Darwin to Uluru road trip guide: Best stops, distance & time

Darwin to Uluru road trip: The final leg

The final leg of the journey from Alice Springs to Uluru is longer than many people think – and it takes nearly five hours.

Stuart Highway stops include Stuarts Well, where you can ride a camel, and the Erldunda Roadhouse.

The latter is where you turn west down the Lasseter Highway, eventually going past Mount Conner towards the Ayers Rock Resort in Yulara.

Which Uluru accommodation should I book?

Let’s not sugar-coat it: Accommodation at Uluru is expensive. Specialist Australian accommodation website Wotif lists Uluru accommodation for from $300. Check the top deals page to search through the options.

However, if you stay for three nights rather than two, hefty discounts tend to kick in.

The Uluru accommodation options are designed with different target markets in mind. Book which one fits you best.

For the lowest prices: Ayers Rock Campground.
For best quality: Sails in the Desert.
For families and self-caterers: Emu Walk Apartments.
For mid-range solidity: Desert Gardens.

Experiences available at Uluru include the Sounds of Silence dinner, scenic helicopter flights and Aboriginal dot painting workshops.

8 great Uluru experiences to book before you arrive

1. Understand Uluru’s caves, bulges, gullies and spiritual stories on a guided base walk.
2. Be awe-struck by the changing colours on a SUNRISE tour.
3. Eat great food on a dune top, and enjoy an expert-guided stargazing session during a once-in-a-lifetime desert dune-top dinner.
4. See an entirely different kind of dramatic outback scenery on Kings Canyon day trip.
5. Do a lap of Uluru by Segway.
6. See the big picture on an outback helicopter flight.
7. See Australia’s most spectacular light show – the Field of Light at sunrise.
8. Admire the colour-shifting giant rock domes on a Kata-tjuta sunset trip.

Uluru base walk in winter — Uluru is the Northern Territory’s most famous tourist attraction. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions.

Six amazing day trips from Darwin that will improve your visit

Litchfield National Park day tour – including jumping crocodile cruise. (💲 Great value 💲)
Tiwi Islands Indigenous cultural experience including ferry.
One day or four day Kakadu National Park tour.
Kakadu scenic flight – with gorges, waterfalls and epic floodplains. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Full day Katherine day tour – including Katherine Gorge cruise.
Arnhem Land full day tour – with ancient rock art.