Uluru National Park (Ayers Rock) Travel Guide

Getting There

By Plane -- Qantas (tel. 13 13 13 in Australia) flies to Ayers Rock (Connellan) Airport direct from Sydney, Alice Springs, Perth, and Cairns. Flights from other airports go via Alice Springs. The airport is 6km (3 3/4 miles) from Ayers Rock Resort. Expect to pay around A$320 (US$256/UK£128) one-way. A free shuttle ferries all resort guests, including campers, to their door.

By Car -- Take the Stuart Highway south from Alice Springs 199km (123 miles), turn right onto the Lasseter Highway, and go 244km (151 miles) to Ayers Rock Resort. The Rock is 18km (11 miles) farther on. (Everyone mistakes the flat-topped mesa they see en route for Uluru; it's Mount Conner.)

Only Avis, Hertz, and Thrifty have Uluru depots: Thrifty charges around A$110 (US$88/UK£44) a day for bookings under 3 days; Hertz charges A$137 (US$109/UK£55) a day for bookings under 7 days; and Avis charges A$137 (US$109/UK£55) a day for bookings of 2 days or fewer. If you want to rent a car in Alice Springs and drop it at Uluru, brace yourself for a one-way penalty.

The Rock in a Day?

It's a loooong day to visit Uluru in a day from Alice by road. Many organized coach tours pack a lot -- perhaps a Rock base walk or climb, Kata Tjuta (the Olgas), the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre, and a champagne sunset at the Rock -- into a busy trip that leaves Alice around 5:30 or 6am and gets you back late at night. Murray Cosson's Australian Outback Flights (tel. 08/8953 1444; www.australianoutbackflights.com.au) offers an aerial day trip from Alice Springs that includes flights over Kings Canyon, Gosse Bluff meteorite crater, and Lake Amadeus; a rental car at Uluru (Ayers Rock); national park entry fee; and lunch. It costs A$900 (US$720/UK£360) per person (minimum two passengers). There are more tour options, too, including an 8-hour excursion taking in Kings Canyon for A$560 (US$448/UK£224)

You should consider a day trip only between May and September. At other times, it's too hot to do much from early morning to late afternoon.

Visitor Information

For information before you leave, contact the Central Australian Tourism Industry Association (CATIA), 60 Gregory Terrace, Alice Springs (tel. 08/8952 5800; www.centralaustraliantourism.com), or drop into its Visitor Information Centre in Alice Springs. One of the best online sources is Ayers Rock Resort's site (www.voyages.com.au).

The Ayers Rock Resort Visitor Centre, next to the Desert Gardens Hotel (tel. 08/8957 7377), has displays on the area's geology, wildlife, and Aboriginal heritage, plus a souvenir store. It's open daily from 8:30am to 7:30pm. You can book tours at the tour desk in every hotel at Ayers Rock Resort, or visit the Ayers Rock Resort Tour & Information Centre (tel. 08/8957 7324) at the shopping center in the resort complex. It dispenses information on and books tours as far afield as Kings Canyon and Alice Springs. It's open daily from 7:30am to 8:30pm.

One kilometer (1/2 mile) from the base of the Rock is the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre (tel. 08/8956 3138), owned and run by the Anangu, the Aboriginal owners of Uluru. It uses eye-catching wall displays, frescoes, interactive recordings, and videos to tell about Aboriginal Dreamtime myths and laws. It's worth spending some time here to understand a little about Aboriginal culture. A National Park desk has information on ranger-guided activities and animal, plant, and bird-watching checklists. The center also has a cafe, a souvenir shop, and two Aboriginal arts and crafts galleries. It's open daily from early in the morning to after sundown; exact hours vary from month to month.

Park Entrance Fees -- Entry to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is A$25 (US$20/UK£10) per adult, free for children under 16, valid for 3 days. The cost of many organized tours includes the entry fee.

Etiquette -- The Anangu ask you not to photograph sacred sites or Aboriginal people without permission, and to approach quietly and respectfully.

Getting Around

Getting around the park is expensive. Ayers Rock Resort runs a free shuttle every 15 minutes or so around the resort complex from 10:30am to after midnight, but to get to the Rock or Kata Tjuta (the Olgas), you will need to take transfers, join a tour, or have your own wheels. The shuttle also meets all flights.

By Shuttle -- Uluru Express (tel. 08/8956 2152; www.uluruexpress.com.au) provides a minibus shuttle from Ayers Rock Resort to and from the Rock about every 50 minutes from before sunrise to sundown, and several times a day to the Olgas. The basic shuttle costs A$35 (US$28/UK£14) for adults and A$20 (US$16/UK£8) for kids (including to see the sunset); a sunrise trip costs A$60 (US$48/UK£24) for adults and A$30 (US$24/UK£12) for kids. To the Olgas, it costs A$55 (US$44/UK£22) for adults and A$25 (US$20/UK£10) for children. A 3-day pass covering as many trips as you like to both sites costs A$150 (US$120/UK£60) for adults and A$60 (US$48/UK£24) for kids. A combined Uluru and Olgas trip costs A$60 (US$48/UK£24) for adults and A$30 (US$24/UK£12) for kids. All fares are round-trip.

By Car -- If there are two of you, the easiest and cheapest way to get around is likely to be a rental car. All roads in the area are paved, so a four-wheel-drive is unnecessary. Expect to pay around A$70 to A$95 (US$56-US$76/UK£28-UK£38) per day for a medium-size car. Rates drop a little in low season. Most car-rental companies give you the first 100km (63 miles) free and charge A30¢ (US25¢/UK15p) per kilometer after that. Take this into account, because the round-trip from the resort to the Olgas is just over 100km (63 miles), and that's without driving about 20km (13 miles) to the Rock and back. Avis (tel. 08/8956 2266), Hertz (tel. 08/8956 2244), and Thrifty (tel. 08/8956 2030) book four-wheel-drives through their Darwin offices. All rent regular cars and four-wheel-drives.

The Outback Travel Shop (tel. 08/8955 5288; www.outbacktravelshop.com.au), a booking agent in Alice Springs, often has better deals on car-rental rates than you'll get by booking direct.

By Organized Tour -- Several tour companies run a big range of daily sunrise and sunset viewings, circumnavigations of the Rock by coach or on foot, guided walks at the Rock or the Olgas, camel rides, observatory evenings, visits to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre, and innumerable permutations and combinations of all of these. Some offer "passes" containing the most popular activities. Virtually every company picks you up at your hotel. Among the most reputable are Discovery Ecotours (formerly Uluru Experience and Alice Experience), AAT Kings, Tailormade Tours, and VIP Travel Australia.

Aboriginal Tours -- Because Anangu Tours (tel. 08/8950 3030; www.anangutours.com.au) is owned and run by the Rock's Aboriginal owners, its tours give you firsthand insight into Aboriginal culture. Tours are in the Anangu language and translated by an interpreter. They are not cheap, but if you are going to spend money on just one tour, this group is a good choice.

The company does a Kuniya walk during which you visit the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre and the Mutitjulu water hole at the base of the Rock, learn about bush foods, and see rock paintings, before watching the sunset. It departs daily at 2:30pm March through October, 3:30pm November through February. With hotel pickup, the tour costs A$99 (US$80/UK£40) for adults and A$55 (US$44/UK£22) for children. There's also a 4 1/2-hour breakfast tour costing A$119 (US$95/UK£48) for adults and A$79 (US$63/UK£32) for children. It includes a base tour and demonstrations of bush skills and spear-throwing. A standard tour during the day costs A$75 (US$60/UK£30) for adults and A$49 (US$39/UK£20) for kids. Dot-painting workshops at the Uluru Cultural Centre cost A$79 (US$63/UK£32) for adults and A$56 (US$45/UK£23) for kids.

Water, Water . . .

Water taps are scarce and kiosks nonexistent in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Always carry your own drinking water when sightseeing.