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Complete pre-trip information for your trip to Australia.

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Australia boasts a bustling urban environment and an ever-improving food and drink industry, but the country’s true strength lies in its relaxed, outdoor-oriented way of life. A great spot for public beachside picnics and people-watching while the surfers ride the waves.

It is also a country that values nature, as evidenced by its many protected areas and ecosystems. Animals like kangaroos and koalas may be seen lounging in campgrounds and koalas can be seen sleeping in trees along hiking paths, while dolphins can be seen playing in the bays.

The Australian epic is likewise world-class. The sky is always blue over the rumpled outback sceneries, and vehicle journeys through the supposedly pristine landscapes are extremely satisfying.

New regulations and admission prerequisites for tourists
All foreign nationals are required to have a visa before entering Australia. Most British visitors will use the free and easy-to-complete sub-class 651 eVisitor visa application.

We have mostly done away with Covid stipulations. No screenings or vaccination certificates are required. If you test positive for Covid in Australia, you will still be required to isolate yourself and wear a mask on your incoming aircraft. Each state has its own set of regulations that vary slightly from the others. You may get a list of each state’s regulations on the Health Department’s website.

The Season to Visit

Best time to visit, weather-wise, varies greatly from place to place. Plan your trip for the months of May through October in the northern tropics and the months of December through February in the southern hemisphere. We get less precipitation in the spring (September–November) than we do in the fall. When January rolls around, it’s the peak of the school vacation season, and prices and crowds reflect that. At this time, the heat might be unbearable.

Sydney’s New Year’s Eve celebration is one of the most well-attended and spectacular in the world, yet hotels in the city charge exorbitant rates for the holiday. The Melbourne Cup horse race (in early November), the Adelaide Festival (in March), and Anzac Day are three more occasions worthy of full immersion (25 April).

Most Notable Urban Areas & Areas

Sydney

Sydney is undeniably one of the world’s best cities, with stunning scenery around the harbour, countless beaches along the coast, and buzzing urban life in neighbourhoods like Surry Hills and Chippendale. It’s a great option for both a beach getaway and a city trip, with pricey excursions like climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge balanced out by free days spent lounging in oceanside rock pools. Day trips to the Hunter Valley wine country and the Blue Mountains are doable.

Melbourne

Melbourne’s galleries, museums, and performing arts venues are packed with culture rather than aesthetics. But the true fun is to be had in the laneway culture, where specialised bars and international eateries are packed into narrow streets and walls. The Great Ocean Road and Phillip Island penguin colonies may both be reached from Melbourne, the state capital.

Cairns travel guide Melbourne

With its proximity to the Great Barrier Reef and its status as a World Heritage Site, Cairns is a popular starting point for cruises to the underwater paradise of the Great Barrier Reef. Adventure tourists can combine reef visits with Aboriginal-led Daintree Rainforest tours, tropical fruit tasting on the Atherton Tableland, and more.

Heart of Australia, or the Red Center

There is no better introduction to the desert than the 6.2-mile trek around Uluru, taking in its bizarre bulges, caverns, and Indigenous cultural sites. Most tourists don’t know that the Red Centre offers a plethora of other activities and sights to see. At Uluru, visitors can take part in a variety of activities, such as a dot-painting workshop, a dune-top meal, a helicopter tour, or a camel ride. This is in addition to day visits to the nearby Kata Tjuta rock domes and the rugged gorge-side walks of Kings Canyon.

How the Red Centre of Australia is so much more than just Uluru

The best method to see Uluru (without having to climb it)
WA’s South-Western Region and Perth
If you are new to Australia, the South West is where you should start. In addition to its proximity to the Indian Ocean, Perth also features a lively bar and restaurant scene and the chance to meet curious quokkas on nearby Rottnest Island.

From Perth, the capital of Western Australia, a short drive around the southwestern corner gets you to Margaret River, where you may taste world-class wines, to beautiful surf beaches, to whale-watching excursions out of Dunsborough, to tall forests, and to readily explorable caves.

Overview of the City of Perth

Some of the Best Off-the-Grid Vacation Spots

Ningaloo Reef, often known as “The Reef”
Ningaloo, located on the west coast of Australia’s isolated and arid southwest, is famous for its whale shark swimming. Seeing the largest fish in the world swim by in the wild is an exciting experience. Swimming with humpback whales and manta rays is an option at certain times of the year.

However, the Ningaloo’s modest beauty lies in the fact that it approaches the coast. White sand beaches like Osprey Bay are just a short swim away from the swaying coral and schools of colourful fish. Drift snorkelling over the coral from one end of Turquoise Bay’s beach to the other is a popular activity.

A Peek Into The Summit

Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory, is a fascinating blend of bohemian eccentricity, Asian culture, and outback outpost attitude. It’s the jumping-off point for trips to the magnificent national parks in the Top End. There are enormous termite mounds, beautiful waterfalls, and refreshing natural swimming holes all waiting for you at Litchfield National Park. Nitmiluk organises tours to Katherine Gorge, with its towering sandstone walls, for cruise ships and kayakers. Kakadu National Park, the largest of them all, features broad green floodplains, ancient Aboriginal rock art, and crocodile-watching boats.

South Australia’s McLaren Vale

Actually, a trip to any of the Adelaide area wineries guarantees a wonderful, luxurious time. The Adelaide Hills, Barossa Valley, and Clare Valley are widely known as excellent places to visit for wine sampling and fine dining.

However, the McLaren Vale has the advantage of being close to the tremendously undersold, dune-backed beaches of the Fleurieu Peninsula, in addition to being possibly the best area in Australia producing those big, muscular Australian Shirazes. Some of them are so large that you can drive a 4WD vehicle along them, like the beautiful Sellicks Beach.

Then there’s Kangaroo Island, one of Australia’s great wildlife havens, which is just a short ferry ride from Cape Jervis at the peninsula’s extremity.

the top recommendations

Having a glass of wine

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Australia is the best place in the world to go wine tasting. The majority of wineries have tasting rooms where you can try their wares for free, and many of them also have top-notch restaurants. The cellar door employees are also usually flexible and will go from casual wine tastings to more in-depth, educational seminars as the mood strikes.

In many areas, you may book a full day or half day wine tour, sometimes even including stops at local cheese and chocolate manufacturers. Easily accessible areas include the Swan Valley in Perth, the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, and the Barossa Valley in Adelaide.

Run-ins with the Sea

The Great Barrier Reef is just the beginning of Australia’s aquatic offerings. Guests can swim with wild dolphins on select tours, such as those offered in Port Phillip Bay in Melbourne and Bunbury near Perth.

How a unique hotel is helping to preserve the Great Barrier Reef’s fragile ecosystem. Whale-watching is popular all around the country, but particularly in Hervey Bay in Queensland and Eden in New South Wales.

Swimming with sea lions in Baird Bay, South Australia, snorkelling with weedy sea dragons in Port Phillip Bay, and kayaking with dolphins in Byron Bay, New South Wales are all other options.

Indigenous perspectives

The quantity and quality of indigenous cultural excursions that present the indigenous point of view on the region’s geography, history, and flora and fauna are on the rise. Guided walks, art workshops, and bush food tastings are just a few of the 185 top Aboriginal activities that have been compiled by Tourism Australia.

Ways to Get Around

Most people take (relatively inexpensive) domestic flights to get from one major city to another due to the large distances involved.

Self-driving is an appealing and liberating method to travel across the country. While gas is more expensive than in the UK, distances are longer. Outside of major cities, traffic is light and highway conditions are excellent.

Neither NSW Trainlink nor Queensland Rail Travel, which operate long-distance rail services, do a very good job. The schedules of coach services like Greyhound require more planning, but their stops are more convenient and they offer passes good for multiple destinations.

The Route to Take

The fastest way to go to Australia is on Qantas, which operates a direct route from Heathrow to Perth. There is a time requirement of 16 hours, 45 minutes for this.

Assume a layover someplace if you want to fly for less. Even though there is no consistently inexpensive carrier, booking a flight on Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Etihad, or Qatar Airways for a regional departure from outside of London is a viable option. Whether or not you find a good deal on a flight is highly dependent on which airline is running a special. Minimum flight times from Doha to Perth on Qatar Airways are 19 hours and 20 minutes, while from Doha to Sydney on Singapore Airlines are 22 hours and 30 minutes.

How to save money

The nicest parts of Australia, such as its beaches and wildlife, don’t normally cost anything. Cabins at seaside campgrounds are a popular low-cost accommodation option since they offer a combination of the two. These campgrounds cater to Australian families on the go by caravan and often have a small number of large, multi-bedroom apartments with full kitchens and, on occasion, hopping kangaroos.

FAQs

Inquiring minds want to know: how’s the weather today?
Conditions in the south are often warm during the winter, while the north alternates between wet and dry seasons.