Jutting up above the barren landscape of the southern part of the Northern Territory in Central Australia, Uluru quite simply looks like it doesn’t belong. Known as the “mountain island,” Uluru (also known as “Ayers Rock”) is a large sandstone rock formation sacred to the Pitjantatjara Anangu. It’s stunning in its size; it stands 1,142 feet high and offers an almost 6 mile trek around its circumference. Tucked inside Uluru are caves, springs, waterholes, and aboriginal paintings marked across the sandstone.
The easiest way to get to Uluru is by air straight from Sydney or Melbourne, which have daily flights into the Ayers Rock Airport on both Jetstar and Virgin Australia. You can also fly Qantas which takes you into Alice Springs and you can hop a plane to Ayers Rock. You can also rent a car, but do so in advanced – there are a limited number of cars approved for travel into Ayers Rock.
In terms of where to stay, there are lots of options. One of the nicest places is Ayers Rock Resort, located only about 12.4 miles from Uluru. You can also consider the Desert Rock Hotel, the Emu Walk Apartments, Outback Pioneer Hotel, or Outback Pioneer Lodge. Camping is also available. See all here.
The activities in the area are numerous – check them all out here. Andy and I chose to do the camel ride which was an absolute blast. They took you on a camel trek through the desert with gorgeous views of Ayers Rock and a beautiful sunset. The evening ended with wine and cheese appetizers.
If you can, be sure to hike to the top of Uluru. In our case, this wasn’t possible as there was a huge rainstorm necessitating the closure of the trail to the top. You can make the roughly 6 mile trek around the entire base of the rock, which is beautiful in and of itself. The whole hike turned into a giant adventure – we got hit with a torrential downpour, and as there was nowhere to really take shelter, we got thoroughly soaked from head to toe.
Uluru is a wonderful side trip on your Australia trip. Don’t miss it!