5 Unique Ways to Experience Uluṟu Without Walking on it!

From camel rides to art installations, there’s no single way to experience Uluṟu, the cultural heart of Australia.

We acknowledge that this adventure is located on Pitjantjatjara Nation, the traditional Country of the Anangu people who have occupied and cared for this land and water for thousands of years. We pay our respects to them as the Traditional Custodians and recognise that sovereignty was never ceded.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock the size of Uluṟu, you’ve probably heard the news that from October 2019, the controversial climbing of Australia’s famous rock was officially banned, thank goodness!

Lucky for us, there are a plethora of other ways to appreciate the mind-melting magnitude of this natural phenomenon and incredibly sacred Aboriginal site that we reckon are way better than tramping up and down it anyway.

Please note: The best times to visit are sunrise and sunset – it’s a cooler temperature and the colours are beyond any artist’s pallet. 

Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park Entry Fees

There are entry fees for the national park that need to be paid upon arrival or can be pre-purchased online.

Adults for 1-3 day pass – $38

Children and teenagers under 18 – Free

1. Ride a Bike

Two-wheeled travel using leg-engines is the way forward in our opinion – you get from A to B faster than walking, giving high-fives to the environment along the way, whilst creating much-needed wind-flow in desert saunas.

Outback Cycling is a mobile bicycle shop conveniently located next to the car park at the Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa Cultural Centre.

Based on how many beers you slugged around camp the night before, you can decide how far you want to ride. A full lap of the rock has a nice ring to it though #TourdeRock.

2. Ride a Camel

Speaking of trusty steeds, camels take desert travel to a whole ‘nother level.

You can’t help but gain a deep appreciation for these animals; how they’ve adapted to their environment as well as the role they played in the first European explorers’ exploration of the outback. There’s also something pretty flippin’ cool about cresting a red-dune atop a ginormous four-legged ‘ship of the desert’.

Uluṟu Camel Tours is the go-to at sunrise and in addition to the ride itself, you’ll also get to scoff down homemade beer-bread damper and local jams after the trip.

3. Skydive

Please note: Skydive Uluṟu is currently closed until further notice due to COVID-19.

We all strive to fill our lives with new experiences and curate a mind bank of awesomeness (we are explorers after all). Hurtling towards Uluṟu at terminal velocity falls firmly into this category.

Cheapskates can close their eyes, point a hair-dryer in their faces and switch on their imagination. Other’s may have thrown a few more goldies into their piggy banks and although it’s over faster than your dignity on your 21st birthday, it’s not something you’ll be forgetting in a hurry.

Skydive Uluṟu is the only operator in the area and with thousands of jumps under their overalls (and a clean safety record!) you’re in more than capable hands with this mob. This is an Uluṟu experience you won’t be able to get out of your head.

4. Take a Stroll

Walking trails weave around Uluṟu and even into divets of the rock itself. The Uluṟu base walk is the most popular to experience the rock – a 10.6km loop that takes around 3.5 hours to complete, depending on how much you gawp at the rock art.

The other walking options are significantly shorter (up to 4.5km) and each offers a different rock experience. Time it right after rainfall and the Kuniya Walk guides visitors to the Mutitjula waterhole, an experience that’ll make you question everything you thought possible at Uluṟu.

None of the walks are particularly challenging (for the most part they’re relatively short and flat) but it’s the heat that can get the better of travellers who don’t kit themselves with common sense supplies: water, sunscreen, and a hat.

5. Field of Light

The brainchild of British bulb-wizard Bruce Monro, this ambitious art installation is like nothing else on earth.

Known locally as Tili Wiru Tjuta Nyakutjaku, meaning ‘looking at lots of beautiful lights’, a phrase that perfectly encapsulates the experience. As the light gives way to darkness, a sea of 50,000 lights illuminate across a spectrum of pulsing colour beneath the backdrop of the mighty Uluṟu.

The Field of Light display is now a permanent art installation. Just be sure to book your ticket to the nightly tour!

From wonderfully extravagant experiences to tight-arse treats, there’s a unique way to experience Uluṟu for every type of traveller (and bank balance). One thing’s for sure though, no one ever regrets a trip to the beating heart of Australia.

Photos by @lauraalycebell, @jackson.groves, @mitch.cox and @henry_brydon

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