Red CentreNATS in 3 days Rev up for the ultimate festival of wheels

Red CentreNATS invites the nation’s petrol heads to ‘meet in the middle’ in the adventure hub of Alice Springs. But step through all the smoke and side mirrors and you’ll find the people attached to these awesome machines have awesome stories to tell.

More than rubber, glass, and steel each vehicle is made of guts and determination – vessels for the great Australian dream.

Start your stay by heading up, up, and away. Alice Springs Helicopter tours are an ideal kick off to your Red CentreNATS experience. Here—with the vibrant red earth below—sit the best seats in the Australian Outback. With flexible departure times, Alice Springs Helicopters can whisk you away for half an hour or half a day, with private charters allowing you to take in some of the most magnificent natural wonders of the world within minutes.

Get your head out of the clouds and into the action of the Red CentreNATS event. Join the cruise with your own vehicle (be sure to register with the event) or gain a good viewpoint from along the route. Grab lunch on your way from any of the great cafés around the centrally located Todd Street area.

Balance out the bitumen with a bit of dirt and a pedal-powered machine in the evening. Alice Springs and the Red Centre are quickly becoming a world-renowned mountain biking destination.

Outback Cycling located in Todd Mall runs guided mountain bike adventures that cater to visitors with their own bikes as well as those needing to hire a bike.

Rise early and grab a perfect flakey pastry from The Bakery on Todd Street before jumping in the car and heading west on Larapinta Drive.

If you feel like a swim out of town, the Tjoritja West MacDonnell National Park is famous for its waterholes. The larger waterholes like Ellery Creek Big Hole, Ormiston Gorge, Redbank Gorge and Glen Helen Gorge are filled with cold, clear, and famously restorative desert water you can swim in year long. Head back to town for lunch at Alice Springs Brewing Co. where you can sample a range of beers with personality as big as the Territory itself. Next door, Hideout – Star of Alice is the name of the brewery’s informal restaurant and bar known for great pizza and spicy chicken wings.

Keep the revs up after lunch and join the Yeperenye Street Parade – the largest street cruise of its kind in Australia. It’ll feel like all of Alice has turned out to cheer and gawk at the colourful convoy as you roll by with the engine purring and windows down. The Heavy Hitters event lights up the night sky after dinner where the Alice Springs Inland dragway is set alight by high octane engines and fireworks in the night sky.

Start your final day with a good cup of coffee and hearty breakfast from Bean Tree Café nestled inside the The Olive Pink Botanic Garden, Australia’s only arid zone botanic garden.

After a rather low-key start to the day, it’s time to get your heart racing again at the Shannon’s Show and Shine. Here you’ll find hundreds of vehicles to fall in love with. Every car owner has a story they’re only too willing to share, should you ask. Some of the vintage cars on display have been restored to their former splendour and beyond, while others have had such easy lives they’ve barely racked up any mileage.

Helicopter and Mountain bike and car: tick, tick, tick! But have you really been to Alice Springs if you haven’t ridden a camel? The Pyndan Camel Tracks Tour is the O.G. way to travel in the desert and provides unique access to the wild and ancient outback, just a few minutes’ drive outside of Alice. This proximity will enable you to get back to the dragway and the final competitions of the Red Centre NATS festival.