Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Plane -- Qantas (tel. 13 13 13 in Australia) flies to Ayers Rock (Connellan) Airport direct from Sydney, Melbourne, 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. 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.

If you are renting a car in Alice Springs and want to drop it at Uluru and fly out from there, be prepared for a one-way penalty. Only Avis, Hertz, and Thrifty have Uluru depots.

Is That It? -- If you are arriving at Ayers Rock by air, the anticipation of sighting Uluru as you fly over the vast red expanse of desert below will build. There's always a bit of excitement as someone thinks they've spotted it at last -- and almost always they are wrong. Uluru is often confused -- by air and road -- with nearby Mount Conner, which is three times as big (but lacks the spiritual wallop that comes from the real thing).

Visitor Information

The Central Australian Tourism Industry Association (CATIA) has a Visitor Information Centre at 60 Gregory Terrace, Alice Springs (tel. 1800/645 199 in Australia or 08/8952 5800; www.centralaustraliantourism.com). Another good source of online information 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 and books tours as far afield as Kings Canyon and Alice Springs. It's open daily from 7:30am to 8:30pm.

One kilometer (a half-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$23/£11) 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.

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

Getting Around

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. There are no taxis at Ayers Rock.

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 four times a day to Kata Tjuta. The basic shuttle costs A$40 (US$36/£18) for adults and A$25 (US$23/£11) for kids (including at sunrise or sunset). To Kata Tjuta, it costs A$60 (US$54/£27) for adults and A$35 (US$32/£16) for children. A 2-day pass that enables you to explore Uluru and Kata Tjuta as many times as you wish, including your National Park entry ticket, costs A$145 (US$131/£65) adults and A$70 (US$63/£32) children; a 3-day pass costs A$160 (US$144/£72) for adults and A$70 (US$63/£32) for kids. A combined Uluru and Kata Tjuta trip costs A$65 (US$59/£29) for adults and A$35 (US$32/£16) 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$63-US$86/£32-£43) 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; it's A25¢ (US23¢/UK11p) 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) all rent regular cars and four-wheel-drives, and all have airport and resort offices.

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 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, AAT Kings, and Tailormade Tours.

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 flying over Kings Canyon, Gosse Bluff meteorite crater, and Lake Amadeus, a vast salt lake; a rental car at Uluru (Ayers Rock); national park entry fee; and lunch. It costs A$900 (US$810/£405) per person (minimum two passengers) or A$550 (US$495/£248) if there are four of you. There are more tour options, too, including an 8-hour excursion taking in Kings Canyon, starting from A$560 (US$504/£252) per person.

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.

Aboriginal Tours -- Because Anangu Tours (tel. 08/8950 3030; www.ananguwaai.com.au) is owned and run by the Rock's Aboriginal owners, its excellent tours give you firsthand insight into Aboriginal culture. Tours are in the Anangu language and translated by an interpreter. If you are going to spend money on just one tour, this group is a good choice.

The company does a 4 1/2-hour 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 sun set. It departs daily at 2:30pm March through October, 3:30pm November through February. With hotel pickup, the tour costs A$99 (US$89/£45) for adults and A$55 (US$50/£25) for children 5 to 15. There's also a 4 1/2-hour breakfast tour costing A$119 (US$107/£54) for adults and A$79 (US$71/£36) 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$68/£34) for adults and A$49 (US$44/£22) for kids. Dot-painting workshops at the Uluru Cultural Centre cost A$79 (US$71/£36) for adults and A$56 (US$50/£25) for kids. There are various other combinations of tours to choose from.