Easter Festival at Lightning Ridge

New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory

All our tours are fully inclusive.

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As featured in Weekender Channel 7
Festival & Event
Festivals and Events

Tour summary

Travel with the best tour and transport operator.
Awarded GOLD at the 2022 Australian Tourism Awards

Celebrate Easter like never before on this 6-day outback adventure to Lightning Ridge. Travel in Gold Class comfort through St George and into opal country, with guided tours of heritage sites, working mines, and the iconic Chambers of the Black Hand. Join the Easter Festival celebrations with bush races, market stalls, live entertainment, Indigenous performances and the thrilling Black Opal Bull & Bronc Ride. End the day with fireworks and an immersive outdoor cinema experience. With stops in Goondiwindi, Texas, and Harrisville along the way, this fully escorted tour is packed with colour, culture and outback character.

Departure location:
Brisbane Coach Terminal
Return location:
Brisbane Coach Terminal
Tour duration:
6
days
Physical rating:
1 - Easy
Departure dates:

1 April 2026

Coming soon
Coach classes:
Gold
Gold
Tour accreditations:
Tour experiences:

1 Eco experience 3 Cultural & Heritage experiences

Join waitlistBook now
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Easter Festival at Lightning Ridge

as featured in

Check out our spotlighted tour!

Take an exclusive glimpse into our immersive tour featured in Weekender. Discover how Fun Over 50 Holidays seamlessly combines luxury, adventure, and local expertise, making us the go-to choice for travellers over 50.

Tour pricing

Twin Share
Gold
Gold
$
2750
pp
Sole
Gold
Gold
$
3195
pp
Deposit:
500
Sole Use:
Green Guest Policy:
Save $20pp Twin share or $40 Sole Use
All prices are in AUD.

Additional information

Tour inclusions

  • Travel Carbon Neutral on our 100% offset luxurious ‘Gold Class’ coach
  • Fully escorted by experienced Fun Over 50 Holidays tour host and coach captain
  • 1 night St George with guided heritage tour
  • Harmony Centre; Beardmore Dam
  • Riversands Wines tour, wine tasting and lunch
  • 3 nights Lightning Ridge with a locally guided tour featuring Fred Bodel’s Hut & Three Mile Flat; Australian Opal Centre
  • Lunatic Hill; opal cutting demonstration
  • Amigo’s Castle; Chambers of the Black Hand
  • Lightning Ridge Festival and Black Opal Bull & Bronc Ride• Welcome to Country and Milan Dhiiyaan Aboriginal Dancers
  • Easter Festival horse races
  • SPARK cinematic experience under the stars
  • 1 night Goondiwindi
  • Texas Rabbit Works
  • Summer Land Camels guided tour & lunch
  • 13 meals

Additional information

Physical rating

1 - Easy
Passengers must be able to:
  • Participate in guided or unguided small walking tours at a relaxed pace
  • Walk on mostly level ground
  • Tackle an occasional flight of stairs or incline
  • Occasionally need to stand for up to 10 minutes
  • Get on and off transportation unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Participate in walking tours with time to rest at least every 10 minutes
  • Walk confidently on bush tracks and soft sand – mostly level ground
  • Stand for 15 minutes without needing to sit down
  • Tackle a flight of stairs or incline
  • Get on and off transportation multiple times unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Participate in walking tours without having to stop or sit down to rest for up to 20 minutes
  • Walk up an incline equal to a flight of stairs without stopping
  • Stand for 30 minutes without needing to sit down
  • Walk over uneven ground, tackle cobbled creek crossings & walk through soft sand
  • Get on and off transportation multiple times unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Be extremely mobile and live an active lifestyle
  • Negotiate inclines, declines and varied terrain confidently
  • Participate in a physical activity lasting up to 5 hours (Trek/walks)
  • Manage your own luggage and be able to carry with you a backpack with items required for the physical activities
Learn more about our fitness levels

Physical rating

1 - Easy
Passengers must be able to:
  • Participate in guided or unguided small walking tours at a relaxed pace
  • Walk on mostly level ground
  • Tackle an occasional flight of stairs or incline
  • Occasionally need to stand for up to 10 minutes
  • Get on and off transportation unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Participate in walking tours with time to rest at least every 10 minutes
  • Walk confidently on bush tracks and soft sand – mostly level ground
  • Stand for 15 minutes without needing to sit down
  • Tackle a flight of stairs or incline
  • Get on and off transportation multiple times unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Participate in walking tours without having to stop or sit down to rest for up to 20 minutes
  • Walk up an incline equal to a flight of stairs without stopping
  • Stand for 30 minutes without needing to sit down
  • Walk over uneven ground, tackle cobbled creek crossings & walk through soft sand
  • Get on and off transportation multiple times unaided
  • Manage your own luggage
  • Be extremely mobile and live an active lifestyle
  • Negotiate inclines, declines and varied terrain confidently
  • Participate in a physical activity lasting up to 5 hours (Trek/walks)
  • Manage your own luggage and be able to carry with you a backpack with items required for the physical activities
Learn more about our fitness levels
Eco experience
Eco experience
Local guide
Local guide
Heritage
Heritage
Festival & Event
Festival & Event
Indigenous experience
Indigenous experience
Food & Wine experience
Food & Wine experience
Entertainment
Entertainment

Itinerary

Departs
Brisbane Coach Terminal
Returns
Brisbane Coach Terminal

Day

1

St George

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We depart Brisbane Coach Terminal on our luxurious ‘Gold Class’ coach, ensuring responsible travel with 100% offset coach emissions. We journey through the Lockyer Valley, breaking in Toowoomba for a cuppa before arriving at St George in the afternoon.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Riverland Motor Inn, St George
AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

Day

2

Lightning Ridge

Local guide
Local guide
Heritage
Heritage
Food & Wine experience
Food & Wine experience
Indigenous experience
Indigenous experience

Today we take a heritage tour of St George, before visiting the Harmony Centre and Beardmore Dam. Next, we visit Riversands Wines for a vineyard tour, wine tasting and lunch. We then head to Lightning Ridge for a guided introduction to opal mining at the fascinating Australian Opal Centre.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Lightning Ridge Outback Resort
AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

Day

3

Lightning Ridge

Local guide
Local guide
Heritage
Heritage
Festival & Event
Festival & Event

This morning our local guide shows us around the town, including Fred Bodel’s hut, the oldest miner’s camp in the area, and the historic Three Mile Flat, the site of the early miners’ settlement. Later, we watch an opal cutting demonstration at the Lunatic Hill Mine, and see Amigo’s Castle. After lunch, we visit the Chambers of the Black Hand, a national treasure in a century-old mine shaft. Tonight, it’s time to saddle up for the Lightning Ridge Festival at the Black Opal Bull & Bronc Ride.

**Dinner is at your own expense tonight, with a wide array of food available at the bull ride.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Lightning Ridge Outback Resort
AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

Day

4

Lightning Ridge

Festival & Event
Festival & Event
Entertainment
Entertainment
Indigenous experience
Indigenous experience

Experience the bustling energy of Lightning Ridge as the town celebrates Easter outback-style. There is something for everyone including the Miners Rickshaw Challenge, egg & spoon races, live entertainment and street stalls. Start the day with a moving Welcome to Country and performance by the Milan Dhiiyaan Aboriginal Dancers, then try your hand at The Big Dig or scavenger hunt. This afternoon we head to the Easter Horse Races for a unique experience. Tonight, we witness SPARK, an immersive cinematic experience under the stars, followed by a fireworks spectacular.

**Lunch is at your own expense today.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Lightning Ridge Outback Resort
AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

Day

5

Goondiwindi

Festival & Event
Festival & Event

Enjoy the Sunday markets, attend an Easter church service, or visit the festival car show before we depart for Goondiwindi.

**Lunch is at your own expense today.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Best Western Ascot Lodge, Goondiwindi
AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

Day

6

Brisbane Coach Terminal

Local guide
Local guide
Eco experience
Eco experience
Heritage
Heritage

Today we tour Texas Rabbit Works and visit Summer Land Camels in Harrisville for a behind-the-scenes tour and camel milk product tasting. After lunch, we return to Brisbane Coach Terminal late afternoon.

AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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AccomModation
Gold
Diamond
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Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner
Included meals
Breakfast
Morning Tea
Lunch
Afternoon Tea
Dinner

What you'll see and do

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Fun Over 50 Holidays has been awarded Best of Queensland Experience 2025

Fun Over 50 is proud to announce that we’ve been named as a Best Of Queensland Experience for three consecutive years. This means that we come highly recommended by travellers, and provide exemplary tourism experiences through:

  • Exceptional service reflected in customer reviews
  • Regional Tourism Organisation accreditation
  • Consistent delivery of exceptional experience
  • Best practice industry standards
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Frequently asked questions

How do I book this tour?

To book this tour, all you need to do is get in touch with us. We will take your details and reserve your place over the phone. We can also answer any questions you may have and give you all the information you need.

How much luggage can I take?

Our coach tours have a baggage restriction of 17kg per person (regardless of flight and rail allowances) due to our Occupational Health & Safety standards. You can also bring one small, soft carry-on bag not exceeding 30cm wide, 30cm high, and 15cm thick that may be stowed in the overhead compartment.

What do the fitness ratings mean?

Each of our tours has a fitness rating which describes the level of physical activity involved with the tour. These ratings are very important when choosing your tour to ensure it's right for you.  Our fitness ratings are:

  • 1 Easy
  • 2 Moderate
  • 3 Active/moderate
  • 4 Highly active
What is the average size of tour groups?

Our Gold Class coaches have a seat capacity of between 44 and 46, but we cap Gold Class tours at 40 guests per tour. Our Diamond Class tours have a capacity of just 26 guests. Other tour types may have different capacities depending on the transport and destination. Please get in touch with our team if you have any questions about a specific tour.

Can you cater for my dietary requirements?

In most cases, yes we can. We can accommodate guests who are vegetarian and can assist with diabetic, gluten-free and other medically-recommended diets. Please advise us at time of booking, and we can confirm with our suppliers and restaurants.

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