Where is Ayers Rock? Uluru is roughly slap-bang in the centre of Australia, although it is classified as within the Northern Territory. The state, however, extends beyond the centre of the country, and Ayers Rock can be found towards its southwest corner.
Ayers Rock is part of Uluru National Park, an area set up to protect Uluru and Kata Tjuta.
The rock sits right in the middle of the national park, about 335kms southwest of Alice Springs. People usually get here by road from Alice (463kms), but there is also an airport nearby. About 20kms to the north of Ayers Rock is the service town of Yulara – the hotels and camp grounds.
Uluru itself is a World Heritage site within a World Heritage area. Motorists can get here by taking the Lasseter Highway from Yulara, which connects with the Stuart Highway from Alice Springs.
The Lasseter Highway then spurs off to Uluru and continues on to Kata Tjuta.
By road, the journey from Alice Springs is 200kms south along the Stuart Highway, another 245kms west along the Lasseter Highway, and then another 20kms south to Ayers Rock.
There’s not much of interest along this route, but even less for those who head up from South Australia through Coober Pedy.
Tourists can hire cars in Alice Springs for the five-hour drive, and the entire trip can be done in one day if necessary. This is not recommended, however, and most people opt for a bus tour due to the location of Uluru – the middle of nowhere.
Uluru / Ayers Rock
Attractions
