Pass The Passport

Places / Oceania

Australia

Visited

At a glance

Region
Australia and New Zealand
Capital
Canberra
Population
27.6 million (2025)
Area
7,692,024 km²
Languages
English
Currency
Australian dollar (AUD)
Drives on the
left
Calling code
+61
Visited: Australia

Country visited City visited Still to go Click a pin or country to read more. Zoom with + and −, a double-click or a pinch.

Before you go

Overview

The Commonwealth of Australia is an independent country which comprises the Australian continent mainland, Tasmania Island and other several islands. It is the largest country on Oceania.

The country recorded a population of 24.99 million in 2018 and covers an area of 7.692 million km2.

Its capital city is Canberra and largest city Sydney. Other major urban areas are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

The Great Barrier Reef

History

The First British ships arrived at Sydney in 1788 and claimed the country naming it “New South Wales”. It later became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901.

Food & culture

Australian culture is influenced by Western culture. It is also influenced by Britain, its geography and Aboriginal.

The crops grown in the country are wheat, pulses, oats, sorghum, canola and barley.

The common foods include chicken parmigiana, sausages, pavlova, meat pies and barramundi.

Wildlife

Common wildlife animals that you find here include kangaroo, koala, echidna, dingo, wombat, wallaby and platypus.

Festivals & events

Byron Bay Bluesfest is a music festival held annually.

Australia Day is held on 26th January to commemorate the arrival of Captain Arthur Philip and 11 ships from Britain in New South Wales.

Sydney festival is held annually on January to usher in New Year in a style.

Things to see

Its coastline is home to the Great Barrier Reef, which is the largest coral reef system in the world with more than 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands extending for 2,300 km in the Coral Sea.

There is also the Great Ocean Road is a 243 km long road along the southeast coast of the country which is listed in the Australian National Heritage sites.

People also visit the Uluru also called Ayers Rock is huge sandstone in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park near Alice Springs.

Other must-visit places are Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbor Bridge and Bondi Beach.

Interesting facts

It is a nation but sometimes referred to as an island nation for it is surrounded by water.

City guides

Cities & towns I’ve visited

Famous hikes in Australia

Overland Track

Distance
65 km
Time
6 days
Best time
October to May

How to do it: From Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair. In the peak season you must book and pay a fee, and walk north to south.

Run a marathon in Australia

Sydney Marathon

Sydney · usually August or September

The newest World Marathon Major, crossing the Harbour Bridge and finishing at the Opera House.

It's on my World Marathon Majors list

Dates move from year to year, so check the race website before you book.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Australia

4 of 21 visited. See every site I've been to.

My films from Australia

My photos from Australia

From 3 trips, newest first, so you can see which places each set of photos came from.

2022–2023 Winter Wander

Perth, Serpentine, Dwellingup, City Beach, Bayswater, Mandurah, Joondalup

Whole trip gallery
  • A red sunset over the Indian Ocean in Perth.
  • A man with long hair smiling and holding up a bottle of Corona.
  • A man standing on a waterfront walkway with Perth's glass skyscrapers behind him.
  • Large yellow letters spelling Perth in front of a glass spire tower and modern buildings.
  • A vivid purple and pink sunset over rippling river water with a distant city skyline.
  • Pink fireworks exploding above Perth's illuminated skyline at night.
  • A man crouching near a kangaroo under a tree.
  • A wide white sand beach with waves breaking under a clear blue sky.
  • A row of barbecue rub jars with cartoon labels including Charlie Chook, Smoky Doky and Larry the Lamb.
  • A waterfall sliding down a sloping granite rock face into a pool under a blue sky.
  • A giant cross-section of a tree trunk on display in a sunlit forest clearing.
  • People floating on a calm river surrounded by tall eucalyptus forest on a sunny day.

2013–2014 Thailand & Australia

Blue Mountains National Park, Skydive Sydney-Wollongong, Koala Park Sanctuary, Luna Park Sydney, Bondi Beach, Wollongong, Big Bash League, Sydney Harbour and 2 more

Whole trip gallery
  • Two men in vests and sunglasses standing on a sandy harbour beach with boats behind.
  • A man in board shorts standing on flat sandstone rock pools by the sea.
  • A man in sunglasses at a cliff-edge lookout over the forested valleys of the Blue Mountains.
  • A man standing in a shallow golden pool below a small waterfall in the Blue Mountains.
  • A man sitting on a rock beneath a waterfall in a dark gorge.
  • A smiling man in a white T-shirt in front of a small waterfall in the bush.
  • A man raising his arms beneath a tall waterfall cascading down a dark cliff.
  • A man in goggles and a harness free-falling with the curved horizon and sea below.
  • A man in goggles shouting during a tandem skydive with clouds and coastline far below.
  • Two men with red numbers painted on their cheeks taking a selfie in a cricket stadium.
  • A man pulling a face next to a white cockatoo behind a wire fence.
  • A man crouching to stroke a kangaroo inside a wooden enclosure.

March 2010 Australia & New Zealand

Spring Hill, Australia Zoo, Moreton Island

Whole trip gallery
  • A man in board shorts standing at the water's edge on a beach with waves behind him.
  • A man in a vest and shorts standing at a lookout above the sea with pine trees behind.
  • A man posing in front of a large photo backdrop at Australia Zoo.
  • A man crouching to feed two kangaroos on a dusty path.
  • A man in a helmet and clear rain poncho standing by quad bikes under palm trees.

Plan your trip to Australia

Some of these are affiliate links: if you book through them I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. More about this.

Neighbours

Australia has no land borders with other countries.

Bucket List goals in Australia