Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park is as stunning and epic as I expected, perhaps even more so. I’m not going to sugar coat it though: there are two hot chocolates on offer in and around Uluru and they are both horrible. It is hot anyways here (not that that usually stops me), so just skip the hot chocolate and drink water (or wine). Thank me later.
You can explore the area in 2 days. The main factor is the weather. It is very hot and the sites are in full sun. This means you need to plan your walks in the morning, and then can explore indoor cultural sites or jump in the hotel/campsite pool in the afternoon. The walk around Uluru is 10-11km long and flat the whole way. We walked around clockwise starting from Mala carpark . It is full sun pretty much the whole way around and there is one two water points at equal distances apart along the way. If you don’t have the time, I’d still recommend started at Mala carpark as the short walks to Kanji Gorge are really interesting with lots of rock art. So interesting in fact, that I’d strongly recommend you take one of the parks free guided walks with an Aboriginal guide who can explain the significance and the sites (starting at 8 or 10am depending on the season). Another must do is to watch the sunrise AND sunset at Uluru. There are designated carparks where you can set up to watch either. The Cultural Centre just next to Uluru has several exhibits on Anangu culture and Aboriginal art galleries where you can watch Aboriginal artists paint and buy their works. This is where I had hot chocolate number one, in the cafe at the cultural centre. They serve good meat pies but horrible hot chocolates (really sweet and not much chocolate).
Visitors don’t stay right at Uluru as this is a sacred site for Aboriginal people. Instead, a small tourist town/resort in Yulara has been set up close by with number of hotels, restaurants and a campsite. This is where I had bad hot chocolate number 2. Yulara is also home to the National Indigenous Training Academy which provides training opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander People. This includes a number of Indigenous run business, including an amazing ice cream stand serving ice creams made from native ingredients. I’d love to see the students at Kuala Academy Cafe come up with a native inspired hot chocolate. Davidson Plum hot chocolate perhaps?
Lesser known Kata Tjuṯa, just a short drive from Yulara, should also be on your list. You will see its 36 steep sided domes in the distance. We took the short Walpa Gorge walk (2.6km) but, if we were to visit again, would choose the Valley of the Winds walk (5.4km) instead. The key with these longer walks is that you need to leave first thing in the morning before it gets hot, because it can get really hot here (40+Celcius) and there is just so much water one can carry. Kata Tjuṯa means ‘many head’s in Pitjant jatjara and is considered a men’s site by Aboriginal communities here. Information and stories about Kata Tjuṯa is restricted to initiated men and therefore the stories associated with it are not shared with visitors.
We ended up making a few of our own hot chocolates from the sunrise/sunset carparks. Click here to see more about these.
