The old Ghan line followed the route of explorer John MacDouall Stuart. On Sunday the 4th of August 1929, an excited crowd gathered at the Adelaide Railway Station to farewell the first Ghan train, which carried supplies and over a hundred passengers bound for the remote town of Stuart, later to be called Alice Springs. The full journey to Darwin takes three nights and four days, coast to coast, one way 2,979 kilometres.

Originally dubbed the Afghan Express, The Ghan train was named for the pioneering cameleers who blazed a permanent trial into the Red Centre of Australia more than 150 years ago. Many cameleers were migrants from an area known as Pakistan. However, according to outback lore in the 1800’s, these men were believed to come from the mysterious outpost of Afghanistan and were considered Afghans – ‘Ghans.

In 1980, the old Ghan rail track was abandoned in favour of a new standard-gauge rail line built with termite-proof concrete sleepers. The track was laid further to the west to mitigate the flooding problems encountered along the old route.

It was always intended for The Ghan to one day travel from Adelaide through to the Northern Territory capital city of Darwin. With the completion of the Alice Springs to Darwin rail link, this dream became a reality. The Ghan embarked on its inaugural transcontinental journey on the 1st of February 2004.

Today the north-south cross-country journey covers 2979 kilometres and encounters spectacular and diverse landscapes from the pastoral hues of the South Australian plains. the rusty reds of the MacDonnell Ranges and the tropical greens of Katherine and Darwin.