Outback Australia Maps : Plan Your Outback Trip
A road trip through outback Australia is a once-in-a-life time, dream vacation for many people.
Whether it's to see Ayers Rock, Kakadu, kangaroos or just miles and miles of the bluest skies and best freedom you'll ever experience, I can promise you, a road trip through the outback is something you'll never forget.
There's a few things you'll need to start planning your outback road trip, and an Australian outback map is one of the most important.
So to help get the best from your outback journey, I've put together a few tips to help you choose the best outback maps for your trip.
Free Maps For Organizing
The best place to start planning your trip is with free online, downloadable outback maps, like Google Earth or Google Maps.
You can even put these maps on your iPhone or smartphone to take along on your trip.
However, if you're planning to use your iPhone as a GPS or in place of a paper map to travel the outback, you should be aware that large parts of the outback have no mobile (cell) phone coverage.
So you'll need paper maps and a GPS (if you're planning to go off-road)
Something else that comes in handy are some of the free regional outback maps.
You can find lots of these maps and guidebooks online, often made by state and territory tourism authorities.
These maps and guides are packed with information such as :
Maps For Off-Road Driving and Desert Tracks
If you plan on driving off the main highways and exploring some of the outback's famous tracks like the Birdsville or Tanami Tracks, then you'll need to buy a finely detailed Australian outback map, and carry a GPS.
There's a few tips here for choosing these kinds of maps. You'll need to make sure these maps have:
Recommended commercial maps include Westprint, Hema or for superfine detail, the Australian government's topographic ( survey ) maps.
Most Australian off-roaders use Hema Maps. The reason for this is that these maps are constantly updates and contain more than just highly accurate map details.
They also contain information about history, wildlife and Aboriginal culture.
There's heaps of different HEMA maps to choose between, but these are our favorites:
If you are after the very best value for money, then get the Desert Tracks Atlas.
This is a spiral bound book that contains every Hema outback map as well as a complete Australian road atlas. It's also got lots of info about automobile preparation, outback travel, gear to take, campsites, history and things to do and see.
Use these tips to plan your outback trip of a lifetime, and make sure you get the right outback maps for your trip.
Whether it's to see Ayers Rock, Kakadu, kangaroos or just miles and miles of the bluest skies and best freedom you'll ever experience, I can promise you, a road trip through the outback is something you'll never forget.
There's a few things you'll need to start planning your outback road trip, and an Australian outback map is one of the most important.
So to help get the best from your outback journey, I've put together a few tips to help you choose the best outback maps for your trip.
Free Maps For Organizing
The best place to start planning your trip is with free online, downloadable outback maps, like Google Earth or Google Maps.
You can even put these maps on your iPhone or smartphone to take along on your trip.
However, if you're planning to use your iPhone as a GPS or in place of a paper map to travel the outback, you should be aware that large parts of the outback have no mobile (cell) phone coverage.
So you'll need paper maps and a GPS (if you're planning to go off-road)
Something else that comes in handy are some of the free regional outback maps.
You can find lots of these maps and guidebooks online, often made by state and territory tourism authorities.
These maps and guides are packed with information such as :
- road distances
- fuel stops
- things to see and do
- accommodation
- shops and retail hours
- post office locations
- ATMs / banking facilities
free camping areas and road side stops
Maps For Off-Road Driving and Desert Tracks
If you plan on driving off the main highways and exploring some of the outback's famous tracks like the Birdsville or Tanami Tracks, then you'll need to buy a finely detailed Australian outback map, and carry a GPS.
There's a few tips here for choosing these kinds of maps. You'll need to make sure these maps have:
- been updated regularly and are no more than 4 years old
- are written by or produced in Australia
- road distances
- fuel stops
- supplies and accommodation
- GPS coordinates, latitude and longitude at a useful scale
- data about track conditions
Recommended commercial maps include Westprint, Hema or for superfine detail, the Australian government's topographic ( survey ) maps.
Most Australian off-roaders use Hema Maps. The reason for this is that these maps are constantly updates and contain more than just highly accurate map details.
They also contain information about history, wildlife and Aboriginal culture.
There's heaps of different HEMA maps to choose between, but these are our favorites:
- Outback Australia
- Central Australia
- Desert Tracks Atlas
If you are after the very best value for money, then get the Desert Tracks Atlas.
This is a spiral bound book that contains every Hema outback map as well as a complete Australian road atlas. It's also got lots of info about automobile preparation, outback travel, gear to take, campsites, history and things to do and see.
Use these tips to plan your outback trip of a lifetime, and make sure you get the right outback maps for your trip.
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