Astro tour vs DIY stargazing - Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Forum - Tripadvisor

Astro tour vs DIY stargazing

Seattle, Washington
Level Contributor
20 posts
Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

My spouse and I will be visiting Uluru at the end of March next year. Just two nights (Tuesday and Wednesday). I am eager to do some star gazing. We will not have a car. Is it possible to walk somewhere from the resort and get good dark sky?

The Astro tour sounds like it’s great and high quality; my only hesitation is that it looks like it’s only available on Tuesday night (booking isn’t open for March yet, so I’m going on the schedule I can view now). We want to get up for the sunrise bus the next morning and I’m worried about being tired if we don’t get back to the hotel until 10:30 or 11pm—especially since we’ll have gotten up very early that morning to catch our flight from Brisbane. I want to do and see all the things but also don’t want to be so tired that it’s not actually enjoyable! Just trying to explore all the options.

Thanks in advance for any advice and opinions! This forum has been incredibly helpful in shaping our plan so far.

6 replies to this topic
Mornington...
Level Contributor
16,691 posts
31 reviews
43 helpful votes
1. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

The Astro tour provides telescopes and someone to tell you what stars and planets you are looking at.

Ballarat, Australia
Level Contributor
9,700 posts
111 reviews
58 helpful votes
2. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

You can do a fair bit yourself if you have binoculars and a star chart. With binocs, you can see the rings of Saturn and the four large moons of Jupiter, as well as pretty good definition on the moon. If you don't have binoculars, you can admire the Milky Way and that's about all.

Where else are you going? Uluru is not the only place in Australia with dark skies.

Seattle, Washington
Level Contributor
20 posts
3. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

Thanks for the replies. We’re driving up the coast from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast with stops in Maitland, Newcastle, Armidale, and Dorrigo to visit family and friends.

I appreciate the notes about how much better the experience is with telescope or binoculars.

Is it possible to walk to a good viewing spot from the resort at Yulara?

Darwin, Australia
Destination Expert
for Darwin
Level Contributor
12,950 posts
89 reviews
75 helpful votes
4. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

Yes there are some dunes around but don’t wander off too far..

watch out for snakes too.

Star tour is well worth / but obs weather dependant.

Level Contributor
113 posts
5 reviews
4 helpful votes
5. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

You may want to check on the moon phases for your specific dates. Stargazing is better around the new moon. They probably schedule tours accordingly.

https://www.timeanddate.com/moon/phases/australia/uluru?year=2023

Washington DC...
Level Contributor
517 posts
33 reviews
16 helpful votes
6. Re: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Save

Fwiw, I recently came across this tidbit of information on the Parks Australia site, which pertains to "astrophotography" but presumably applies to just plain stargazing as well:

Astrophotography

Central Australia is a superb place to photograph the night sky, and the silhouette of Uluru against the Milky Way has become an iconic Australian shot.

However, all visitors need to exit the national park by closing time. That means that any night-sky shots have to be taken from outside the park.

A great spot for astrophotography is an elevated lookout on top of a sand dune beside the Lasseter Highway, about halfway between the park entry station and Ayers Rock Resort. Other lookouts around the resort area offer good alternatives.

https://parksaustralia.gov.au/uluru/do/photography/

Reply to: Astro tour vs DIY stargazing
Get notified by e-mail when a reply is posted
© 2024 Tripadvisor LLC All rights reserved.

This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu.