4 Best Sights in Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon), The Outback

Inside Watarrka National Park, Kings Canyon is one of the most spectacular sights in central Australia. Sprawling in scope, the canyon's sheer cliff walls shelter a world of ferns and woodlands, permanent springs, and rock pools. The main path is the 6-km (4-mile) Kings Canyon Rim Walk, which starts with a short but steep 15-minute climb straight up from the parking lot to the top of the escarpment; the view 886 feet down to the base of the canyon is amazing. Steep stairs mark your arrival into the scenic Garden of Eden—the only way out along the main trail is via another round of intense stair-climbing back up to the top of the canyon wall, so make sure you're carrying plenty of water for the hike. An easier walk, called the Creek Walk, which starts at the parking lot and winds through the base of the canyon, is just as worthwhile. Alternatively, Kings Canyon Resort offers 8-, 15-, and 30-minute helicopter rides so you can view it all from above (from A$95, A$150, and A$285, respectively).

The Henbury Meteorites craters, 12 depressions between 6 feet and 600 feet across, are believed to have been formed by a meteorite shower 4,700 years ago—the largest one measures roughly 590 feet wide by 50 feet deep! To get here, you must travel 15 km (9 miles) off the highway on an unpaved road—conventional 2WD sedans will be fine, but be aware that some rental car companies don't cover you if you break down on unsealed roads.

More than 3,000 ancient Aboriginal rock engravings (petroglyphs) are etched into sandstone outcrops in Napwerte/Ewaninga Rock Carvings Conservation Reserve, 35 km (22 miles) south of Alice on the road to Chamber's Pillar. Early morning and late-afternoon light are best for photographing the lines, circles, and animal tracks. A 2-km (1-mile) trail leads to several art sites. The reserve is open all day year-round and is accessible by regular (rather than four-wheel-drive) cars; technically, however, the road is unsealed, so check with your rental car company to make sure it's not against their rules to drive on it.

Amazing formations in the sandstone cliffs of the James Range take on rainbow colors in the early-morning and late-afternoon light; the colors are caused by water dissolving the red iron in the sandstone and further erosion that has created dramatic rock faces and squared towers. To reach the reserve, turn left off the Stuart Highway 75 km (46 miles) south of Alice. The next 22 km (13 miles) are on a dirt track, requiring a four-wheel-drive vehicle.