"Welcome to The Alice" Alice Springs by leon.partsi

"There's so much green and blue."

That's the first thing I thought when I stepped off the plane and out into the harsh summer heat of Alice Springs, referred to by the locals simply as Alice.

I had pictured barren, flat salt plains as far as the eye can see, a lifeless town acting in the past as a simple waypoint between North and South, and in the present as a stopover point for tours departing for the Kimberly’s, the Macedon Ranges and Uluru.

Alice took me by surprise.

As the cheerful bus driver on the courtesy bus to my hostel explained, Alice sits on top of an immense underwater reservoir bigger than Sydney Harbour – and eons of generations has allowed evolution the time necessary to develop plants and animal life that thrived even when the source of water was more or less completely submerged. The town also gets its water supply from this reservoir – so no water restrictions.

Heavitree Quarry Site

Alice is big in spirit but small in size - you can walk from one end of town to the other in 10 lazy minutes.

Do not be fooled into thinking that means everything is close by though - Uluru is 466km away from town. This is Australia, after all - we are the biggest island in the world and tourists underestimate the scale of our Outback at their own risk.

To get anywhere outside of town, you'll need a rented car, or you'll have to go as part of a tour. Cars can be hired straight from the airport, Tours can be arranged on the spot on Alice's main Street. I've got tips for both of the tours I've gone on below.

Night-time Moon in Alice Springs.

Alice lights up at night. Not through articifical lighting though - the entire Milky Way stares at you from dusk to dawn. It's an inspiring and emotional sight, to lie on the ground in a swag as the dingos call and the stars twinkle.

You're instantly tranported to another world.

That's just one of the things to do in the Red Centre - so don't think it's all about a huge rock. Eat, Go to the gallaries, see a show, book a tour that's not Ayers Rock and experience some of what Alice can offer the intrepid tourist.

• Pros:Red, Hot, Remote, Simple
• Cons:Flies, Potential Safety Concerns
• In a nutshell:There's more to Alice than meets the eye.