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Each time we meet new vacationers who’re pondering of exploring Down Below, we all the time get requested the identical factor; what are some vital issues to know earlier than going to Australia? In fact, being Australian, we’re used to listening to this query and have our solutions properly ready.
It’s worthwhile to know concerning the measurement of the nation, how the web sucks, what meals you need to attempt (trace, it’s not kangaroo), and how one can shield your self towards our lethal animals.
As Australians, we have been so used to rising with this stuff, that it wasn’t till we moved away that we realized there are a number of issues to find out about Australia for worldwide vacationers in the event that they wish to see the very best of our nation.
So we determined to place this information collectively that can assist you benefit from a journey Down Below. Permit us to be your information to exploring Australia and train you every little thing we find out about our beginning nation.
Issues To Know About Australia Earlier than You Go
Under are among the vital issues we really feel vacationers ought to pay attention to earlier than they make a journey to Aus.
Simply so you realize the next should not all info, there are a number of passionate opinions thrown in, too!
1. Australia Has A Huge and Various Panorama
Australia is two-thirds desert and is the driest inhabited continent on Earth. It’s additionally the smallest, lowest and flattest continent. It’s the sixth largest nation on the planet.
It makes for an incredible web site to see – there’s nowhere else on the planet fairly just like the Australian outback or the untamed fantastic thing about Tasmania, for instance.
We don’t have what most individuals name mountains, which signifies our ancientness. Our highest peak is Mount Kosciuszko within the Snowy Mountains, which surprisingly sufficient, can also be one of the vital harmful to climb as a result of individuals aren’t ready for the icy circumstances. (We are able to put our palms as much as that! We needed to flip again.)
For the unknowing traveler, it may be a shock to expertise simply how huge Australia’s landscapes are and the way difficult they will generally be to cross.
When exploring Australia, significantly on a highway journey (which is one of the best ways to get across the nation), it’s essential be sure to are all the time topped up with gasoline and have a plan in case you get caught or stranded.
Be sure to pack a spare tire and you know the way to vary it!
Driving distances are lengthy and empty, however look intently and also you’ll see a number of life. We’ve got a whole information on driving ideas in Australia that can assist you put together for these huge distances.
2. Australia’s Wildlife is So Distinctive
When individuals consider Australia, they’re usually pondering of the animals. It’s world identified that Australia has distinctive wildlife – koalas, kangaroos, Tasmanian Devils, Dingos, Wombats, Wallabies, Echidnas, and Kookaburras are only a few native animals to Australia that I can consider straight off the bat.
Of the over 800 species we have now, about 300 gained’t be discovered wherever else on the planet.
Most of those animals are used to people and pose no menace, however we even have salt water crocodiles, recent water crocodiles, and sharks of varied species. To not point out 172 species of snake, by which solely 20 species are venomous snakes (together with the world’s most venomous snake, the taipan), and 10,000 species of spiders (solely 2 species can kill you – these are higher odds).
Now this isn’t meant to place you off, however you do have to be aware of them when out and about exploring, particularly should you go to pure areas and nationwide parks.
We’ve got a full information to Australia’s harmful animals should you want some additional perception into how one can cope with them.
Not all animals are scary although, some are actually distinctive. A lot of the world’s marsupials are present in Australia. Kangaroos are macropods (big-footed marsupials) and there are round 60 species of macropods. You’ll get to satisfy a number of them while you highway journey round Australia, particularly in Carnarvon Gorge.
Sadly, many launched pests have worn out lots of our native animals. The Bilby is probably the most endangered. You’ll be able to go to the Bilby Centre in Charleville to be taught extra and assist assist programmes to assist them thrive once more.
The curlew chicken isn’t solely charming to have a look at, however at night time makes this eerie cackling sound like a ghost.
I grew to find it irresistible after a number of days.
If you happen to stand below the Norfolk pines on the seashore at Burleigh or Mooloolaba at twilight you gained’t hear the individual subsequent to you speaking because of the cacophony of the lorikeets (there are in all probability many different seashore cities which can be the identical).
Enjoyable truth: Kangaroos and emus can’t stroll backwards which is why they’re on our coat of arms. Right here’s the place you possibly can see wild kangaroos in Australia.
3. Australia Has A Lot of Historical past
Like America, most individuals assume Australia is a rustic that lacks historical past. It’s true that it was colonized by the Dutch and British in 1606, and that is when the nation started to industrialize and also you see remnants of colonialism everywhere in the nation.
Nevertheless, Australia additionally has an extended, indigenous inhabitants, who STILL use conventional practices that date again for 1000’s of years.
You’ll be able to see historic rock artwork, study Aboriginal tradition and the ethos that has pushed these communities for generations. Aboriginal tradition is all about connection to their communities, to the land, to nature.
It’s a sort of historic historical past that’s lengthy gone for many elements of the world, however nonetheless sings true in Aus. Australia is residence to the oldest dwelling civilisation on the planet – hear intently they’ve a lot to show us.
Australia additionally as soon as had dinosaurs, volcanoes, and an incredible inland sea, which you’ll be able to see remnants of within the Northern Territories.
4. Australians Are Not Often Political
Australian individuals are among the most laid-back, pleasant and straightforward going individuals on the planet. We’re not huge on politics (usually) and have a tendency to not become involved with it.
Our legislators aren’t value remembering and we beg that you simply don’t attempt.
You’ve bought low odds of remembering our Prime Minister as they kick one another out on a regular basis.
If you happen to assume I’m joking, medical doctors and nurses needed to cease asking the query “Who’s our Prime Minister?” for cognitive consciousness as a result of nobody might work it out! True story.
And, there was that one time we misplaced a main minister. Yep. On 17 December 1967, Harold Holt, our seventeenth prime minister of Australia, went for a swim within the sea close to his residence in Portsea, Victoria and by no means returned.
5. Credit score Playing cards Could Not At all times Work
Carry some money in your pockets – playing cards aren’t all the time accepted and can usually carry a surcharge if they’re, particularly American Categorical.
6. Home Flights Are Not Low-cost
Australia is so large that you’ll probably must take a number of home flights to get round, however sadly they aren’t low cost.
It’s not simply the value that’s loopy about flying domestically, however the flight occasions! To journey from East to West, it takes 5 hours to fly the space, and a number of other hundred {dollars}.
Jetstar can have Friday Frenzy gross sales and Virgin Australia have Comfortable Hour gross sales generally, so signal as much as their newsletters and test their web sites usually for cheaper offers.
7. Be Cautious Touring in The Prime Finish
The Prime Finish of Australia is certainly one of our favourite locations within the nation. It’s the place you’ll discover Kakadu Nationwide Park, the biggest nationwide park in Australia, and our favourite seashore within the nation – Cable Seashore.
That being mentioned, you need to know that crocs inhabit the complete Prime Finish of the nation. Do they freak you out as a lot as me? (which means don’t swim within the rivers!)
Actually, when visiting the Prime Finish, I’d be cautious round any physique of water. Listed here are some extra ideas for touring the Prime Finish of Australia.
8. Australia’s Nature Is Unimaginable
I can’t even start to explain the character in Australia, it’s simply unbelievable! Australia is residence to the oldest rainforest on the planet, The Daintree Rainforest – 130 million years of breathtaking magnificence. Simply hearken to the traditional knowledge of the bushes. A tree huggers Utopia.
Kakadu Nationwide Park and Uluru are timeless, non secular wonders that aren’t solely deeply related to the aboriginal communities, however are so lovely and so distinctive. Keep awhile, discover deeply, and take up their historic knowledge.
Most of Australia’s unique natural world can’t be discovered wherever else on the planet. The cane toad is disgusting and can’t be stopped with its mission to destroy our native natural world.
Solely the extremely smart crows have discovered a method to kill and eat them with out poisoning themselves. They choose them up and drop them in entrance of automobiles, which opens them up in a method that makes them suitable for eating. Or so we heard round an Outback campfire.
Wattle is our nationwide flower and has a definite odor. Each time I get a whiff of it within the bush, I really feel like I’ve returned residence.
The gum tree is the lifeblood of our nation and kinds an enormous a part of our id. The sight and odor of them defines Australian life and signifies residence for me.
I can’t assist however hug them frequently. Eucalypt bushes mild themselves on fireplace, which helps the land regenerate. I really like seeing a blackened gum tree coated in inexperienced, fluffy new progress. Probably the most lovely gum bushes I’ve seen are within the Barossa Valley.
Enjoyable truth: The sight of the blue haze from the eucalyptus oil arising from the bush within the mountain ranges west of Sydney gave the Blue Mountains their title.
9. Australia’s Seashores and Islands Are Pure Paradise
Australia has greater than 10,000 seashores and over 8,000 islands. Western Australia has ridiculously lovely seashores.
You’ll assume the colors within the pictures you’ve seen can’t be true and should be photoshopped. It’s the true deal peeps.
Whitehaven Seashore is world well-known for being the cleanest seashore on the planet, and Hyams Seashore in Jervis Bay has truly gained the Guinness World Report for having the whitest sand on Earth. And Rottnest Island has gorgeous seashore after seashore, finest considered on a motorbike journey.
The Nice Barrier Reef is the planet’s largest dwelling construction. You’ll marvel if it would stay as much as its hype. It does.
10. Australia Has Superb Meals (And Espresso)
Australia isn’t wanting glorious meals. Most of Australia’s produce has been grown within the nation, permitting you to eat uncooked, natural fruit and greens, and clear and secure produce that hasn’t traveled far to get to your dinner plate.
The fertile soil and huge quantities of house means Australia can produce A LOT of meals, and has among the world’s finest edible oils and honey on the planet. It’s estimated that 60% of the world’s natural farmland is in Australia.
Australia additionally has the BEST espresso on the planet, and yow will discover among the BEST damper and billy tea experiences in Queensland – it’s a factor right here!
One other distinctive level on meals in Australia – the normal homeowners of our land have been capable of take many toxic crops and put it by a course of – generally taking many days – to make it edible.
How the hell did they even know what to do and the way have been the style testers? If you happen to get an opportunity, make sure to expertise as many Indigenous excursions so you possibly can study these meals processes. You may be amazed and humbled.
Oh and Vegemite is a critical love for Australians. We nonetheless find it irresistible!
11. Small Cities in Australia Ought to Not Be Averted
The small cities of Australia are what give it the status of being a hospitable and welcoming place. There may be nothing fairly just like the small city communities you meet while you get off the overwhelmed path.
Queensland Outback is the place you’ll discover many experiences and tales that connect with Australian folklore and tradition.
Some small cities we love are Longreach, the founding residence of Qantas, and Winton, the birthplace of Waltzing Matilda – simply to call a number of. I additionally assume it has Australia’s friendliest individuals.
There’s a ridiculous quantity of fantastic adventures available down gravel and sandy roads solely accessible to 4WD’s.
Shiny in Victoria and Broome in Western Australia re two of our favourite small cities in Australia.
12. Australian’s Are Pleasant and Relaxed Folks
If there’s one factor I’m proud to say about my beginning nation, is that its individuals are among the nicest on the planet.
Australians are laid-back, pleasant, and sort. It may very well be all the way down to the truth that greater than 80 % of Australians stay inside 100 kilometres of the coast, and the ocean air instills a layer of calmness in individuals.
If you happen to thought the browsing tradition was a fantasy about Australia, you’d be incorrect. Seashore life is vital to us and surf lifeguards are revered.
Additionally, you could possibly be a local English speaker, however have a dialog with an Australian and don’t have any clue what they’re saying.
When visiting Australia, you’re going to want to hear fastidiously when having dialog with Aussies. They have a tendency to shorten most phrases, have vibrant slang phrases, and love to make use of a number of rhyming slang.
13. Australia’s Local weather Is Various
Being within the Southern Hemisphere, we have now our summer time and winter seasons backwards to these within the Northern Hemisphere, which implies sizzling Christmases and chilly Julys.
That being mentioned, the local weather may be vastly completely different relying on the place you might be in Australia. It might get chilly in Australia, and it’s even snowed on Christmas Day in some elements of Tasmania, which is Australia’s summer season.
Perth and The Prime Finish, in addition to Northern Queensland, are well-known for having year-round heat climate, however don’t assume you need to depart your jackets at residence should you plan to go to through the winter season.
It’d shock you to know this, nevertheless it snows in Queensland! Get out of city. Are you able to imagine it? Bunya Mountains is the place you’ll discover this uncommon expertise.
14. There’s Extra To The Outback Than Desert
You haven’t skilled Australia till you’ve been to the Outback. A few of our cattle stations, largely positioned within the Outback areas, are larger than some European international locations. Actually, there’s a Dingo Fence that’s longer than The Nice Wall of China!
The farmers want helicopters to spherical up the inventory!
The Outback isn’t just desert. It’s desert, nevertheless it additionally has an insane quantity of water, lovely gorges, and waterfalls that pepper the dusty pink floor with lush inexperienced bushes.
The Faculty of the Air was created in order that youngsters on distant cattle stations might nonetheless be taught and attend college. You may be pondering that distance training sprung off after COVID, nevertheless it’s been practiced in these distant lands for a few years.
Actually, it’s how we educated Kalyra once we travelled across the nation. You’ll be able to go to many Faculty of the Air locations within the Outback to be taught extra about how they educate their pupils.
And let’s not neglect the Royal Flying Medical doctors!! How might we neglect after the unbelievable expertise we had with them.
The Royal Flying Medical doctors are a service supplied by the federal government to assist these in distant areas get medical help. They fly out to go to you and can fly you to hospitals should you want it. They’re superb and rely rather a lot on donations so assist out should you can.
15. Australian Wine Is Some Of The Greatest
Australia helped revolutionise wine making around the globe as a result of they didn’t have traditions to stick to.
Creativity allowed Australian wine makers to develop as among the finest wine producers on the planet.
There are 60 designated wine areas in Australia, however our favourites are Margaret River, Barossa Valley, and Mudgee.
16. Australia is Costly
Australia is dear, there’s little doubt about it. The whole lot from lodging to automobile hires to eating out, will price you near the identical as Europe or North America.
That being mentioned, there are methods to maintain prices down. We’ve got another useful guides on the price of journey in Australia and how one can journey Australia on a finances that can assist you stick with your finances.
17. Don’t Feed The Birds
Feeding the birds in Australia is a harmful factor. I cannot stroll round Round Quay in Sydney consuming with out being swooped on by a seagull.
Don’t feed the birds. Allow them to eat fish!
18. Aussies Love Sports activities
Australia is a large sporting nation. Contemplating our low inhabitants, it rocks it on a world scale. The preferred sports activities in Australia are cricket, soccer (additionally Australian Guidelines Soccer), rugby and tennis.
Among the finest athletes in these fields come from Australia.
And let’s not neglect our surfers! Put an Aussie professional surfer in any browsing competitors around the globe, and they’re assured to make the highest spots.
19. The Web Is Horrible
You may assume that as a result of Australia is so properly developed that commodities similar to sturdy WiFi are a given, however you’d be incorrect. For some purpose, web in Australia is hideously sluggish, and costly.
The explanation for it’s because apparently, when the Nationwide Broadband Community was first carried out, they used outdated copper wire.
The usage of previous tech means it could possibly solely deal with a lot pace, which has resulted in the entire nation receiving under common web pace. Nice.
Issues We Realized on Our Australian Highway Journey
A lot of the info and opinions we’ve expressed to this point have come from our expertise of rising up and dwelling in Australia, however we additionally spent 18 months highway tripping round Australia and explored a lot of our personal yard, and so we have now realized a number of issues about touring in our personal nation too.
Under are some issues we realized on our travels in Australia. This isn’t all skilled by us, we’ve additionally included some issues realized by different individuals we’ve met on the highway and shared their experiences so we didn’t make the identical errors.
The most effective useful resource you’ve got as a traveler, is one other traveler, as they are saying!
You’ll be able to learn extra ideas in our how one can journey round Australia on this information.
- When driving on dusty Outback roads, the recirculation air place ought to be used to keep away from mud coming into your automobile or for fast cooling of the inside.
- Excessive clearance means your automobile is increased off the bottom and is crucial for 4WD (sure I had no concept what this was earlier than this highway journey) and may be simply as vital as 4 wheel drive.
- Leisure methods in automobiles save your sanity when travelling with youngsters.
- Automobiles flying alongside gravel roads will fling up rocks that crack your windscreen.
- Replenish at each petrol station you drive previous within the Outback. It doesn’t matter how full your tank is or how a lot you assume you don’t want it, there may be giant distances between stations or they even shut at night time.
- Digging your self out of being caught in sand with the automobile makes you appear to be Yahoo Critical and could be a enjoyable story to share. (Simply be sure to take a photograph!)
- Seashore driving is critical however enjoyable. Know what you’re doing and revel in it.
- It’s essential to deflate your tyres when driving on mushy sand so that they have a wider footprint.
- Top off on meals and water when driving by the Outback. Highway homes have horrible meals and it’s costly.
- Don’t take any recent produce over the border into WA or SA. It will likely be confiscated.
- Head nets can save your sanity in actually unhealthy fly areas.
- UGG boots are the very best factor to pack in your highway journey across the nation (it does get cool in some locations – I’m you Victoria and Tassie)
Extra Journey Ideas for Australia
If you happen to want extra inspiration about touring to Australia, then these different guides could also be helpful to you!
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Do you’ve got any enjoyable info (or opinions) to share about Australia? Something helpful you realized in your highway journey down below? Tell us within the feedback.