Picture me trying to wing it on my own in the Australian outback… a laughable image, is it not? After finally booking my flight to visit Australia’s red center, I knew I needed to find a tour to go with, there was no way I would be exploring the outback on my own. So I booked an Uluru to Kings Canyon 3-day Tour with Adventure Tours and it was a great decision! Read on to see why…
Uluru 3-day Tour Review
Timing wise, I was only able to get away for a weekend, and if you’re willing to have a jam-packed 3-days, it’s enough time to see the highlights this part of the country has to offer, namely, Uluru, Kata Tjuta, and Kings Canyon. Most 3-day tours either begin in Alice Springs and end in Yulara (where Uluru is), or begin and end in Alice Springs. Flying into Ayers Rock Airport in Yulara is cheaper than flying into Alice Springs, so I was looking for a tour that started and finished there. Luckily I found one that worked out perfect: The Rock to Rock with Adventure Tours (Now called Uluru Camping Getaway).
Uluru to Kings Canyon 3-Day Tour: Day 1
Arrive at Ayers Rock Airport in Yulara
Adventure Tours will pick you up right from the airport which made things very convenient. We picked up the last of our tour members at Ayers Rock Resort and were on our way to Kings Canyon! Our group only had 7 people total, and we were led by the most quintessential Australian tour guide, “Chief”.
4-Hour Drive to Kings Canyon
A 4-hour long drive to Kings Canyon is pretty long, but on both days of the tour,our long drives back and forth were in the middle of the day. It was nice to get out of the heat and be on the air-conditioned bus. Plus the views on the drive are beautiful.
Unfortunately, our bus got overheated about halfway there and broke down on the side of the road. Chief was right on it and quickly jumped on the satellite phone and arranged for another bus to pick us up on their way to Kings Canyon. We ended up only being on the side of the road for about 40 min — not too bad all things considered.
Another reason going with a tour is a good idea, imagine dealing with that on your own in the middle of the outback…
"Fool-aru"
We made a quick stop at a little lookout on the way directly across from “Fool-aru” — another giant rock formation that many tourists apparently mistake for Uluru. To be fair, if you hadn’t seen Uluru yet, Mount Connor, as it’s actually called, would be a convincing possibility!
Curtain Springs Rest Stop
A bit down the road we stopped at Curtin Springs resting stop. We were able to use the bathroom and also buy beer/wine/cider for that evening at the campsite (which I highly recommend).
They also have basic supplies and snacks available for purchase if you happened to forget anything (like a fly net because you’re definitely going to want one of those).
Arrive at Kings Canyon Campsite
Finally, just before sundown, we made it to our campsite for the evening. I was pleasantly surprised by the tents (mostly because at this point I still thought I was going to have to sleep on the ground). The bathroom facilities were also pretty nice and clean considering we were in the outback!
After getting settled and showered, Chief made us a delicious dinner of rice and some kind of stew. He proved not only to be a great guide, but also a great cook!
That night I witnessed the most amazing stars I had ever seen. I’m still new at trying my hand at astrophotography, so my pics aren’t the best and don’t do the sky justice, but you get the idea!
Uluru to Kings Canyon 3-Day Tour: Day 2
4:30 AM Wake-up
Our morning wake up was at the painfully early time of 4:30 am. And by 5:30, we were on our way to hike Kings Canyon.
Arrive for Sunrise at Kings Canyon
Being summer in Australia and the intense heat that comes with that, you are required to start the hike before 9 am. The early wake up was made worth it by the sunrise views.
Kings Canyon was absolutely amazing and Chief was a great guide leading us on the hike and telling us some history of the area. To read way more on the Kings Canyon hike and see more photos, click here.
Drive from Kings Canyon to UIuru
After Kings Canyon, we started our long drive back to Uluru. Again, normally 4 hours on a bus wouldn’t have been ideal, but we had been up since 4:30 am and had done a strenuous 6 km hike, it was perfect to avoid the midday heat and take a well-deserved nap. We did make a pit stop at a resting station right along the way where we were able to go to the restroom and get a snack/drink.
Arrive at Ayers Rock Resort Campsite in Yulara
Once arriving back in Yulara at Ayers Rock Resort, our campsite for the night, we settled into our tents and helped make lunch. Like in Kings Canyon, the tents were fully enclosed and the beds were off the ground.
We did have a sneaky, not-so-little Goana try to get into one of the tents…
Lunch + Freetime
After lunch, we had some free time to go swimming at the pool, explore the campsite, or just relax. I didn’t have a swimsuit because Lost in Australia didn’t mention that we’d have the opportunity to swim. Everyone else had booked through Adventure Tours and knew about the swimming opportunity… just another reason just to go straight through them. The other option was to go on a short walk up to a lookout that gave you great views of Kata Tjuta and Uluru.
Explore Kata Tjuta
At the start of the walk, Chief talked to us all about the area and its history with the aboriginals, illustrating it in the sand, much as aboriginals themselves would’ve done. It was fascinating to learn more about their connection with the land.
I really appreciated how knowledgeable Cheif was, and coming from someone who has taken several geology classes, he explained the rock formations really well.
We then were let off to do the walk on our own since it was not too long and straight in and straight out. The rock was just beautiful.
Sunset at Uluru
After Kata Tjuta, we were off to Uluru’s sunset viewing platform. Chief brought us a couple bottles of champagne, Australian beer, and some crackers and dip to enjoy while watching the rock’s color change dramatically as the sun goes down.
I was able to get a pretty cool time-lapse of the whole thing:
And catch the sunset in Chief’s glasses!
Aussie BBQ Dinner
After the sun was down, we headed back to our campsite for showers and dinner. Chief cooked up the BEST kangaroo I’ve ever had. I’ve tried kangaroo quite a few times and it was never cooked right, it’s always been too dry. His was perfect! He also cooked up some sausages, beef steaks, potatoes, and a couple other sides — a true Aussie BBQ. After that everyone went straight to bed, it had been a long and exhausting, yet great, day!
Uluru to Kings Canyon 3-Day Tour: Day 3
4:30 AM Wake-up
The next morning brought another early 4:30 am start again. We were off to do Uluru’s base walk at sunrise.
Uluru at Sunrise
Chief let us do the hike around by ourselves which I appreciated as we could go at our own pace. I like to take a lot of pictures (surprise!) so sometimes I can be a bit slow and it was nice not to have the pressure of keeping of with the group. It’s a pretty flat walk and one big loop around the rock, so there is no risk in getting lost or anything like that.
Read more about hiking around Uluru + many more photos here.
Aboriginal Culture Centre
From Uluru, we went to the Aboriginal Culture Centre. No pictures were allowed at the center, but it was really great to learn more about the people and their connection to Uluru.
Uluru Viewing Platform
Then it was up to the sunrise viewing platform. When asked why we didn’t come here for the actual sunrise, Chief explained that it wasn’t the best places to view it as it wasn’t facing the right way the sun rises. But it was a great place to look out and see Uluru in its entirety.
Head back to the Airport/End of Tour
After that our tour was sadly over and we headed back to the airport to catch a flight back home.
Pro Tip: you can see Uluru from the plane if you’re sitting on the right side!
This Uluru to Kings Canyon 3-day tour is absolutely jammed packed and exhausting, but so incredible. I would definitely recommend doing the “Rock to Rock tour” with Adventure Tours and will consider them for any other tours I may do while in Australia.
Related Posts:
- Visiting Uluru: An Australian Icon
- Hiking Kings Canyon at Sunrise – Australian Outback
- Bucket List: 100 Tops Things to do in Australia
xx Chels
Hahaha, Fooluru! 😂 Genius! Yep, we must admit we thought for a brief moment Mount Connor was actually Uluru. Almost fooled us. 😜 In our defence, it was our first time in the Outback and we were driving our campervan on our own. It’s indeed extremely hot in the Red Centre. Around noon we always hung out at the pool of our campsite, drinking a Frozen Fanta. Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Kings Canyon are all worth a visit when exploring Australia. I’d even say you haven’t truly seen Australia if you haven’t been in the Outback. Apart from the heat and flies we absolutely loved the Red Centre!
Haha I totally thought so too for a split second and then was like hmm wait a minute that’s not right!😂 I would agree with that too, to get a full Aussie experience, you had to visit the Red Centre! Glad you enjoyed your time as well 🙂