Fleur Sainsbury is a director of ETM (Emotive Travel Marketing) and has worked with Australia’s Northern Territory since 2007, following her first visit as a backpacker in 1994.
Fleur Sainsbury has worked with Australia’s Northern Territory since 2007, but her connection with the destination began as a backpacker in 1994. With more than 20 visits for work and holidays, she shares what she wishes more people understood about the Territory, why the tropical summer deserves a closer look and the family adventure she’ll never forget.
I first went as a backpacker when I was 21. I visited Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa and travelled out to Kings Canyon and Alice Springs on a camping adventure.
I didn’t visit the Top End until I started working for the client. Both regions are spectacular in their own way, but the Top End really was, and is, a very special place to me. It is so ancient, so vast in the best way and so beautiful. To connect with something so ancient but still living is amazing.
I love the Territory for its laid-back vibes and larrikin characters. It’s just got something about it that keeps drawing you back. Crikey, I reckon I’ve been more than 20 times now, both on holiday and on business. I took my family in 2025, and I think they all love it just as much as I do.
Its geography and, like the rest of Australia, its distances. The NT is vast, with a much smaller population than people might expect, but that doesn’t mean it’s empty.
We’ve got two very distinct regions: the Top End, including Darwin, Kakadu, Arnhem Land and the Katherine region, and the Red Centre, including Alice Springs, the MacDonnell Ranges, Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park and Kings Canyon.
The Stuart Highway runs through the backbone of the Territory, connecting Darwin and Alice Springs and continuing south to Adelaide. It’s about helping people understand how to get here, how to get around, what the distances are like and what there is to experience along the way.
Encouraging people to explore more widely also brings economic benefit to businesses and residents across the Territory. That’s a really important part of what we do.
Oh, this is one of my absolute bugbears: the Top End in the tropical summer.
There’s this misconception that you cannot travel to the Top End, or sometimes even the whole Northern Territory, during those months. It’s something I’ve found endlessly frustrating since I started working for the NT in 2007.
The benefits can be huge. It’s quieter, there can be more affordable hotel rooms, and nature is exploding because of the rainfall. Waterfalls are in full flow and can be so dramatic.
Of course, heavy rain can affect roads and access to particular areas, so you need to plan around the conditions. But that doesn’t mean the whole Top End shuts down. Scenic flights over the waterfalls, for example, can be an incredible way to experience the landscape.
UK travellers often visit Australia in December, January and February. If you’re crossing the Top End off the itinerary simply because there might be some rain, those customers could be missing out on one of the most spectacular landscapes on the planet, in my view.
Visit an arts centre. You can chat to local artists while they’re working and buy something directly through the centre. Take a tour with an Aboriginal guide, or visit the Cultural Centre at Uluṟu to learn more about Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa.
It’s so important to engage with the culture. Whether that’s visiting an arts centre, going on a bush tucker tour or sitting down and having a yarn with someone, I think you’re missing a trick if you don’t embrace it.
I also love browsing galleries featuring Indigenous artists’ work for something to take home. I’ve got some lovely pieces in my house that remind me of those trips and places. That’s really special.
Arnhem Land. This is special to me because in 2025 I took my family to the NT. I’d taken my husband before, but never the boys, which is terrible to admit given how long I’ve worked with the destination!
We went to Davidson’s Arnhemland Safaris at Mount Borradaile, which is my favourite spot in the whole Territory. We flew out in a tiny little plane. The boys must have thought, “Where on earth is she taking us?”
We landed on this dirt airstrip in the monsoon forest and were picked up in an old 4x4 by our guide, Dom. The boys had the most amazing adventure. All they wanted to do was catch barramundi, and I’d never done that before either, so that’s what we did.
Dom took us out on these lily-covered billabongs, surrounded by incredible birdlife and crocodiles, and I caught my first barramundi. I was so thrilled! The boys and my husband did really well too. I’d never have done that without the kids encouraging me.
We also saw amazing rock art, and it just blew them away how special this place was and is. If you want to put the phones away and spend quality time together, Arnhem Land is my top tip.
The food markets in Darwin. Rapid Creek, Parap and Mindil all have great food offerings, and I love exploring a market.
Parap is brilliant for a Saturday morning stroll. You might get something to eat - they do the most amazing laksa - or pick up fruit, a smoothie, some jewellery or a dress. It really feels like a locals’ market, and I love that.
I also love a speakeasy, and they’re not easy to find. Obviously, that’s the point! Charlie’s of Darwin, on Austin Lane, is a really cool little gin distillery and bar up some stairs. Shhh!
The Territory could only be in Australia - it’s quintessential Australia for me, and like nowhere else on the planet.
Want to get to know the person behind the destination expertise? Read Meet the Team: Fleur Sainsbury - From Childhood Adventures to Destination Representation.
