Sydney to Uluru road trip guide: Distance, time & best stops

Going from Sydney to Uluru by car is a mammoth undertaking. Expect a drive of at least 30 hours. But there are several great stops to add to a Sydney to Uluru road trip itinerary.

A Sydney to Uluru road trip is an excellent way of understanding just how enormous Australia is.

This once-in-a-lifetime dune-top dinner experience, with special stargazing session included, is our top Uluru recommendation.

Sydney’s enormous collection of experiences includes all-inclusive sunset dinner cruises, behind-the-scenes tours of the Opera House, jet boat thrill rides and historic walking tours. To get the best deals on Sydney accommodation, book here. To find Sydney tours and experiences that suit your tastes, step this way.

Uluru experiences include a lavish dune-top desert dinner with stargazing, a guided walk around the perimeter full of Aboriginal cultural stories and a sunrise tour to the perfect photo stop. To browse a wide array of memorable Uluru experiences, head here. For the best Uluru accommodation deals, search here.

The Harbour, Rock and Reef itinerary is a well-established itinerary for Australian holidays. Flights between Sydney, Uluru and Cairns facilitate this, and very few people even contemplate a Sydney to Uluru road trip.

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.

But, let’s face it, driving from Sydney to Uluru sounds like a fantastic adventure, right? So here’s how to do it…

Sydney to Uluru distance and driving time

Via the quickest possible route, the Sydney to Uluru drive is 2,841km long, with a driving time of around 30 hours. Do this as a road trip, and it very obviously requires several stops along the way.

The first stretch of a Sydney to Uluru road trip is along the Hume Highway. This goes past the Southern Highlands, one of the loveliest regions on the journey, but unfortunately early on in proceedings.

Sydney to Uluru road trip: Southern Highlands and Wagga Wagga

If you do want to break off here, Mittagong is workaday, but Bowral has plenty of charm. Try wine-tasting at Centennial Vineyards, seeing Fitzroy Falls in the Morton National Park and indulging in all things cricket at the Bradman Museum.

Realistically, though, you’re going to plough on through via Goulburn and Yass, skirting north of Canberra.

Jugiong and Gundagai offer pleasant diversions, but the best overnight stop is arguably Wagga Wagga on the Murrumbidgee River. Wagga Wagga comes shortly after the turn-off from the Hume Highway to the Sturt Highway, and it is famous for its inland, riverside beach.

Click through for the next section: Wagga Wagga to Mildura.