Make a meaningful connection with the world’s oldest living cultures when you join an Aboriginal-guided tour in Sydney or regional New South Wales. Feel ancient wisdom gained over tens of thousands of years and a generosity wash over you as you’re guided to sacred sites and discover the healing powers of Australian native plants.

Immerse in Sydney’s Aboriginal heritage

Prepare to be moved as you learn of the extraordinary relationship Sydney’s first inhabitants share with Sydney Harbour on Dreamtime Southern X’s The Rocks Aboriginal Dreaming Tour (Illi Langi). Soak up an astonishing depth of knowledge as you join Dunghutti-Jerrinjha Elder ‘Aunty’ Margret Campbell or one of her fellow guides on a 90-minute walking tour of The Rocks, and come away with a fresh perspective on this storied saltwater harbour and its foreshores.

See Sydney Harbour through Indigenous eyes on BridgeClimb Sydney’s Burrawa Indigenous Experience. Experience a heady combination of exhilaration and amazement as you ascend to the summit of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, taking in panoramic views of the Rocks and Circular Quay below as your Indigenous guide shares fascinating stories of Sydney’s Aboriginal past and present. Then take the water on a two-hour cultural cruise to hear stories of Sydney Harbour with Tribal Warrior.

Expand your understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures on a Waranara Tour of the Australian Museum led by a First Nations guide. Or spend a memorable evening surrounded by First Nations art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales on the Yiribana Experience. Here you can explore the gallery’s renowned Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art collection with an Aboriginal host before tucking into a five-course meal featuring native ingredients and complemented by paired wines.

Get a taste for bush foods on an Aboriginal Bush Tucker Tour in The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. And breathe in the salty air at Barangaroo Reserve, a culturally significant harbour headland a short walk from The Rocks, as your Barangaroo Aboriginal Cultural Tours guide explains how the Gadigal people, the first inhabitants of the area, used the native plants found in the reserve as food and medicine and for cultural practices.

Meet the Traditional Custodians of the west

Immerse in Aboriginal culture in major towns throughout the vast Central West plains of Country NSW. Absorb the ancestral learnings of Wiradjuri Elders on half-day and full-day Aboriginal-led Wahluu cultural tours to notable sites around Bathurst, a three-hour drive west of Sydney.

Be astounded by the breadth of knowledge imparted by Gerald Power of Indigenous Cultural Adventures in the renowned wine region of Orange. His food-focused cultural tours begin in a local bush tucker garden before venturing out of town to visit ceremonial grounds and other significant sites.

Surrender to the mesmerising open road for the two-hour drive from Orange to the vibrant regional city of Dubbo. Gain the ultimate introduction to Wiradjuri and Kamilaroi/Gamilaraay Country with Traditional Owner Peter Peckham’s First Lesson Cultural Tours. Spend an absorbing half-day visiting important sites in the surrounding area or join a multi-day cultural odyssey across the region — book through Dubbo Visitor Information Centre.

Venture into the remote Outback NSW and be rewarded with rare access to historic sites in Mutawintji National Park, less than a three-hour drive from the outback city of Broken Hill. Marvel at rock engravings and ochre stencils, and let your imagination take you deep into the past as your local Aboriginal guide shares the story of ancestor god Kulluwirru on a Kulluwirru Dreaming Tour with Mutawintji Heritage Tours.

Tap into the knowledge of the north

Savour the unique experience of being serenaded by a didgeridoo played by Elder Kevin ‘Gavi’ Duncan before tasting bush foods paired with botanical wines infused with native ingredients with Firescreek Botanical Winery Aboriginal Experiences on the Central Coast, 75 minutes north of Sydney. Or get a thrill zooming around the southern hemisphere’s largest shifting coastal sand dunes in nearby Port Stephens with Sand Dune Adventures, which runs quad-biking tours in the private Worimi Conservation Lands.

See the ocean in a new light as you hear the story of how waves were created on a Gaagal Yuludarla (Ocean Dreaming) tour or delve into the heritage of Gaagal Wanggaan (South Beach) National Park with Unkya Cultural EcoTours at Scotts Head, near the NSW North Coast of Macksville, a five-hour drive north of Sydney.

Follow the coastal highway north another 50 minutes to explore the idyllic creeks of the Coffs Coast on a stand-up paddleboarding experience with Wajaana Yaam Gumbaynggirr Adventure Tours. Admire the fish darting through crystal clear waters as your Aboriginal guide brings Gumbaynggirr Dreaming to life, and introduces you to some coastal bush tucker.

Imagine what the iconic tourist town of Byron Bay on the Far North Coast was like before colonisation on a walking tour of Cape Byron led by Arakwal Bundjalung woman Delta Kay from Explore Byron Bay. Drift back to the Dreaming as Creation stories are shared in the shade of towering gum trees home to the odd dozing koala, and taste delicious bush tucker hiding in plain sight. Or treat yourself to a private tour hosted in Byron Bay, Bangalow or Broken Head.

Soak up Aboriginal culture in the south

Drink in a wealth of knowledge in the Riverina region of southern NSW as Wiradjuri guide Mark Saddler of Bundyi Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge takes you on a cultural tour of the riverside city of Wagga Wagga and surrounds. Spot living artefacts alongside the Murrumbidgee River on his Aboriginal Walkabout Tour and feel the spirituality of important sites visited on an Aboriginal Special Places Tour.

Admire the craftsmanship of the boomerangs, didgeridoos and clapsticks on display in Wiradjuri Elder Michael Lyons’s Sandhills Artefacts gallery in nearby Narrandera before joining him on a cultural tour to sacred birthing rocks and caves along Murrumbidgee River.

Revel in the wild and rugged scenery of Kosciuszko National Park on a five-day kayaking adventure with Alpine River Adventures. Paddle and camp in the rugged Byadbo Wilderness with your Aboriginal guide on this unforgettable experience on a remote section of the Snowy River, home to a number of significant cultural sites.

Broaden your horizons in Yuin Country on the South Coast of NSW. Immerse in the Aboriginal cultural heritage of the Shoalhaven, around two hours south of Sydney, on a bespoke experience crafted by Djiriba Waagura. Join one of their regular group cultural bushwalks, beginning with a grounding Welcome to Country ceremony. Feel culture all around you as you follow a coastal Dreaming track dotted with middens (ancient piles of shells and bones) in Eurobodalla National Park near Moruya with a local Elder from Minga Cultural Experiences. Also based in the Eurobodalla region, directly south of the Shoalhaven, Southbound Escapes offers a range of experiences in partnership with local Aboriginal guides – feel transformed by a bushwalk in Mystery Bay with Gnarl Cultural Tours or cruise Narooma’s serene turquoise Wagonga Inlet with Nar-Oo-Ma Aboriginal Cultural Tours.[SA1] [MS2] 

Reflect on Aboriginal wisdom on the two-night Yuin Retreat hosted by Ngaran Ngaran Culture Awareness near Narooma. Hear sacred Dreaming stories passed down over generations as you walk on Country, bear witness to traditional ceremonies around a crackling campfire, and savour gourmet catering showcasing native ingredients.