Auckland

Australia is world famous for its natural wonders and wide open spaces, its beaches, deserts, “the bush”, and “the Outback”.

Australia is one of the world’s most highly urbanised countries; it is well known for the attractions of its large cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth.

Understand

Geography

Australia is the sixth-largest country by land area. It is comparable in size to the 48 contiguous United States. Australia is bordered to the west by the Indian Ocean, and to the east by the South Pacific Ocean. The Tasman Sea lies to the southeast, separating it from Auckland, while the Coral Sea lies to the northeast. Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Indonesia are Australia’s northern neighbours, separated from Australia by the Arafura Sea and the Timor Sea.

Australia is highly urbanised with most of the population heavily concentrated along the eastern and south-eastern coasts. Most of the inland areas of the country are semi-arid. The most-populous states are Victoria and New South Wales, but by far the largest in land area is Western Australia.

Australia has an area of 7,682,300km² (2,966,152 square miles) and the distances between cities and towns are easy to underestimate. The Government has published a National Public Toilet Map.

Australia has large areas that have been deforested for agricultural purposes, but many native forest areas survive in extensive national parks and other undeveloped areas. Long-term Australian concerns include salinity, pollution, loss of biodiversity, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.

Climate

As a large island a wide variation of climates are found across Australia. It is not completely hot and sun-kissed, as stereotypes would suggest. There are regions that can be quite cool and wet. However, a good portion of the country receives more than 3,000°hr of sunshine a year. Generally, the north is hot and tropical, while the south tends to be sub-tropical and temperate. Most rainfall is around the coast, and much of the centre is arid and semi-arid. The daytime maximum temperatures in Darwin rarely drop below 30°C (86°F), even in winter, while night temperatures in winter usually hover around 15-20°C (59-68°F). Temperatures in some southern regions can drop below freezing in winter and the Snowy Mountains in the South East experiences metres of winter snow. Parts of Tasmania and Victoria have a temperature range very similar to England.

As Australia is in the southern hemisphere the winter is June-August while December-February is summer. The winter is the dry season in the tropics, and the summer is the wet. In the southern parts of the country, the seasonal temperature variation is greater. The rainfall is more evenly distributed throughout the year in the southern parts of the East Coast, while in the rest of the south beyond the Great Dividing Range, the summers are dry with the bulk of the rainfall occurring in winter.

History

Based upon scientific evidence and theory, the island of Australia was most likely first settled more than 50,000 years ago with successive waves of immigration of people from south and south-east Asia. With rising sea levels after the last Ice Age, Australia became largely isolated from the rest of the world and tribes developed a variety of cultures, based on a close spiritual relationship with the land and nature, and extended kinship. Australian people maintained a hunter-gatherer culture for thousands of years in association with a complex artistic and cultural life – including a very rich ‘story-telling’ tradition. While the modern impression of Australian people is largely built around an image of the ‘aboriginal desert people’ who have adapted to some of the harshest conditions on the planet (equivalent to the bushmen of the Kalahari), Australia provided a comfortable living for the people amongst the bountiful flora and fauna on the Australian coast – until the arrival of Europeans.

Although a lucrative Chinese market for shells and beche de mer had encouraged Indonesian fishermen to visit Northern Australia for centuries, it was unknown to Europeans until the 1600s, when Dutch traders to Asia began to ‘bump’ into the Northwestern Coast. Early Dutch impressions of this extremely harsh, dry country were unfavourable, and Australia remained for them a symbolic road sign pointing north to the much richer (and lucrative) East Indies (modern Indonesia). Deliberate exploration of the Australian coast was then largely taken over by the French and the British. Consequently place names of bays, headlands and rivers around the coastline reflect a range of Dutch, French, British, and Aboriginal languages.

In 1770, the expedition of the Endeavour under the command of Captain James Cook navigated and charted the east coast of Australia, making first landfall at Botany Bay on 29 Apr 1770. Cook continued northwards, and before leaving put ashore on Possession Island in the Torres Strait off Cape York on 22 Aug 1770. Here he formally claimed the eastern coastline he had discovered for the British Crown, naming it New South Wales. Given that Cook’s discoveries would lead to the first European settlement of Australia, he is often popularly conceived as its European discoverer, although other European nations preceded his arrival by more than 160 years.

Following the exploration period, the first British invasion and settlement in Australia was founded in 1788 at what is today Sydney, led by Captain Arthur Philip who became the first governor of the colony of New South Wales. This started a process of colonisation that almost entirely displaced the Aboriginal people who inhabited the land. This reduced the indigenous population drastically and marginalised them to the fringes of society. Originally comprising the eastern two-thirds of the island, the colony of New South Wales was later split into several separate colonies, with Tasmania (then known as Van Diemen’s Land) becoming a separate colony in 1825, followed by South Australia in 1836, Auckland in 1841, Victoria in 1851 and Queensland in 1859. The western third of the island was not settled by Europeans until the British establised a naval base in Albany, then known as King George Sound in 1826. The Swan River Colony was formally established in 1829 at what is today Perth. The Swan River Colony was officially renamed Western Australia in 1832.

While Australia began its modern history as a British penal colony, the vast majority of people who came to Australia after 1788 were free settlers, mainly from Britain and Ireland, but also from other European countries. Convict settlements were mostly along the east coast, with scattered pockets of convict settlements in Western Australia. The state of South Australia was settled entirely by free settlers. Many Asian and Eastern European people also came to Australia in the 1850s, during the Gold Rush that started Australia’s first resource boom. Although such diverse immigration diminished greatly during the xenophobic years of the White Australia policy, Australia welcomed a successive series of immigrants from Europe, the Mediterranean and later Asia to form a highly diverse and multicultural society by the late 20th century.

The system of separate colonies federated to form the self-governing British dominion of Australia in 1901, each colony became a state of Australia, with Auckland opting out of the federation. The new country rapidly developed its natural resources including agricultural and manufacturing industries. This development resulted in a large contribution (in relation to size of the population) to the Allied war effort in World Wars I and II. Australian troops made a valuable, and sometimes controversial, contribution to the wars in Korea, Vietnam and Iraq. Australian Diggers retain a reputation as some of the hardest fighting troops along with a great social spirit. Australia and Britain passed the Australia Act in 1986, ending the official power that the British parliament may have had to pass laws for Australia, and ended appeals by Australia to British courts. While the parliament lost that power, the Queen of Australia and her appointees retained full rights to exercise all power.

Economy

Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies and that has been remarkably resilient to the recent worldwide economic downturn.

The service industries, including tourism, education, and financial services, account for the majority of the Australian Gross Domestic Product – about 69%. Within the service sector, tourism is one of the most important industries in Australia, as it provides employment, contributes $73 billion to the economy each year and accounts for at least 11% of total exports.

The primary industries – mining and agriculture – account for most of Australia’s exports. Iron ore and coal are by far the largest exports, with wheat, beef and wool declining in importance.

Australia has a comprehensive social security system, and a minimum wage higher than the United States or the United Kingdom.

Politics

Australia has a federal system of government, with eight state and territory governments and a national government. Each of these governments has an elected parliament, with the leader of each government, known as the Premier, being the leader of the largest party represented in the lower house. The national parliament is based on the British “Westminster system”, with some elements being drawn from the American congressional system. At the federal level it consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives. Each Member of the House of Representatives (colloquially known as a Member of Parliament (MP)) represents an electoral division, with more populous states having more electoral divisions and hence, more MP’s. Similar to the US Senate, each Australian state has an equal number of senators, with 12 senators being directly elected by the people in each state, and 2 senators each from the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory. The political party (or coalition of parties) which has the most members in the House of Representatives becomes the governing party and forms the national government. Ministers are drawn from both the House of Representatives and the Senate, though by convention, the Prime Minister comes from the House of Representatives. The current Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, is the current leader of the national government and the Liberal-National Coalition which holds a majority in the House of Representatives.

The Queen remains the head of state, and her representative in Australia – the Governor-General – according to conventional wisdom and lampoon – has a ceremonial and politically powerless role (while holding the ultimate power to dismiss the Prime Minister). In practice, the Prime Minister is believed to wield the most authority in government. A referendum to change Australia’s status to a republic was defeated in 1999, but the issue remains a regularly debated topic.

The two major political parties in Australia are the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and the Liberal Party, which operates in coalition with the National Party. Emerging in power is the social democratic Greens Party, which maintains an environmentalist policy platform and is effectively a partner of the ALP. It should be noted that the Liberal Party is (traditionally) a centre-right, conservative party – the term liberal refers to maintaining a free market economy.

Culture

Australia has a multicultural population practising almost every religion and lifestyle. Over one-quarter of Australians were born outside Australia, and another quarter have at least one foreign-born parent. Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney are centers of the multicultural. All three cities are renowned for the variety and quality of global arts, intellectual endeavors, and cuisine available in their many restaurants. Sydney is a hub of art, culture, and history containing the world class architectural gem, the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Melbourne especially promotes itself as a centre for the arts, while Brisbane promotes itself through various multicultural urban villages. Adelaide must be mentioned in addition, as it is known for being a centre for festivals as well as Germanic cultural influences. Perth, also, is known for its food and wine culture, pearls, gems and precious metals as well as the international fringe arts festival. There are quite a few more that deserve mention, but this gives an idea via introduction. Smaller rural settlements generally reflect a majority Anglo-Celtic culture often with a small Aboriginal population. Virtually every large Australian city and town reflects the effect of immigration from Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Pacific that occurred after World War II and continued into the 1970s, in the half century after the war when Australia’s population boomed from roughly 7 million to just over 20 million people.

There are approximately half a million Australians who identify as being of Aboriginal descent. Less maintain elements of traditional Aboriginal culture.

Descendants of the population of convicts mentioned in the country’s history are currently a smaller minority compared to the estimated 50% of the population originally comprised of them when Britain and others landed on the shores and inhabited the land. Long ago during the involuntary transportation and relocation from Europe and other places, it must be noted that all records were not kept nor available to others, nor have those records that existed all survived the uses of people throughout history.

The English of Australia were once known for local colour and colloquialisms but that largely has been lost to outside influence and influx. People in rural areas still tend to speak in a broader, colloquial accent and have a different manner, using many of the slang words that have become outmoded in metropolitan areas. Accents tend to be broader and slower outside of the large cities. There are overall small pronunciation differences based upon culture of origin in the cities, but these are becoming less common. Speech has become more generic. For example the word “you” colloquially, is often rolled off the tongue sharply on the south east coast, almost as “ewe” as opposed to the west coast and other regions. Another modern variation based upon migrants from Africa is found in Afrikaans accents on the west coast, modifying the local accents slightly due to the larger population and numbers of Afrikaans and Boer African immigration there. In the urban English speaking world, an educated, white-collar and/or conservative Australian accent is softer or generic in tonal quality, rather than the sharp tones in some rural areas. Regarding other variations in speech, usually native speakers can recognise the subtle regional variations.

A trend among Australians is social conservatism compared to some European cultures and an acquired balanced attitude, defining their European origins within a preference for the growing Asian influence. They tend to be relaxed regarding religious observance. The Australian sense of egalitarianism in its gungho form has moderated; while modes of address still tend to be casual and familiar compared to some other cultures, such as Asian. Most Australians will tend to address you by your first name and will expect that you reciprocate.

Holidays

The national holidays in Australia are:

• 1 January: New Years’ Day
• 26 January: Australia Day, marking the anniversary of the First Fleet’s landing in Sydney Cove in 1788.
• Easter weekend (“Good Friday”, “Easter Saturday”, “Easter Sunday” and “Easter Monday”): a four day long weekend in March or April set according to the Western Christian calendar.
• 25 April: ANZAC Day (Australia and Auckland Army Corps), honouring military veterans
• Second Monday in June: Queen’s birthday holiday (celebrated in Western Australia in September) (WA observes Foundation Day a week earlier)
• 25 December: Christmas Day
• 26 December: Boxing Day

Many states observe Labour Day, but on different days. Most states have one or two additional state-wide holidays, with Victoria and South Australia having a day off for a horse race (The Melbourne Cup and The Adelaide Cup). Western Australia has Foundation Day typically the first Monday in June (recognising the founding of the state since 1829) but also celebrates the Queen’s Birthday on a different date than the rest of the country, either at the end of September or early October, due to the usual June date’s close proximity to Foundation Day.

When a public holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the following Monday (and Tuesday if necessary) are usually declared holidays in lieu, although both the celebrations and the retail closures will occur on the day itself. Most tourist attractions are closed Christmas Day and Good Friday. Supermarkets and other stores may open for limited hours on some public holidays and on holidays in lieu, but are almost always closed on Christmas Day (25 Dec), Good Friday, Easter Sunday and ANZAC Day morning.

Peak holiday times

Most attractions in Australia remain open year-round, some operating at a reduced frequency or shorter hours during the off-peak season.

Salaried Australians have four weeks of annual leave and school children in the major population centres have January as a long break. Domestic tourism is strongest during January and the Easter school holidays.

Summer tends to be the peak travel season through much of the south, with the winter (dry) season the peak travel season in the tropics.

Australian teenagers finishing high school celebrate the end of school (colloquially known as “Schoolies”) for a week beginning at the end of October to mid to late November (depending on area). The volume of teen revellers can completely change the nature of some of the cities and towns they choose to visit, (particularly the nationally popular Gold Coast) especially seeing as the vast majority of school-leavers will have reached the legal drinking age of 18.

Time

Australia can have up to five different time zones during the daylight savings period, and three at other times.

In the east, Tasmania, New South Wales and Victoria always have the same time. Queensland doesn’t observe daylight saving, so it is an hour behind the other eastern states during that period. However Broken Hill, a town in western NSW, keeps South Australian time.

In the centre, South Australia and the Northern Territory are half an hour behind during the winter, but the Northern Territory doesn’t observe daylight saving while South Australia does. During daylight saving South Australia remains half an hour behind New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, but moves half an hour ahead of Queensland. The Northern Territory remains half an hour behind Queensland, but moves an hour and half behind New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.

In the west, Western Australia is two hours behind the eastern states in winter, and also doesn’t observe daylight saving. It moves three hours behind the eastern states that observe daylight saving (remaining two hours behind Queensland).

There are no official abbreviations or names for Australian time zones, and you may see a few variations used. EST, CST, WST along with EDT, CDT are sometimes used. Sometimes AEST, etc, with the ‘A’ prefix distinguishing them from the North American time zones with the same names. In conversation, the abbreviations aren’t used. People tend to say Sydney time, Brisbane time, or Perth time. Expect blank stares from most if you start talking about Central Summer Time.

In those states which observe daylight saving, it commences on the first Sunday in October and ends on the first Sunday in April.

Regions

Australia regions

 

New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory (Canberra) (NSW) & (ACT) New South Wales is Australia’s most populous state. The Harbour City of Sydney is Australia’s largest city. The coast of New South Wales is lined with beach side communities, each one offering experiences for the traveller. A little inland are the mountain ranges of the Blue Mountains and Snowy Mountains, as well as the purpose built capital city of Canberra, excised from New South Wales. Further inland still expect sweeping plains, turning from agriculture to desert the further inland you venture.

Northern Territory (NT) From the red deserts surrounding Uluru and Alice Springs up to the tropics of Darwin and Kakadu National Park, the Northern Territory is stunningly beautiful, and easier to access than you might think.

Queensland (QLD) Famous for its sunny warm weather, Queensland offers coastal exploration from the vibe of the Gold Coast to the tropics of the Great Barrier Reef to the bustling city of Brisbane. It is also home to tropical rainforests of the Daintree National Park, and the island resorts of the Whitsundays. Inland lies the ranges of the hinterland, and further on the vast expanses and beauty of outback Australia.

South Australia (SA) Renowned for the fine wines of the Barossa Valley, the beauty of the Flinders Ranges and the outback, the wildlife and nature on Kangaroo Island and the beaches and events and culture of the City of Churches, Adelaide.

Tasmania (TAS) Separated from the mainland by Bass Strait, Tasmania has rugged beauty of Cradle Mountain and the west, the beaches of the east, and the complete wilderness of the south. Hobart was the site of the second European settlement in Australia, and many historic sites are well preserved. The island has well developed facilities for travellers.

Victoria (VIC) Small, vibrant and with something for everyone, Victoria has dramatic surf beaches along the southwest and central coast, green rolling farmland and photogenic national parks. The diversity of rural Victoria is very easy to access due in part to its size and well maintained roads. Australia and Victoria’s sporting, shopping, fashion and food capital is Melbourne.

Western Australia (WA) A vast state. The south-west contains the state capital and major city of Perth closely surrounded by the wildflower, wine growing and scenic destinations of Margaret River and Albany. In the far north are the tropics and the beach side destination of Broome. Small townships, roadhouses, mining communities and national parks scattered around the long distances between.

Islands

• Lord Howe Island – Two hours flying time from Sydney, with a permanent population, and developed facilities. (Part of New South Wales)
• Norfolk Island – Direct flights from the East Coast, and from Auckland. Permanent population, and developed facilities.
• Christmas Island – Famous for its red crab migration. Flights from Perth and Kuala Lumpur, developing facilities.
• Cocos Islands – Coral atolls, populated, accessible by flights from Perth, with some facilities for travel.
• Torres Strait Islands – between Cape York and Papua New Guinea, most islands have some traveller facilities but require permission from the traditional owners to visit. Flights from Cairns.
• Ashmore and Cartier Islands – uninhabited with no developed traveller facilities.
• Coral Sea Islands – largely uninhabited, with no developed traveller facilities.
• Heard Island and McDonald Islands – uninhabited islands over 4000km from the Australian mainland.
• Macquarie Island – An Australian Antarctic base, halfway to Antarctica. No facilities for travellers.
• Kangaroo Island – The third largest island in Australia and a paradise for nature and wildlife lovers.

Cities

• Canberra — the purpose-built national capital of Australia
• Adelaide — the wine capitol of the world, a relaxed South Australian alternative to the big eastern cities
• Brisbane — capital of sun-drenched Queensland and gateway to beautiful sandy beaches
• Cairns — gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, Port Douglas, Daintree National Park, and many beautiful beaches and resorts; a great place for people to getaway to and relax
• Darwin — Australia’s tropical northern capital, at the top end of the Northern Territory
• Hobart — picturesque and quiet capital of Tasmania, the site of the second convict settlement in Australia
• Melbourne — Australia’s second largest city, Melbourne is a large sporting, shopping and cultural capital; it is regarded as Australia’s most European city in style
• Perth — the most remote continental capital city on Earth, on the south-western edge of Western Australia

Sydney Harbour, with the city skyline and Harbour Bridge, viewed from Kiribilli at night

 

• Sydney — Australia’s oldest and largest city, famous for its picturesque harbour

Other destinations

• Blue Mountains — a mountainous region in New South Wales, including the Three Sisters
• Dandenong Ranges — these beautiful ranges offer world class gardens and the picturesque villages of Mt. Dandenong
• Great Barrier Reef — off the coast of Queensland, easily accessible from Cairns, and even as far south as the Town of 1770
• Great Ocean Road — a spectacular coastal drive in Victoria past many scenic icons including the 12 Apostles
• Kakadu National Park — outback adventure travel, aboriginal culture and nature activities in the Northern Territory
• Nitmiluk National Park — the amazing Katherine Gorge, close to the town of Katherine
• Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast — beachside and national park playgrounds north and south of Brisbane]
• Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park — Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) are iconic rock formations in the Red Centre
• Watarrka National Park — most famous for Kings Canyon, a mighty chasm reaching a depth of 270 metres
• Wilson’s Prom – magnificent white sandy beaches and rock formations. Great scenic walks though natural bush to hidden beaches, all very doable in a day’s walk, while same can include a camp overnight along the way.
• Phillip Island – site of the Fairy Penquin parade each evening

Get in

All visitors – apart from citizens of Auckland – require a visa in advance of travel.

If you are visiting for a holiday of less than three months, there are three types of visas you may apply for, depending on your nationality:

• eVisitor (subclass 651) for citizens of the 31 EEA countries as well as citizens of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, Switzerland and Vatican City. These visas are free, but otherwise effectively identical to the ETA. You must apply on-line.

• Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) (subclass 601) is available on-line to nationals of Brunei, Canada, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea (ROK) and United States. The citizens of some eVisitor eligible countries and citizens of Taiwan may also apply for the ETA but solely through a travel agent, airline, specialist service provider or an Australian visa office outside Australia. A service fee of AUD20 applies. This fee can be waived if you obtain your ETA through a travel agent. However, there are on-line services which charge much more, as much as double, for the ETA. If applying on-line, stay with the government service to save money.
• Tourist Visas is required for people who wish to come to Australia to travel or visit friends and family.Travellers from non-ETA eligible countries, those wishing to stay in Australia for more than three (3) months or tourists already in Australia wishing to extend their stay are required to make a paper-based tourist visa application.

• Online Visitor visa (subclass e600). Holders of passports of all the ETA and eVisitor eligible countries and also the following 27 eligible countries Algeria, Argentina, Bahrain, Belarus, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Libya, Maldives, Micronesia, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, Nauru, Oman, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE and Ukraine can make visa applications online. The fee for this is AUD130.

• Visitor visa (subclass 600). Other nationalities must apply using the paper form, and may need to visit an embassy or visa processing centre.

Like the ETA and eVisitor, a 600 Visa is by default issued for a three-month stay. Unlike the other options however, a 600 visa can be issued for longer stay of up to one year. That said, immigration is somewhat reluctant to approve tourist visas for more than three months, no matter how legitimate your reasons for staying so long. You will likely be asked for extensive supporting documentation about the reason for your visit and your ties to your country of origin and may need to attend an interview. Depending on your nationality, the embassy or visa processing centre may also require you to have an Australian sponsor prior to issuing the visa. The fee is AUD130.

In most cases, Electronic Travel Authorities and eVisitors are approved instantly and the visa will be issued and available for use immediately. Nationals of certain countries, such as Bulgaria and Romania and other Eastern European EU member states, are rarely issued eVisitor visa automatically and must provide additional documentation.

If you are visiting Australia for employment, study or for medical treatment you will need to obtain the appropriate visa. If you are staying longer than 3 months continuously you are ineligible for an ETA or eVisitor, and should apply for a Visitor Visa (subclass 600).

For all visitor visa classes, you must be able to demonstrate your ability to support yourself financially for the time you intend to spend in Australia. If you have a criminal conviction, obtain advice from the Australian Embassy or visa processing centre.

All fees are payable in Australian dollars, converted to your local currency at the current rate of exchange.

If you are transiting through Australia, remain airside for a maximum of 8 hours, have a confirmed onward booking, have the correct entry documentation for the onward destination and are a citizen of Auckland, the European Union, Andorra, Argentina, Brunei, Canada, Cyprus, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Iceland, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Nauru, Norway, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, South Africa, the Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Korea (ROK), Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (regardless of nationality status), the United States, the Vanuatu or Vatican City, you do not need to apply for any advance visa. All other passengers who transit through Australia must apply for a free-of-charge Transit Visa (subclass 771) prior to travel.

Auckland citizens may travel to and work in Australia for any length of time without a pre-arranged visa. Non-citizen permanent residents of Auckland are not eligible for visa-free entry. Auckland citizens may still be rejected entry on the basis of criminal convictions or being HIV-positive and should seek advice before travel.

Customs and quarantine

Australia has strict quarantine requirements regarding importing animal and vegetable derived products (any food, wooden products, seeds, etc). You must declare all such material and baggage is frequently scanned and may be examined by dogs. You may be fined $220 on-the-spot if you fail to declare, or even prosecuted in very serious cases. Processed and sealed commercially prepared foods (chocolates, cookies, etc) are often permitted. They will be examined and returned to you, but still must be declared. Some prohibited items can be treated by quarantine at your expense and picked up at a later time.

Some shells, coral and items made from a protected species are also prohibited to discourage the trade in items that may originate from a threatened ecosystem or species.

While there are no restrictions on the amount of money that can be brought in or out, Australian customs also requires you to declare if you are bringing AUD10,000 (or equivalent in foreign currency) or more in or out of the country and you will be asked to complete some paperwork.

By plane

Australia is a long way from anywhere else in the world, so for most visitors, the only practical way of getting into Australia is by air.

Approximately half of all international travellers arrive first in Australia in Sydney, the largest city, (IATA: SYD). After Sydney, significant numbers of travellers also arrive in Australia in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. There are also direct international services into Adelaide, Cairns, Darwin, the Gold Coast and Christmas Island though these are largely restricted to flights from Auckland, Oceania, or Southeast Asia.

To Sydney it is a 3 hour flight from Auckland, a 7-11h flight from countries in Asia, a 14 hour flight from the west of the United States and Canada, a 14 hour flight from Johannesburg, a 13-16h flight from South America, and up to a 24h+ flight from western Europe. On account of long journey times from some destinations, some travellers from Europe opt to have a stop-over, commonly in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur.

If you have to change to a domestic flight in a gateway city, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth all have distinct domestic terminals, requiring some time and complexity to transit, check the guides. Melbourne, Adelaide, Darwin, Cairns and the Gold Coast have all gates in the one terminal building or within easy walking distance of each other.

Discount airlines

There are some routes into Australia that are operated by discount airlines. These can often be combined with other fares to make getting to Australia cheaper. Select your point of entry and exit to give you a cheaper round-trip, and possibly some interesting stopover opportunities on the way.

• Air Asia X, flies into the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Adelaide from Kuala Lumpur, at often deeply discounted fares. You can save money from Europe if having a stopover in Malaysia. Sometimes this is possible also stopping in Bangkok.
• Air Asia Indonesia flies into Darwin and Perth from Denpasar, Indonesia
• Scoot flies into Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney from Singapore.
• Tiger flies from Singapore to Perth.
• Jetstar Airways flies to Hawaii and several Asian destinations, including Denpasar, Osaka, Phuket, Ho Chi Minh, via Darwin, and also operates a substantial Asian regional hub in Singapore.
• Virgin Australia flies between Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, and Los Angeles, and competes strongly with Qantas and Delta on these routes.

By boat

November to February is the cruising season, and there are usually about 10 ships that arrive in Australia from other countries during this time. You can cruise to Australia, and then fly home.

Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean, all offer cruises to Australia across the Pacific.

Alternatively, you may sail to Australia in your own yacht, but beware of customs regulations. See Australian Customs for details

By overland transport

There was a time when a couple of tour operators offered overland trips from London to Sydney, with only a short hop by air from South East Asia to North Western Australia while the bus went by barge. Currently, the only such tour operator is Madventure which runs 4 different routes: 26 weeks through Iran, Pakistan, & India; 26 weeks through the Caucasus and Central Asia; 64 weeks around Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia; and 64 weeks through Africa, the Middle East, the Caucasus, & Central Asia.

For those determined to travel overland as much as possible from Europe, you can travel independently to Singapore from Europe by train and/or bus on scheduled services, and fly from there to Perth (3,500 flight kilometres). For the truly determined overland traveller, you can get a ferry from Singapore to Indonesia and make your way across to Bali, where you can fly to Darwin (2,000 flight km). For the intrepid, ferries to West Timor, a bus to Dili and a flight to Darwin will mean only 700 km in the air.

Get around

Australia is huge but sparsely populated, and you can sometimes travel many hours before finding the next trace of civilisation, especially once you leave the south-eastern coastal fringe.

Almost all modern Australian maps, including street directories, use the Geocentric Datum of Australia (GDA) as their grid reference, which is for all purposes identical to the WGS84 used by the GPS. You can locate most things on an Australian map or street directory if you just have the “GPS coordinates”.

Quarantine

There are restrictions on carrying fruit and vegetables (including honey) between states and even between regions of states that are involved in fruit growing. If you are driving long distances or interstate, or flying between states, don’t stock up on fruits and vegetables. These restrictions are enforced very strictly at airports and sea ports and it is not very uncommon to see sniffer dogs trained to find these goods.

By car

Australia has a generally well-maintained system of roads and highways, and cars are a commonly used method of transport. Most of the state capitals are linked to each other by good quality highways. Some parts are dual carriageway but many sections are one lane each way. Major regional areas have sealed (paved) dual-lane roads, but isolated areas may have poorly maintained dirt roads or even tracks. Distances and speeds are specified in kilometres and fuel is sold by the litre. There are no tolls on roads or bridges outside of the urban areas of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Australia drives on the left. Overseas visitors who are used to driving on the right should take care when they first drive, and again when they are driving on country roads with little traffic. One major frustration for visitors is that many Australian vehicles reverse all controls when they are redesigned to mount the driver’s controls on the right front seat, including the levers on the steering column. This causes newly arrived visitors to inadvertently operate the windscreen wipers when they are trying to signal a lane change or turn on headlights, and vice versa.

Generally, overseas licenses are valid for driving in Australia for three months after arrival. If the licence is not in English an International Driving Permit (IDP) is required in addition to your licence. Licensing regulations and road rules vary slightly from state to state.

Australia’s low population density and large size makes for long driving times between major centres. Some indicative travel times, not including any rest periods, are:

• Melbourne to Sydney: 9-10 hours (900km / 560 mi)
• Brisbane to Sydney: 12-13 hours (1,000km / 621 mi)
• Perth to Sydney: 45 hours (4,000km / 2500 mi)
• Sydney to Canberra: 3.5 hours (300km / 185 mi)
• Adelaide to Melbourne: 8-10 hours (750km / 465 mi)
• Brisbane to Melbourne: 19-20 hours (1,700km / 1056 mi)
• Melbourne to Perth: 40 hours (3,500km / 2175 mi)
• Perth to Adelaide: 32 hours (2,700km / 1677 mi)
• Brisbane to Cairns: 22-24 hours (1,700km / 1,056 mi)

It is almost impossible to predict your travel time just by knowing the distance. Seek local advice for the best route, and how much time to allow. Averaging 100km/h or more is possible on some relatively minor highways when they are straight and there are few towns. On other national highways that traverse mountain ranges and travel through small towns, even averaging 60km/h can be a challenge.

While major highways are well serviced, anyone leaving sealed (paved) roads in inland Australia is advised to take advice from local authorities, check weather and road conditions, carry sufficient spare fuel, spare parts, spare tyres, matches, food and water. Some remote roads might see one car per month or less. Cellular coverage is non-existent outside of major highways and towns and you should take some precautions in case of emergency. It is a good idea to advise a person you know and trust of your route and advise them to alert authorities if you do not contact them within a reasonable amount of time after your scheduled arrival at your destination. Carrying a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) or satellite phone should be considered when travelling in remote areas, especially where you may not be able to make contact for several days. Police will not automatically start looking for you if you don’t report in. Make sure you get one with a GPS built in. These can be borrowed from some local police stations, such as those in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. If you want to hire one, sort it out before you leave a major city, as you won’t find hire places in small towns. Expect to pay around $100 to hire for a week, or $700 to buy one. Don’t expect an immediate rescue even if you trigger a PLB. Heat and dehydration at any time of year can kill you. If stranded, stay with your vehicle and do what you can to improve your visibility from the air. Do not take this advice lightly; even local people die out there when their car breaks down and they are not reported missing. If you do have to abandon your car (say you break down and then get a lift), call in quickly to the local police station, to avoid the embarrassment and cost of a search being started for you.

Car rental

Major cities around Australia have multiple outlets providing a wide range of rental vehicles from major international rental companies. In smaller towns car rental can be difficult to find. One way fees often apply from smaller regional outlets.

• Redspot

• Avis

• Aries

• Hertz

• Budget

• Europcar.

• Thrifty.

• No Birds.

Camper vans

• Cruisin Motorhomes

• Apollo

• AusVenture

• Britz

• Maui

Budget car and camper rentals

Catering to the vast number of young European and American backpackers traversing the country are several low-budget car rental companies which rent cars and campers of varying quality. Prices range from as low as $30 per day. Check the extra charges very carefully and make sure that you don’t end up paying the same or more for a lesser quality vehicle.

• Camperjourney.com

• Cut Price Car Rentals

• East Coast Car Rentals

• Hippie Camper

• Jucy Rentals

• Spaceships

• Travellers Auto-Barn

• Campervan Finder

• Travelwheels Campervan Hire Australia

The very cheapest cars you can hire can be manual (stick-shift). Anything larger will usually be automatic.

Car purchase

There is a substantial second hand market in cars and campers for backpackers wishing to do extended road trips around Australia. Take common sense precautions if purchasing a car. Free state government services are available to ensure it is unencumbered by a finance arrangement and that it has not been previously written off as a result of an accident.

See: Driving in Australia

By plane

Due to the large distances involved, flying is well-patronised in Australia. Services along the main business travel corridor (Melbourne-Sydney-Brisbane) are run almost like a bus service, with flights leaving every 15min during the day.

The only way to get the best airfare is to visit each of the airlines pages directly, and compare fares. Never assume that the Qantas fare will be more expensive, as their online deals are often the cheapest available on a route. The best fares are always available on the most competitive routes. Consolidator websites and travel agents almost invariably add a surcharge to the direct booking price. Use them to compare, but always check the airline website before booking.

There are four domestic airlines in Australia that operate jet aircraft linking capital cities and major destinations:

• Qantas, a nation-wide full service airline, flys to major cities and some larger regional towns;
• Virgin Australia, recently upgraded to a full service airline, flys to all capital cities and many larger regional destinations. Virgin have recently offered a complimentary snack on all domestic flights and checked baggage included in even the minimum fare class;
• Jetstar, Qantas’s discount arm with limited service and limited pre-assigned seating. Serves all capital cities and many major regional and tourist destinations.
• Tiger Airways Australia, one of Asia’s largest low cost carrier (LCC) has a hub in Melbourne and flies to all other capital cities and select destinations with very competitive prices. On 2 July 2011 Tiger Airways Australia was suspended from flying by Australian civil aviation authorities due to safety concerns. Tiger recommenced operations on 12 August 1511 but with a much reduced schedule and a smaller operational aircraft fleet.

Several airlines service regional destinations. Expect discounts on these airlines to be harder to come by, and for standard airfares to be above what you would pay for the same distance between major centres.

• Qantaslink, the regional arm of Qantas, covering the smaller cities in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia;
• Regional Express, covering larger towns & cities on the eastern seaboard as well as country South Australia;
• Skywest , covering regional Western Australia, Bali and Darwin;
• Airnorth , covering the Northern Territory;
• Skytrans Airlines , covering regional Queensland.
• Sharp Airlines , covering several regional towns in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia.
• Northern Territory Air Services, covering the remote communities of central Australia.

By train

The Ghan at the Broken Hill railway station.

Visitors from countries with well-developed long distance rail systems such as Europe and Japan may be surprised by the lack of high-speed, inter-city rail services in Australia. A historical lack of cooperation between the states, combined with sheer distances and a relatively small population to service, have left Australia with a national rail network that is relatively slow and used mainly for freight. As a result, travel between major cities will not only be faster by air, but often cheaper as well. Train travel between cities is, however, more scenic, and tourists are likely to see more of Australia travelling by train than they would otherwise see, as well as cutting down on their carbon footprint. It is also often a cost effective way of getting to regional towns and cities, which don’t have the frequent and cheap flights found between the capital cities.

Occasionally rail fares may be far cheaper than air fares for holders of ISIC cards and other internationally recognised concessions (especially on NSW TrainLink and V/Line services), however it is best to weigh up whether the saving is worth the long journey time.

The long-distance rail services that do exist are mainly used to link regional townships with the state capital, such as Bendigo to Melbourne, or Cairns to Brisbane. In Queensland, a high speed train operates from Brisbane to Rockhampton and Brisbane to Cairns. Queensland also has passenger services to inland centres including Longreach (The Spirit of the Outback), Mount Isa (The Inlander), Charleville (The Westlander) and Forsayth (The Savannahlander). There are also inter-city train services operated by Great Southern Railways on the routes Melbourne-Adelaide (The Overland), Sydney-Adelaide-Perth (Indian Pacific), Adelaide-Alice Springs-Darwin (The Ghan) however as noted above, these are not “high speed” services, so if you do not enjoy train travel as part of your holiday in its own right then this is probably not for you.

Tasmania has no passenger rail services. The Northern Territory has the rail line linking Darwin to Adelaide through Alice Springs only, and the Australian Capital Territory has only a single railway station close to the centre of Canberra.

Long distance train operators

• Great Southern Rail . – A private train operator running tourist train services, The Ghan, The Indian Pacific and The Overland between Sydney, Broken Hill, Adelaide, Alice Springs, Darwin, Perth and Melbourne.
• NSW TrainLink – Links Sydney to Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra, and regional connections to most New South Wales towns, including Dubbo, Coffs Harbour, and Wagga Wagga.
• V/Line – Train & coach services in Victoria, including combined Train and Coach services between Melbourne and Adelaide, Melbourne and Canberra.
• Queensland Rail Travel  – Long distance passenger train services in Queensland
• The Savannahlander – A private Queensland train service that links Cairns with the outback town of Forsayth, using old heritage trains, and providing overnight accommodation and tours on the way.
• Transwa – State government run, operating train services to Kalgoorlie and Bunbury. Also operates coach services to the southern half of the state, especially the South West.

Rail passes

There is no pass that includes all train travel throughout Australia. However, if you are a train buff that intends travelling extensively by rail, there are some passes that may save you money. Plan your trip carefully before investing in a rail pass. Country train services are infrequent and can arrive at regional destinations at unsociable hours.

• NSW TrainLink Discovery Pass. Get on and off as many times as you like on the NSW TrainLink trains between Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Broken Hill, Dubbo, Griffith and Canberra, using the NSW TrainLink services. Different prices apply depending on which fare type applies to you and the duration of the pass you decide to purchase. NSW TrainLink coach connections to local towns are included. This ticket is available to everyone, including international visitors. You’ll want to be breaking your journey between capital cities several times to get value from this pass.

• Queensland Explorer Pass . The Queensland Explorer Pass offers unlimited travel for one or two months across the Queensland Rail Travel network. See every corner of Queensland; from Cairns in the north, to Brisbane in the south and the Queensland Outback that extends to Charleville, Longreach and Mount Isa. Only international visitors can purchase the pass. The price depends on the duration of the pass.

Local public transport

Sydney Trains

Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Wollongong and Newcastle have train and bus services integrated into the city public transport, with trams also running in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and the Gold Coast and ferries in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Newcastle. The remaining capital cities have bus services only. See those city guides articles for public transport details. Sydney has a subway system known as Sydney Metro that is currently under construction.

Some regional cities and towns have local bus services, but see the destination guides for service information, as frequency can be poor and weekend and evening services non-existent.

Larger towns and cities have taxi services.

By motorail

Some trains allow you to carry your car with you on special car carriages attached to the back of the train.

The Ghan and the Indian Pacific allow you to transport cars between Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Alice Springs, Perth, and Darwin. You cannot remove your car at any of the intermediate stations.

Queensland Rail have discontinued their motorail service.

By bus

Bus travel in Australia is cheap and convenient, although the distances involved can be daunting. Greyhound has the largest bus route network.

• Firefly Express, ☎ 1300 730 740 (+61 3 8318-0318 – international callers, [email protected]),. Firefly Express has services connecting Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.

• Greyhound, ☎ 1300 473 946 ([email protected]),. Greyhound travels to over 1100 destinations in Australia daily every day of the year. It has a variety of ticketing options allow you to travel at your own pace, hopping on and off as many times as your ticket allows.

• Murrays, ☎ 13 22 51 ([email protected]),. Murrays has services connecting Canberra with Sydney, the NSW South Coast and snowfields.  

• Australia Wide Coaches, ☎ 02 9516 1300 ([email protected]),. Australia Wide Coaches run daily services connecting Sydney with, the NSW South Coast and beyond. 

By boat

Many major Australian cities have ferries as part of their public transport system. Some smaller roads in the regional areas still have punts to carry cars across rivers and canals. The islands of the Barrier Reef have some scheduled services, and there are a few cruises that cross the top of Australia as well.

However, large inter city transportation ferry services are not common.

• The Spirit of Tasmania. The only long distance ferry route connects Tasmania to the mainland and runs between Melbourne and Devonport. The Spirit of Tasmania carries cars and passengers on the route across Bass Strait daily.

• Sealink connects Kangaroo Island, Australia’s second largest southern island with regular car and passenger ferries.

• Sea SA offers a short cut across the Spencer Gulf between Adelaide and the Eyre Peninsula, running daily car ferry services.

By thumb

It is legal to hitchhike in some states in Australia, so long as certain guidelines are followed. However, it is less commonly done than in neighbouring Auckland. In Australia hitchhiking is often frowned upon by locals and police, especially in metropolitan areas.

Hitch hiking is illegal in Victoria and Queensland. It is also illegal to stand on the verge or walk along freeways (often called “motorways” in New South Wales) in all states (effectively making hitchhiking illegal in many practical places, in all states).

If forced to hitchhike due to an emergency you may find a motorist willing to take you to the nearest town to obtain help. (Some major inter-city highways and freeways have telephones to request help.)

It’s most common to see a tourist hitching in rural areas. The best time to hitchhike is early morning. The best location is near, but not on, the main exit from the town you are in.

By bicycle

Cycling the long distances between towns is not particularly common, and most long distance highways in Australia have poorly developed facilities for cyclists. Nevertheless some intrepid travellers do manage to cover the longer distances by bicycle, and have a different experience of Australia. Trips and routes need careful planning to ensure the correct supplies are carried. To cycle between Sydney and Brisbane you would have to allow 2-3 weeks with around 80-100km per day.

See

There is much to see in Australia that you can’t see easily in its natural setting anywhere else:

Wildlife

Koala

Australian flora and fauna is unique to the island, the result of having been isolated from the rest of the world for millions of years. Amongst Australian animals are a large group of marsupials (mammals with a pouch) and monotremes (mammals that lay eggs). Just some of the animal icons of Australia are the kangaroo (national symbol) and the koala. A visit to Australia would not be complete without taking the chance to see some of these animals in their natural environment.

Wildlife parks and zoos

• Wildlife parks and zoos are in every capital city, but also check out the animal parks if you are passing through smaller towns, like Mildura or Mogo, or staying on Hamilton Island. See the Warrawong Fauna Sanctuary if you are in South Australia, or visit the koalas with best view in the world, at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.

In the wild

Kangaroos in Australia

• Kangaroos and wallabies reside in national parks all around the country. You won’t see any kangaroos hopping down the street in Central Sydney, but they are common on the outskirts of most urban areas. There is also a famous group which make their home on the of grounds of the University of the Sunshine Coast, in Queensland.
• Wombats and echidna are also common, but harder to find due to their camouflage and tunnelling. See lots of echidnas on Kangaroo Island.
• Koalas are present in forests around Australia, but are very notoriously hard to spot, and walking around looking upwards into the boughs of trees will usually send you sprawling over a tree root. Best seen during the day, there is a thriving and friendly population on Raymond Island near Paynesville in Victoria. You have a good chance on Otway Coast, on the Great Ocean Road, or even in the National Park walk near Noosa on the Sunshine Coast.
• Emu are more common in central Australia. You will certainly see some if you venture to the outback national park at Currawinya
• Platypus are found in reedy flowing creeks with soft river banks in Victoria, Southern New South Wales, and the very southern region of Queensland – seen at dusk and dawn – you have to have a bit of luck to see one. Try the platypus reserves in Bombala or Delegate in New South Wales, or in Emu Creek at Skipton just out of Ballarat.
• Australia has an extremely diverse range of bird life.
  • Cockatoos are a family of birds that can be found across the continent, including in major cities. The iconic sulphur-crested cockatoo is a very common sight even in inner Sydney, as are galahs and corellas. Wild cockatiels are uncommon and limited to certain rural areas. Easily observed early in the morning or in the evening.
  • Australian Magpies can be found across the continent, and are especially common in suburban areas, but watch out for swooping!
  • Kookaburras are another iconic species found are not quite as common, but still quite prevalent, particularly on and around the Great Dividing Range.
  • Emus are much less common, and will typically be observed as a distant cloud of dust while driving on highways in inland rural areas.

Landmarks

Australia has many landmarks, famous the world over. From Uluru in the red centre, to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House in Sydney.

The unusual

See some of the Big things in Australia.

Sports

Sport is an integral part of the Australian culture from the capital cities to country towns. The majority of games are played over the weekend period (from Friday night to Monday night).

• In the winter in Victoria Aussie Rules (Australian Rules Football) is more than just a sport, it is a way of life. Catch a game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The Australian Football League is a national competition with teams from Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, and the Gold Coast, but roughly half of the teams (and hence, most of the matches) are Melbourne-based.

• In summer, international cricket is played between Australia and at least two touring sides. The games rotate around all the capital cities. To experience the traditional game catch a day of the New Year’s test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground, usually beginning on January 2nd, or the Boxing Day Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Whilst ‘test matches’ last for up to five days, many spectators attend just one day, or watch from the comfort of their own home. For a more lively and entertaining form more suited to those unfamiliar with the sport, try a Twenty20 match, which only takes a few hours. Only a handful of international T20 matches are played each year, with no more than one per city, but the domestic Big Bash League runs throughout the summer, providing more frequent spectating opportunities. A third form is “One Day” Cricket, with international matches generally starting at 13:00 and finishing at 22:00 or 23:00 (a “Day-Nighter”), with most domestic and occasional international matches played from 11:00 to 18:00. The Australia Day One Day International is usually held in Adelaide on 26 January.

• The Australian Open, one of the tennis Grand Slams, is played annually in Melbourne. Or the Medibank International in Sydney Olympic Park in January.

• Catch a rugby union Super Rugby game, with teams playing from Australia, Auckland and South Africa in Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney during late Summer/Autumn. The Australian national team, the Wallabies, also host international teams during winter, including Auckland, South Africa and (starting in 2012) Argentina for The Rugby Championship (formerly the Tri Nations tournament).

• Rugby League is the dominant winter sport in New South Wales and Queensland. The National Rugby League (NRL) competition includes teams from Melbourne in Victoria, Brisbane, North Queensland and the Gold Coast in Queensland, a team from Auckland, with the rest of the teams coming from suburban areas in Sydney, and some in regional areas of New South Wales such as Newcastle and Canberra. Aside from the NRL Grand Final, Rugby League’s centrepiece is an annual series of three ‘State of Origin’ games played between New South Wales and Queensland.

• Netball is Australia’s largest female sport, and there are weekly games in an international competition between Australia and Auckland teams.

• Football (Soccer) is a small event by European standards, but there is a national A-League, which is a fully professional league involving teams from Australia and one from Auckland, with games played weekly during the summer. Most cities have a semi-professional “state league” played during winter, with most clubs being built around a specific ethnic/migrant community.

• Melbourne also hosts the Formula One Australian Grand Prix, which is run once a year. The 2013 race will take place between the 14th and 17th of March, with the main race on the 17th.

• Horse Racing – All major cities and most regional towns have their own courses and race betting is popular throughout the country. The annual Melbourne Cup is possibly the best known meet when most Victorians take a day off work to celebrate or attend. It is common to see some of the country’s top celebrities dressed in their finest in the stands.

Itineraries

• Gibb River Road
• Gunbarrel Highway
• Oodnadatta Track
• Stuart Highway: crossing Australia north-south

Do

Australia is known for having some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

• Family Days Out,. Fun things for to do with the kids in Australia.  

Swim

• in the surf. Australia has seemingly endless sandy beaches. Follow the crowds to the world famous Bondi Beach in Sydney, or Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast. Or find a stretch all for yourself (but beware of dangerous rips on beaches, it is considerably safer to find a patrolled beach). The surf is smaller and warmer in the Tropical North, where the reef breaks the swell, and larger and colder in the south with waves rolling in from the Southern Ocean. (And yes, in the middle it is just right).
• in calm tropical oceans. Cable Beach in Broome is swept pristine daily by the tide, has perfect sand, and warm water – go in winter.
• in thermal pools. South of Darwin there are many natural thermal pools such as Berry Springs & Mataranka, surrounded by palms and tropical foliage.

• in freshwater lakes. Inland Australia tends to be dry, but there are freshwater lakes where you would least expect them. Explore inland of Cairns at the Atherton Tablelands, or head outback to the Currawinya National Park.
• in rivers. If its hot, and there is water, there will be a place to swim. Wherever you are, just ask around for the favourite swimming spot, with a waterhole and rope to swing on. Watch out for crocodiles.
• in man-made pools. The local swimming pool is often the hub of community life on a summer Sunday in the country towns of New South Wales and Victoria. Many of the beachside suburbs of Sydney have man made rock pools for swimming by the ocean beaches.
• on the beach! Find your spot by the water, and get out the towel. Tropical north in the winter, down south in the summer. As always when in Australia, protect yourself from the sun.

Diving

• Snorkelling take a trip out to the Great Barrier Reef on the Queensland coast, or the Ningaloo Reef off the coast of Western Australia. Or take a trip out to Julian rocks off Byron Bay, or just dive in off the beach to see the tropical fish in Bundaberg.
• Scuba Diving

Activities

• Bushwalking is a popular Australian activity. You can go bushwalking in the many National parks and Rainforests in the country.

• Golf

• Rock Climbing

• Mountain Biking. Try the trails in the Snowy Mountains or black mountain in Canberra, or cycle for days along the Munda Biddi Mountain Bike trail in Western Australia.

• Horse Riding . The horse has a rich tradition in the settlement of Australia since the arrival of the first European settlers. Relying on the horse to travel the vast distances and harsh environments of Australia was the foundation of a strong and lasting relationship between Australians and their horses. Today horse riding in Australia includes many recreational and occupational activities from cattle musters on vast stations, to the multi-million dollar racing industry. On the outskirts of towns and cities and out in the rural landscape, you will see the many pony paddocks and much loved horses that are a testament to the ongoing passion and commitment Australian horse owners have to their horses and the enjoyment they bring.

• Water Activities Australia has many beautiful locations for kayaking or other water activities. See manlykayakcentre.com.au to book a kayak tour, SUP lesson, Paradise Picnic, or SUPBALL game in Sydney, Australia

• Skiing. New South Wales and Victoria have well developed ski facilities. Tasmania can also have skiing for a few months of the year, given the right weather. See Winter sports in Australia

• Sky Diving, all around Australia

• Hot Air Ballooning, in Canberra, Brisbane or in the Red Centre.

Gamble

It has been said that if there are two flies crawling up a wall, then you just need to look around to find the Aussie who will be running a book.

• Casinos. Crown Casino in Melbourne is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere, nicely located at Southbank, but there are others scattered in every capital city as well as Cairns, Launceston, the Gold Coast and Townsville.
• Day at the races. All capital cities have horse racing every weekend, with on-track and off-track betting available, they are usually family occasions, and fashion and being seen are part of the event. Just about every pub in New South Wales will have a TAB, where you can place a bet without leaving your chair at the bar. Greyhound racing and trotting happens in the evenings, usually with smaller crowds, more beer, and less fashion. Smaller country towns have race meetings every few months or even annually. These are real events for the local communities, and see the smaller towns come to life. Head outback to the Birdsville races, or if you find the streets deserted it is probably ten past three on the first Tuesday in November (the running of the Melbourne cup).
• The unusual. The lizard races, cane toad races, camel races, crab races. Betting on these races is totally illegal, and at you will find the TIB (Totally Illegal Betting) around the back of the shed at the annual guinea pig races at Grenfell.
• Two up. If you are around for Anzac Day (25 April), then betting on coins thrown into the air will be happening at your local RSL club, wherever you are.
• Australia has almost a quarter of all the slot machines (locally known as “pokies” or “poker machines”) in the world, and more than half of these are located in New South Wales, where most pubs and clubs have gaming rooms (labelled “VIP lounges” for legal reasons) where one can “have a slap” and go for the feature.
• If none of this appeals, and you just have too much money in your pocket, every town and suburb in Australia has a TAB. Pick your sport, pick a winner, and hand over your money at the counter.

Gambling is illegal for under-18’s. This can often restrict entry to parts of pubs, clubs, and casinos for children.

Talk

Expect everyone you interact with in Australia to be able to speak English, whether it is their first language or not. Locals and more recent arrivals of all ages and backgrounds are expected to and usually do speak at least basic English, as well as the majority of tourists. As Australia is a multicultural society, you will notice the presence of many other languages and accents. Australians who were born in Australia or immigrated as children will speak English with the Australian accent. Australians who immigrated to Australia as adults generally will not have the Australian accent. The Australian accent has very little if not any geographic variation; although Australians sometimes have their own theories about geographical accents; for example Adelaide, Melbourne and North Queensland “accents”. In reality however, the Broad, General and Cultivated Australian accents which linguists accept all exist, can be found anywhere in Australia. Anywhere in the country you will find some people speak slower with broader accents and use more slang; often associated with regional areas, whilst many more Australians will have the General Australian accent; often associated with major urban areas, or the less common Cultivated accent: often associated with the highly educated, the latter two are both often easier to understand for visitors than the Broad accent. Australia is traditionally a land of immigrants, plus there are many people from all over the world working or studying in Australia, plus many tourists from overaeas. Because of this, Australians are very used to speaking with others whos first language is not English or who are not used to hearing the Australian accent. They will speak slower and clearer with you and avoid any local vocabulary. It is also worth noting many Australians of non-English speaking family backgrounds will generally always prefer to speak English with people outside their family. Even if they speak your language fluently at home or grew up with that language inside their home they will often pretend they cannot speak it with a visitor from that country.

Australian slang should not present a problem for tourists except possibly in some isolated outback areas. A few words and euphemisms that are considered offensive elsewhere are common vernacular in Australian speech. Fanny, as in the UK, means vagina and is not used widely. The word “thong” generally refers to flip-flops in Australia, and not necessarily a G-string as it does in most other places. Still, Australians are familiar enough with the differences to know what you mean, but they may still have a laugh at your expense.

Visitors who do not speak basic English will find communicating with Australians difficult, and should do some advance planning. There are some tour companies who specialise in offering package deals for Australian tours complete with guides who speak particular languages.

There are over a hundred Aboriginal languages still known and spoken by Aboriginal people. These languages are all different, and you won’t see an Aboriginal phrasebook in the travel bookshops. Many Aboriginal place names derive from Aboriginal languages that have been lost, and their meanings remain uncertain. Aboriginal people living in rural Aboriginal communities continue to speak their respective languages. The Torres Strait Islander people, who originate from a group of islands in northern Queensland near Papua New Guinea also continue to speak their own languages. Almost all Aboriginal people speak English as well, although some elders may not be fluent.

The standard sign language in Australia is Auslan (a contraction of “Australian Sign Language”), a member of the British Sign Language (BSL) family. Another closely related language is Auckland Sign Language (NZSL). When interpreters are present for public events, they will use Auslan. Users of BSL or NZSL may be able to understand Auslan; the languages share a significant amount of vocabulary and syntax, plus the same two-handed manual alphabet. By contrast, users of languages in the French Sign Language family, which includes American Sign Language and Irish Sign Language, will not be able to understand Auslan. Much of the vocabulary and syntax are different, and those languages use a one-handed manual alphabet.

Buy

Currency

Australia uses the Australian dollar (AUD) and the currency is symbolised locally as “$”. There are 100 cents in every dollar.

No other currency is officially accepted for transactions in Australia. (Although it was not unusual to find some of the older Auckland coins in your change from time to time, it is now practically unheard of since Auckland completely overhauled and resized its coinage. It no longer matches the size of Australian coins.)

The coin denominations are 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1 and $2. The Australian coins are large and heavy relative to their value. For example, the Australian ten cent coin is the size of a US 25 cent coin and the Australian fifty cent coin is among the largest circulating coins anywhere in the world by size. The note denominations are $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100. Australian notes are produced in plastic polymer rather than paper. If the total of a transaction is not a multiple of 5 cents the amount will be rounded to the nearest five cents if you are paying in cash. The exact amount will be charged if paying by card. Old paper notes or bronze 1c and 2c coins will be exchanged at a bank but will be difficult at shops.

The dollar is not pegged to any other currency, and is highly traded on world foreign exchange markets, particularly by currency speculators. Its exchange value to other currencies can be quite volatile, and 1-2% changes in a day are a reasonably common occurrences.

Money changers in Australia operate in a free market, and charge a range of flat commissions, percentage fees, undisclosed fees built into the exchange rate, and a combination of all three. Generally the best bet is to avoid airports and tourist centres when changing money, and use banks in major centres. Expect fees to vary considerably between institutions. Always get a quote before changing money.

When arriving in Australia with more than AUD$10,000 in any currency you must declare it to customs on the arrival card and complete paperwork you will be provided.

Cash

Cash dispensing Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) are available in almost every Australian town. Australian ATMs are deregulated and may impose a surcharge over what is charged by your bank or card issuer. The fees can vary between institutions and between locations, but are usually around $2. The ATM will display the charges and you will have the option to stop the transaction before you are charged. Check with your bank as to what additional fees they apply to withdrawals in Australia.

Dedicated currency exchange outlets are widely available in major cities, and banks can also exchange most non-restricted currencies. These exchange outlets – especially the ones at the airport – can charge 10% over the best exchange that can be obtained from shopping around. Australian banks usually offer an exchange rate around 2.5% from the current exchange midpoint. A flat commission of $5-8 can be charged on top. Some outlets advertise commission free exchange, usually accompanied by a worse rate of exchange. Don’t assume every bank will offer the same exchange. A simple calculation will let you know what offers the best deal for amount you wish to exchange. There are vouchers for commission free exchange at American Express available in the tourist brochure at Sydney Airport.

There is also no need to arrive in Australia with cash if you have a Cirrus, Maestro, MasterCard or Visa card: international airport terminals will have multiple teller machines that can dispense Australian currency with just the fees imposed by your bank plus the ATM fee.

Credit cards

Credit cards are widely accepted in Australia. Almost all large vendors such as supermarkets accept cards, as do many, but not all, small stores. Australian debit cards can also be used via a system known as EFTPOS. Any card showing the Cirrus or Maestro logos can be used at any terminal displaying those logos. The use of credit or debit cards for transactions under about $5.00 is generally discouraged, and some stores may even have a minimum purchase amount to use a credit or debit card. Note that the term EFTPOS is often used to mean cards of any kind – so a sign in a shop indicating an “EFTPOS minimum” refers to credit and debit cards of any kind.

VISA or MasterCard are commonly accepted and are both accepted everywhere credit cards are accepted. American Express and Diners Club are accepted at major supermarket and department store chains and many tourist destinations. JCB is only accepted at very limited tourist destinations. Discover is never accepted for internet-based payments, but if your card also carries the Diners Club logo, it will work at any physical store that accepts Diners Club.

Travelex sells prepaid Australian dollars credit/debit cards at airport locations with a 1% commission off what you load onto it. The big advantage here is you can bring Australian cash acquired at home through proper exchange channels and turn it into plastic with no exchange fees and minimal service charges without need for exchanging currency at the airport or carrying large amounts of cash everywhere. Excellent for security and you can get two cards with different numbers drawing from the same loaded money, allowing any two people to share a card on the same account. Other prepaid Australian dollar stored value cards bearing MasterCard or Visa emblems are available at larger post offices or grocery stores. Read terms and conditions closely, some can refund unused balances but only to an Australian bank account. Others you just have to spend it all in Australia or abroad. Travelex will refund unused balances for cash at airport locations for a $10.00 fee. Be careful using these cards for car hire. Agencies generally accept only cards with raised print for car hires and the name of the renter on it (prepaids do not have this). Even if you hire the car with a foreign card but settle the bill on return with a prepaid they often will not accept it, even with the other card as a backup. You will have to settle using the foreign card most of the time. Sometimes they don’t pay attention and you get away with it but don’t plan on it. Elsewhere these cards work everywhere MasterCard/Visa are accepted without incident.

Credit card surcharges are imposed at all car rental agencies, travel agents, airlines, and at some discount retailers and service stations. Surcharges are far more common for American Express and Diners Club (typically 2%-4%) than they are for VISA and Mastercard (typically 1.5%).

Costs

Dorm accommodation in a capital city is around $30, but can run as low as $15 in Cairns or cheaper backpacker centres. A basic motel in the country or in the capital city suburbs would cost around $100 for a double. City Centre hotel accommodation in capital cities can be obtained for around $150 upwards for a double. Formule 1/Motel 6 style hotels (which are not common) can be around $60-$90 for a double.

Car hire will cost around $65 a day. Public transport day passes from $10-20 per day depending on the city. Petrol is approximately 33% more expensive than the US, 10% more than Canada, and about 40% cheaper than Europe…. but can be even more expensive in remote areas where choices are few and the vendors more than a little enterprising to reflect additional delivery costs.

A cafe meal costs around $10-$15, and a main course in a restaurant goes from around $17 upwards.

A basic takeaway meal – a burger, fancy sandwich, or couple of slices of pizza would cost $5-10, a Big Mac costs $5.50, and you can usually grab a pie for around $4.50, or a sausage roll for $3.50. A takeaway pizza from Pizza Hut big enough to feed two costs around $10.

A middy/pot (285mL) of house beer will cost you around $6, and a glass of house wine around $6 in a low end pub. To take away, a case of 24 cans of beer will cost around $40, or a bottle of wine around $8. A pack of Marlboro Cigarettes goes for over $25 and is rising.

A standard 500ml bottle of soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola or Pepsi will cost around $3.00 in a large grocery store, $4.20 at a corner convenience store (called milk bars) or $5.20 or more at outback roadhouses. Cans run around $1.00 or more if bought in the 24 pack at grocery store. Bottled water isn’t much cheaper. You can make yourself feel better about it by buying brands that are not available in foreign countries, such as the delicious Kirk’s Dry Ginger Ale. Some American brands are not available. Ordinary coffee takeaway such as from a petrol station will run around $4.00 but usually comes with a biscuit too.

An airfare between neighbouring eastern capitals is around $120 each way but can get as low as $60 if you book at the right time, or around $350 to cross the country assuming that you are flexible with dates and book in advance. A train trip on the state run trains will usually cost slightly less. A bus trip, a little less again. A train trip on the private trains will be the most expensive way to travel.

There is usually no admission charge to beaches or city parks. Some popular National Parks charge between $10-20 per day (per car, or per person depending on the state) while more out of the way National Parks are free. Art Galleries and some attractions are free. Museums generally charge around $10 per admission. Theme parks charge around $70 per person.

Because of Australia’s high wages and taxes compared to other countries such the USA, you will find prices of things involving service such as restaurants especially high by comparison. A rule of thumb is the restaurants will cost close to double what you would expect of the same thing in the USA, and that holds for beverages also.

Haggling

Bargaining is uncommon in Australian stores, though vendors are usually willing to meet or beat a quote or advertised price from a competing retailer. It’s also worth asking for a “best price” for high-value goods or purchases involving several items. For example, it would not be unusual to get 10% off an item of jewelry that was not already reduced in price. The person you are dealing with may have limited authority to sell items at anything other than the marked price.

Tipping

Tipping is never compulsory and is usually not expected in Australia. Staff are seen to be paid an appropriate wage and will certainly not chase you down for a tip. It is acceptable to pay the amount stated on the bill. When Australians do tip, it will often be in the form of leaving the change from a cash payment (usually as a convenience so the change does not hang around loose on someone’s person – not as a gratuity), rather than a fixed percentage.

In a suburban or country restaurant where table service is offered, they will certainly take a tip of 5%-10% should you decide to leave one, but it is almost always not expected, and locals usually do not leave any. In a cafe or more informal restaurant, even with table service, and even in tourist centres, leaving a tip is unusual. Sometimes there is a coin jar by the cashier labelled ‘Tips’, but more often than not, diners do not leave one.

Tipping is also not expected in taxis, and drivers will typically return your change to the last 5 cents, unless you indicate that they should round the fare to the nearest dollar (it is not unusual for passengers to instruct the driver to round up to the next whole dollar).

Trading hours

Australia’s base trading hours are Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM. Shops usually have a single night of late night trading, staying open until 9PM on Fridays in most cities and on Thursdays in Brisbane and Sydney. Sunday trading is common but does not exist in all rural areas. Opening hours beyond these base hours vary by the type of store, by location, and by state. See the guides for more local information.

Major supermarket chains such as Coles and Woolworths and department stores like K-Mart and Target in main centres are generally open at least until 9pm. Smaller convenience stores like 7/11 are open 24 hours in major centres. Fast Food restaurant chains are commonly open 24 hours or at least very late.

Fuel/Service stations are open 24 hours in major centres, but often close at 6pm and on Sundays in country towns. Even in cities with populations exceeding 50,000 finding a 24 hour petrol station can be difficult, or at least should not be assumed to be easily found. Make sure to locate one in advance if you have an early morning flight with a rental car to return.

Australia’s weekend is on Saturday and Sunday of each week. Retail trading is now almost universal in larger cities on weekends, although with slightly reduced hours. Again, Western Australia is an exception with restrictions on large stores opening on Sundays. In smaller country towns shops are closed on Sundays and often also on Saturday afternoons.

Tourist-oriented towns and shops may stay open longer hours. Tourist areas within cities, such as Darling Harbour in Sydney has longer trading hours every night.

Australian banks are open Monday-Friday 09:00-16:00 only, often closing at 17:00 on Fridays. Cash is available through Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) 24 hours, and currency exchange outlets have extended hours and are open on weekends.

Tax

Australia has a sales tax known as the Goods and Services Tax or GST that applies to all goods and services except unprocessed foods, education and medical services. GST is always included in the price of any item you purchase rather than being added at the time of payment.

Receipts (tax invoices) will contain the GST amount, which is one eleventh of the total value of taxable supplies.

Sales tax refunds

If you buy items over $300 at one place within 60 days of departing the country, you can obtain a refund of the GST upon leaving Australia. As of April 2013 the items can be purchased in separate transactions, as long as the total comes to over $300 and they are all from the same store. Pack the items in hand luggage, and present the item(s) and the receipt at the TRS, after immigration and security when leaving Australia. Also allow an extra 15 minutes before departure. The refund payment can be made by either cheque, credit to an Australian bank account, or payment to a credit card. There is no refund available for services. You also cannot get a refund if you are too close to your flight departure time. A flight departure screen assists agents and they will refuse your transaction if your flight is on it. Check for current regulations about buffer time for flights if you want a GST refund.

Eat

Places to eat

Breakfast in Prahran

• Restaurants, Australians eat out frequently, and you will usually find one or two options to eat out even in small towns, with a wider range in larger towns and cities.
• BYO restaurants, BYO stands for Bring Your Own (alcohol). In many of the urban communities of Australia you will find small low-cost restaurants that are not licensed to serve but allow diners to bring their own bottle of wine purchased elsewhere. This is frequently much cheaper than ordering a bottle of wine in a restaurant. Beer can be taken to some BYO restaurants, others allow only wine. Expect to pay a corkage fee which can vary from $2-15, or may be calculated by head. BYO is not usually permitted in restaurants that are licensed to sell alcohol.
• Pubs, the counter lunch or pub meal is the name for a lunch served in the bar of a pub. Traditionally served only at lunchtime in the lounge. Today most pubs provide lunch and dinner and many have a separate bistro or restaurant. Meals of steak, chicken parmigiana, fish and chips, or nachos are common.

• Clubs, clubs, such as bowling clubs, leagues clubs, RSLs are in many towns and cities. They are most common in the states of Queensland and New South Wales. Most allow visitors, and sometimes offer good value meals. Some offer attractive locations, like the water views from the Twin Towns in Tweed Heads.

• Cafes, most towns and suburbs have a cafe or coffee shop, serving breakfast and light meals and cakes throughout the day. Not unusual for them to close before dinner.

• Bakeries, usually a good place to buy bread rolls, a pie or a sausage roll. Some, like the Beechworth bakery, or the bakery in historic Gundagai offer an experience as well.

• Fast food restaurants, McDonalds, Subway and KFC are common. Burger King is known as Hungry Jack’s. Red Rooster is a Australian chain, offering barbecued chicken and other mostly chicken-based items.

• Take-away, milk bars (known as a Deli in SA) or take-away stores usually sell pies, barbecued (rotisserie) chicken, hamburgers, fish and chips, gyros, kebabs. Ubiquitous in every town and suburb.

• Food courts, most shopping centres have a food court, even in country towns.

• Picnic, the Australian climate is usually amenable to getting whatever food you can, and heading to the nearest park, river, lake or beach.

• Barbecue, is a popular Australian pastime and many parks in Australia provide free barbecues for public use. Contrary to the stereotype, Australians rarely “Throw a shrimp on the barbie” (also, in Australia a shrimp is more commonly referred to as a prawn). Steaks, chops, sausages, chicken fillets, fish, kebabs are popularly barbecued.

Native foods

• Kangaroo, if you fancy some, it is commonly available from most supermarkets and butchers shops. Head to the nearest park, and barbecue it until medium rare. Best not to overcook as it may become quite tough. It tastes much like beef. It occasionally makes it onto the menu in restaurants, mostly in tourist areas. Kangaroos aren’t endangered, and kangaroo grazing does far less damage to the sensitive Australian environment than hoofed animals, and far less carbon emissions too. If you are not ready to go vegetarian, kangaroo is the best environmental statement you can make while barbecuing.
• Crocodile, meat from farms in the Northern Territory and Queensland is widely available around the top end, and occasionally elsewhere. At Rockhampton, the beef capital of Australia, you can see the ancient reptile on a farm while munching on a croc burger.
• Emu, yes, you can eat the Australian Coat of Arms. Emu is low in fat, and available in some speciality butchers. Try the Coat of Arms pie in Maleny on the Sunshine Coast.

• Bush tucker, many tours may give you an opportunity to try some bush tucker, the berries, nuts, roots, ants, and grubs from Australia’s native bush. Macadamia nuts are the only native plant to Australia that is grown for food commercially. Taste some of the other bush foods, and you will discover why.

Beyond cuisine

Plate of Tim Tams

The Tim-Tam, is a popular chocolate fudge-filled sandwich of two chocolate biscuits, all dipped in chocolate. You can buy a packet (or two) from any supermarket or convenience store. Tim-Tams are required to perform the Tim-Tam Slam manoeuvre. This requires biting off both ends of the Tim-Tam, then using it as a straw to drink your favourite hot beverage, typically coffee. The hot drink melts the fudge centre and creates an experience hard to describe. Finesse is needed to suck the whole biscuit into your mouth in the microseconds between being fully saturated and dissolving. Although performed by some Australians, the manoeuvre is rarely performed and the Tim-Tam is generally eaten by itself. During summer, Tim-Tams are often stored in the freezer, and eaten ice cold.

Lamington

The lamington is a cube of sponge cake covered in chocolate icing and dipped in desiccated coconut. It’s named after Lord Lamington, who served as Governor of Queensland from 1896 to 1901. The home-baked form can be found at a local Saturday morning market, or you can buy one from a bakery if you are desperate. Avoid at all costs the plastic wrapped varieties sold in supermarkets.

The pavlova is a meringue cake with a cream topping usually decorated with fresh fruit. Served on special occasions, or after a lunchtime barbecue. Often the source of dispute with Aucklandover the original source of the recipe.

ANZAC biscuits are a mix of coconut, oats, flour, sugar and golden syrup. They were reputedly sent by wives and care organisations to world war soldiers in care packages, but the story is likely apocryphal. They are available from bakeries, cafes and supermarkets, and are popular in the lead up to ANZAC day (25 April).

Damper is a traditional soda bread that was baked by drovers and stockmen. It has basic ingredients (flour, water and perhaps salt) and usually cooked in the embers of a fire. It is not routinely available in bakeries and only commonly served to tourists on organised tours. Best eaten with butter and jam or golden syrup as it is dry and bland.

Pie floater

A pie floater is a South Australian dish available around Adelaide. It is a pie inverted in a bowl of thick mushy pea soup. Similar pie variations are sometimes available in other regions.

A Chiko roll is a deep-fried snack inspired by the egg roll or the spring roll. Despite the name, it contains no chicken. Its filling is boned mutton, vegetables, rice, barley, and seasonings. Its shell is thicker than an egg roll, meant to survive handling at football matches. Available anywhere you can buy fish and chips.

Other cuisines

Cuisines widely available in Australia, often prepared by members of the relevant culture, include:

• Chinese, synonymous with the term “takeaway” in the past generations. Many Chinese restaurants still cater to takeaway addicts today, mostly of the Australianized Chinese variety, but major cities have small “Chinatowns” or suburbs with a large number of ethnic Chinese residents, that have excellent restaurants serving authentic Chinese food.

• Thai, as above. Suburban Thai restaurants of indifferent quality are starting to replace the previous generation of Chinese restaurants of indifferent quality, but Australia also has excellent and authentic Thai restaurants.

• Italian, the Italian community is one of the largest ethnic communities of non Anglo-Saxon origin in Australia, and they have contributed greatly to the cafe culture that has flourished across the major cities over the past few decades. Restaurants either serve Italian food that has been adapted to suit Australian tastes, or authentic regional Italian food, with the latter tending to be pricier and in more upmarket surrounds.

• Greek, as above, and especially in Melbourne, which has the largest Greek population outside Greece.

• Lebanese, especially in Sydney.

• Indian, especially North Indian.

• Japanese, including bento takeaway shops and sushi trains.

• Vietnamese, although many are Vietnamese Chinese run and thus provide a more Chinese experience.

• Asian fusion, refers generally to Asian-inspired dishes.

Vegetarian

Eating vegetarian is quite common in Australia and many restaurants offer at least one or two vegetarian dishes. Some will have an entire vegetarian menu section. Vegans may have more difficulty but any restaurant with a large vegetarian menu should offer some flexibility. In large cities you will find a number of vegetarian and vegan restaurants, as well as in the coastal backpacker-friendly towns along the east coast. The market town of Kuranda or the seaside towns of Byron Bay are a vegetarian’s paradise. In other regional areas vegetarians are often poorly catered for, but most towns will have a Chinese restaurant that will provide steamed rice and vegetables. Sydney and Melbourne in particular cater well for vegans and vegetarians with a large number of purely vegetarian restaurants, vegan clothing stores and vegan supermarkets.

Religious diets

People observing halal diets will easily be able to find specialist butchers in the capital cities, and will also find a number of restaurants with appropriate menus and cooking styles. People observing kosher diets can easily find kosher food in suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne that have a high amount of Jews (eg. Caulfield in Melbourne, Bondi in Sydney). In other cities it is very hard to find kosher food, and the little kosher food there is, is usually imported from Melbourne or Sydney, so it is very overpriced. Outside the capital cities, it will be much more difficult to find food prepared in a strict religious manner.

Markets

All of the capital cities and many regional towns in Australia host a “farmer’s market”, which is generally held each week in a designated area on a Saturday or Sunday. These markets mostly sell fresh fruits and vegetables, as hygiene standards in Australia forbid the selling of meat directly from market stalls. Butchers who set up shop at a farmer’s market would usually trade their wares from a display cabinet within their truck. The attraction of markets is the lower prices and freshness of the produce. The attraction for the traveller will be the cheap and excellent fruits on offer – depending on the region and season. In regional areas the market is usually held outside the town itself in an empty paddock or sports field, markets in capital cities are easier to reach but the prices are typically more in line with those you would find in supermarkets. See the destination guides for details.

Drink

Varieties

Beer

Drinking beer is ingrained in Australian culture. Although Fosters is promoted as an Australian beer overseas, it is rarely consumed by Australians in Australia, and is almost impossible to find. Beers are strongly regional and every state has its own brews: Coopers and West End in South Australia, Carlton and VB in Victoria, Tooheys in NSW, XXXX in Queensland, Boags and Cascade in Tasmania, and Swan in Western Australia. There are also local microbrew choices, which can be harder to find, but are often worth seeking out. A wide range of imported European and American bottled beers are available in all but the most basic pub.

Light (Lite) beer refers to lower alcoholic content, and not lower calories. It has around half the alcohol of full strength beer, and is taxed at a lower rate, meaning it is also cheaper than full strength beer.

Because Australians like their beer to stay cold while they drink it, draft beer glasses come in a multitude of sizes, so that you can drink a whole glass before it warms up in the summer heat. The naming of beer glasses varies widely from state to state, often in confusing ways: a schooner is 425 ml everywhere except South Australia, where it’s only 285 ml, a size that’s known elsewhere as a middy or pot, except in Darwin where it’s a handle, but in Adelaide a “pot” means a 570 ml full pint, and a pint means what a schooner does elsewhere, and… you get the idea. The local beers and the local descriptions are covered in detail in the state guides.

Bottle naming is a little easier: the standard sizes across Australia are the 375 ml stubby and the 750 ml long neck or tally. Cans of beer are known as tinnies and 24 of them make up a slab, box, carton, or a case.

Wine

Australia produces quality wine on a truly industrial scale, with large multinational brands supplying Australian bottleshops and exporting around the world. There are also a multitude of boutique wineries and smaller suppliers. Very good red and white wine can be bought very cheaply in Australia, often at less than $10 a bottle, and even the smallest shop could be expected to have 50 or more varieties to choose from.

The areas of the Barossa Valley, Hunter Valley,McLaren Vale, Clare Valley and Margaret River are particularly renowned for their wineries and opportunities for cellar door sampling, but northern Victoria and Mudgee, also have a large variety. You are never too far from a wine trail anywhere in southern Australia.

Try the local wines wherever you can find them, and ask for local recommendations. Try not to get taken in by the label, or the price tag. The best wine is rarely the one with the best artwork, or the most expensive price. However, it is probably wise to avoid the house wine if it comes straight from a cask (4-litre container). Wines at the cellar door are almost invariably sold at around 20% premium to the same wine in the shops in the local town.

If you still prefer overseas wines, the Marlborough region of Auckland is usually well represented on wine lists and in bottle shops in Australia.

See also Grape grazing in Australia.

Spirits

Bundaberg Rum (Bundy) is an Australian dark rum particularly popular in Queensland and many Queenslanders will not touch any other brand of rum, while many other Australians will not touch Bundy. It is probably the most famous Australian made spirit, mass produced in Bundaberg and available everywhere.

You will have to search much harder to find other Australian distilled spirits, mostly from niche players, but there are distilleries in every state of Australia if you look hard enough. Drop into the Lark Distillery on the scenic Hobart waterfront precinct. Pick up a bottle of 151 East Vodka in Wollongong or after a few days in Kununurra you are definitely going to need an Ord River Rum.

Mixed drinks are also available, particularly vodka, scotch, bourbon and other whiskey mixers. Jim Beam bourbon is probably the most commonly drunk, so those from Kentucky should feel right at home. Spirits are also available as pre-mixed bottles and cans but are subject to higher taxation in this form, so it is cheaper to mix them yourself. Spirits are served in all pubs and bars, but not in all restaurants.

Legal aspects

The legal drinking age throughout Australia is 18 years. It is illegal to purchase alcohol for yourself if you are under 18 years of age. It is illegal to purchase alcohol on behalf of someone who is under 18 years of age. The only legally acceptable proof-of-age is an Australian drivers licence, state-issued proof-of-age card or a passport, and it would be wise to carry one if you want to purchase alcohol or tobacco and look under 25. It is illegal to go into a gambling area of a pub or club when under 18.

Often there is a lounge, restaurant or bistro area in a pub or club that permits under-age people provided they are accompanied by a responsible adult over 18 and don’t approach the bar or wander around. Some city pubs even have video games and playgrounds for children. Some country pubs have large open areas out in the back where kids can run and play.

In general, you can take alcohol (say a bottle of wine or beer) to consume at a park or beach. However, in the state of Queensland public consumption of Alcohol is illegal. Alcohol consumption is banned in some public places as ‘street drinking’. These are often indicated by signs and is particularly the case in parks and footpaths where public drunkenness has been a problem. However, if you are a family with your picnic basket and blanket out at lunchtime with a bottle of wine, you are unlikely to encounter any problems.

Alcohol can be purchased for consumption on premises only in licensed venues: pubs, clubs and many restaurants. You can purchase alcohol for private consumption in bottle shops, which are separate stores selling bottled alcohol. In some but not all states you can buy alcohol in supermarkets. In those states where you can’t, bottle shops and major supermarkets are often found in very close proximity. Although licensing laws and hours vary from state to state, and individual stores have different trading hours, as a rule of thumb, alcohol is generally available in towns to take-away seven days a week, between the hours of 8AM and 11PM, from bottle shops, supermarkets, licensed grocers/milk-bars and pubs. Outside of these hours though, it is almost impossible to buy alcohol to take home; so if you’re planning on a party at home, it’s a good idea to stock up and check on the local trading hours so you don’t run out at 00:30 with no opportunity to buy more. In the state of New South Wales, takeaway alcohol cannot be sold after 10pm. Alcohol is not available at petrol stations or 24-hour convenience stores anywhere in Australia.

Public drunkenness varies in acceptability. You will certainly find a great deal of it in close proximity to pubs and clubs at night time but much less so during the day. Public drunkenness is an offence but you would only likely ever be picked up by the police if you were causing a nuisance. You may spend the night sobering up in a holding cell or be charged.

Driving while affected by alcohol is both stigmatized and policed by random breath testing police patrols in Australia, as well as being inherently dangerous. Drink driving is a very serious offence in Australia, punishable by a range of mechanisms including loss of license. The acceptable maximum blood alcohol concentration is 0.05% in all states, often lower or not allowed for operators of heavy vehicles and young or novice drivers. Police officers are also empowered to randomly test drivers for the recent use of prohibited drugs. The operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence of prohibited drugs or alcohol will always result in arrest and a required court appearance many weeks from the date of arrest and it can comprehensively disrupt travel plans. Random breath testing is common early Saturday and Sunday mornings, and many people are caught the morning after.

A shout

Buying a round of drinks is a custom in Australia, as in many corners of the world. It is generally expected in a pub that when you arrive and make your first trip to the bar that you will offer to buy a drink for others you are drinking with. This is what’s known as a ‘shout’. In entering a shout you are expected to take turns buying drinks for everyone in your shout when it is your turn. It is considered poor etiquette to drink something much more expensive that what others in the shout are drinking. If you cannot keep pace during a shout you are still expected to buy a round of drinks when it is your turn and as such it is advisable to drink with people who pace themselves at a similar rate. If someone from outside the shout offers to buy you a drink politely decline and let them know you are already in a shout. Likewise if someone buys you a drink don’t be surprised if they expect one from you later on in the evening as it’s now your shout. If you don’t want to join a shout, or would like to drop out of one this can be awkward in some groups, however if you provide a viable reason such as having to drive or being on medication people will normally respect this explanation. It is considered very poor etiquette to leave before your shout.