Fast facts
- Quirky opal-mining town with moonscape scenery
- Famous for its underground accommodation
- Twelve hours’ drive north-west of Sydney
Why go there
The town of White Cliffs grew out of the discovery of opal in the 1890s. Today, most of the 200 residents live in the remains of old mines, called dugouts, while visitors can stay in an underground hotel or B&B.
Few people have made their fortunes here recently, and more than 50,000 abandoned diggings create a lunar-like landscape across the flat, dusty land. This only adds to the surreal vibe of White Cliffs, with its unsealed roads and lonely old pub.
The road from Sydney passes through Wilcannia, which was first settled in the 1860s and has many fine National Trust buildings, an old 19th-century bridge and a good heritage trail.
Things to do
- Try your luck fossicking in the opal fields – beware of hidden mineshafts!
- Sink a few beers with locals at the pub.
- Follow Wilcannia’s heritage trail, including the National Trust-listed centrelift bridge, built in 1896.
Don’t miss
- The darkest, quietest sleep of your life at PJ’s Underground B&B or the Underground Hotel/Motel.
- Panoramic prints of the Outback at the underground Otte Rogge Photographic Gallery.
- The unusual jewellery by Barb Gasch at Outback Treasures – her work sells around the world.
- Jock’s Place, an underground home and mine, for a unique lesson on opal mining with Jock, a local legend.
- A tour of the Solar Power Station.
Events
- Cliffhanger, at Cootawundi Station, near White Cliffs, in November.
