Indigenous Australian and New Zealander peoples enjoy a deep connection to their land that forms an essential component of their sense of identity and belonging.
Discover this fascinating relationship on an Australia and New Zealand tour, hearing tales from Aboriginal guides while experiencing authentic Indigenous culture – everything from bush walks to Maori feasts will reveal another side of this two-island gem!
Uluru
Uluru is an amazing feat of geology that has played an essential role in Aboriginal culture for millennia. It is thought to have formed over half a billion years ago from two fans of sand and rock created in water when much of Australia lay underwater.
This ancient monolith is an iconic landmark of Australian indigenous culture and spirit despite the detrimental impacts of European settlement. As one of the Outback’s premier tourist spots, it remains one of its primary draws for visitors.
Anangu people hold Uluru in high regard due to its spiritual significance and do not allow visitors to climb it due to this. Furthermore, they feel responsible for protecting their land when visitors cross a traditional dreaming track on their way up.
Mount Majura
On your travels through Australia and New Zealand to explore Indigenous Culture, Mount Majura will likely come up. Home to an abundance of flora and fauna as well as opportunities for hiking and other recreational pursuits, Mount Majura provides plenty of hiking possibilities along with other outdoor pursuits.
Join a local Ngunawal traditional custodian, Tyronne Bell, on an afternoon walking tour to gain insights into this significant site. He will point out artefacts, bush foods and the scar tree so you can gain an understanding of how Aboriginal people used the resources in this region to survive and prosper.
At Parliament House, take advantage of a daily ‘Yeribee’: Indigenous experiences tour to gain insights into how First Peoples have contributed to our nation’s democratic processes and visit the Aboriginal Tent Embassy established by First Peoples protesting government land rights policies established in 1972.
Kakadu National Park
Kakadu National Park is one of Australia’s most culturally rich regions. Influenced by Aboriginal people for over 60, 000 years, it now serves as an outstanding living cultural landscape that holds immense natural and cultural values.
This park protects nearly the entire catchment area of a tropical river system and hosts an extraordinary diversity of habitats as well as rare and endemic plants and animals, in addition to many significant rock art sites and archaeological relics.
The Bininj/Mungguy people operate the park jointly with Parks Australia and employ both traditional knowledge and modern science to maintain it. There are 19 clan groups who each own an area within the park.
Melbourne Museum
Melbourne Museum is one of the best ways to experience Indigenous culture on an Australia and New Zealand Tour. Since 1854, this acclaimed institution has been collecting and preserving their rich heritage of Aboriginal peoples.
In addition to its extensive natural science collection, the Museum offers extensive Indigenous art and cultural materials from Australia’s south-eastern region. This includes cultural traditions and skills – such as making possum skin cloaks – preserved by Indigenous people for millennia.
Museums Victoria continues its efforts to strengthen relationships with First Peoples communities by working closely with Aboriginal people on various projects. To facilitate learning about Aboriginal knowledge, skills and practices that have been passed down over 2000 generations of Australian Aboriginals, Museums Victoria offers a self-guided program which allows students to discover them first hand.
Perth
Perth is the capital city of Western Australia, located in its southwestern corner. Offering incredible wildlife viewing experiences and gorgeous natural landscapes. Along with this exciting metropolitan hub comes vibrant cultural experiences.
Aboriginal people occupied the region now known as Perth for millennia before it came under European control. One such Indigenous population group to reside here was Whadjuk (Witjari). At first contact between Europeans and these indigenous groups they lived among us as Whadjuk people (or Whadjuk or Witjari people as they are known in Western Australia), lived.
People were nomadic; they would travel between their traditional lands in Mooro, south of Perth, and areas surrounding Swan River.
At the time of European settlement, Perth was off limits for Aboriginal people and they were denied access to many public facilities including hospitals, schools and libraries.