Australia’s native peoples, collectively known as aboriginal people, had occupied the country for thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans. They lived off the land and had complex cultural traditions, which varied from family group to family group. When the Europeans arrived, they didn’t even acknowledge the aboriginal people as people, turning them off their land and even putting a bounty on their heads in some states. Even today, while institutionalised racism is a thing of the past, the aboriginal people of Australia face discrimination in all walks of life.

However, Australia’s native people have a lot to offer, not just in terms of cultural heritage, but also for tourism. Tourism with a focus on experiencing aboriginal culture is becoming more popular, but sadly this means unscrupulous tours will add the token title of “aboriginal” while only including a small percentage of genuine native content.

We recently had the opportunity to go on a full-day tour with Bookabee Tours in Adelaide, which is owned and operated by Haydyn Bromley, a traditional owner whose family hails from several areas of South Australia. We wandered through the botanical gardens and museum while Haydyn explained about the uses of plants, traditional methods of trapping, and trading culture, among many other things. It was an informative and educational experience, which left us feeling like we’d learned something of genuine value while still having a great day.

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This article was written by Linda Martin

Linda Martin is a self-confessed word geek, Spanish addict and world traveller. She and Craig have been travelling full-time for six years, taking in parts of Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. She's currently in A Coruña, Spain.