This blog post is all about my Uluru to Darwin tour with Mulgas Adventures.
If you’ve ever dreamed of exploring Australia’s red centre, witnessing the majestic Uluru at sunrise and sunset, sleeping under a sky full of stars, and road-tripping through the rugged heart of the Northern Territory all the way to tropical Darwin, then this blog post is for you!
I recently completed the incredible 7-day Uluru to Darwin tour with Mulgas Adventures, and it was hands-down one of the most unforgettable experiences of my Australia travels so far.
This detailed itinerary and review will walk you through everything we did on the Uluru to Darwin road trip, what to pack, where we stayed, what we ate, and why I highly recommend booking this trip.
Plus, I have a discount code: ORLAGH25 to save you $25 on any Mulgas Adventures tour!
Why Visit the Australian Outback?
The Australian Outback is one of the most iconic and surreal landscapes in the world.
With vast, open deserts, rich Indigenous culture, towering rock formations, and remote roadhouses, it’s a once in a lifetime adventure.
Visiting Uluru, hiking through Kings Canyon, and swimming in the natural springs and waterfalls of the Northern Territory are absolute bucket list experiences.
This Uluru to Darwin tour offers a rare chance to disconnect from the online world and truly experience the raw beauty of central Australia.
If you’re familiar with my previous travels, you’ll know that I love road trips. So for us, there was no better way to start our Australian adventures (outside of Sydney) than with this Uluru to Darwin tour, a road trip through the Outback of Australia.
Every part of this Uluru to Darwin tour felt like something out of a movie. The roadhouses, the endless roads and horizons and of course, sleeping on the ground around a fire – not something I imagined myself doing at all!
Let’s get into the Uluru to Darwin tour itinerary!
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 1: Arriving in Uluru and First Night Under the Stars
We flew directly from Sydney into Ayers Rock Airport where we were greeted by our amazing Mulgas Adventures tour guide, Rachel. The flight time was four hours and there’s a time difference of -30 minutes in the Northern Territory. Strange, I know.
After meeting the rest of our Uluru to Darwin tour group, we headed straight to Uluru for a hike around the base and to learn about the sacred stories of the Anangu people. There were 24 people in our group in total, a mix of couples, friends and a lot of solo travellers too.
The rock itself up close is jaw-dropping, and the cultural history behind it makes the visit even more impactful.
Later, we watched the sunset over Uluru, and it was everything I’d hoped for and more. The colours of the rock changed before our eyes as we enjoyed champagne and nibbles at a lookout point and took just short of 100 photos.
That night, we experienced our first swag camping! A real Outback-style sleep under the stars. I can’t remember the last time I slept in a tent, never mind in a sleeping bag just on the floor with no covering at all.
It was a shock to the system and very different from the travel luxuries that I’m used to, but an incredible experience to sleep under the stars and wake up to the milky way.
We cooked burritos for dinner, sat around the campfire, and despite a few howling dingoes in the distance (which were a bit scary!), it was such a unique first night with not much sleep. But it did get easier each night, thankfully.
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 2: Sunrise at Uluru and Hiking Kata Tjuta
A 4:30am start had us up and moving to catch the sunrise over Uluru, followed by a hike around Kata Tjuta in the Valley of the Winds. This was one of the most beautiful and sacred hikes of the trip.
While no photos were allowed in certain areas due to its cultural significance, the views were unforgettable. So you’ll have to go and see it for yourself!
I’m not much of a hiker (after hiking Mount Fuji in Japan, I vowed to never buy hiking shoes and take up the hobby) so you can rest assured that the ‘hikes’ around Uluru are so fine for beginners. Most of us were wearing running shoes/trainers and these were more than fine for the walks and climbs.
That evening we camped at Kings Creek Station, a fun spot with a bar and souvenir shop. After gathering firewood along the road, we enjoyed a traditional bush dinner of kangaroo steaks, sausages, mash, and damper (Aboriginal bread).
With full bellies and tired legs, our swag sleep was much more comfortable this night, and luckily, no dingo sightings!
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 3: Kings Canyon and Bush Camping
After a quick camp breakfast and grabbing coffee from the station shop, we set out for a morning hike around Kings Canyon in Watarrka National Park.
The hike took around four hours and was challenging at times (a lot of steps at the beginning!), but the views from the rim walk were just incredible. Think towering red cliffs, secret waterholes, and garden valleys.
Aka, many photo opportunities like the one below:
On the way to our final swag camp, we stopped to take photos of Mount Conner (often mistaken for Uluru and nicknamed ‘Fuluru’), collected more firewood, and even dug for witchity grubs!
That night, we set up camp in our ‘bush camp’ (what felt like the middle of nowhere) at Curtin Springs Station, our most remote and rustic campsite of the tour.
We had a makeshift toilet that was very much like the ‘dunny’ from I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here – it didn’t even have a door!! But it did have incredible views of Mount Conner in the distance, so a unique experience to say the least.
This was the only campsite that didn’t have showers (and a flushing toilet, obviously) but we headed back to the first campsite the next morning so we could shower and freshen up.
We watched a glowing sunset over Mount Conner, had a delicious dinner of spaghetti bolognese and garlic bread, roasted marshmallows by the fire, and fell asleep under a sky full of shooting stars.
This was definitely the best night of the camping experience. A memory I’ll never forget!
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 4: Rock to Rock Ends, and the Journey to Alice Springs
Some of our group were finishing the Rock to Rock portion of the Uluru to Darwin tour, while the rest of us continued on toward Darwin (our final destination).
We had a few hours in Ayers Rock town centre for coffee, lunch, and souvenir shopping (I got an Uluru t-shirt, naturally).
From here, we drove to Alice Springs and stayed at Alice’s Secret Travellers Inn, a quirky little spot with a lot of charm and themed rooms.
We didn’t have much time to explore Alice Springs, but that evening, we had a farewell dinner with our tour guide Rachel who lives in Alice Springs, at Bella Alice. The hot honey pizza was so good, and I’d highly recommend!
After dinner, it was early to bed for a 5am wakeup to start a big day of driving, edging closer to Darwin.
If you do find yourself in Alice Springs, other food options to check out are Bojangles Saloon (we were so gutted it was closed the night we were there), Sporties Restaurant and Todd Tavern.
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 5: Devil’s Marbles and Daly Waters
Our new guides Jason and Liv picked us up bright and early for the longest drive day of the trip. We stopped at Karlu Karlu (Devil’s Marbles), which are huge, round boulders scattered across the desert.
The walk around Karlu Karlu took around 30 minutes or so (fly nets are needed) and it was so cool to see these giant ball-shaped rocks lying around everywhere.
From there, we had lunch at Lake Mary Ann (Tingkkarli) and then made our way to Daly Waters Pub where we were spending the night, one of the quirkiest stops of the trip.
Daly Waters is filled with so much character. You’ll find the most random things covering the walls like hundreds of ID cards (yes, really), underwear hanging from the ceiling, Irish girls doing their regional work for their Working Holiday Visas behind the bar, and even horses wandering about inside. What a place.
We stayed in a private room in the attached hostel and had dinner at the pub. This is exactly the kind of off-the-beaten-track spot that makes road trips our favourite form of travel.
If anything, I wish we could have stayed longer at Daly Waters to meet more of the locals and see it in the day time.
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 6: Swimming, Thermal Pools and A Murder Mystery
We started today’s drive with a stop at Larrimah, a town made famous by the Netflix documentary Last Stop Larrimah.
We had only just watched the documentary the previous day and were so glad we did. It’s only two episodes and I highly recommend watching it before stopping in Larrimah.
To give you a quick synopsis, Larrimah was a ‘town’ (‘town’ is a very generous word to use) with 11 residents. It had a pub/hotel and a pie-shop. That’s it.
One day, Larrimah became a town of 10 residents. Irish man Paddy Moriarty left the pub one night and the next day, him and his dog seemed to vanish into thin air. And so, a search began.
But the best thing about this story is that a TV crew had visited the town a few years prior and had interviewed all of the residents (including Paddy) and there was so much footage of all of the residents talking about feuds and how much they hated each other.
So it turned into a murder investigation. To this day, Paddy is still ‘missing’ and there’s a reward for finding him.
With only one resident from the documentary still living there and plenty of cheeky merchandise about the town’s missing local Paddy, it was fascinating (and a little eerie) to see.
Next, we visited Bitter Springs in Elsey National Park. A crystal-clear natural thermal pool perfect for floating and relaxing with a pool noodle. The water here was so warm and clear, but sometimes it can be closed due to crocodiles. Thankfully, we didn’t see any!
We also stopped at Katherine for lunch and then had another swim at Edith Falls in Nitmiluk National Park. These were such beautiful, peaceful swimming spots and a much-needed break from the heat.
Our final night of the Uluru to Darwin tour was spent at Adelaide River Inn, where we met Charlie the buffalo from Crocodile Dundee and enjoyed another quirky Outback pub experience.
Uluru to Darwin Tour Day 7: Waterfalls and Arriving in Darwin
The final day of our Uluru to Darwin tour was all about waterfalls!
We explored Litchfield National Park, swimming and sight-seeing in Wangi Falls, Florence Falls, Tolmer Falls, and Buley Rockhole.
These were stunning places to cool off and soak in our final day in the Top End.
On the way to Darwin, we also stopped at the Magnetic Termite Mounds and the enormous Cathedral Termite Mounds, which were really cool to see.
The tour ended in Darwin, where we celebrated with a night out at Monsoons Nightclub after trivia and pub food at Six Tanks Brew.
Some of the group left that night for flights, while others (like us) booked an extra night to explore more of Darwin.
We stayed at The Cavenagh Hotel and had a full day to explore Darwin (more on this in a separate blog post) before flying back to Sydney.
What to Pack for An Uluru to Darwin Tour
Packing right is key for a smooth Uluru to Darwin tour adventure. Here’s what I recommend bringing:
- Fly net for your head – so essential during the hotter months!
- Mosquito repellent – for post-Alice Springs. The mosquitos in the north are no joke.
- Quick-dry towel – especially for all the swim spots as you’ll be hopping back into the bus.
- Reusable water bottle – for your hikes around Uluru. There’s a tank of water on the bus too so you can keep refilling
- Torch or headlamp – some campsites are very dark and you’ll need to find your way to the toilet.
- Warm layers – nights can get chilly in the desert, even in summer.
- Swimwear and sandals – for Bitter Springs, Edith Falls, and Litchfield.
- Comfortable hiking shoes – for Kings Canyon and Kata Tjuta. Trainers are fine too.
- Sunscreen and hat – take it from someone who burns, it’s hot during the day.
- Toiletries and wet wipes – some campsites are very basic so you’ll need your own shower gel and anti-bac etc.
My Final Review of the Mulgas Adventures Uluru to Darwin Tour
This 7-day Uluru to Darwin tour with Mulgas Adventures was truly one of the best travel experiences I’ve ever had.
From watching the sun set over Uluru, hiking through the iconic red rock landscapes, camping under the clearest starry skies imaginable, swimming in thermal springs, and stopping at quirky outback pubs, every moment was so memorable.
The tour guides were incredible, so knowledgeable and passionate about the places we visited. The itinerary of this Uluru to Darwin tour was perfectly paced with a great mix of hiking, history, culture, and fun.
Whether you’re travelling solo, with friends, or as a couple, this tour is such a great way to experience the very best of Australia’s red centre and the Northern Territory.
If you’re considering doing this Uluru to Darwin tour, my only advice is to do it. Book it, and don’t forget to use my discount code ORLAGH25 for $25 off any Mulgas Adventures tour.
Trust me, you won’t regret it!
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