• Four nights aboard the PS Emmylou, an authentic wood-fired paddle steamer offering overnight cruises
• Experiences in seven destinations
• 17 meals – 7 breakfasts, 3 lunches and 7 dinners
• Services of a Travelmarvel Tour Director
• Travel with a maximum 16 guests on your Small Group Journey
• Enjoy riverside BBQ dining under the stars, complete with live entertainment and a crackling campfire
• Stay at the World Heritage Mungo National Park and partake in a Mungo Lodge Sunset Tour
• Explore Jacob’s Creek winery in the Barossa Valley with a vineyard tour, learning about 14 grape varieties and enjoying a cellar door tasting

Itinerary

DAY 1 | Arrive Melbourne, Echuca, Embark PS Emmylou (D)

Arrive in Melbourne and transfer to the rural town of Echuca in northern Victoria. This is where you’ll board the PS Emmylou, your floating home for the next four nights, where you’ll be greeted by your Travelmarvel Cruise Director. The moment you step aboard, be transported to the golden age of paddle steamer travel, where life moved at a slower pace and travel wasn’t simply about the destination, but the journey itself.

A perfect replica of a vintage paddle steamer with the original 1906 Marshall and Sons steam engine, Emmylou is reminiscent of a bygone era with its gleaming timber cladding and authentic wheelhouse that you can access and chat with the skipper. The eight onboard cabins are decked out in fine linens, private en suites and direct access to the deck, where you can pause to watch the serene river scenes pass by. Set off at 4pm this afternoon for Layfield Lane, spending your time on board relaxing with a good book or watching the Upper Murray River scenery. At Layfield Lane, enjoy a gourmet Australian barbeque under the stars, before a live music performance

Stay: Four Nights, PS Emmylou

DAY 2 | River Cruising, Perricoota Station (B/L/D)

Breakfast is served on the deck of the PS Emmylou as the paddle steamer makes a leisurely course for your next stop: Perricoota Station. Watch as scenes along the Murray unfold as you cruise – the majestic river red gums, the sunlight bouncing off the river’s surface, and the hopeful glimpse of a kangaroo hopping beyond the tree line. Listen out for the laugh of a kookaburra over the rhythmic splashing of the paddle steamer.

At Perricoota Station, join your skipper for a guided tour of the historic farm and homestead and its pristine gardens. Later, return to PS Emmylou to enjoy a gourmet dinner with your fellow travellers, prepared by your onboard chef. Cap off your day with a documentary screening of the Murray River’s local communities and its famous paddle steamers throughout history. Before retiring to your cabin for the night, admire the starry night sky and the calming quiet of the Australian bush.

DAY 3 | River Cruising, Echuca, Deep Creek (B/L/D)

This morning, wake to the sound of native bird song as your paddle steamer gently rumbles to life. Enjoy breakfast on board before a half-day exploration starting in town. After, enjoy an Explorer Cruise through Barmah Wetlands, where you can get up close to Australian nature and wildlife. Back aboard the PS Emmylou, keep on the lookout for emus or wallabies as your vessel cruises to Deep Creek Marina, where it will moor overnight.

DAY 4 | River Cruising, Echuca (B/L/D)

By this point in your journey, you will have well and truly adjusted to the unhurried, relaxed pace of life along the Murray River. Your paddle steamer spends the day travelling back upriver towards Echuca, and you can enjoy your last day on board relaxing on the decks enjoying the views while swapping tales with your fellow cruisers, reading a book, or sipping a barista-made coffee and settling in to one of the many cosy nooks hidden throughout the vessel. Dinner is a celebration of local flavours and produce, served on board this evening before the PS Emmylou docks back in Echuca.

DAY 5 | Echuca, Swan Hill, Disembark Paddle Steamer (B/D)

*INSIDER EXPERIENCE

Savour a delicious two-course dinner before attending the Heartbeat of the Murray laser light show, a visually dynamic storytelling experience showcasing the history of the river.

After breakfast, disembark the PS Emmylou and board a coach for your journey to Swan Hill. Along the way, pause at Mount Hope and Gunbower National Park for a chance to stretch your legs. Gunbower is celebrated for its birdwatching  opportunities, so keep on the lookout for kookaburras, blue-feathered superb fairywrens, dusky woodswallows and more during a leisurely walk through the forest and wetlands. If you’re feeling active, join a moderate hike up Mount Hope where you’ll be rewarded with picturesque views of the Murray Riverlands.

Continue to Swan Hill, stopping en route in Cohuna, where you may like to explore the town and savour lunch at your leisure. This evening, arrive in Swan Hill. This rural town is located nearby the Murray River, and is renowned for its stone fruits, wineries and its annual Swan Hill Food and Wine Festival.

Stay: Swan Hill, Burke and Wills Motor Inn

DAY 6 | Swan Hill, Mungo National Park (B/D)

*INSIDER EXPERIENCE

Partake in a Mungo Lodge Sunset Tour and follow your guide to the Walls of China during golden hour to capture the perfect sunset photo. While you’re chasing sunsets, look out for local kangaroos, emus and other birdlife.

Following breakfast, set off for the natural wonders of World Heritage-listed Mungo National Park. Spend time exploring this lunar-like landscape, from the unique formations of the Walls of China trail to the Mungo Woman and Mungo Man, some of the most important human remains ever found in Australia. The national park’s namesakes are the Mungo Woman and Mungo Man. Their 42,000-year-old ritual burial sites contained the oldest human remains outside of Africa and are a tribute to the resilience of the Paakantyi, Ngiyampaa and Muthi Muthi people, descendants of the Mungo people.

This afternoon, enjoy lunch at the national park before time at leisure to explore at your own pace, or learn more about the park at the visitor’s centre. Check in to your accommodation for the night, Mungo Lodge. This evening, take part in an Insider Experience before dinner back at your lodge.

Stay: Mungo National Park, Mungo Lodge

DAY 7 | Mungo National Park, Renmark, Barossa Valley (B/D)

Arrive in South Australia today, stopping in the rural town of Renmark for lunch at leisure.

This charming town is another Murray River gem, located along a sweeping section of the river and surrounded by ochre-colored cliffs, wetlands abundant with birdlife and a fantastic brewery and distillery scene. After time to peruse the town, continue to the world-renowned Barossa Valley, stopping en route at Waikerie for chance to stretch your legs and admire the Murray River cliffs and Silo Art.

At Barossa Valley, check in to your deluxe, eco-friendly safari tent before setting off for an afternoon of culinary delights. What better way to immerse yourself in the Barossa Valley than by taking a vineyard tour of renowned Jacob’s Creek winery. Explore the 14 different grapes varieties and learn more about how wine is made, followed by a tasting at the cellar door. The gourmet delights continue this evening at a Farewell Dinner at Vino Lokal, a bistro-style restaurant celebrating good food and great wine.

Stay: Discovery Parks – Barossa Valley

DAY 8 | Barossa Valley, Depart Adelaide (B)

After breakfast, set off on a Sorbet, Gelati and Chocolate tasting at Barossa Valley Chocolate Company. Here, chocolatiers have matched their white, ruby, milk and dark chocolates with four house-made sorbets and gelati, resulting in a decadent dessert combination. Afterwards, farewell the Barossa Valley’s stunning network of patchwork vineyards as you are transferred to Adelaide, where your tour comes to an end.