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ABOUT
ilovebrokenhill.com , was first published on 8 December 2011 by Jane Deany. My blog is all about the famous outback Australian National Heritage Listed City named Broken Hill, located in the state of New South Wales. I first visited #BrokenHill in 2002 and have returned many times since then. ilovebrokenhill.com will help you discover what's great about this historic mining city, where in the mid 1880's the line of lode, a rich ore body of silver, lead and zinc was found. You will find stories about anything related to Broken Hill.

Wednesday, 18 December 2013

School holidays in Broken Hill 2013-2014. There's lots to see and do.

Entertainment
Broken Hill is a great place to come for the summer school holidays. It's no hotter in summer than other cities around Australia, for example Perth, Melbourne or Sydney. It is a nice dry heat too. So this is my annual post about some of the best things to do and see when visiting Broken Hill and the surrounding district.


Broken Hill mining landscape with full moon at sunrise
To begin with, a few good reasons to visit Broken Hill over the December 2013 - January 2014 school holiday period are - 

  • it's not as busy as in the peak seasons of Autumn or Spring;
  • as it's off-peak, there are often better prices for accommodation etc... and other special deals to be found. Just ask the tourism operator if there are any school holiday specials; and
  • Popular 'photogenic' sculpture at sunset
  • with less tourists, photo opportunities are easier at popular tourist attractions such as the 'Living Desert Sculpture Park'. The sculptures themselves are a fantastic attraction and are set in a striking location which photographers flock to it. It's a great spot for a sunset picnic. Sunrise is spectacular too and not as busy.

Regardless of when you visit, there are lots of great things to see and do.

Some of my favourite attractions include the -


Art
I love the Broken Hill Regional Art Gallery in Argent Street. It is housed in an historic building, Sully's Emporium, and has an excellent regional gallery collection. There is always an impressive and sometimes thought provoking exhibition on the go.

There are about 24 or so other galleries in Broken Hill and nearby Silverton. You can find a list of all of the galleries in the region at the foot of this website. Alternatively you can go to www.ilovebrokenhill.com 's sister website www.artofbrokenhill.com which also lists the galleries. www.artofbrokenhill.com will eventually contain more comprehensive information about various local galleries, art groups, artists, art organisations and possibly art events from the region.

Here is a list of some more local attractions - 
Historic Trades Hall Building
  • RSL Hall of Fame - Argent Street
  • Historic Day Dream Mine (20km NW Broken Hill, off Silverton Road) - 08 8088 5682
  • Argent Street - main Broken Hill shopping strip which includes beautiful old buildings such as the Town Hall Facade and the famous The Palace Hotel (internal murals, 'Priscilla Queen of the Desertmovie fame amongst other things. Two-up is also played there weekly)
  • White's Mineral Art and Living Mining Museum - 1 Allendale Street - 08 8087 2878
  • Patton Village - Patton Street, South Broken Hill
  • Film Studio Precinct - Eyre Street, South Broken Hill
  • Social clubs including 
    The list just goes on and on. There are countless things to do and a wide variety of places to stay and dine and don't forget to check out some of the galleries. For a city of under 20,000 people, there are a lot of galleries and they are well worth visiting.

    Accommodation
    As you can see there is a lot to do in and around Broken Hill. Perhaps you should book an extra night or two, you may need it and there is a wide variety of accommodation available.

    The Broken Hill Visitor Information website lists lots of attractions, as well as many accommodation options (although not all are listed on that site) - check their website www.brokenhillaustralia.com.au . The Visitor Information Centre is located on the corner of Bromide and Blende Streets.


    Line of Lode view with Miner's Memorial (left) and Broken Earth Complex (right)

    Dining
    There are plenty or restaurants, cafes, pubs, clubs and takeaways to enjoy a delicious meal and parks to enjoy a picnic.

    Swimming
    There are a couple of options to cool down and go for a swim (apart from the motel pool). There is the fantastic Broken Hill Regional Aquatic Centre which includes an outdoor 50m pool and an indoor 25m pool, an adventure/water slide and disabled access. I've seen Kangaroos grazing on the lawn just outside the centre.

    If you feel like something more beachy, there is a huge water body - Menindee Lakes about 110 kms south east of the city which is a beautiful spot to include in your visit, as is the nearby Kinchega National Park and the famous huge shearing shed.


    The road to Silverton.
    You never know what you might see!
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    Look at more Broken Hill images on @ilovebrokenhill 's Pinterest account or Tweet special Broken Hill finds to @ilovebrokenhill on Twitter.

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    Enjoy your holidays, drive safely and pack some extra water just in case.

    Cheers, Jane Deany

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