A Purnululu National Park accommodation list to put you at its heart

Spread a swag out under the stars at a remote bush camp, or get close to nature but without compromising on soft pillowy beds, hot showers and multi-course dinners.

World Heritage-listed Purnululu National Park sings with raw beauty and the rich culture of the Traditional Owners, who together have Kija, Jaru and Malgnin language identities.

When it comes to accommodation, there are options for every style of traveller. Treat yourself at a luxury stay, where the tucker is laid on, the staff are friendly and they will organise helicopter and 4WD tours, or get back to absolute basics and push in the tent pegs. If you’re looking for accommodation in or near Purnululu, here’s our guide on where to stay.

See enormous striped rock formations at The Bungle Bungle Range when visiting Purnululu National Park. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

1. Purnululu National Park Camping

Wake up in the heart of Purnululu National Park at one of the two no-frills campgrounds. Both are about a 15-minute drive from the Purnululu Visitor Centre, which is 53 kilometres off the Great Northern Highway via a rugged track.

Walardi campsite is probably the pick of the two. This 37-site campground is 12 kilometres from the visitor centre, while the larger Kurrajong is seven kilometres from the centre and can cater for 100 vehicles. The list of facilities at both campgrounds is short: pit toilets and untreated bore water.

2. Bungle Bungle Savannah Lodge

Purnululu’s Bungle Bungle Savannah Lodge offers luxury accommodation surrounded by wild nature. Sitting pretty, about 11 kilometres from the visitor centre, the lodge offers a comfortable place to unwind with a pool (the only one in the park) and a top-notch restaurant.

Stay in a modern cabin surrounded by nature.

Retire to one of the 25 modern cabins with queen or twin beds, timber floors, louvre windows and ensuite bathrooms. Wake up to the sounds of birds chirping and the smell of a hearty breakfast being prepared. Dinner is served under the stars and followed by drinks around the fire pit. Get in quick if you’re a family as there is just one cabin that can sleep up to four guests.

Cosy up by the fire at Bungle Bungle Savannah Lodge.

3. APT Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge

Nestle amongst the bushland in the heart of Purnululu National Park, APT’s Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge offers easy access to the famous beehive striped domes of the 350-million-year-old Bungle Bungle Range.

Wake up to the sound of birds chirping at Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

Tents are furnished with comfy twin beds, bathrooms with hot showers and decks with two director chairs. Nearby, the restaurant serves up a scrumptious buffet breakfast and multi-course dinners featuring Indigenous herbs and a drinks menu boasting local Matso’s beers and Western Australian wines. The lodge also ticks plenty of eco-friendly boxes: solar is adopted where possible, eco-friendly cleaning products are used throughout, all recyclable items are returned to Broome for processing and water is recycled by utilising ABCO systems.

4. Violet Valley Campground

Fourteen gorgeous campsites sit on the banks of the Bow River, just 36 kilometres from the entrance to Purnululu National Park and 13 kilometres from the Great Northern Highway.

Go off-grid at Violet Valley Campground.

On the traditional lands of the Gija people, the Camping with Custodians site was opened by the Baulu-Wah (Violet Valley) community in 2019. Facilities include hot showers, flushing toilets, a fire pit, barbeque and laundry.

If you’re lucky, wallabies will greet you at sunrise.

5. Doon Doon Campground

Owned by the nearby Woolah community, the campground was remodelled in 2019 under the Camping with Custodians initiative, which allows travellers to camp on Aboriginal land, while the Aboriginal-run tourism business generates income for isolated communities, helping locals to stay and work on country.

Doon Doon Campground is an Aboriginal-run tourism business. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

Conveniently located just off the Great Northern Highway, the campground neighbours Doon Doon Roadhouse, where you can buy fuel, brekky, great burgers, basic grocery items and coffee. Campsites are shady grass sites that are a mix of powered and unpowered. Take it up a notch and stay in one of the four basic but clean cabins with air-con. Everyone has access to the new toilets and hot showers, an undercover camp kitchen with electric hot plates and cooktops and laundry.

The grounds are easily accessible by road. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)