Uluru Sunset Tours

The Uluru sunset tour that gives you the most for the evening is the AAT Kings Uluru Sacred Sites and Sunset Tour. Before the sun goes down you drive around the base of Uluru, walk to Mutitjulu Waterhole and its rock art, and visit the Cultural Centre. Then you watch the sunset with sparkling, red or white wine and nibbles. It costs from $130 per person and rates 4.5 from 517 reviews. If you only want the sunset itself, shorter and cheaper tours are below.

The sunset tours, side by side

All of these pick you up from Ayers Rock Resort and bring you back after dark.

The sacred sites tour fills the afternoon with the stories of the place and still gets you to the sunset. AAT Kings also sells it on Viator, where it runs about five hours and has an option to add a barbecue dinner. Read our review of the sacred sites and sunset tour.

Just the sunset

The AAT Kings 1.5-Hour Sunset Tour with Sparkling Wine and Cheeseboard is the cheapest sunset tour on this site, from $68 per person and rated 4.3 from 266 reviews. A coach takes you out in the late afternoon, you watch the colors change with a glass in hand, and you are back at the resort in time for dinner. The operator suggests taking a photo every five minutes to catch the gradual changes on the rock. Our review of the short sunset tour has the detail.

SEIT’s Small Group Sunset Tour with Sparkling Wine costs from $80 and rates 4.5 from 155 reviews. It runs in a smaller vehicle; the Viator listing of the same tour caps it at 11 guests and gives it two hours. Read our small-group sunset review.

SEIT’s longer small-group sunset

If you like the idea of the sacred sites tour but want a small group, SEIT’s Small Group Guided Tour with Sunset Refreshments (from $174, 4.8 from 219 reviews) spends about five hours at Uluru. It includes part of the Mala walk, Mutitjulu Waterhole and a drive around the base, then watches the sunset from Talinguru Nyakunytjaku with Kata Tjuta in the background. Its free cancellation closes three days before the tour, not 24 hours.

Sunset from the air

The Uluru and Kata Tjuta Sunset Helicopter Tour from Professional Helicopter Services (from $346, 4.8 from 175 reviews) is a 36-minute flight that takes off about 30 minutes before sunset. It flies past Uluru and down the western face of Kata Tjuta, but not over the top of either, out of respect for their cultural significance. Flights need at least two passengers, and the weight limit is 125 kg. The Uluru helicopter tours page compares the shorter daytime flights.

Sunset with dinner

Several tours add a barbecue after the sunset, and the resort runs dinners such as Sounds of Silence on the dunes. Those belong to our dinner under the stars page, which compares the AAT Kings sunset and outback barbecue with star talk, the Emu Run day tour with a sunset barbecue and the resort dinners. Uluru Camel Tours also runs sunset rides of about two and a half hours, booked with the operator.

Where you watch the sunset

Coach tours park at the Uluru bus sunset viewing area, 15 to 20 minutes from Yulara. It has toilets but no water, and a 500 m dune walk; it is open to everyone until 4:00 pm and reserved for buses and coaches after that. If you drive yourself, use the Uluru car sunset viewing area nearby, which is for cars only and has no water or toilets. It gets busy in school holidays, so arrive early.

Talinguru Nyakunytjaku, the main sunrise area, also works at sunset and has toilets and water. For a sunset over Kata Tjuta, the Kata Tjuta sunset viewing area, about 40 minutes from Yulara, has water, toilets and a picnic area.

What time is sunset at Uluru?

Sunset ranges from about 6:00 pm in June to about 7:40 pm in January. Times below are approximate, in local ACST time, and can be a few minutes out.

Sunset or sunrise?

Sunset is the relaxed choice: no early alarm, a drink in hand and the rock changing color in front of you. Sunrise suits walkers better, because the morning is the coolest time to be on the tracks. With two days, do both; the Uluru sunrise tours guide covers the mornings, and the Uluru and Kata Tjuta day tours page shows how to pair a sunrise morning with this sunset tour.

What to know before you book

• Pickup: included from your Ayers Rock Resort hotel. The time moves with the sunset through the year.
• Duration: about five hours, as listed on the Viator version of the same tour.
• Walking: the Kuniya walk to Mutitjulu Waterhole is 1 km return and flat; the Viator version calls the tour suitable for all fitness levels. Bring at least a litre of water and comfortable walking shoes.
• Park pass: not included. Adults need the A$38 3-day pass or A$50 annual pass, and under-18s enter free. Buy it online before you go; see the park pass guide.
• Food and drink: nibbles with sparkling, red and white wine, lemonade and orange juice at sunset. No dinner.
• Cancellation: free up to 24 hours before the tour on this listing.
• Best for: first-time visitors with one afternoon who want the base, the waterhole and the sunset in one booking.

Bring a jumper in the cooler months, as evenings cool quickly once the sun goes. Some sites along the base are sacred to Anangu and photographing them is prohibited; signs mark them and your guide will tell you where.

Coming from Alice Springs? The Emu Run day trip ends with a sunset barbecue at Uluru before the long drive back; see Uluru tours from Alice Springs.

When you have your evening, check availability for the sacred sites and sunset tour.