We will break our journey south with morning tea at historic Berrima where we will have a brief tour on the coach and a little time to explore the village on foot. Continuing down the Hume, our lunch today is a picnic at Gundagai on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River.  We will see the Snake Gully Statues featuring Steele Rudd’s characters – Dad, Dave, Mum & Mabel, along with the sculpture of Yarri and Jacky Jacky.  The two Wiradjuri men have been honoured for risking their lives to rescue nearly a third of the town’s population during the great flood of 1852.

This afternoon we will take in many of Wagga Wagga’s highlights including Wagga beach, Lake Albert, Charles Sturt University and a heritage tour of this vibrant city taking in many of its fine historic buildings and churches.  Our motel, Mercure Wagga Wagga (Ph: 02 6921 6444), is conveniently located a short stroll from the main street on one side and River Park on the other.

Overnight: Mercure Wagga Wagga
Meals Included: Lunch, Dinner

This morning we will commence with a visit to the delightful Wagga Botanic Gardens, set on 22 acres at the base of Williams Hill.  It features areas dedicated to Australian Native Flora, a Camelia Garden, Shakespearean Garden, a Cactus & Succulent Garden, a Rainforest Gully and a Rose Garden as well as an excellent Zoo & Aviary.  We will then continue west to Narrandera where we will enjoy morning tea in Marie Bashir Park. We will have time to take in the Tiger Moth Memorial, a tribute to the Elementary Flight Training School that operated here during the 2^nd World War and also the Wiradjuri Honour Wall, before travelling on to Yanko.

This afternoon on our drive to Griffith, we will see the impressive McCaughey Mansion built in 1899 to host a visit by Prince Edward. Samuel McCaughey was the driving influence for the construction of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation area and eventually his home formed the centrepiece of Yanko Agricultural High School. We will also see the impressive bird life at the internationally recognised Fivebough Wetlands before a tour of Leeton, focusing on its art deco heritage.  Leeton, like Canberra (and Griffith) was designed by Walter Burley Griffith and is built in a circular fashion with streets radiating out from the centre. It is a picturesque town with over 100 hectares of parks and gardens and is at the centre of a thriving agricultural region.  Our home for the next 3 nights is at the Quest Griffith (Ph 6969 2000).

After a hearty country breakfast we will enjoy a great day in and around Griffith, starting with a guided tour of this thriving city.  We will enjoy the views from the Hermits Cave Lookout and learn about the multicultural aspects and history of this city from an enthusiastic local. We will explore some more of this outstanding city, including the centenary sculpture walk.  Seven master sculptors from across the globe were commissioned to work with 3 tonne blocks of granite to create works based on their interpretation of the themes – “The meaning of water in Griffith and the city’s cultural diversity”.  The international artists represent the people of Griffith who have migrated from many countries and added cultural richness to the region.

After morning tea, we will visit the impressive Regional Art Gallery and Regional Theatre.  The gardens of the theatre are home to the community cultural mosaics which again showcase the multicultural makeup of Griffith. Later, we will head to Catania Fruit Salad Farm for a tour of this impressive property. Sharon (owner & colourful character) will showcase a wide variety of fruit and nuts which we sample during our visit.  We also enjoy jams, mustard, pickles and traditional Sicilian preservative free wine. The hospitality here is as impressive as the range of products on sale and our visit includes a barbeque lunch.

This afternoon we will visit Careri Garden (Rosewood Park) which features 3 acres of gardens set within a vineyard and orchard.  Hedged by rose bushes, flowering trees and a variety of shrubs, this garden has many rooms to explore.  On our way back to the hotel we will take in the Bana Lane murals.  We will enjoy some time at leisure before we head out to a local Italian restaurant for dinner.

This morning we visit the Horder Garden, inspired by Edna Walling. Meander through 1.2 hectares of different coloured garden rooms, highlighted by beautiful stonework, sculptures and bronzes and a dam with a Monet bridge. We will enjoy morning tea at the gardens before we visit the extensive Pioneer Park Museum complex. It includes Bagtown – a recreation of the workers camp involved in the construction of the irrigation schemes, the Italian Museum which highlights the contribution of the Italian community to the fabric of Griffith. The Wine Museum and the Toad Shed – a fabulous collection of vintage motorised and horse drawn vehicles used in the region. We will enjoy lunch and a train ride through the park before we continue to De Bortolis Vineyard.  The De Bortoli family have been making quality wines for over 90 years and the tradition instilled by Vittorio and Giuseppina of warm Italian hospitality has been passed down through the generations.  We will then take in the Citrus Sculptures and marvel at the creativity of over 60 displays made from locally grown oranges and grapefruit, before we return to our motel with time to relax before our dinner at 7.00pm.

Overnight: Quest Hotel Griffith
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

This morning we will head east along the Burley Griffin Way travelling through Yenda and Ardlethan on our way to Temora where we will enjoy morning tea prior to our visit to the Aviation Museum.   The town has a rich aviation history being home to the Number 10 Flying Elementary Training School established in 1941, with over 2400 pilots trained here.  The Museum contains an incredible collection of historic Warbirds including Spitfires, Meteors, Vampires, Sabres, Wirraways and Boomerangs.    After our guided tour and lunch we will continue on to Young through Stockinbingal and Wallendbeen.

On arrival in Young, we visit the Grove Estate Vineyard for a comprehensive tasting of their award-winning wines.  We conclude our afternoon in Young with a guided tour of this interesting town.   Its rich gold heritage is very evident, and the surrounding region is enormously productive with orchards abounding.   We will check in to the Federation Motor Inn (Ph 6382 5644) with a little time to relax before our dinner at the Young Services Club, opposite our motel, at 7.00pm.

Overnight: Young Federation Motor Inn
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Leaving Young we head for Cowra and commence the morning with a visit to Olympic Park Rose Garden and POW Theatre where we will see the entertaining hologram presentation of the Cowra breakout.  We then proceed to the Japanese Gardens for morning tea before exploring this beautifully tranquil area.  Continuing along the Mid Western Highway to Bathurst, we will pause for lunch and enjoy a brief tour of our oldest inland settlement.

Our journey home takes us over the Blue Mountains via the Great Western Highway. We will have a short rest stop in either Katoomba or Leura, arriving back in Sydney late afternoon.

 Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch