Things to do in Red Centre, Northern Territory: The Best Museums

Tjanpi Desert Weavers is a social enterprise of the Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (NPY) Women’s Council created to enable women in remote central deserts to earn their own income from contemporary fibre art. Tjanpi represents more than 400 Aboriginal female artists from 26 remote communities on the NPY lands, which cover approximately 350,000 square kms across the tri-state border region (WA, SA, NT) of Central Australia. Tjanpi Desert Weavers has a public gallery in Alice Springs where you can see and purchase your own unique piece of art and learn more about the women and culture of the NPY lands. Tjanpi also runs public weaving workshops and regularly exhibits work in national galleries, museums and public institutions.

Yubu Napa Art Gallery, Studio and Gift Shop is now open at the iconic Panorama Guth Building in Hartley Street, Alice Springs. We offer a wide range of contemporary indigenous art as well as beautifully handcrafted souvenirs and gift ideas. Our onsite artist studio is a comfortable space for the artist's to paint in, offering visitors an opportunity to meet an artist and hear the stories of the artwork firsthand! We hope to see you soon at Yubu Napa, the newest Gem in Central Australia

Kathleen Buzzacott Art Studio is a fully owned and operated Indigenous family enterprise situated on Traditional Arrente Land in the stunning West MacDonnell Ranges. Visitors are invited to enjoy a unique cultural experience. Our 'Yia Nuka Ilama' tour involves story telling, morning tea with bush tucker and seed bracelet/keyring making workshop.

Tangentyere Artists Gallery is open Monday to Friday at 16 Fogarty St, Alice Springs. We are an Aboriginal owned and run Art Centre. Tangentyere Artist support new, emerging and established artists through our studio, gallery and outreach program. We also work with Indigenous artists visiting town from remote communities, offering Aboriginal artists a safe place where they can sit down to paint.

Learn to play a didjeridu, throw a spear or boomerang and get a real feel for the Aboriginal culture and music at this fascinating gallery.

The Araluen Cultural Precinct is home to some of the most significant artistic, cultural and historical experiences in Alice Springs and provides a unique visitor experience, encompassing Central Australia’s key cultural institutions and collections. In its four galleries and 500 seat theatre, the Araluen Arts Centre presents an annual program of exhibitions, theatre, and film. The Araluen Galleries showcase the beginning and continuing development of the contemporary Aboriginal art movement, particularly of the Central and Western Desert. The Araluen Art Collection includes significant original watercolours by Albert Namatjira in his artistic response to the Central Australian landscape. A “keeping place of stories”, the Araluen Cultural Precinct offers a rich experience set amongst important Arrernte sites significant to the local Arltyerre (Dreaming) including yaye (Big sister hill), yaye akweke (Little sister hill) and a sacred 300-year-old corkwood tree.

The Women's Museum of Australia (formerly known as the National Pioneer Women's Hall of Fame) is dedicated to celebrating the contribution of women in the pioneering history of the Northern Territory. More broadly, the Womens Museum of Australia is exhibiting stories which showcase the special contribution to Australia's heritage that women in many endeavors have made, not only for the benefit of their communities, but as lasting legacies that can inspire future generations, too. The Womens Museum of Australia is situated in the heritage-listed Old Gaol; so you can also explore prison life and learn about the history of incarceration as well as get a hands-on feeling for what life inside the cells what like for prisoners of the day.

Winner of the 2012 Brolga Northern Territory Tourism Award for Best New Tourism Development. Since 1928 the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) has provided 24-hour emergency medical services to those who live, work and travel throughout Australia. Today, the RFDS provides the finest care to more than 275,000 Australians each year – that’s one person every two minutes. Visit the original Alice Springs working base operating since 1939 to learn more about this unique service. The theatre allows the visitor to watch in comfort the life size hologram of John Flynn telling the story of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, a truly amazing experience! The Royal Flying Doctor Service is a non profit organization, with 100% of all profits made from tours, purchases in the cafe and from our online store going straight to the replenishment of medical equipment.

History, Lifestyle & Innovation…Since 1951 when Alice Springs School of the Air was established, it has been at the forefront of developing techniques that continually enhance learning experiences of students living in remote areas of Central Australia.Immerse yourself in history, learn about outback lifestyle, discover world-class innovations and be inspired by what has been and continues to be a uniquely Australian method of education – achieved in “The World’s Largest Classroom”.

Ingeniously designed to accommodate the local climate and conditions, this building was the first hospital in Alice Springs, and now houses a local history museum with photographs, old radio equipment, maps and publications.