How do I get to Renmark?

Renmark is a 3.5-hour drive from Adelaide or about 1.5 hours from Mildura, and you get your first glimpses of the River Murray as you cross the bridges at Blanchetown and Kingston-on-Murray. Guests make their own transport arrangements. Free parking is available at Hotel Renmark on the corner of Murray Avenue and Pyap Street, and the car park is monitored regularly.

What time does the tour start and finish?

The tour begins at 1pm on day one at Hotel Renmark. Check out of your hotel room and bring your luggage, or park your car, before you meet your guides. From there it is a two-hour cruise to the houseboat. The tour concludes at approximately 2pm on day four, when you are transferred back to Renmark.

Should I book a pre-tour night in Renmark?

If you are driving from Adelaide or Mildura on the morning of departure, a night in Renmark beforehand takes the pressure off a 1pm start. Get in touch with our team, and we can talk through the accommodation options.

What is the level of physical activity?

Easy. You may take part in a guided bush walk of up to 5 km, a two-hour guided paddle in a double kayak on calm water, and a half-day guided drive that includes some short walks. Every activity is optional, and all are rated easy, with no strenuous terrain, though good mobility and general fitness are recommended. Please make us aware of any health or mobility issues that may affect your walking.

What wildlife can we expect to see on the Murray River?

More than 180 bird species have been recorded in this part of the Riverland. Regularly seen are regent parrots, rainbow bee-eaters, fairy martins, peregrine falcons, white-winged fairywrens, sacred kingfishers, honeyeaters, darters, cormorants, whistling kites, swamp harriers, wedge-tailed eagles, black swans, pied stilts, red-necked avocets, yellow-billed spoonbills, musk ducks and boobook owls. Mammals and reptiles include red kangaroos, koalas, emus, goannas and brush-tailed possums, and the southern bell frog calls from restored wetlands. Sightings vary with the season and with river conditions, and cannot be guaranteed.

Where do we sleep, and what are the cabins like?

All three nights are spent aboard the same luxury houseboat. It has five bedrooms, each with an ensuite bathroom including a hot shower, handbasin and toilet, and all linen and bath towels are provided. Rooms can be configured with a king bed or two king single beds, so let us know your preference when you book. The boat also has a spacious lounge, a modern kitchen, and a top deck with a spa and swim deck. You unpack once, and your belongings stay in your room.

What are the meals like, and can you cater for dietary requirements?

All meals are included from dinner on day one through to lunch on day four, cooked on board around the best of the region, with Murray cod a highlight. Beer and wine are available each evening, and premium Riverland wines are paired course by course over dinner, so please don't bring alcohol on tour unless it's arranged beforehand. Let us know your dietary requirements before departure, and we will cater for them. The menu features native flavours and includes kangaroo and duck, so mention it in your dietary requirements if you would prefer an alternative option.

Is there mobile reception and Wi-Fi on the houseboat?

Mobile phone reception is average along the Murray River route. The houseboat has Starlink Wi-Fi.

Can I book a twin spot (half twin share) if I am travelling on my own?

Yes, half twin shares are available on request and only offered if there is a suitable same-sex match on tour. If no suitable match is available, a single supplement will apply; please contact our team to discuss your options before booking.

Can I book a private departure?

Yes. With five ensuite cabins and a maximum of 10 guests, the boat suits a private charter for a family group, a birding club or a group of friends travelling together. Contact our team to discuss your options.

Murray River Wilderness Cruise

Dates

12 Oct 2026

8 Mar 2027

14 Apr 2027

5 Oct 2027
Trip Type Birdwatching, Nature & Wildlife, Conservation & Citizen Science
Twin Share Maximum of two adults
$ 3,500
Single $ 5,250

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Tony Sharley

Tony is a proud Riverlander with a passion for a healthy Murray River. Growing up on the Murray River created a lifelong passion for rivers and wetlands. His career spanned working in the tropical wetlands of Kakadu, mountain rivers in Kosciuszko National Park, policy and project management at the Murray Darling Basin Commission, initiating Ramsar listed wetlands at Banrock Station, supporting vital species reintroductions and wetland conservation on wetlands in 14 countries, and advocating for environmental flows in “the Murray”. In 2016 Tony and his wife Susie started Murray River Trails to help people discover the magic of the Murray River.

Duration

4 Days

Group Size

10 People

Activity Level

Easy

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About this tour

Four days on the Murray River by luxury houseboat, following 80 km of Ramsar-listed floodplain from Renmark up to the Chowilla anabranch and the outback lakes beyond it.

The Murray River Wilderness Cruise is a four-day, three-night guided wildlife cruise on the Murray River in South Australia’s Riverland. It runs from Renmark upstream to the Chowilla floodplain, entirely within the Riverland Ramsar site, with naturalist guides and three nights aboard a five-cabin luxury houseboat. Maximum 10 guests.

The tour starts at Renmark and works upstream through Lock 6 into the Chowilla anabranch, a spread of creeks, billabongs and ephemeral lakes on the floodplain where South Australia meets New South Wales and Victoria. You travel by pontoon cruiser, by kayak, by four-wheel drive and on foot. The houseboat repositions while you are out, so each morning opens on a different reach of the river. Your bags go on board on the first afternoon and stay there.

The tour is built around water, and around what happens to a floodplain when you put it back. Your guides work through how weirs, locks and regulators are now operated to recreate the natural highs and lows that red gum forests, wetland fish and breeding waterbirds evolved with, then take you out to see the results. That means the old-growth red gums along Chowilla Creek, the sandy cliff faces where rainbow bee-eaters, fairy martins and peregrine falcons nest, the quiet backwaters where goannas bask and sacred kingfishers hunt, and the ephemeral lakes on the outer floodplain, which fill to hold thousands of ducks, black swans and their cygnets, pied stilts, red-necked avocets, yellow-billed spoonbills and musk ducks. Migratory waders reach these lakes from the northern hemisphere. The regent parrot, listed as nationally vulnerable, nests in the red gums along this stretch, and it is the bird most guests arrive hoping to see.

The Murray River cut this valley roughly 600,000 years ago, and First Peoples have lived along it for more than 40,000 years. The Riverland was listed as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention on 23 September 1987, as Ramsar site 377, covering 30,640 ha, and it is one of the major waterbird breeding areas in south-eastern Australia. This tour operates entirely inside it, across an 80 km stretch of river and part of a creek system running more than 200 km. More than 180 bird species have been recorded here. Four nationally threatened species live in the area: the regent parrot, the southern bell frog, and two fish, Murray cod and Murray hardyhead.

Who is this tour for?

This tour suits birdwatchers, people who want to understand how a river system actually works, and travellers who would rather sleep in an ensuite cabin than a swag. The walking is gentle, the paddling is optional, the driving is done for you, and your luggage stays on the boat from the first afternoon to the last. Photographers do well here. It works for solo travellers, couples and small groups of friends, and with only five cabins the whole boat can be taken as a private charter. Anyone after long-distance hiking or a fast-moving itinerary should look elsewhere. The pace here is slow on purpose, and most of a day goes into looking closely at a small area rather than covering ground.

Combine your tour - Mungo Outback Conservation Journey

The 14 April and 5 October departures pair with our Mungo Outback Conservation Journey.

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Tour highlights

Cruise 25km upstream from Renmark by pontoon cruiser through old-growth red gum forest and ochre cliff country, working the tree line for koalas, darters, cormorants and parrots.
Walk a cultural site on an old stretch of river, then drift back beneath the sandy cliff faces where rainbow bee-eaters, fairy martins and peregrine falcons nest.
Wake before sunrise and climb a gentle slope to the rim of the Murray valley, where the birdsong starts before the light does.
Paddle quiet creeks and billabongs lined with mighty red gums, rafting up to drift and listen for goannas, sacred kingfishers and honeyeaters.
Sit quietly in the Chowilla forest in search of the nationally vulnerable regent parrot, along with honeyeaters and fairywren.
Head out by four-wheel drive to the ephemeral lakes on the outer floodplain for migratory waders, thousands of ducks, black swans and cygnets, pied stilts, red-necked avocets, yellow-billed spoonbills and musk ducks.
Watch swamp harriers and whistling kites working the lakes, with wedge-tailed eagles and white-bellied sea-eagles passing through.
Cruise down to Lock 6 with your guides and learn how weirs now recreate the natural highs and lows of an ephemeral wetland system.
Eat Riverland produce cooked on board and paired course by course with premium local wines, with Murray cod the standout.
Watch the sunset colour come up on the cliffs from the top-deck then the Riverland night sky after dark.

Experienced naturalist guides throughout, with expertise in Riverland birdlife, plants and river management.
Three nights aboard a luxury houseboat in a private bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, including a hot shower, handbasin and toilet.
All meals from dinner on day one to lunch on day four, cooked on board around regional produce.
Premium Riverland wines paired course by course over dinner, plus local beer, wine, juice and coffee.
Barbecue lunch at Wilkadene Woolshed Brewery on the final day.
Pontoon cruiser transfers to and from the houseboat, and all cruising between moorings.
Guided paddle in a double kayak, with all equipment provided.
Half-day guided drive to the ephemeral lake system on the outer floodplain.
Guided walks, including the cultural walk and the sunrise walk to the valley rim.
All sleeping linen and bath towels.
Luggage transfer to your onboard cabin.
Secure, regularly monitored car parking at Hotel Renmark for the duration of the tour.
Access to an onboard library of wildlife field guides.
Optional walking poles.
Use of the top-deck spa and swim deck.
Starlink Wi-Fi on the houseboat.

Itinerary

Renmark, upstream cruise and cultural walk

Meet your guides at 1pm in the Nanya function room at Hotel Renmark. After a short introduction to the landscape, you board a pontoon cruiser and head 25 km upstream, working the tree line for koalas, darters, cormorants and waterbirds as the river narrows into old-growth red gum forest and the cliffs turn ochre. You reach the houseboat around 3pm, settle into your cabin and take in the view from your new river home before heading back out. The afternoon walk follows the banks of an old stretch of river where an ancient culture is written into the ground. Afterwards, drift back to the boat and watch the sandy cliff faces closely. Rainbow bee-eaters, fairy martins and peregrine falcons all nest in them. Dinner is cooked on board and paired with local wines while the reflections build on the cliffs at Headings, best watched from the top-deck spa or the swim deck. Overnight: Luxury houseboat on the Murray River. Meals: D.