Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory. The site is known as Mparntwe to its traditionall inhabitants, the Arrernte, who have lived in the Central Australian desert in and around what is now Alice Springs for more than 50,000 years. Alice Springs has a population of 27,481 people which makes up 12 per cent of the territory's population. Averaging 576 metres (1,890 ft) above sea level, the town is nearly equidistant from Adelaide and Darwin.
The town of Alice Springs straddles the usually dry Todd River on the northern side of the MacDonnell Ranges. The region where Alice Springs is located is known as Central Australia, or the Red Centre, and is an arid environment consisting of several different deserts.
Alice Springs features rugged gaps and gorges, stunning desert landscapes, an interesting pioneering history and a vivid Aboriginal art scene. The town is framed by the MacDonnell Ranges to the east and west and is located just 200km south of the geographic centre of Australia.
Alice Springs began as a repeater station along the Overland Telegraph Line and has a rich pioneering history of Afghan cameleers, flying doctors and outback explorers. Their stories can still be heard through a range of attractions and sites around town.
It is also the scene for outback adventure, and visitors can enjoy quad bike riding, trek the Larapinta Trail, head out of town for four-wheel driving and camping or take a swim in a beautiful natural waterhole. Explore the rich, colourful world of contemporary Aboriginal art through the many galleries and art centres both in and around Alice Springs.
Desert Park Alice Springs is offering delegates to the GPET Convention a 20% discount on general entry and the Park’s Nocturnal Tour. The offer is extend to one week prior and one week post-convention, for those delegates arriving early or choosing to stay on after the convention. The discounts can be redeemed on presentation of registration papers and/or your lanyard to the entry station of the Park. Desert Park is one of the ‘must see’ attractions for every visitor to Alice! In the space of just a few hours, you can discover many of the secrets of the Central Australian deserts at the Desert Park. Hundreds of species of plants and animals found across Central Australian deserts can be seen, smelt and heard. You will even have the opportunity to experience desert habitats as they are at night, seeing some of the animals near impossible to see in the wild.
Visit the Desert Park website for more information - www.alicespringsdesertpark.com.au
Climate
Central Australia is a semi-arid environment and experiences Australia’s typical four seasons; summer, autumn, winter and spring. The Red Centre has hot summer days from December to February and surprisingly cold nights from June to August. Spring and autumn are warm throughout the day and cool at night.
During September, temperatures range from 27.0 degrees maximum to 9.7degrees minimum.
