On our very first week in Australia, our friend told us about the Indian Pacific train journey and we put it on our list of things we’d love to do one day. Seven years later and it finally happened! I’ve always loved train travel - watching as the scenery changes little by little. There’s something much more romantic about it than simply getting from A to B as quickly as possible by plane.

I loaded up my Kindle with books in readiness for the 4352km journey between Sydney and Perth which takes four days and three nights. I actually didn’t read a single page, because what I hadn’t realised was that sharing this experience with others on board was one of the true highlights. It’s one of those opportunities that come by less and less nowadays, to meet other like minded people from around the world and live the adventure together.

If you’ve been wondering what life on board the Indian Pacific is really like, we’ll share the whole journey from start to finish in this post.

Before you book

Which direction should you choose?

The Indian Pacific runs in two directions: Perth to Sydney and Sydney to Perth. Contrary to what you may think (it runs along the same train-line after all!) the journeys and excursions are different.

If you are an outback lover, we would recommend starting in Sydney. In this direction you can see all the outback towns and destinations in daylight (except Rawlinna, which is a sunset/evening stop). This direction also has an excursion to the wineries around Adelaide.

If you like your towns and quirky excursions, then Perth to Sydney is for you. In this direction you can explore the city of Adelaide, witness the unique drag show at Broken Hill, see the Blue Mountains and have sunrise at Rawlinna.

A word on luggage

Whilst the cabins aren’t cramped, you won’t be able to take multiple suitcases in (there’s not enough storage room). We squeezed in a medium sized, soft shell case, but traditional hard rectangular cases wouldn’t fit here.

Before you get onboard, try to pack what you need as if it was carry on for a plane. Otherwise your case will be put into the luggage cart, which is inaccessible until the end of the trip.

Life on board the Indian Pacific

We travelled between Perth and Sydney which is how ww’ll describe the journey.

Starting the journey in Perth

On arrival at the East Terminal you’ll be met with drinks and a variety of cakes. You’ll quickly see a theme here, food is a major part of the Indian Pacific journey. Everything is included, even premium alcohol - all day everyday!

This is no place for dieters, every time you tell yourself tomorrow ‘I won’t go for the full three courses’, you see the menu and immediately order the lot.

The same goes for drinks, everything is included and I was surprised to see it’s all premium products, and they even had wine from one of my favourite vineyards in the Hunter Valley!

But back to the arrival! After coffee and cake you’ll be shown to your private cabin and given a bit of a briefing before you can choose to either relax and watch the world go by in your cabin or head to the lounge.

What to expect on the train

The set up

Unlike a lot of trains, the Indian Pacific is designed with a sociable atmosphere in mind. The lounge car is really the life and soul of the train and you’ll always find someone in there for a chat. There’s also a dining car which is used for meal times only, and of course your own private cabin.

The cabin during the day

The Indian Pacific has two classes: Gold and Platinum. Our trip was in a twin cabin in Gold Class, which is the most numerous on the train (there is no option for a double, unless you are in Platinum Class).

*A Gold Class Twin cabin set up for day use*

During the day the cabin is made up of a seat that is enough for three people (or two when one of you likes to stretch out!). It is relatively cosy, but comfy and we never felt it was too small. The cabins include power points, a mirror, a safe, a small amount of storage and a bathroom.

All Gold Class Twins have their own en-suite bathrooms, with a toilet and shower, stocked with Apelles toiletries. It’s amazing what they got in to the space and having our own bathroom on a train felt super luxurious! You will quickly learn how to shower whilst bumping along the tracks and it was always a good laugh!

Gold Class Singles are smaller, with a single bed with a small amount of space around it. The bed runs alongside the window which is pretty cool and you could drift off to sleep looking up at the stars! During the day it converts into a seat. Gold Class Singles have a shared bathroom, but the upside is that it is a huge, with a full size shower.

Platinum is the pick of the bunch with two individual arm chairs and a lot of space. At night they convert into either twin or double beds.

The cabin at night

At night the Gold Class Twins convert into bunk beds, which may not sound that luxurious until you see the linen and bedding! It was surprisingly comfortable and roomy for bunk beds and they even leave a chocolate on your pillow!

The staff come round when they know you’re at dinner and get to work on converting your room so you can get back and just flop into bed when you’re ready. They set up a secure ladder to help you get to the top bunk and for a small space it feels luxurious and really cosy.

They then convert it back to day use when you’re at breakfast.

*A Gold Class twin cabin set up for night time*

The hardest part of being on the train is sleeping at night, and light sleepers might find it difficult. You can get ear plugs (although we didn’t find the noise that bad), but the track is surprisingly bumpy for a lot of the journey. Despite this I actually really loved the experience of sleeping on the train, and hearing the sounds and feeling the jolts do make you feel like you’re on an adventure!

The lounge car

The lounge car is one of the most special features of the Indian Pacific and makes the journey really fun. This is the social hub of the train and we found ourselves spending a lot of time here, talking to other passengers, sharing stories, watching the incredible landscapes with a drink and playing games (Uno and cards seemed to be the crowd favourites).

The lounge also has live music every day with little extras like a quiz and wine tasting! It’s the place to get a snack or drink anytime of day, including wine, beer, cocktails, coffee or soft drinks.

I wasn’t sure ahead of time what to expect from the lounge car and constantly meeting new people, but it turned out to be a highlight of the trip. You can always head back to your cabin to recharge whenever you need, if you also like your quiet time.

For two people who love the peace and solitude of hiking up a mountain, you can trust us when we say that the lounge car was something we didn’t expect to love as much as we did.

The dining car

The food on the Indian Pacific is exceptional, and we found it hard to fault any of the courses we had across the four days onboard. The menu is ever changing, and the food is not just restaurant quality, but fine dining restaurant quality. It caters well for vegetarians, vegans and anyone with dietary requirements.

The Indian Pacific serves three course meals, three times a day, from fresh fish to beef eye fillet, and there were always great veggie options too. The wine menus were also excellent, with Australian wines sourced from local producers along the route. Whilst we tried and enjoyed every wine (I mean when it’s all included right?!) we would say even if you’d never normally drink Rose, you have to try this one!

If you are in Gold Class and travelling in a group of less than four people you’ll join others for dinner. If you’re in Platinum you can sit with others if you want to but there are also tables of two if you prefer a private dinner.

Eating with others was another highlight of the trip for us and it was lovely to talk to people from all over the world who share a similar passion for travel. If you’re slightly apprehensive about dining with strangers don’t forget that the drinks are free flowing….. :)

The excursions

The excursions are slightly different depending on which direction you go in, but as we went from Perth to Sydney our guide focuses on the ones offered in this direction.

You’ll also often have the choice of several different options which we’ll come to later in the post.

Day one

The majority of day one is spent on the train. Once you depart at 10am, you make your way through the Avon Valley before heading into the Outback and Kalgoorlie in the evening.

It’s a good time to chill, get accustomed to the lounge car and devour some superb food! You’ll also find that despite the fact there is little physical activity required on the trip, napping becomes another favourite past time. Fancy a little 3pm siesta? No judgement here!

Kalgoorlie

Kalgoorlie is famous in Australia for its gold rush and the super pit - a huge mine that is operational 24 hours a day. Situated deep in the interior of Western Australia, the stop at Kalgoorlie is a short one to see the mine in operation - but it’s in the dark.

Quite how much you can see we can’t share unfortunately because there was torrential rain during out visit so the pit was not accessible.

Luckily for us we still got an excursion as we were onboard the 50th Anniversary train ride, so we were treated to a concert from Adam Thompson of Chocolate Starfish who played many a crowd pleaser!

Day two

Day two is the start of the epic journey across the Nullarbor! This is the bit we were looking forward to the most, having heard so much about crossing the Nullarbor, it felt like a rite of passage.

This section is home to the longest straight track in the world (over 400km!). Crossing such a vast expanse of desert might sound like there wouldn’t be much to see but we loved the stark, arid beauty of the Nullarbor and did spot some life from time to time, including kangaroos and emu!

The Nullabor Plain and the Indian Pacific

We found sitting and staring out at the endless desert to be mesmerising and we were thrilled to have had the chance to traverse one of Australia’s most iconic landscapes. I’d always thought I would drive the Nullarbor one day but I actually think the train is a nicer way to do it. You can still appreciate how vast it is but you can get up and move around as opposed to sitting in a car for two days straight!

There are two excursions on day two, one in the early morning and one at midday and then you’ll enjoy the rest of the day on the train.

Sunrise at Rawlinna

Rawlinna is one of those quirky Australian Outback towns with a couple of dirt track roads and not much else. It doesn’t really need much as the total population of the town is just two!

The stop at Rawlinna is just after sunrise and you’ll have a light breakfast in the middle of the Outback. There’s live music, fire pits and of course the beautiful early morning light.

You can also walk up to the front of the train to see the locomotive and take in the sheer size of the train - over 700 metres in total! By the time you’ve gone to the front and back you’ve had over a kilometre’s exercise and are probably about ready for breakfast…!

Midday at Cook

The stop at Cook is a short one to resupply, but you have enough time to explore the tiny ghost town. It was once a busy hub for the Australian Railway Network, but things changed when the trains were privatised. Soon the population shrunk to just four and the town’s swimming pool and basketball court fell into disrepair.

It’s fun to walk around another place that seems so inhospitable and feels a million miles away from civilisation, yet people are actually living there! You can see the old his and hers prison cells which have to be seen to be believed, how anyone could survive in there without air conditioning I’ll never know!

The heat here is intense and the flies even more so but that all added to the true remote outback atmosphere.

Day three

Day three is the journey through South Australia, into Adelaide and onto New South Wales. There’s a big time zone change, and you’ll see a lot of transitions from outback, to farmland, and back to outback again! You’ll get lots of greenery on this leg which makes a change from the desert landscape from the previous day.

There are two excursions, one in the morning and one in the evening.

Roving breakfast at the Central Market in Adelaide

We chose The Central Market Tour but you could have chosen a city tour or a visit to the Adelaide Oval.

We’ve never done a roving breakfast before but are definitely converts! For someone who is indecisive and always wants to try a bit of everything - like me - it’s perfect!

You’ll get to sample diverse, locally crafted food - as if you haven’t already had enough on the train! - as you make your way around the market. You’ll have a bag and cutlery to try everything from granola and yoghurt, to German cured meats, to South American Quesadillas, to a peanut butter fountain - how have I never seen one of those before?!

You’ll hear stories of local producers and the history of the market and stall holders, it’s a really fun couple of hours off the train.

The Drag Show in Broken Hill

Almost everyone chose the drag show on our train, but you could have also opted to go to the art gallery or to see the world’s largest acrylic painting.

Supposing you choose the drag show you’ll be in for quite the unusual evening! For those who don’t know, Broken Hill is where Priscilla Queen of the Desert was filmed, including many scenes in the Palace Hotel itself (which is where the drag show is hosted).

It’s pretty cheesy - think songs like ‘it’s raining men’ etc - but everyone had a good laugh, and as always the wine was flowing! After the show you can go for a wander around the hotel, which is absolutely covered in murals, I’d love to go back and stay there one day, it’s such a quirky place!

Whilst it isn’t the type of thing we’d usually go to see on a trip, it was a good laugh and we felt like we saw something that is iconic to Broken Hill.

Day four

Sunrise on day four was truly special as you see the lush green rolling hills of New South Wales in the early morning glow. We live in NSW, but appreciated this part of the journey just as much as passing through other states we don’t know as well. It’s truly breath-taking scenery. You’ll see the deepest greens, rivers with sweet little bridges and even the odd kangaroo.

As you near the Blue Mountains you’ll come across some of the areas which were sadly damaged in the 2019/2020 bushfires which is a sobering moment, and the train fell silent. But we were also pleased to see that lots of it was still untouched.

Today you can choose to stay on the train all the way into Sydney or hop off for the day in the Blue Mountains and then take a charter train into Sydney (the charter train is private and with plenty of space but it’s not lux like the Indian Pacific. Your luggage will be transferred for you).

We visit the mountains several times a month but will never turn down the opportunity for more time there. You could choose between Scenic World or a hiking trail. Normally we’re all about the hikes, but this time opted for Scenic World as we’d only been there once before.

Scenic World in the Blue Mountains

Scenic World offers some absolutely spectacular views of the World Heritage listed national park. You’ll take a cable car down to the valley floor where a guide will take you on a short, easy stroll through the rainforest, teaching you about the history and geology of the area. You’ll then head back up to the top on the world’s steepest railway - and it truly is steep, I definitely saw a few white knuckles!

*The iconic Three Sisters rock formation, as seen from Scenic World*

After Scenic World you’ll have lunch with a glorious mountain view, and yes you guessed it, yet more wine! After lunch you head back to the train for the final couple of hours journey into Sydney.

Final thoughts on the journey

Lots of people sent us messages when we said we were going on this journey on our Facebook page. Some had made the journey already and some had it on their bucket list. Those that had made the journey were all saying that they wanted to do the Ghan next, and that pretty much sums up how we feel about it.

It’s the longest train journey we’ve ever taken and yet it didn’t feel long enough. It was the adventure of watching the world go by from your window, the thrill of crossing some of Australia’s most iconic landscapes and spotting native animals in what looked to us like the middle of nowhere. The amazing food and wine which we couldn’t believe came out a galley kitchen, waking up to sunrise in a new destination everyday, falling asleep to the rattling of the train on the tracks, and - of course - the people, who we keep in touch with to this day.

It was our first truly long distance train journey, but it won’t be our last!

Edit for November 2020: We are just back from an amazing trip on The Ghan, you can read all about it here!

We travelled on the Indian Pacific as guests of Journey Beyond, all thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are - as always - our own.

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