Desert Cave Hotel
Hotel
The extraordinary Desert Cave Hotel in the famous opal city Coober Pedy has been built into the tunnels and shafts excavated for extracting the precious stone. Coober Pedy and the Desert Cave are bizarre to say the very least.
Both fascinating and convenient for a stopover, the mining town is located 850 kilometres north of Adelaide and 680 south of Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway.
In the total, the Desert Cave Hotel offers 50 elegant suites, 19 of which are located underground. And most read more » visitors agree: The underground suites are the most recommendable, providing both an exceptional experience and relaxing sleep.
The Desert Cave Hotel has repeatedly been awarded the South Australian Tourism Award and will introduce you to the wacky mining town brimming with colourful characters both above and below the ground.
In great parts an underground city, the locals seek refuge in the tunnels from the blistering heat above the ground. Private homes, shops and even an underground church have been built into the vacated mines.
The Desert Cave Hotel allows you to follow suite and discover the thrills of the underground life. Moreover, you may also visit one of the old mines, learning about the difficulties involved with extracting the precious stone from the unrelenting ground.
For safety reasons, you are not permitted to visit a working mine. However, a large percentage of the population is still involved in the opal trade and Coober Pedy continues to attract fortune seekers and odd birds.
Of course, you should also take the time to relish the Desert Cave Hotel’s facilities. Stroll the underground hallways or go for a dip in the grotto pool. Pamper yourself at the hotel’s spa or sip a cocktail mixed to perfection in the underground bar.
No matter which service you appreciate most, the Desert Cave Hotel, certainly addresses only the most sophisticated cavemen. It features a gym, restaurant, opal shop and conference centre.
Unique in Australia, if not the world, do not let the opportunity to spend a few nights underground slip by. Explore Coober Pedy and reside in all style at the Desert Cave Hotel! Do it like the locals do and stay underground, which is a relief from the blistering heat above!
Living
The Desert Cave Hotel in Coober Pedy: an unique opportunity to experience “dugout living“ first-hand. The elegant underground hotel offers its distinguished cavemen a choice of 50 suites.
Each of read more » the suites is different, boasting an individual style and design. You may choose whether you prefer to be accommodated above or below ground level: 19 of the Desert Cave’s 50 suites are completely underground.
Naturally quiet, cool and well ventilated, the rooms feature modern facilities like a private bathroom with a separate shower, air-conditioning, TV, telephone, hairdryer, mini bar, fridge, tea and coffee maker as well as an ironing service.
Stone-walls but not stone-age: all of the units furthermore feature high-speed internet access. Incidentally, there is no need to worry about feeling claustrophobic, the rooms sport high ceilings and a generously spacious ambience.
Additionally, the light and friendly colour scheme helps to dissipate any feelings of enclosure. Needless to say, that a true dugout hotel also accommodates the restaurant underground. Spoil yourself with delicacies prepared to perfection and served in an old mining tunnel.
The Australian cuisine centres on fresh seafood and is highly creative. Try the Yabbies, Australian fresh water crayfish or kangaroo meat in every variety: barbecued, roasted, in a stew or a Roo Tail Soup.
Vegetarians will delight in the vegetable platter heaped with peas, potatoes, pumpkin and many other fresh vegetables. For dessert enjoy the “Australian Dream”, a caramel pudding lavishly doused in Macadamia sauce and served on a fresh kaki fruit. Exceptionally heavenly!
Above or below, in the tunnels or out in the sun – the natural stone walls, light-flooded hallways and refreshingly cool ambience of the Desert Cave Hotel in Coober Pedy will fascinate you. A unique experience!
Activities
Australia’s strongest drawcards are its stunning natural beauty and great diversity. Sydney and Melbourne offer the flairs of multicultural metropolises but no visit to Australia is complete without
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a trip into the arid outback.
The barren beauty or the red sand deserts, bizarre rock formations, the supreme solitude and infinite horizons … Australia’s red centre is a world of its own and a quintessential part of the continent’s identity.
The famous opal city Coober Pedy and the extraordinary Desert Cave Hotel are a great basis for desert expeditions. Set out to admire the stark fascination of the landscapes: rugged boulder plains, oceans of rolling sand dunes, blindingly white salt lakes and mountain ridges bearing ancient inscriptions and painting left by the Aborigine population.
An uncommon but compelling way to explore the endless wilderness is to join the Outback Mail Run. Become assistant mailman for a day and consider the historic ruins, exotic wildlife and startlingly beautiful sunsets nothing more and nothing less than your work environment.
Lodged in Coober Pedy, it goes almost without saying that at some stage or other you will come across the mysterious opals. A great starting point is the Desert Cave’s underground opal boutique, which offers only pieces of supreme quality.
If buying the precious stones is too easy, how about “noodling” from them yourself? It is permitted to fossick for opals that might have been overlooked in some of the rubble waste heaps left by the professional miners. One of the popular noodling fields is the nowadays closed opal mine Jewellery Box, close to the centre.
However, wherever you go in and about Coober Pedy, take great care when taking picture. Many old mine shafts are open and unprotected and, no joke, many overzealous photographers have taken a tumble whilst walking backwards. Not the most recommendable way to go “down under”…
