Murray River Safari

Safari journeys depart from Paringa (5 minutes from Renmark) in the Riverland region of South Australia from March through until November.

Murray River Safari tours accommodate up to 10 people. The small group size ensures minimal wildlife disturbance and allows sharing of nature and easy conversations with like-minded people and your friendly and knowledgeable guides.

Two guides will accompany you on Safari who are both great interpreters and fantastic cooks. One of your guides will accompany you on the activities away from the houseboat (canoeing, walking, cruising, birdwatching on spectacular inland lakes) while a second guide will remain on the houseboat preparing meals for when you return.

We provide you with a 34 litre daypack to carry your lunch, a 1 litre water bottle, snacks, warm layers and other personal items in. This will weigh between 3 to 5kg depending on the additional items you choose to pack.

We recommend you wear lace-up hiking shoes or boots that have sturdy, treaded soles for daily activities and comfortable shoes for nightly wear on the houseboat. Sneakers should not be worn on your walk.

Murray River Safari operates between March and November to avoid the hot summer heat of December, January and February.

March, April, October and November are all warm months that will encourage you to take a swim in the river when you are on the houseboat. The average daily maximum temperatures for these months (degrees Celsius) ranges from 26.3C to 30.9C.

Hot days will occur and therefore light clothes, sun hats and sunscreen are important as well as carrying water each day.

May to September are the cooler months where conditions make for comfortable walking. Calm, sunny days are typical during these cooler months, but make sure you pack a windproof jacket for travelling in the open-air pontoon cruiser. Campfires are permitted at this time of year.

The average daily maximum temperatures (degrees Celsius) are as follows: May 20°C, June 17°C, July 17°C, August 18°C, September 21°C.

Packing should be guided by the average monthly temperatures. We recommend packing clothing that can be layered and a wind/waterproof jacket along with a beanie, scarf and gloves for extra comfort if it rains or whilst cruising early in the morning. Also pack a sun hat.

The cruiser is a comfortable 12 seater “open air” pontoon style boat. It is a stable, secure and quiet craft, navigated expertly by your guide along the mighty Murray River. The pontoon boat transfers you to and from your daily adventures and is a great way to see wildlife along the river, its backwaters, and creeks.

Canoeing will typically be in a double canoe so that you can share the paddling. The agility to get in and out of the canoe is important and our guides will assist you to get started if you are a novice.

A 5 km walk is considered easy on flat terrain, and there is a gentle ascent and descent up and down the river cliffs.

Our walking pace is designed to allow you to enjoy the diverse river landscapes, wildlife and the people you are walking with. There’s plenty of time to take photos and savour the view.

All other activities will involve your guides transferring you to spectacular locations in a minibus, pontoon cruiser or the houseboat.

We cater for special dietary requirements — we just need to know in advance. Your guides prepare nourishing three-course meals each night that showcase local produce paired with local wines. A range of beverages are available including juice, cordial, beer and wine, tea and coffee. We also provide milk (dairy) and almond milk (non-dairy).

Although we can’t guarantee sightings, we frequently encounter red and grey kangaroos, emus, echidnas, pelicans, goannas, possums, whistling kites & wedge-tailed eagles, and more than 60 species of endemic birds including rare regent parrots, Australian ringneck parrots and crimson rosellas. Ducks and migratory waders such as sharp-tailed sandpipers are often seen on the lakes together with red-necked avocets and pied stilts.

Common species of plants that you will see include river red-gums, black box eucalypts and mallee-eucalypts, river coobah, emu bush, showy daisies, Darling lilies, ruby saltbush and many more.

We do not feed or handle animals on our tours and we do not encourage our guests to do so while on tour.

At the time of booking a tour, consider an appropriate level of travel insurance that includes COVID-19 cover. Please read the PDS and check the policy is right for you before making a purchase. Murray River Trails will not be held liable for any additional costs involved or for a partial refund of the tour costs if the tour is aborted or stopped by circumstances outside of our control.

Please contact our Reservations Team to discuss your special needs.

The walking routes, houseboats and vehicles are not suitable for wheelchair access.

However, we can make accommodations for guests who can walk, but with low mobility. These guests can skip the walking route and remain on the houseboat while the group go out walking.