Very unpleasant stay

We stayed at the budget option of the Ayers Rock Resort - the Outback Lodge! and it was simply terrible. The Ayers Rock resort holds a monopoly in the area, so you are obliged to pick one of their 5 accomodation options. Therefore they can hike up prices as much as they want (we paid $82 for a 'budget room' which we shared with 2 other people, and that has no ensuite facilities!) and also as there is no other competition, they can afford to keep their standards low!

The room we stayed in was more than just basic, it consisted of 2 bunk beds and that's it. Nothing else. The bathroom/showers were a good walk from our room and were shared by all the guests (including those coming from the other "sister" hotels in the resort who would just pop by for a drink or dinner) so they would get really dirty by late hours as they are only cleaned twice during the day! Ayers Rock gets infested with flies in the Spring/Summer and so does the resort area but management doesn't seem to care - there are no signs of combatting them anywhere in the resort, even around the 5 star accomodation or the restaurant/bars areas.

The "housekeeping" staff (as it is pretty much standard in OZ) are "gap" year students - ie.18 to 25 year olds who want to earn some cash while they tour the country and drink themselves silly in the meantime. So, although most were friendly - they didn't care much about their job so don't expect any "real" service, ie: the rooms being cleaned to any proper standard etc...

In a nutshell, I wouldn't choose to stay here ever again... not in the resort, let alone the so-called "Outback Lodge" itself. I'd rather camp in the outback than pay some monopoly that amount of money they clearly don't deserve! and the horrible, horrible service they provide!

Great Place to Stay

The outback pioneer has all you'd ever need for a visit to Uluru.

The rooms are spacious, comfortable and clean. you have access to all the local facilities, (both in your hotel and the neighbouring hotels), and the tour desk handles all your needs with flawless efficiency.

Best of all it's such great value for money.

The Outback Pioneer is a good choice at Ayer's Rock

I concur with others who found the Outback Pioneer (OP) to be better than expected. There are no cheap places to stay at The Rock and the OP is the base level hotel at the Ayers Rock Resort. But the OP offered more-than-adequate (3 star) accomodations and we were pleased with our two-night stay in June 2004.

All accomodations are provided by the same company that owns/manages the resort; there's essentially a monopoly. But we found the entire resort to be clean and well kept, the food was good, and the staff were friendly. The lack of competition does not seem to have resulted in a "take it or leave it" attitude.

Locationwise, all the hotels are essentially the same distance from the rock. Given that all properties are comfortable, in good condition, and the same distance from the main attraction, the decision on where to stay boils down to how much luxury or style you want in a hotel.

Our room at the OP was tastefully decorated and very clean. Everything was fairly new and in good working order. The bathroom was spotless and the grounds were well kept. Really, there was nothing to complain about. Those looking for high-style or panache are better off staying at the Sails in the Desert or the Lost Camel. Otherwise, the OP offers good quality accomodations at Ayers Rock.

More than expectation

There is only one resort in Ayers Rock area, that's the Ayers Rock resort with several hotels in one big complex. The Outback Pioneer hotel is the cheapest option, still cost AUD186/night for a room with bunk beds and facility. We booked a bunk room with facility for AUD186 in April 2005. We were upgraded to a hotel room and it was very nice. Room 318 in one of the rustic buildings. You can't tell it has nice rooms in these motel like buildings. The room was large with 1 double bed and 1 twin bed. The bathroom was also large with a tub and shower. The toiltries were excellent, natural ingredients and smell very good. The room was so nice that we didn't want to leave. It's all about comparision. This is the outback, means there is nothing here except red rocks, dust and some bushes. We stayed at a town called Stuarts Well in the outback the night before. It was like a trailer park at Stuarts Well. So Ayers Rock rock resort was a completely upgrade. The Pioneer hotel was a pleasant surprise in the middle of the desert. The pool was very nice near our room, the buffett restaurant was expensive for dinner. The food was average. We did try the Kangaroo, very chewery. Staffs were very friendly and helpful. We had a car so going to Ayers Rock and Olgas were very conveinent from the hotel. Ayers Rock is only a 10 minutes drive and Olgas is 50 minutes drive. The Ayers Rock airport is only 15 minutes from the hotel. I highly recommend this hotel.

Best budget hotel in uluru

we stayed here in feb 2004 with our 2 children...the room was small but fine...it had 2 bunk beds and an adequate bathroom...still at $180 a night it seemed a lot but still cheaper than the other 3 hotels.the main thing was the AC was fantastic,the food choices were great,it had a nice pool and a car rental office.Plus there is a courtesy bus that will take you over to the stores and supermarket.

Pleasantly surprised

We were pleasantly surprised by our standard room at the Outback. It was very spacious, clean and COOL. We had expected a small very basic room from other reviews we had read. It's not luxurious, and the outside of the buildings looks pretty rustic, but the room we had was nice. Staff were very friendly and helpful, and the buffet dinner gave us a chance to try kangaroo, crocodile, baramundi, etc. Don't worry that you're not staying at the higher priced places here. This is nicer than it needs to be.

Nice hotel in an overpriced group.

We just returned from Australia, and spent two nights at the Outback Pioneer. The room was nice and clean, and the hotel staff were friendly and helpful. Recognizing that all of the hotels in Yulare are expensive (could be for any number of reasons), I would recommend the Outback Pioneer as good value. We had a room with bath, so I'm not sure whether my recommendation also would apply to other rooms.

The cheapest option for the budget-conscious!

I stayed here on my own on my year-long tour of Australia.

The rooms and resort were of a much better standard than I expected for such an isolated part of the country, much more pleasant than some budget hotels in other popular tourist areas!

When I was there, a tasty BBQ and entertainment was available every night, an in-house travel agent gave excellent advice on the local tours and the courtesy bus around the resort was a refreshing alternative to baking in the scorching sun!

Don't get me wrong, this place wasn't the Ritz but hopefully you'll be heading to the area to see Ayers Rock, The Olgas and Kings Canyon so you won't be spending a great deal of time in your room! The Outback Pioneer Hotel is certainly the cheapest place (apart from the campsite!) to stay, and after living in Sydney for 8 months before arriving here, I found Yulara to be massively overpriced so those $$'s just seem to disappear!

Hope this helps you make your decision!

Its the best in a terribley over-priced bunch

Out of all the places to stay in the Yulara resort I'd have to say that this one had the best staff(friendly and not stuffy) and almost reasonably priced when it came to food and drink. The accommodation is still quite pricey if you would like a standard room but for hostel accommodation its quite alright.

In all the whole resort is a big rip off!!!

Nice, if overpriced, room in the outback

I booked a budget room with bath at this property and was upgraded to a standard room. The standard room was quite nice: clean, comfortable, spacious, and modern. There was a queen bed, a single bed, refrigerator, and cable TV. The air conditioning/heating unit worked well. Many services such as luggage storage and delivery are offered. There are a couple of dining options. Personally I found that a kangaroo wrap from the fast food place and a beer from the bar make a great meal. All of the Yulara properties are extremely overpriced and I would not pay a lot of money to stay anywhere since you will be out of your room most of the time. I have heard that the budget rooms at this property are fine also.