Darwin, NT, Australia

Thursday, March 13, 2025

The Norwegian Sun cruise ship arrived in Darwin, the capital of Australia’s Northern Territory, this morning. This was our last day in Australia, and we checked off another new state! Tory and Aden were far less enthusiastic than I was upon this realization, ha ha! The only two Australian states we didn’t visit on this trip were Victoria (where Melbourne is located) and Western Australia (where Perth is located). There’s also Canberra, the country’s national capital. I would love to come back to Australia someday and roadtrip around the entire country in a camper. Australia is a haven for rugged outdoor adventure.

In Darwin today, Andi reserved us a rental car again so we could travel around the city with ease. In this phenomenal heat and humidity, it’s nice to have the comforts of an air-conditioned car. Andi worked on his computer early this morning, and then left the ship as soon as passengers received the “all clear” to disembark around 7:30am.

Andi took an Uber from the cruise port terminal to the Budget rental car office downtown while I got Tory and Aden up and dressed. The kids and I ate a simple breakfast in the Garden Cafe while we waited for Andi to return with the car.

Tory has had a lingering cough all week, so Andi stopped at a pharmacy in Darwin (pharmacies are called chemists here in Australia), and purchased some cough medicine and cough drops. He said the pharmacist was very strict when it came to issuing medicine without Tory present. It’s interesting how some countries are very relaxed when it comes to over-the-counter medication, and others are not. Our family still talks about the magic throw-up drops we got for Aden in Argentina a few years ago. I have no idea what they were, but they cured him instantly. I’d fly back to Argentina just to buy more of that medicine!

Tory, Aden, and I joined up with Andi around 9:00am in our rented wheels for the day. For our activity today, we booked tickets for a river cruise to see jumping saltwater crocodiles. It sounded kind of kitschy, but it’s the number one thing to do when visiting Darwin. The city is also known as basecamp for adventures in the Australian Outback. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to visit the Outback today though I would have liked to see it.

There are several jumping croc tours in the area. We booked tickets with Pathfinders Original Jumping Crocodile Cruises, located about 60 minutes outside Darwin on the Adelaide River. The drive there was a pretty one as Andi navigated our car through Darwin and along the Arnhem Highway. The landscape was swampy and wooded, and looked like the perfect place for crocodiles. We also saw fields of mango and banana tree farms.

We arrived to Pathfinders Jumping Croc Tours about 30 minutes early, so we checked in at the front counter and made ourselves comfortable in the outdoor cafe. Well, we were as comfortable as one can be in 90 degrees with 80% humidity. Shortly after sitting down, we noticed there were mosquitos here — big ones that rival the size of the insects we have in Wisconsin. We’ve been traveling around with bug spray this entire trip and haven’t used it once. Now the time we needed it, I left it back on the cruise ship. Andi went into the gift shop and purchased another stick of roll-on Bushman’s bug repellant. I suspected we’d need it today entering into swampland.

Coincidently, CJ’s family happened to be on the tour right before ours so Aden was excited to see his cruise ship friends this morning. Their family said they had a great time on the river boat and saw several crocodiles. Now, it was our family’s turn for the adventure.

The air was really hot & sticky on board the flat-bottom boat, but we were treated to a nice, warm breeze as we started up river. There were about 15 people on the tour with us, along with two nature guides. One of the guides gave us instructions on keeping safe inside the boat — no hands or cameras outside the railings, and for people wearing red to be especially careful because the crocodiles are attracted to the bright color. She told us where the lifejackets were in case we fell into the river, but advised us to throw the lifejacket one way and swim like crazy in the other direction! For every one crocodile we could see in the water, she said to expect five more that you can’t see so she said to take care not to fall into the river, or basically we’d be dead meat.

I absolutely believed what she said about not being able to see the saltwater crocs swimming around us. We’d see one pop its head up close to the boat, and then it would instantly disappear underneath the murky, brown-colored water. We’d just seen it; we knew the crocodile was there, but it wasn’t at all visible.

The tour boat operator also said she wouldn’t be caught with her big toe in any of the bodies of water around the Northern Territory. There are saltwater crocodiles in all the rivers and the ocean waters surrounding the state. The only safe place to swim in Darwin is at the man-made city lagoon or in the comforts of your own swimming pool, according to the tour guide. We did see a couple fishermen in boats on the river today. It’s not that people can’t recreate on the river systems o the Northern Territory; it’s just that swimming is not advised.

Right away, we saw a saltwater crocodile on our river boat tour. The guide called the female croc “Skinny,” and said they have names for all the crocodiles in this river. The crocodiles along the Adelaide River are not in captivity, but they’ve learned the sound of the boat’s motor is a meal ticket and usually approach when they hear a boat coming. The guide danced a pole with two hunks of meat attached to it above the crocodile’s nose, and eventually it leapt out of the water to grab at it.

The saltwater crocodiles were impressively long, using their tails to propel themselves out of the water. The tour guide said the crocodiles grow to be upwards of 23 feet long and weigh over 2,000 pounds. Males are bigger than females, of course, and this was evident when we saw our next crocodile name “Scary.”

Oh my gosh, did Scary live up to his name! This saltwater croc circled our boat several times. The size of his body as it floated on top of the water was incredible. We all moved back an inch or two from the side of the boat when he came near us. The power of Scary jumping out of the water and snapping onto the pool was impressive. No wonder we’d be dead meat if we fell into the water!

We saw several more crocodiles on our hour-long tour, including one named Stumpy who’d lost his back two legs and one front leg in territorial animal attacks. He was still swimming though! We also saw some of the mud mounds where females lay their eggs, and we enjoyed the scenery as we cruised along the river.

After our tour concluded, the four of us hopped back into our rental car and drove toward Darwin. Along the way, we stopped at the Humpty Doo Tavern for lunch. Aden really wanted to eat at this restaurant because he saw that they served chicken tenders. It was already 1:00pm and we were still 30 minutes away from downtown Darwin, so Andi and I agreed.

The Humpty Doo Tavern was a classic restaurant & bar; nothing particularly special about the ambience. We were seated at a table right away, and ordered drinks and food. Tory and I ordered cheeseburgers and chips (Australia’s word for french fries), and Aden got his chicken tenders which he claimed were delicious. Andi ordered a chicken platter accompanied with salad, but was disappointed the meat was fried.

After lunch, we hopped back into our rental car and drove to Darwin. We filled up with gas along the way, and bought a few sodas to take with us onto the ship. Then, we returned the car and walked the mile back to the cruise terminal. We could have taken an Uber there, but Andi and I thought we should see a little of Darwin during our visit. Man, it was hot outside though! As we all sweat through our clothes, I wondered if we’d made the right choice in walking vs. calling an Uber.

We walked through Bicentennial Park along the waterfront. On another day when the sun and humidity weren’t so sweltering, I’d imagine it’s a very nice place to spend an afternoon.

Andi, Aden, and I stopped to read the placards about the history of Darwin in WWII displayed throughout Bicentennial Park. Often called ”Australia’s Pearl Harbor,” an air-raid attack by the Japanese Navy bombed the city in February 1942 and killed 230 people. It was interesting to read the signage and learn about the state of the world at that time, and what a crucial role Darwin played in the United States’ longstanding partnership with Australia.

The four of us continued our walk back to the cruise port terminal. The Darwin city lagoon was nearby, as well as many shops and restaurants. This entire area was very well done actually, and would have been a fun place to spend our day in Darwin had we not chosen to visit the jumping crocodiles. Unfortunately, all four of us were dripping in sweat and over the heat by this point. I barely made it back to the ship, to be honest. I was so hot I almost felt sick. I’m sure Andi and the kids felt the same way.

Back in our stateroom on the ship, I took a shower and laid down on the bed with my book. I must’ve fallen asleep because I woke up an hour later when Andi coming back into the room. He’d been at Guest Services figuring out an issue with Tory’s visa paperwork for Indonesia.

The Norwegian Sun departed Darwin around 5:00pm. Good-bye Australia! We truly enjoyed the past two months traveling throughout this country.

Andi suggested we top off our step count on the ship’s walking track around sunset. My whole body felt exhausted. Being out in the heat all day has really taken a toll on all of us.

On our way back to our stateroom, Andi and I noticed the cruise ship hung the sea sickness bags back on the staircase banisters. I wondered if we were about to encounter rough seas again.

Our evening ended the way that most have on board the ship— Aden went to kids club to meet up with his ship friends while Andi, Tory, and I had dinner together in the Garden Cafe. The ship’s main stage performer was a hypnotist tonight, but I didn’t feel 100% and decided to call it an early night. Tory, Andi, and I watch a couple episodes of a television show in our stateroom before bedtime.

Next stop: Komodo Island, Indonesia