Purnululu National Park and the banded domes

Purnululu National Park near Kununurra is defined by the Bungle Bungle Range, where striped sandstone domes rise from the Kimberley.

Purnululu National Park in Western Australia is defined by the Bungle Bungle Range, where sandstone domes rise in bands of orange and dark grey. The park lies in the Kimberley region south of Kununurra and forms part of Australia’s World Heritage landscape.

The Bungle Bungle Range in close view

The range is the park’s most recognisable feature: a mass of rounded towers, narrow gorges and sculptured rock. Its banding comes from the sandstone itself, with darker layers marked by cyanobacterial crusts.

The landform belongs to the Devonian age, and the rock has been worn into its present forms over millions of years. The result is a landscape of cones, cliffs and broken ridges rather than a single mountain or plateau.

World Heritage landscape and cone karst in sandstone are the features most closely associated with the park’s identity.

Land, rock and protected status

Purnululu National Park covers almost 240,000 hectares in the East Kimberley, a remote part of north-western Australia. Its formal protected status sits alongside the cultural landscape of the area and the long relationship between people and country.

The park was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2003. Its values are tied to the Bungle Bungle Range, which rises above semi-arid savannah grasslands and gives the park its clear visual character.

inscribed in 2003 and about 300 kilometres south are the stable reference points most readers need.

Purnululu National Park on the ground

The park is a place of sandstone domes, steep-sided gorges and open country between the rock ridges. The contrast between the dark bands and the paler stone is clearest on the domes themselves.

For many visitors, the main impression is the scale of the formations rather than any single lookout. The landscape reads as a series of shapes and textures, with rock, shadow and dry vegetation carrying the scene.

Visiting Purnululu National Park: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• The park lies in the Kimberley, south of Kununurra, in Western Australia. Road access from the Kununurra side is part of the standard approach to the area.
• The terrain includes rough tracks, steep-sided formations and ground that calls for care underfoot. The Bungle Bungle Range itself is a landscape of sandstone towers, ridges and gorges.
• The official language is English and the currency is the Australian dollar.
• Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.

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Frequently asked questions about Purnululu National Park

Where is Purnululu National Park?

It lies in the East Kimberley of Western Australia, south of Kununurra. The park sits in a remote part of the state’s north-west.

What does a visit involve?

The place is a landscape of rough tracks, sandstone domes and gorges. The ground and the distances between formations make the park feel open and rugged.

What makes Purnululu National Park distinctive?

The Bungle Bungle Range gives the park its banded domes and towers. The sandstone, the dark striping and the scale of the rock make the landscape immediately recognisable.