Palm Valley

Top choice in Northern Territory


Top attraction Palm Valley is famous for its red cabbage palms (up to 12,000 of them!), which exist nowhere else in the world. These relics from prehistoric times give the valley a picture-book, oasis feel. In Palm Valley, walking tracks include Arankaia walk (2km loop, one hour), which traverses the valley, returning via the sandstone plateau; the Mpulungkinya track (5km loop, two hours), heading down the gorge before joining the Arankaia walk; and the Mpaara track (5km loop, two hours).

The latter takes in the Finke River, Palm Bend and a rugged natural amphitheatre (a semicircle of sandstone formations sculpted by a now-extinct meander of Palm Creek).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Northern Territory attractions

1. Hermannsburg Mission

8.19 MILES

The whitewashed walls of the old mission are shaded by tall river gums and date palms. This fascinating monument to the NT’s early Lutheran missionaries…

2. Ochre Pits

23.72 MILES

The Ochre Pits line a dry creek bed in the heart of the West MacDonnell Ranges, 11km west of Serpentine Gorge, and were a source of pigment for Aboriginal…

3. Glen Helen Gorge

24.79 MILES

Glen Helen Gorge is where the Finke River cuts through the MacDonnells. It's not quite as dramatic as nearby Ormiston Gorge, but it's all relative. Only…

4. Mt Sonder Lookout

25.63 MILES

Just 1km northwest of Glen Helen Gorge, the Mt Sonder lookout has sweeping views out over the West MacDonnells; sunrise and sunset are the best times to…

5. Serpentine Gorge

26.12 MILES

Around 102km west of Alice Springs, a rough gravel track leads for 5km north off Namatjira Dr to narrow, ochre-red Serpentine Gorge. It has a lovely…

6. Ormiston Gorge

28.8 MILES

If you've only time for one stop in the West MacDonnell Ranges, make it here. There's a waterhole shaded with ghost gums and the gorge curls around to the…

7. Ellery Creek Big Hole

29.55 MILES

Ellery Creek Big Hole, 91km from Alice Springs, has a large permanent waterhole and is a beautiful spot. It's a popular place for a swim on a hot day (the…

8. Tnorala

29.62 MILES

Protected by a combination of remoteness and difficult access, Tnorala, as it's known to the Western Arrernte people, is a lost and beautiful world. The…