Birdsville Hotel.Credit:Hayley Williamson Photography/TEQ
It's one of the most remote towns in the world – yet travellers to Birdsville are discovering there's a whole new shine to the Queensland outback icon.
The famed pub has a new owner and has had a make-over. The bakery is re-opening,the roadhouse has added a café,a one-of-a-kind desert golf course has teed off and a special walking tour of the town has been launched.
"There's a lot to see and do in Birdsville that maybe people don't realise,"said long-time resident Nell Brook,who married fourth-generation local David Brook."A lot of people go to Longreach and Winton,and South Australians come up to the Flinders,but we want to persuade them to go a bit further to come visit us."
Big Red – a 40-metre-high sand dune 35 kilometres out of town.Credit:Tourism and Events Queensland
The star of the show is always,of course,the Birdsville Hotel,the 1884 honey coloured sandstone pub on the edge of the Simpson Desert 1600 kilometres west of Brisbane and 1200 kilometres north of Adelaide. The pub has changed hands for the first time in 40 years,sold to outback entrepreneur Courtney Ellis who had been travelling there for the past 15 years and was excited to buy it.
"We've always really liked the feel of the historic old watering hole so when the opportunity came about to buy the business,we didn't need to think much about it,"said Ellis,who's updated the rooms with new bedding and soft furnishings,replaced doors and installed a coffee machine.
"Our focus will still be on making the experience satisfying for people who make the long trek out to Birdsville and I'm looking forward to talking to people and hearing about where they've come from and where they're going."
One recent visitor was golf professional Darren Weatherall,who came over to try out the new nine-hole Birdsville Dunes Golf Course that has finally opened after more than 20 years in the planning.
Players have to navigate sandhills,native vegetation,shrubs and oiled sand in place of the putting greens.