On the road

Make the drive the holiday

Slow down. Stop often. Connect with Country. Fuel, toilets and a welcome wait in every major town — and a handful of tables are worth planning the day around.

Tables worth stopping for

Robin Hood Inn
Jerries Plains · Hunter / Merriwa route
Classic country pub meals and a friendly midway stop.
The Vines, Hollydene Estate
Near Denman · Hunter route
Cellar door, excellent food, and fast EV chargers — the one to plan a longer break around.
Zin House, Lowe Wine Estate
Mudgee
Fine dining in vineyard country. Book ahead.
Silver Fox Café
Gulgong
Casual, historic gold-rush town. Perfect before or after the Pluto / Neptune / Uranus boards.

EV charging

Hollydene Estate (near Denman, Hunter route) has fast chargers and is the one to plan around. Other towns have standard chargers — check PlugShare for live status. The routes are increasingly EV-friendly.

Fuel & toilets

Available in all major towns. Most have 24-hour fuel. Fill in the larger centres for the best price.

Merriwa · Gulgong · Dunedoo · Coolah · Binnaway · Gilgandra · Gulargambone · Narrabri · Gunnedah · Coonabarabran

How to find a board

Search “Saturn Solar System Drive Gulargambone” or “Pluto Solar System Drive Merriwa”. The boards are large, dark blue, and unmistakable once you know the look.

Best light for billboard photos is early morning or late afternoon — golden hour on the 3D planets.
Bring binoculars. Some stops have a fine view of the real night sky as well as the model.
Download offline maps. Signal can fade in the Pilliga and the Warrumbungles.
Search “[Planet] Solar System Drive [Town]” in Google Maps — the boards are large, dark blue, and unmistakable.
Stay on paths. Take only photos. The old stories of this country ask for a light tread.

Download the PDF guide Dark Sky Hub vision