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Your wonderful Wagga Wagga road trip

Wagga Wagga TownshipCredit: Destination NSW

Aerials overlooking the city of Wagga Wagga and the Murrumbidgee River.

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Your wonderful Wagga Wagga road trip

Wagga Wagga Township Credit: Destination NSW

Aerials overlooking the city of Wagga Wagga and the Murrumbidgee River.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Hashtags #lovensw #newsouthwales

The largest inland city in New South Wales, Wagga Wagga sits 450km southwest of Sydney in the state’s Riverina region. Unsurprisingly, there are waterways aplenty — this is the drainage basin for the Murray and Murrumbidgee rivers, which irrigate a landscape characterised by vast fields of canola and valleys cloaked in vineyards. Here’s how to take in the sights on an epic road trip.  

Wagga Wagga 

It’s around a five-hour drive from Sydney to Wagga Wagga. Once you arrive, check in to The Houston, a luxurious 10-suite boutique hotel just minutes’ walk from cafes and restaurants. From 4pm, head to Thirsty Crow Brewing Co. for dinner and a sip or two of the establishment’s delicious beers. Or head to the lauded Roundabout Restaurant for a meal driven by the seasons and local produce.  

Wake up early in Wagga Wagga — you have a big day ahead of you. Begin your day at Trail Street Coffee Shop (the apple-pie French toast is a winner), or get stuck straight into the sweetness of country life with a visit to Bidgee Strawberries and Cream. Here you can pick your own chemical-free fruit on indulge in strawberry-flavoured sweet treats: ice-cream, sorbet and chocolate among them.  

And rather than heading to a café for lunch, join a Food I Am cooking class, providing hands-on skills helping you prepare everything from French staples to Spanish tapas and Thai classics — followed by a feed, of course.  

To really appreciate the region and its long history, sign up for a Bundyi Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge tour with Wiradjuri man Mark Saddler, who’s based in Wagga Wagga. Each experience is totally unique, revealing sites of importance along the Murrumbidgee River, as well as bush foods and medicines used to sustain Aboriginal communities for tens of thousands of years. 

Coolamon and Junee 

From Wagga Wagga it’s a 30-minute drive northwest to Coolamon; on the way out of town, visit the cellar door at Charles Sturt Wines, part of Australia’s leading wine science school.  

If you have time to spare, you can take a cheesemaking course at Coolamon Cheese Co, or just indulge in a wedge flavoured with lemon myrtle, native bush tomatoes or river mint. It’s a 30-minute drive to Junee where lunch at The Millroom awaits. This restaurant sits within the historic Junee Licorice & Chocolate Factory — just try leaving without an edible souvenir or two.  

En route back to Wagga Wagga, indulge in award-winning beverages and dreamy country views at Cottontail Wines at Eunanoreenya. Want a change of scenery? Check in to nearby Belisi Farmstay to sleep in a seriously stylish cottage overlooking a working horse farm.  

Food I Am, Wagga Wagga Credit: Destination NSW

Friends enjoying a long lunch with scenic views at Food I Am, Wagga Wagga.

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Food I Am, Wagga Wagga Credit: Destination NSW

Friends enjoying a long lunch with scenic views at Food I Am, Wagga Wagga.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Belisi Farmstay, Wagga Wagga Credit: Caroline Cattle

Belisi Farmstay Cottage, near Wagga Wagga in the Riverina region.

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Belisi Farmstay, Wagga Wagga Credit: Caroline Cattle

Belisi Farmstay Cottage, near Wagga Wagga in the Riverina region.

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Borambola to Killimicat 

When it’s time to depart Wagga Wagga, drive 30 minutes east to Borambola Wines in Borambola, where you can enjoy a winery tour and tastings, best paired with an antipasto platter. Continue driving east for an hour toward Nimbo Fork, a luxurious estate located in the small town of Killimicat, between Gundagai and Tumut.  

Check in to country-chic cottages or suites and enjoy a spot of fly-fishing, horse or bike riding, or lace up your shoes for a trek through the countryside — there’s also an on-site spa, to reward your adventurous efforts. Don’t miss a meal in the Three Blue Ducks restaurant here, brought to you by an acclaimed team of foodies who follow a farm-to-table ethos.  

Tumut and Batlow 

Nimbo Fork is the perfect base for exploring the towns of Tumut and Batlow in the Snowy Valleys. It’s less than 10km south to The Coffee Pedaler in Tumut, where you can order breakfast staples and a heart-starting brew. Get your coffee to go and enjoy a waterside stroll on the Tumut River Walk, through parks and gardens and past wetlands full of birds.  

Be sure to stop by the Tumut Broom Factory, where artisans have been making millet brooms by hand since 1946. Next on your agenda is Pretty Parrot Distilling, where you can sip gin and native fruit liqueurs in a lounge. Then combine lunch with a brewery tour and tasting at Tumut River Brewing Co., or learn the art of fly-fishing — it’s not as straightforward as you might think.  

It’s a 30-minute drive south to the town of Batlow. En route, be sure to grab a happy snap at the Big Apple, a larger-than-life shrine to the region’s plentiful apple orchards. Get a taste for the produce at Wilgro Orchards, home of Batlow Road Cider; visit Crafty Cider‘s cellar door for a weekend tasting; or swing by Batlow Cider Co. to pick up takeaways before heading back to Nimbo Fork for the evening. 

Killimicat toTumbarumba 

Bid farewell to Killimicat and travel 80km south to Tumbarumba, a small town blessed with natural beauty in foothills of the Snowy Mountains. Discover some of the region’s cool-climate wines at Courabyra Wines, known for its standout pinot noir and sparkling wines, which you can enjoy at the cellar door or in the restaurant. Save some space for afternoon tea at Café Nest, with its book-lined shelves and cinema room, where you can order wine and pizza while you watch a movie.  

From Tumbarumba you can continue on to Albury, in the heart of The Murray region, or make your way back to Sydney, a five-hour drive away, via the Canberra District wine region. 

Courabyra Wines, Tumbarumba Credit: Destination NSW

Patrons enjoying food and wine at Courabyra Wines, Tumbarumba with scenic views over the vineyards.

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Courabyra Wines, Tumbarumba Credit: Destination NSW

Patrons enjoying food and wine at Courabyra Wines, Tumbarumba with scenic views over the vineyards.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Tumut River Brewing Co., Tumut Credit: Destination NSW

Patrons at Tumut River Brewing Co., Tumut.

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Tumut River Brewing Co., Tumut Credit: Destination NSW

Patrons at Tumut River Brewing Co., Tumut.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

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