. Included in your visit is the marvellous audio-visual presentation, “The Invisible Universe” It details the great discoveries & work of the Parkes Observatory since it is inception & runs for 20 minutes in Theatre 1. Afterwards there will be time this afternoon to stop off in the Parkes main shopping street while others return to the Motel. The coach driver will organise a pickup time & location. (B,L,D)

 Day 4 – Dubbo, The Western Plains Zoo & The Royal Flying Doctors

This morning visit the fascinating Dubbo Flying Doctor Visitors Centre. In 1927, a Presbyterian Pastor by the name of Reverend John Flynn founded The Flying Doctor. Flynn’s vision was to put a ‘mantle of safety’ around the people of Australia’s remote communities, after he witnessed their daily struggles first-hand. The inaugural flight took off on the morning of 17 May 1928. The Dubbo Visitor Experience is adjacent to the real working base. The Flying Doctor provides 24/7 aeromedical emergency retrieval & patient transfers. The doctors, nurses, engineers, and pilots work from Dubbo on five Beechcraft King airplane a day (four on weekends), with additional aircraft on location to support wider fleet operations. At the Centre experience the scale, the sights, and the moving human stories of Australia’s outback. Witness the commitment to service that is behind the ‘mantle of safety.’ This afternoon visit the Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo. The Zoo is home to more than 800 animals from all over the world, many of them endangered species. Subject to availability a Zoo guide will board the coach this afternoon for an informative tour. The Zoo is also home too free-ranging native animals, including Kangaroos, Emus and Wallabies. Roads throughout the Zoo enable the coach to take you from one exhibit to another. Lunch will be provided, followed by free time to explore. (B,L,D)

Day 5 – Cowra & Grenfell’s Painted Silos

Spend the morning in Cowra, stopping in at the Cowra Visitors Centre, where you will enjoy a stroll through its extensive rose garden, boasting over 1,000 roses. There are facilities where you can buy a coffee & a snack. The complex also houses a local art gallery, historical museum, and souvenir shop. Also, there is a brief hologram presentation in the little Theatre. The Coach group needs to split in two for the brief presentation. It is a short drive to the Japanese Gardens & Cultural Centre for lunch with time to explore the gardens. The gardens cover five hectares of beautifully landscaped gardens with meandering paths, revealing streams filled with fish, waterfalls, lakes, picturesque wooden bridges & so much more. On departure the coach will pause at the nearby WW2 Prison Camp site before departing Cowra. Return via Grenfell to Parkes with a stop at the stunning painted Silos in Grenfell. (B,L,D)

Day 6 – Journey Home

Today as you return home, we hope you take with you many happy memories of your time in the Golden West of NSW. A morning tea break along the way followed by lunch provided in Lithgow and a gorgeous drive back through the mountains via The Bells Line of Road if suitable. Thank you for choosing this tour. (B,L)