Stayed 3 nights in this great park. We had a drive through ensuite site. Very large site with a clean and large bathroom. Staff were friendly and helpful. Great spaces for entertainment, they had a comedy duo on the nights we were there. The pool was kept clean and a great temperature to have a swim even in August. Close to town and all attractions around. Would definitely recommend.

It was good other than the dump point was over flowing. If not for sewage issues, I would have rated at five stars. Ensure site was great. Clean. In good condition. Great shower pressure. Sites were drive through which is always easier. Great place to stay when visiting Lighting Ridge and would happily stay there again.

The main amenities block at BIG4 Opal Holiday Park is fantastic and sets the standard for all caravan parks. The site was generous and level, making it very comfortable. The pool could use a deeper clean and some extra shade, but we only stayed one night; next time we’ll definitely allow more time to enjoy everything!

Great camping area that's very popular with caravans and tents. There's cabins too. For tent camping you'll need a drill to get your tent pegs in. If you arrive during opening hours they'll lend you a drill. The land is rocky, so we used a ground sheet to protect our tent floor. There's a grass area where the kids can play, plus a giant chess set. The shower and toilets are clean and in good condition. The pool isn't shaded, but the nearby tables are. There's multiple camp kitchen areas.

Powered site. Facilities spotless. Main toilet/ showers all ensuite style with lots of room, glass shower doors, hot water with good pressure. Disabled facilities excellent. Camp kitchens, chess and table tennis. Astronomy dome under construction. Huge, level, gravel sites. Car wash and dog minding available on site. Leash free dog area. Management excellent and extremely helpful when we lost a shade screen from our motorhome during extreme heat and winds and lent us one of their own for 5 days. Site opposite hot bore baths which are free.

Clean, neat and tidy. Cabins are modern, roomy and comfortable. The facilities are fantastic. Perfect place to stay when visiting Lightning Ridge. A touch of paradise in outback NSW. Close to drive to the centre of town and the Artesian Bath is across the road.

The Big 4 was a wonderful experience. The cabin was a great size,everything was very clean,very affordable,everything you need. Pool and bbq facilities were excellent,it's a 200mt walk to the artisan baths,which was fabulous after a big day of checking out all there is to offer and lots of walking and some fossicking.The caravan park is close to all tourist attractions,which was great,and having a courtesy bus to transport to Bowls club( great food and cold drinks)was the best,highly recommend the Big4😊

Clean add easy to use, indoor and outdoor showers. Temperature was a little cooler after rain, but like a hot bath, very relaxing! Guests are coming and going all night but everyone is quietly chatting or relaxing. Showers have a sulphur smell, but the scent doesn't stay on you, and the baths themselves are odourless. Free & open all hours except 10 AM to noon for cleaning.

Very hot artesian baths at Lightning Ridge, mid north NSW Australia🇦🇺🧜‍♂️🧜‍♀️🏊‍♂️🥵 very hot water. It's good for you. A must visit. Also visit the opal mines and opal shops. Great history around the place. Very remote. The old pub has long gone unfortunately. The Diggers Rest. It was a fantastic place. How sad. 😌⛏️🪏⚒️⚖️🪃🛏🚫⬇️🇦🇺🌏🛻🛣☀️🌡🧨🕯📱📲

Almost too hot but a great experience. Best at dawn. Good sunset. Hot. Best to perch yourself on the edge or a step. Guaranteed to sleep like a baby afterwards.

Fantastic FREE public hot spring /bore baths. The water here is HOT, and varies between 40°- 46°C. There is also a second, smaller pool which is a few degrees cooler, but is only about 300mm deep, as opposed to the main pool which is about 1.6m deep. The pools are open all day every day, but are closed for cleaning between 10am-noon every day. It’s particularly nice to go in when it is really cold outside and the cool breeze helps keep your face cool.

Beautiful! Hot and relaxing water, perfect way to start or finish your day in lightning ridge! We watched the sunrise and would definitely go again Bore bath is around 45-50°c definitely worth it.

We’ve been coming back every year since 2022 (8 hours drive). We just love this place—sitting in the hot water under the night sky, watching a shooting star, it feels like pure paradise.

Enjoyed the bath. Dog dirt around pool. Should be a dog free area as there are children using the baths.

One of the best experiences we had in LR. The work that amigo put in here is absolutely staggering. Well worth the $15 admission. Waynes information was helpful . Would hope that Amigo sees the reviews so he can be justifiably proud of what he has achieved.

Simple set-up but worthy of the visit. $15 each to enter but we stayed over an hour. So much to wonder over one mans life work! The size of the iron stone was a marvelous effort. Well explained by a friendly guide who had all the answers and history. Glad it will be preserved by national trust.

Amazing! Definitely worth a look! Pet friendly and people working there had lots of information. Truly fantastic what people can do when they have the creativity and skills!

Look to be honest the $15 entry fee was not really worth the entry. I mean, it was ok but nothing that great. Half built castle made from local rock. The history given after entry was not extensive and I found out more on Google. But if you like a tourist attraction then have a look.

Fantastic to see & to listen to the story told about Amigos & why & how he built this castle.

Very interesting place to visit, yes you have to pay for the visit,but money goes towards on going costs to let you have a look and see the Castle Amigo built and learn about his life

Amazing how much one man was able to build by himself.

Take the turn on Gem street.. easiest way to find it 🙆 If like me you don't want to go too far underground this is ideal. Take your time look at the exhibits and video. Great true mining ⛏️. experience

A little hidden 💎 cute little shop with gorgeous opals. My partner seen the best piece of opal he has ever seen. He was blown away. The lady behind the counter was friendly. We did the underground self guided tour for $20 each. One of the easiest underground mines to get in. Very fascinating. We love these places. Off the main street and hidden back alittle bit. So it's a bit quiter and more chilled.

Moxed feeling. Yes it's a mine with some equipment to see, stories to read and videos to watch. The story of the owner is quite impressive, but I'm not sure if it's different from other miners or significant. They did their homework in regards to decorations, photo ops and safety, I'm happy to give that. The shop feels a bit overpriced. The mine tour is a bit short. Plenty of piles of rocks and sand to traverse looking for opals.

Easy access for almost anybody. Very interesting self guided tour down the mine.

Great self guided underground tour that is easy to access down some stairs. Hard hats provided. It's a small area to investigate, but fun for adults and the primary aged kids to explore. Make sure you have your own tools for the fossicking, and know it's out in the sun, not underground. I'm not sure there's anything to find there, but our son was very determined none the less.

A great place to see inside a mine, only 32 steps down onto the mine and very interesting, $20 entry which includes the walk I mine self tour, coffee or tea and free fossicking, we found some very interesting pieces and easy to find...

Real eye opener, I knew these folks toiled hard for reward. They're a special crew that can work out here. Much respect to them all.

I just love John Murray's art work! As we have travelled it's been on silos and murals in places unheard if. The gallery is worth a viewing especially take time to watch the video of John speaking how he arrived in Lightening Ridge,his home and his art work. Only a small piece purchased but I have so many photos from the places visited and sighted his brilliant work. Thanks John for such talent!

A great chance to look at a lot of fantastic art. Even the kids were amazed. Sadly just missed John himself when we popped in. Loads of great merch based on John's art. No photos inside but lots to shoot outside and all around the town. Street parking out front

Definitely a must to visit! The artwork here is absolutely fantastic! So glad we dropped in for a look, left with the cutest cow cushion and small print! Free entry to get in a bonus but good luck leaving without buying something!

Travelling Aussies 🇦🇺 Visitors to Lightning Ridge - this is a must visit local gallery 🏆 We found John’s fabulous art to combine scenes of the local outback with familiar birds & animals, along with a uniquely Australian sense of humour ❤️ The gallery has a wide range of thoughtful merchandise available for every budget Highly recommended ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Amazing place to visit A must if you in Lightning Ridge No photos to be taken inside, only outside Great humorous art pieces Prints and original drawings available

Beautiful gallery, stunning art by both Vicki and John

This is a must if your in Lightening Ridge. A very talented artist.

The food we had here was absolutely fine and the kitchen got it to the pass in very good time considering how many people were ordering. The facilities look very new and there's not complaint about it. I just can't help but think this place has the loins share of trade in the town, and as such there are very few other options to have a proper evening meal.

Another fantastic Opal event with a vibrant atmosphere and great company. I've attended four now—always brilliantly run. Sadly, the food this year didn’t match the standard; underwhelming in both taste and presentation. That said, huge praise to the hardworking committee and outstanding floor and bar staff!

A bit odd you have to become a member, but we got the discounts to offset it easily enough. Ordered the Margharita pizza and the schnitzel with the parmi topping. Pizza was really big, and plentiful. Fresh pesto on top too The schnitzel was rather thick in chicken, which was great, the roast potatoes and veg were spot International crowd working there too, which is pretty great. Highly recommend.

Excellent lunch & dinner food and service. As visitors to the area we were blown away, as it's on par with city Bowls Clubs. My daughter loved the futuristic bathrooms. Everyone loved their food & drinks. Fun local artwork on the walls with enjoying, showing off the local lifestyle. Joining as a member is worth it, and very cheap.

This place is quite large and the staff etc are great and efficient. You do have to sign in and become a member, which offers you a discount. No problem it's a quick and easy process. We had 1 lunch here and two dinners. The food was always consistent and fantastic. The best chips ever. I had the steak, salad, chips and gravy and my husband said this was the best Snapper he ever had. He also had a curry that was fantastic. I think NSW has the best chips in the world. On another occasion I had the roast beef and gravy roll for lunch. There is an outdoor area for smokers, where you can watch the tv or have a drink etc. Wine is reasonably priced.

After a few days remote and traveling solo, this club felt like a real treat. I had a great visit. The prices were reasonable and the Supreme Pizza I had was fab. My taste buds were loving it! $5 membership card gets you in which also gives you a $3 voucher to use, which I forgot about Doh!

The food was ok. Wouldn’t say it was bad. But nice. The young lady at the food area. Was on a bad day I think. The bar staff and front of house were great. As a no. Member helps in what had to be done. You pay $3 for a casual member. Then get $3 off of your beer or food. The only thing was no schooler of beer. But the beers are nice and cold. Got to love that

A market was running on the day which was packed full of vendors, great day. Stopped in at the visitor information center at lightening ridge, very informative, pamphlets and souvenirs available. Recommend to drop in and have a chat about the best areas to go noodling.

The staff were so knowledgeable and friendly a pleasant experience

If you’ve watched opal miners on tv then you have an idea of lightning Ridge. Although you have an idea nothing can prepare you for your visit. Local community and mining communities too. Make shift homes on gravel beds with off grid living. Piles of white chalky dirt show the results of underground excavation.

Went there 4 times as it was worth giving feedback. The Miners Hall of fame new feature has been open only 3 weeks and it was our favourite thing in Lightning Ridge. Great information, friendly and knowledgeable . Thanks heaps.

Go here before doing anything in Lightning Ridge. Your one stop shop on all the tour information. Car door tours are a must, we did all 5 and enjoy seeing areas in Lightning Ridge that we would have missed. Markets are held in the carpark on Sunday morning from 8am. Lovely place for a break with lunch or morning tea, with clean toilets while your driving around town.

Very helpful and friendly staff at visitor centre. A lot of information and free maps for self guided tour. A free opal forseeking area outside the centre. Sunday market is located in the car park nearby, 7am -12pm every Sunday, March to November.

Absolutely love Lightning Ridge and Grawin. Beautiful spot to visit. Great camping. Lots to do. Just make sure you don't go on someone's leased area. If you want to know where you can fossick. Get in touch with the local mines department 🙂

The "deluxe" beef burger was the saddest looking thing. I don't think the price was justified, however it was tasty and had a decent amount of sauce. Friendly service at the counter and not many other eateries open in town so I was grateful to find this place

Love Steve’s usually. Asked for a cheesy hotdog with extra sauce… this is the result. Umm, how? Did the cap fall off? Must’ve🤦‍♀️ Great presentation guys… 🙄… do I get more than 1 napkin in the bag next time?

Delicious burgers. We had the Old School Burger, Smokey BBQ Burger, and potato scallops. The burgers were yum with great buns, plenty of filling, and a tasty, large meat patty. The potato scallops were huge with crispy batter. Definitely recommend Steve’s Takeaway.

The 4 burgers we got were all bloody great! Not greasy, and actually tasted fresh! Chips were crispy too! The guy who served us was friendly enough...

A must try if your passing through the ridge, good range to choose from big pizza menu, we share a large pizza and cheesy garlic it was amazing thanks heaps guys highly recommend a must try

Best burger I've tasted in ages. Had the plain old Aussie Classic, with beetroot and sauce dripping down my chin. Best.

Absolutely amazing pizzas from these guys. Even the gluten free one was really nice according to the Mrs. Thanks for the quality food 👍👍

Great place. Good set-up, interesting and informative. Friendly staff. Only improvements needed would be to provide a way more tourist friendly carpark and put big signs on their building to say that's them. There are 2 flags but they were hanging straight down and couldn't be seen. Use the GPS and it will land you right there anyway.

Do it! Go and see it! I had heard about the place from people and when we decided to visit lightning ridge we finally made it! We did the tour of the carvings and had a guided tour on the mine level learning from a local Opal miner! Just fantastic! The photos and videos just dont do the place justice! Its something you need to see to appreciate. Could easily go back multiple times and still not see everything!

If you find yourself at lightening Ridge then book in for this tour. Some local history of mining opals and of the locals in the area. Then you take a self guided tour of the carvings. Nothing short of amazing. I won’t spoil it as Peter our guide clearly loves his job and telling his own stories.

What an amazing experience. Leigh was a wealth of knowledge and very entertaining . Then to see all the hand carved sculptures was amazing. Thank you so much

Fantastic visit, well worth every penny, lovely tour guide on entering, self guided afterwards. Enjoyed the video on the process. Amazing sculptures

The black Hand Mine is a must see attraction when in lightning ridge. This attraction exceeded our expectations. Don't be afraid to take children into the mine the safety measures are excellent. There is a lift for those of us with mobility issues. Make sure you go you will not be disappointed. L&M. Brisbane July 2025

Absolutely a must see. This is fantastic. All the amazing sculptures done by hand with a butter knife. I would highly recommend doing both the mine & the sculptures tour . Well worth it.

It's cute, lots of ' Stuff' . The history is interesting. Not worth $10 each adult. The self guided tour lasts 3 mins. We went there 8 yrs ago and I think it was a gold coin donation when the old fella owned it.

The bottle house is an example of the weird but practical use of the resources available in this area Building materials were scarce but empty beer bottles were plentiful as was mine waste so it was a cheap way to build walls, just scrounge some iron sheets for a roof and a few trees for framing and you have a house Lots of interesting stuff in the museum Worth a visit

We loved visiting the Bottle House Museum. It is just like is was in the 60s, but filled with antiques. A great little piece of history. When we went to visit it was free to see the outside, and $10 an adult and $2 a child to see inside.

As part of what lightning ridge has to offer to tourists is the bottle house, a house made nearly entirely of empty glass bottles. It was an immensely impressive sight to look at, with the sheer amount of work that would have had to been put into this, and the number of bottles that would have to be saved too. It seemed that a lot of these bottles are also like the same, meaning someone must have had to drink a lot of… something. We entered through the side of the house, where there was a lady in charge of the entry and also had some opal jewellery on display for sale. The entry was about 10 dollars if I recall correctly, and we went through, and it was pretty much like a hoarders house, but arranged in a much neater manner with several items of importance in a glass display. It was cool to see all these things, but I didnt really expect it at all. The front half of the house is filled with a bunch of bits and pieces of items from the past, like there is such a random assortment of things here that I cant simply group them into one word. It was pretty cool, and believe it or not, there were even more empty bottles inside. This is probably the jankiest looking museum ive ever been to, but it was an interesting sight for sure.

This was good to see & take photos on the outside. If you are interested in old artefacts & the different opals it's good to take a walk through.

Very interesting from the outside, didn't get to go in

Museum was closed at the time it was supposed to be open. Glass house and sculptures outside look quite interesting. There is a opal forseeking area in the backyard for paid visitors.

Small, but packed with info signs, fossils, opals and geology & mining history information. Gift shop as well with great t-shirts for the kids. The new centre will be great, but this is already a must visitñ

Free entry but donations welcome. Limited display in a too small space. Focussed on dinosaurs. Underwhelming collection and information. Volunteer staff friendly and helpful. Should be much bigger and better when the new AOC is eventually opened.

Amazing opal and fossils. Great temporary location for information, some opal and fossil specimens. You can also purchase pieces. The staff are great and dedicated to educating the world about opals and local fossils. There is a major upgrade purpose built centre under construction with the aim to become the largest opal centre in the world!

Lovely, knowledgeable staff, pleasant shop to browse, good prices.

Great customer service, very interesting and informative to learn about opal jewellery

It's a donation to enter. It's a small space but there's a lot of interesting things to see. We took around half an hour to have a good look around. It sells a range of fossils too. It's getting a 20 million dollar update to display more of its artifacts.

A truly amazing place with a wonderful atmosphere. Very knowledgeable staff; Teresa is a wealth of information. She's worth more MONEY.

Rough drive to enjoy sunset. Pity it was a fizzer the night we were there. Interesting old bottle hut..but vandals have destroyed a fair bit of it ( broken glass everywhere)

When you head into lightning ridge you will see a bunch of car doors with numbers painted on them. Nettletons look out is at the end of the " green car door tour" highly recommend heading up there before sunset but staying till dark. You will honestly never see a better sunset in this part of the world. Truly amazing. Take a wine and some biscuits and enjoy your night !!

A nice lookout to watch the sunset.Can get busy quickly. Easy parking. Interesting building made out of beer Cans. We were there for almost an hour having a look around and then waiting for the sunset 🌇

Nice spot to look over black soil plains as the sun goes down. Was busy but general quiet when I was there. Mine shafts and bottle house to look at.

A beautiful spot to witness amazing sunset. The entire place is far from city lights that gives you an unique opportunity to witness the sunset in its full glory. The approach to this place is through a dusty and gravel road, so ensure you have the right car for the drive.

A great place to visit and view the surrounding area A great place to watch the sunset

Nice trip out to the lookout, Go kick some rocks Old building made of bottles and cans

What a cool metal statue, it's ginormous!!! How the hell did they even construct it! Excellent😍

Great free camp about 11ks from Lightning Ridge , one toilet, better to be self contained, Stanley the big emu across the road, gets busy, first in best dressed, but still a great place to stop.

Pretty cool Big Thing made out of VW parts by local artist John Murray. In town there are a lot art works by this artist. He is definately talented. Stanley the Big Emu is located on the highway just past the Lightning Ridge turn off and on the way to Moree. You cannot miss him. Hi is huge! Well worth a stop for a photo.

Well, you just have to stop and look hey? Such an unusual piece of art, on the side of the Highway by Lightning Ridge, ‘Stanley’ the Emu. So quirky and definitely depicting Lightening Ridge. Made from a bit of this and a bit of that, I think I saw a VW Beetle!!! There’s a convenient rest stop opposite

Nice little spot just outside Lightening Ridge. Can pull up in either direction. Northbound has a small seating area.

Pretty cool giant sculpture in the middle of nowhere!!!

A must-stop photo opps on the way to Lightning Ridge! And it's got a great story, too. This was commissioned by a nearby town, but when they discovered the cost of transport, they changed their minds. So it stayed in Lightning Ridge where artist John Murray (who worked on it) lives. 📷 Aim for the evening, if you can, whole the sun is facing Stanley from the rest area, not behind it.

Our kids (6&3) enjoyed tearing around on the trikes available and the mini playground. Lots of space to sit outside, we had a nice cold beverage here and the food looked good that was being served. Middle of nowhere but very quirky and some great photos. Very friendly manager and a great experience! Dirt road to get out was a bit bumpy in our van but not for too long.

Honestly if your coming up this way take a day out to go on the 3 pub tours. Coming across this place was just amazing. The service was good, toilets are nice and clean and the locals around are just so welcoming too !!

“What a spot! Club in the Scrub is full of outback charm – quirky, friendly, and unexpectedly awesome. The staff are legends, the food’s great, and if you’re keen for a hit, there’s even a golf course (though don’t expect Augusta). Totally worth the drive!”

A very rough and ready bush pub built from scratch out of bush timber and junkyard materials It has a unique look and feel about it There is a golf course and free camping Good beer and food

Wicked vibe and great food!! If you are travelling through and want a great locals experience this is the place!!

Came to Club in the scrub for lunch and what a great experience. Burgers were so good. Vegetarian burger was a stand out, my Mum loved it so much. Kids were super happy. Thanks so much for having us!! Highly recommend to anyone and everyone!!

The best atmosphere, friendly travellers, regulars, staff and locals. Simple meals and fair choice. Hamburgers superb, loved the Gold coin tea and coffee. Really clean nice loos. Not to hard to find with the map from tourists information. Definitely a must see. Xx

We got there at 7:30pm and was told all pizzas are sold out for the day. Very disappointing since the reviews are all saying how good the pizzas are here. We ended up ordering the lamb shank, eye fillet and parmigiana, which took over an hour to come out. luckily food is decent enough, which is what i gave 3 stars for. will i come back? maybe, considering there isn't much else to choose from in this small town, this is probably the best you can get around here, but will definitely come earlier next time to try the so famous pizza.

Although we were told it was open for take-away only we were pleased to be able to dine in. Good range of meals available. I had lamb shanks which was nice, hubby had the brunette and Tagliatelle Boscaiola (large serve) which was very nice and rich - very large portion which we brought home leftovers. Dessert was Affogato (3 scoops of Icecream!) and Pannacotta (not enough vanilla and bit too thick for me). Service to take our order was a bit slow, but then meals came out nice and fast, and hot. Waitresses were friendly.

The food were delicious... When it arrived more than an hour after we eventually managed to place our order. I feel really sorry for the floor staff as they definitely need more staff and an organised system to get people seated with wine glasses, water and menus. This could have been a 5+ star rating with better organisation and more staff

Absolutely a great Italian restaurant in the middle of Lightning Ridge.. authentic and full of flavor Well done We would definatly go again.. tiramisu to die for.

Quality food and restraunt with hard working chefs. This reastraunt is probably the highest quality place to eat in Lightingridge although the service is not lightning fast which is the reason why I'm giving Piccolo's a 4 out of 5.

What a lovely surprise. Excellent food from a Sydney chef who has moved to the Outback. We enjoyed our pasta meals so much on night 1 that we came back again for our second night to try the duck and chicken dishes. We were not disappointed. Highly recommended.

The food was delicious i had seafood marinara could not fault it cook to perfection

Stopped in for a quick beer and a look around and loved it. Lots to see and a bunch of fun. Ended up being a favourite spot.

This place was really lovely, not quite a 5 star atmosphere in the middle of the day but the staff were lovely and the food was excellent! I would come back if I was ever in the area again

Was a great place with fantastic atmosphere and the meal was very enjoyable considering where we where Would not hesitate recommending it.

What a fantastic place, easy to see how this watering hole is so popular amongst the local mining community and visitors alike. The journey as part of the orange car door tour takes you to Glangarry Hilton. If you make the effort you shouldn’t be disappointed, you’ve found your way here because you’re interested and perhaps inspired by watching the opal mining show on Tv.

Lumch was great best chicken snitty in a long time

Got to get out there on the orange car door map, 160 k round trip from Lightning Ridge. 3 pubs to go to, unreal!!

Atmosphere plus. Camp-fire stories, flushing toilets, great barman, serious pool table shenanigans all after midnight. Great venue

It was a great experience, we learned a lot about opal mining and engaged with the owner quite a bit! If you’re wanting to get the opal mining feel while traveling through, stop by!

A Must-Do Experience in Lightning Ridge! We absolutely loved the Big Opal Underground Mine Tour! Stephen was a fantastic host, genuinely passionate and incredibly knowledgeable about the history of Lightning Ridge, the challenges miners face under current government restrictions, and what life is really like working underground. His insights added so much depth to the experience. The tour is self-guided, which made it really interactive and fun, especially exploring with torches. To our delight, we even found a small piece of opal—my son was over the moon! The mine feels authentic and not overly commercialized, which we really appreciated. It had a personal touch that made it stand out from some of the other tours in town. Stephen also has a lovely range of opals for sale that he mined himself, and they were very reasonably priced, no pressure, just a genuine offering from someone who clearly loves what he does. Just a heads-up, the spiral staircase into the mine goes down quite a bit, so take your time coming back up. But it’s well worth it for the experience. Highly recommend this tour if you want something real, informative, and memorable!

Great tour of a working mine, opals and jewellery available and some great information boards. About a 100 Spiral steps to get down, but easy enough.

Wonderful experience!! I've never been to a mine before so this was exciting!! (Also, now I know I wouldn't ever want to be a miner!) We saw some opals in the mine and also purchased some wonderful gift souvenirs. Again, there was no pressure to buy at all unlike a lot of commercial places, which made us buy more! Mr Stephen is an amazing person!!

Interesting experience, easy enough access down a spiral staircase. Lots of amusing tales from the owner.

Big opal is good underground mine to visit. Entry cost $30 for an adult. Thanks Steven for the information with regards to opals.

An experience to see inside an opal mine. They are mostly holes dug straight down.

Honestly 10/10 !! One of the best tours ever. We went on outback Opal Tour's today with the wonderful Nat and had the best day ever. She went above and beyond for us and even contacted a few of the members from the out back Opal hunters show to catch up for a meet and great too. All the extra things she did too. 100% well worth it

Wow! Just wow! We discovered people and places that only existed on the telly until yesterday! Wildlife and wilder characters IS Lightning Ridge and its opal fields! The best scones in the universe for morning tea, a photo with local celebrity Les Walsh from Outback Opal Hunters, fossicking AND finding Opal in the mullocks (piles of tailings). This excursion was A+ ! Nat, our trusty guide, was the best! So friendly. It just felt like spending the day with mates! Great value for money! A must! Ben - 2025

Had an awesome full day tour with Stacy our Tour Guide. She was excellent. Great knowledge of local history and the full workings, operation and how to get and work an opal claim. The three pubs were interesting, fun and a great experience. All were friendly and willing to chat. Love Lightning Ridge. The scones jam and cream were to die for. .. lunch was scrumptious.

From the get go when booking was made to feel valued as a customer and immediately knew we were in good hands. Nat and Stacey took our group of 10 on an awesome tour. We couldn't have asked for better guides and got a lot out of the tour - not just fossicking tips and trips (tried and true!! We all left with sandwich bags of opal. Even the kids!) or the sight seeing/bush pubs but more than that we left with a genuine heart for lightning ridge and its people as Nat and Stacey took the time to share their local knowledge and community insights. I think if we didn't do the tour and have these local gems share their understanding of the lands, lifestyle and community, we just would not have been impacted so deeply nor have enjoyed the experience as much as we all thoroughly did. We even got a meet and greet from Les from Opal Hunters whilst on the tour! We just got home to Sydney and my 6 and 7 year old daughters are already asking me when we're going back. Highly recommend.

It's a great day out, very informative, morning tea and lunch was great. The locals are friendly and happy to have a chat. The tour guide Nat is awesome, so knowledgeable, thank you. I definitely recommend the tour.

Absolutely great experience, our two hosts Nat and Stacey were excellent & very knowledgeable on the area, spoke freely and wasn’t read from a book, the morning tea was the best scones I’ve eaten, lunch at another stop was great, then onto another stop, we weren’t rushed when we had stopped. Excellent full day out, would highly recommend!

Had a great day on the tour. 3 pubs in the scrub. Morning tea delicious, lunch was great, we had the fish. Thank you to Stacey our guide today. Very informative and interesting.

Great tour, very informative. Thank you Pauline you are an awesome tour guide.

We came to lightening ridge for such a short trip we almost skipped doing this tour and making it a mission to find the good spots ourselves. Thank goodness we didn’t! It’s such a benefit to have someone take you around this town properly. The tour guide talked about the people that have made lightening ridge the unique town it is. He explained why people move her and what mining involves. We didn’t the 3 hour tour and have scones, jam and cream with tea and coffee waiting for us at the end. Do yourself a favour and do a tour! It’s worth it.

Great tour of Lightning Ridge. Trevor our guide was very informative and made the tour very enjoyable. We did the 4hr tour taking in the Underground Mine Tour as well.

Great tour of Lightning Ridge. Great guides; super informative. I got to see most of the attractions, including going off road in a big old bus to visit some of the local homes. The guide, as always, makes it. And he was terrific.

One of the best informative tours a must do if in Lightening Ridge Allan our guide was so informative and quirky humour made for a great tour. Don't miss!

What an excellent tour, Nat is a great guide, So friendly and informative, Do yourself a favor when in Lightning Ridge and go on this tour, What a great day you will have.

Absolutely wonderful tour. Trevor was a lovely down to earth bloke. Would HIGHLY recommend the tours. And highly recommend you go with him.

This is an absolute dream to visit. Step back with true family history of life on the land. I have never seen so many pieces of our farming history displayed so well. But what made it more remarkable was the tour that Robert did, and his knowledge and stories of so many of the items. Therese's morning tea and home baked scones were beautiful. We would highly recommend this tour of JUST RUSTIC while you are visiting Lightning Ridge.

Robert and Terase Turnbull's Just Rustic eps keep alive the memory and ingenuity of our farming forebears. With explanations, jokes, poetry, and showing the machinery and tools, and washed down with a cup of tea and a a wonderful scone, history surrounds us. Robert's passion for the land and its people, and his stories of pain and grief are so real, while always uplifting you with a joke or a funny anecdote. We even got to divine for water. What a wonderful experience.

A must see if you are near lightning ridge. Robert's passion for the land and it's people coupled with his storytelling and knowledge in ake this an absolute must. The rare machinery, so brilliantly explained and demonstrated (yes most of it is in working condition) makes the museum tour like no other museum tour. You get an idea of the sense of humour as you drive into the station. I giggled all the way down. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Then as a real bonus Therese's scones were terrific.

This place is amazing. Robert (Cod) Turnbull great collector of all old things and fantastic stories and his lovely wife who cooks the best scones. Worth the trip if your in Lightning Ridge it is a must do. Helping to support farmers in need. Passion and strength found in this amazing Museum.

We were recommended this museum by a friend, and we were so glad we went. Robert Turnbull and his wife are warm and honest hosts. Every fibre in their body loves the farm and that shows. Book in advance and they'll take the time (about 2-3 hours) to tell you everything about the 4 generations that have worked this farm, including years of floods and devastating droughts. Robert and his wife are active in charities that support farmers financially and mentally during these dry years. You need the guided the tour through the museum to understand what you're looking at, and many of the machines and artefacts come to live with Robert's stories. The morning tea with home-made scones were a highlight thanks the lovely wife. During morning tea, Robert brought some of us to tears when he recited some of his poems - another highlight. And let's not forget the lesson in water divining - that was a highlight too!

I am so glad that we listened to the recommendations to visit JR it didn't disappoint. Robert and Therese are so passionate about their land and farming. The stories and information garnered from generations on the land were interesting and informative. Looking at the extensive collection and listening to the stories from the collector bought everything to life. Smoko was excellent as was Robert's poems. Good old fashioned hospitality at its best. Don't miss this unique experience.

Definately worth the 40 minute drive. Great location and entertaining stories about country life. On top of that a superb collection that is shown with passion. Oh and did I mention the scones? Go and have a look. You won't regret it

Just way too much butter on asparagus. Veal scallopine funghi portion was very small. Our group had lamb shank which was ok, but everyone agreed that ossobuco was better. In regards to steamed veggies that came with the meal - carrots were undercooked, celery - not even steamed. The pizza deserves its own mention—while the ingredients themselves were flavorful, the dough was tough and appeared burnt in spots (refer to pictures), based on the texture and appearance, it seemed the wood-fired oven wasn’t hot enough, preventing the dough from rising properly. Quite disappointing… Overall, it was an okay experience, but it felt like just a few simple adjustments could have made it a great one. P. S. Getting staff’s attention was not an easy task. P.P.S. The food took a long time to arrive, though this isn’t reflected in the overall rating.

A delightful evening. Food was outstanding. Staff were very attentive and friendly. Great service. My wife had the Egg plant parmigiana and I had the Fettuccine al salmoni. Delicious. Top marks team Bruno’s

My wife and I enjoyed a garlic bread and then a Capricosia pizza that was Delicious. Traditional hand spun and wood fired, the pizza base was perfect and the toppings were full flavoured. The food was accompanied by some good wine as well, my Grant Burge Shiraz really hit the spot! Can't recommend highly enough...

Had a meal at the restaurant after other things got in the way of cooking at the caravan Nice restaurant and the food was good I had a pork chop dish which was really nice My wife had a chicken Caesar salad but had trouble finding the chicken but it was tasty

I rarely put a review up, but this was appalling and disgusting. We went off peoples google reviews for this restaurant especiallyadvertising woodfire pizzas.....big mistake!! We booked for 6.10pm on a Tuesday night. It took 1 1/2 hours for our food to arrive (we ordered 1x penne bolognaise and 2x pizzas). Other people had the same experience of having to wait over 1 hour and left (we were near the front counter so we heard all of the conversations). Food was terrible: the pasta was terribly salty (we had 2 mouthfuls out of hunger and couldn't eat the rest-we sent it back to the kitchen).🤢 The pizzas were just as bad. The capriccosia they forgot the olives and we left 1/2 of one pizza and ate most of the other out of hunger. *we stopped past the ampol to buy a roast beef sandwich (which we should have done in the 1st place). To the owners of bruno's, don't seat customers if you're inundated with food orders, and the "chefs" should be trying the food before sending it out (the pasta tasted as if a 10yr old had tried to cook it and accidentally poured in the container of salt).

We enjoyed a very pleasant dinner at Bruno's last evening. Table-service was quick, friendly and efficient; and our meals were absolutely delicious - authentic taste, well-seasoned and generous serves. The tiramisu was a real stand-out!

Pasta was ok our pizza, supposed to be an entree, came out 15 minutes after we finished eating our mains. Drinks were barely cool. Got over charged and didn't notice until we left and added up our meal costs. No table service. Not recommended.

Oh boy! Who would have thought that we are going to enjoy cactus farm in a mining town that much, but here we are. Firstly, the main character - cactuses. From all over the world, carefully planted and signed. Quite a few interesting stories and names. As much as I'm NOT a fan of such kind of plants, I did enjoy my time looking at some of the specimen. Small, funny and HUGE. Secondly, opals. The cactus sanctuary is owned by opal miner(s), that start with telling you nice stories about cacti and then (if they like you ;) ) offer you a bit more. Some wonderful opals of different shape and colour, that they polish and cut at the "farm". A local jeweler is ready to fit an opal into a "frame" you would prefer. On top of that, they have jewellery ready to go. With their own opals. Couldn't pass on that. Polite negotiations are welcomed. The prices are much better than in the shops in CBD anyway. While there is no EFTPOS, but they are happy to take cash or PayID payment. Last, but not the least. People. People are very nice and warm. John (owner) was so kind to give us loads of presents and give us a tour in the workshop. My better half got some cacti, kid got some opal fragments (heaps). I got great impression. Do not skip on this destination.

Lovely cactus garden 🌵, one of the two largest in the Southern Hemisphere (I asked for a detailed explanation, turns out there is one in Victoria that is slightly larger by average, but Bevans has more plants. It's competitive.) Stunning plants, well-signed and on the Blue Car door route. Really friendly family running it, in its third generation. We walked through in about 15 minutes, it's $10 per person. 💵 Cash only.

This is such a great place! Lots of cool cacti but also the best prices in town for opals! We thought we’d pop in for 20 minutes or so and spent much of the afternoon there!

Amazing massive very interesting Catus Garden a must see while in the Ridge . Friendly owner willing to answer any questions and tell you about the history of the garden. We even saw 2 stumpy tailed happy healthy lizards residing in amongst the cacti .

The cactus garden is amazing! And the owner John is a really knowledgeable and friendly, down to earth bloke who also has a great opal shop onsite. We came here as our last stop to see the cactus and ended up leaving with some amazing opal dug by the owner himself, highly recommended.

Heaps of varieties of cactus but not really well put together. Boring in fact. Signage needs to have more info on the types of cactus and where they originated. Owner was a bit busy to interact with us.

What a great place to visit. This Cactus garden has been brilliantly created by the Bevan family and they are also very friendly and take time to explain the different Cacti.

This is a self drive tour. The map is available at the tourist information centre. There are some of the attractions on the tour that you have to pay to enter.

Walk in mine, Bevan’s cactus nursery and glimpses of off grid dwellings on the edges of the Ridge. I’m possibly just ‘promoting’ here, rather than reviewing, because I’m falling in love with so much about this place 💕

We did the Self guided route start of May 2021, it was nice to do at our pace plus helping the information center with $1 for map. Even though we may of went the wrong way a few times. We drive a Kia carnival around and handle it well, but the next day same route wasn't good as it had rained. We where lucky. Make sure you do get out and have look around at open cut mine, old mining equipment, the ridge is quirky, interesting and a lot of history.

The shortest and probably least impressive of the car door tours. Still worth a look!

Not much on the tour however the mine at the end is worth going in for the price.

I recommend the blue door tour the lady’s were fantastic and very help full. Found a few opal there Thanks to all the staff

Was a really short tour (if you don't stop) but we chose to do this as was running out of time. We did stop at Bevan's Cactus Garden which was pretty spectacular. Friendly people there and we stayed maybe a good 30-40min taking photos and speaking to the owners.

No pensioner rates in Lightening Ridge area at any attraction. Amigos castle was not too bad however given not all pensioners are agile and not all are able to climb stairs, this should be taken into consideration for the pricing. Pricing does not allow you to see underground which was disappointing

I great way to get a feel of the history of Lightning Ridge, our guide Pauline was very informative and added local colour to the trip

The most accessible car door tour, so squeeze this one in if you're short on time. It's short (only about a 2km loop, if that), close to town and has 3-4 attractions, depending on how you count. 🏰 The best attraction is The Ridge Castle, which is an Airbnb with quite funny jokes outside. There's a suit of armour and thrones and a beer bottle tower. Great for photos. You'll also find an artist in residence across the way, comes highly recommended. Two other attractions include Amigo's Castle and the Astronomer's Monument, although both were closed when we visited, and by reading the reviews, it doesn't look like they're open too often. A great way to get a feel for Lightning Ridge kitch! ❗Note that the Red Car Door Tour drives along an active mine field, and the camps are real people's residences. Be polite and don't go poking around on someone's property.

What a clever initiative these car door tours are - great way to get your bearings and see the sites of the Ridge! Get the info packs from the information centre so you know what you're looking at! The red car door tour takes you through "Oldtown" - really interesting to see current miner camps, amongst some old sites and unique Ridge architecture!

It's worth a drive through.

Really love the car door self-driving tours! Grab a map from the information centre and choose which of the four (or all!) you want to do. We did this one and the blue car door tour. I did prefer this one as more to see. Stop and take photos of the many eclectic things along the way - Ridge Castle, stone and bottle house, Amigo Castle and of course... the KFC sign. The KFC sign gave us the biggest chuckle. Lots of other eclectic signs around so keep your eyes peeled!

Red Car Door is a track, not a "road" so the conditions can be rough, especially after rain. The car door tour tracks are graded fairly regularly so they are accessible if drivers are cautious and drive to the conditions at the time.

Really disappointed with this! We ordered vegetarian Singapore noodles which were gluggy and flavourless, combination Szechuan with none of the meat cooked through and smelling rancid and a special friend rice that was very clearly pre packed into takeaway tubs and then re heated. An absolute waste of $50 - if I weren't leaving town at 6am I would demand my money back.

Had combination black bean and small rice for 1 person, $25+ It was OK and just around the corner from the caravan park. Recommend you shop around.

I'd say a 3.5 as we got there "late" (1950 hrs) for Lightning Ridge, and here we are back at our motel at 2030. Very pleasant staff, and food was very tasty. Cash only. Would go again.

(Translated by Google) There are such friendly and touching Chinese restaurants in such remote places (Original) 喺咁偏嘅地方都有咁親切感嘅中餐館