How to get to Alice Springs from Adelaide
Overnight coach, or a week by roadSleep on the coach up the Stuart Highway, or take seven days overland.
By the overnight coach up the Stuart Highway, and the easiest way is a trip that books it for you. The 5 Day Adelaide to Uluru puts you on the overnight coach to Alice Springs, gives you a night in a hostel there, then heads out with your guide at 6am for Uluru at sunrise, and finishes back in Alice Springs, from $1,039. The 6 day version takes the evening coach the same way and finishes at Yulara or Uluru airport, from $1,300. Or go all the way by road: seven days through the Flinders Ranges and a night underground at Coober Pedy, from $1,505.
Checked on 28 October 2026.
Adelaide sits at the bottom of the Stuart Highway and Alice Springs near the top, with Coober Pedy about halfway. You can sleep through the long stretch on the overnight coach, or make the road the holiday and take a week over it.
On the overnight coach, booked for you
| Night | 5 days, finishing in Alice Springs | 6 days, finishing at Uluru |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The overnight coach from Adelaide | The evening coach from Adelaide |
| 2 | A hostel in Alice Springs | A hostel in Alice Springs |
| 3 onwards | Two nights at a permanent tented camp, then finish in Alice Springs on day 5 | Three nights swag camping near Uluru, at Kings Creek Station and at a private bush camp at Curtin Springs, then finish at Yulara or Uluru airport on day 6 |
From each trip's own transport and accommodation sheets. The coach ticket is included on both, and meals on the coach legs are your own.
The coach reaches Alice Springs in the afternoon: on the 8 Day Melbourne to Alice Springs trip, which rides the overnight coach up from Adelaide too, it arrives at 1:30pm. That leaves the evening in town before the early start into the Red Centre.
By road the whole way
- Seven days in a 4WD with a guidea group of 20 at most.
- Swag nights at Wilpena Poundin the Flinders Ranges and at Warren Gorge.
- A night in an underground dorm at Coober Pedythe opal town dug into the hillsides.
- Kings Creek Stationthen two nights at the Ayers Rock Resort campground.
- Finishes at Yularawith a free transfer to Uluru Airport on day 7, and coach transfers on to Alice Springs are available.
The trips compared
| Trip | Length | Starts and finishes | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Day Adelaide to Uluru | 5 days, 4 nights | Adelaide / Alice Springs | $1039 |
| 6 Day Adelaide to Uluru | 6 days, 5 nights | Adelaide / Yulara or Uluru airport | $1300 |
| 7 Day Adelaide to Uluru Tour | 7 days, 6 nights | Adelaide / Yulara | $1505 |
Prices update on their own.
Which suits you
- Flying home from Alice Springs?The five days start and finish where you want them, from $1,039.
- Flying home from Uluru?The six days finish at Yulara or the airport, with Kings Creek Station and a bush camp at Curtin Springs on the way, from $1,300.
- Want the outback itself?The seven days put every kilometre on the road with a guide, with the Flinders Ranges and a night underground at Coober Pedy, from $1,505.
- Starting in Melbourne?Eight days takes in the Twelve Apostles on the Great Ocean Road and a night in Adelaide before the coach north, from $1,899.
Coming back the same way
The trips run south too: five days from Alice Springs to Adelaide, finishing on the overnight coach, from $1,039, six days starting in Alice Springs or at Ayers Rock Airport, from $1,149, and seven days by road from Uluru to Adelaide, from $1,305. There is more on the road trip on our Coober Pedy page.
5 Day Uluru to Adelaidefrom $10395 days, 4 nightsTents and Hostels5 days, Alice Springs to AdelaideView trip
6 Day Uluru to Adelaidefrom $11496 days, 5 nightsCamping and Hostels6 days, Alice Springs or Uluru to AdelaideView trip
7 Day Uluru to Adelaide Tourfrom $13057 days, 6 nightsReal bush camping7 days, Uluru to Adelaide by roadView tripWhen it is at its best
May to September is walking weather in the Red Centre. Alice Springs averages 20 to 28°C by day through those months, with crisp nights near 4°C in July. The summer months are the warmest, with days around 35 to 37°C, so the walking is done early in the day.
5 Day Adelaide to Ulurufrom $10395 days, 4 nightsCamping and Hostels5 days. Coach up, Uluru, back to Alice SpringsView trip
6 Day Adelaide to Ulurufrom $13006 days, 5 nightsCamping and Hostels6 days. Coach up, finish at UluruView trip
7 Day Adelaide to Uluru Tourfrom $15057 days, 6 nightsReal bush camping7 days. By road, a night undergroundView tripPeople also ask
- What trips go from Adelaide, and where can you get to?
- What is Coober Pedy like, and how do you visit?
- How do I get from Alice Springs to Uluru?
- When is the best time to visit Alice Springs?
Where this comes from. Coach legs, arrival times, where each night is spent, meals, group sizes, finishing points and prices are each trip's own details as held on its page here, and prices update on their own. Temperatures are Bureau of Meteorology long-term monthly averages for Alice Springs Airport, station 015590, from 84 years of records.