About

Kokoda Spirit was established in 2004 and has been running small group tours in the Northern Territory since 2018. Kokoda Spirit founder Wayne Wetherall has personally visited all the sites and destinations on the itinerary and has hand crafted the itineraries based on his experiences in working and travelling in the area. Having walked the Larapinta Trail from end to end and taken many expeditions across the Larapinta Trail Wetherall has fallen in love with the country, culture and scenery of the West McDonald Ranges.

We have forged an enviable reputation with our partners for running authentic small group experiences, incorporating indigenous culture, history, fauna and flora for adventure travellers.

Our treks and tours include Larapinta Trail treks and our tours to Uluru (Ayers Rock), the red heart of Australia, and onto the tropical waterfalls and wetlands of Kakadu, Litchfield and Nitmiluk National Parks. These Australian Safaris deliver exceptional quality experiences throughout the Northern Territory.

We are passionate about what we do and with intimate knowledge of the areas in which we operate, allows us to pass on this knowledge with all who travel with us. We pride ourselves on the dedicated people within our team who work tirelessly to turn dreams into reality.

For over 17 years our partners have been working on building lasting relationships with a vast array of local contacts and exploring the most beautiful and often spectacular locations, enabling us to provide the most unforgettable lifetime experiences possible.

We have endorsement from local indigenous communities from the land on which we visit either as part of our park permits or by personal negotiation.

We have accredited guides for walking tours of Nourlangie Aboriginal art site, Ubirr art site and sunset or similar, staff or sometimes rangers at Bowali Visitor Centre, Top Didj Cultural Experience is usually operated by their local guide Manuel and the Arnhem Land Tour is operated by Kakadu Cultural Tours. Cooinda Lodge who operates yellow water cruise is also indigenous owned but not a cultural tour as such.

Our partners and Kokoda Spirit work closely with many of the traditional landowners in the regions in which we operate. While all of our guides are experienced in Aboriginal Culture, history and Dreamtime, we believe that to get a thorough understanding of the Northern Territory then meeting and interacting with local Aboriginal people is paramount. They have been living in the area for in excess of 20,000 years and have a unique history and relationship with the land. To hear their stories first-hand will give you an insight you won’t forget in a hurry.

We are proud to partner with Aboriginal owned and operated companies in the Northern Territory.

We have forged an enviable reputation with our partners for running authentic small group experiences, incorporating indigenous culture, history, fauna and flora for adventure travellers.

Our treks and tours include Larapinta Trail treks and our tours to Uluru (Ayers Rock), the red heart of Australia, and onto the tropical waterfalls and wetlands of Kakadu, Litchfield and Nitmiluk National Parks. These Australian Safaris deliver exceptional quality experiences throughout the Northern Territory.

We are passionate about what we do and with intimate knowledge of the areas in which we operate, allows us to pass on this knowledge with all who travel with us. We pride ourselves on the dedicated people within our team who work tirelessly to turn dreams into reality.

For over 17 years our partners have been working on building lasting relationships with a vast array of local contacts and exploring the most beautiful and often spectacular locations, enabling us to provide the most unforgettable lifetime experiences possible.

We have endorsement from local indigenous communities from the land on which we visit either as part of our park permits or by personal negotiation.

We have accredited guides for walking tours of Nourlangie Aboriginal art site, Ubirr art site and sunset or similar, staff or sometimes rangers at Bowali Visitor Centre, Top Didj Cultural Experience is usually operated by their local guide Manuel and the Arnhem Land Tour is operated by Kakadu Cultural Tours. Cooinda Lodge who operates yellow water cruise is also indigenous owned but not a cultural tour as such.

Larapinta Trail, West McDonald Ranges

The Eastern and Central Arrernte people live in Central Australia, their traditional land including the area of Alice Springs and East MacDonnell Ranges. The land covers the Larapinta Trail.  The Arrernte history dates back to 50,000 years and is one of the longest continuing cultures on the planet.

They are also referred to as Aranda, Arrarnta, Arunta, and other similar spellings. Their neighbours are the Southern Arrernte, Luritja, Anmatyerr, Alyawarr and Western Arrernte peoples. There are five dialects of the Arrernte language: South-eastern, Central, Northern, Eastern and North-eastern.

Arrernte country is rich with mountain ranges, waterholes, and gorges; as a result, the Arrernte people set aside ‘conservation areas’ in which various species are protected.

There are roughly 1800 speakers of Eastern and Central Arrernte, making it the largest spoken language in the Arandic family, and one of the largest speaking populations of any Australian language. It is taught in schools, heard in local media and local government.

Arnhem Land

Arnhem Land is one area in Australia where indigenous culture is still dominant. The local Aboriginal people have a long history interacting with other cultures such as the Macassens who visited the shores of Arnhem Land for more than five hundred years to harvest sea slug. They came by sailing boats from the Indonesian Island of Sulawesi and left their legacy with the Aboriginal people. Then the Europeans arrived and their impact on Aboriginal people was far-reaching and profound. Arnhem Land today has weathered all the storms and it has managed to remain as a last frontier and homeland of around 20,000 people.

Our itinerary has us travelling into Arnhem Land where a traditional Aboriginal guide will take you up Injalak Hill and show you excellent and prolific examples of Aboriginal rock art. This area has some of the best rock art examples in western Arnhem Land. The view from the top of the hill is simply breathtaking with views out over the floodplains and across to the breathtaking escarpment. Visit the award winning Injalak Art and Craft Centre and browse or purchase goods from this non-profit Aboriginal organisation. The art centre is simply stunning, and the range of artwork is inspiring. There will also be time to watch the traditional Aboriginal people painting and an opportunity to see local women weaving pandanus baskets.

We have forged an enviable reputation with our partners for running authentic small group experiences, incorporating indigenous culture, history, fauna and flora for adventure travellers.

Our treks and tours include Larapinta Trail treks and our tours to Uluru (Ayers Rock), the red heart of Australia, and onto the tropical waterfalls and wetlands of Kakadu, Litchfield and Nitmiluk National Parks. These Australian Safaris deliver exceptional quality experiences throughout the Northern Territory.

We are passionate about what we do and with intimate knowledge of the areas in which we operate, allows us to pass on this knowledge with all who travel with us. We pride ourselves on the dedicated people within our team who work tirelessly to turn dreams into reality.

For over 17 years our partners have been working on building lasting relationships with a vast array of local contacts and exploring the most beautiful and often spectacular locations, enabling us to provide the most unforgettable lifetime experiences possible.

We have endorsement from local indigenous communities from the land on which we visit either as part of our park permits or by personal negotiation.

We have accredited guides for walking tours of Nourlangie Aboriginal art site, Ubirr art site and sunset or similar, staff or sometimes rangers at Bowali Visitor Centre, Top Didj Cultural Experience is usually operated by their local guide Manuel and the Arnhem Land Tour is operated by Kakadu Cultural Tours. Cooinda Lodge who operates yellow water cruise is also indigenous owned but not a cultural tour as such.

Top Didj and Art Gallery

The Top Didj Cultural Experience in the Northern Territory was founded in April 2009 by Alex and Petrena Ariston.  Alex and Petrena identified the need for cultural interaction with the Aboriginal people of Katherine. They were passionate about capturing this rich culture and providing an avenue for local indigenous artists to tell their story and to showcase traditional activities such as fire lighting, spear and boomerang throwing, painting while educating visitors of their culture and way of life.

The cultural experience is designed to promote a positive experience with the aboriginal people.

The Top Didj Art Gallery holds a portfolio of artists from the region. The gallery reflects the cultural diversity and influences from the Jawoyn and Dagoman Aborigines who have lived in the area for thousands of years. The gallery also has a range of strong collections from the celebrated regions of Arnhem Land, the Kimberleys and the Central Western Desert, home to the Warlpiri people. Katherine is central to these regions.

Alex and Petrina work closely with the Katherine Indigenous community to assist local artists with employment and provide other practical support such as housing.

Taking our environmental responsibilities seriously

Australia possesses a diverse array of environments, some of the most delicate on the planet. More so than many other tourist destinations, the Red Centre is a very fragile environment and so in order to preserve our own future we need to ensure all our activities are sustainable and representative of all facets of the region including indigenous culture.

Our team operates the only Level IV Advanced Eco-Certified Tours from its base in Alice Springs and Darwin. It is the highest acknowledgement for environmental understanding, operational practices and cultural representation as defined by Ecotourism Australia.

Respect Our Culture Program

Our team has Level IV Respect our Culture (ROC) Certification. This program recognizes our sustainable business philosophy on the environmental and recognition of cultural respect to and protocols towards the Indigenous families and peoples of the great southern land.

Climate Action Certification Program

Our partner has Climate Action Certification over its entire Northern Territory touring operations. The Climate Action Certification Program (CACP) is dedicated to ranking efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The CACP is administered and audited jointly by Sustainable Tourism Australia and Eco Tourism Australia

Tour Guides

We pride ourselves on the very high standard of our guides. We are the only Uluru (Ayers Rock) and remote specialist tourism operator based in Alice Springs accredited at the Advanced ECO Level IV standard. As such we are very aware of our responsibility to provide well informed, environmentally conscious, highly trained tour guides. All guides have a sound knowledge of our local area focusing on its history, Aboriginal culture, geology and the natural environment. By evaluating our guides performance after every tour, we ensure that a high standard is maintained. All our guides are trained in house.

Our team members are professionals, dedicated to our clients’ needs and looking after the environments we visit. With our highly experienced team, we strive to deliver excellent service while minimising the impact on the flora, fauna and landscapes for everyone to enjoy and experience in the future.

Through creative problem solving for each new challenge that arises, we are committed to sustainable tourism. This is reflected in the accreditation we have obtained and recognised in the awards we have won.

Australian Tourism Accreditation Program (ATAP)

The Australian Tourism Accreditation Program (ATAP) is a nationwide program, which provides both consumers and industry with an assurance that the accredited tourism business is committed to quality business practice and professionalism.

The primary focus is to ensure that the consistent standards of product and service delivery meet and, where possible, exceed the visitors’ expectations.

Respect our Culture (ROC) Certification

Our partner has been granted Level IV Respect our Culture (ROC) Certification. This program recognises our sustainable business philosophy, environmental practices and cultural respect of protocols towards the Indigenous families and peoples of the great southern land.

The Respecting Our Culture (ROC) Program is a tourism industry development tool designed by Aboriginal Tourism Australia (ATA) and administered by Ecotourism Australia.

The ROC program was developed through an extensive and ongoing national consultation by ATA with Indigenous communities, industry stakeholders and tourism operators. ROC embraces national accreditation standards to ensure tourism experiences meet customer expectations in a professional and sustainable way. It also encourages the industry to operate with respect for Indigenous cultural heritage.

Climate Action Certification

Our partners have realised Climate Action Certification over its entire Northern Territory touring operations. The Climate Action Certification Program (CACP) is dedicated to ranking efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The CACP is administered and audited jointly by Sustainable Tourism Australia and Eco Tourism Australia