Things To Know Before You Visit Australia

With paradoxical yet stunningly beautiful geography, Australia is a megadiverse country home to many natural and urban wonders. For the uninitiated travellers, the Land Down Under may bring a lot of confusion as the country has long proclaimed a lifestyle in its own right. But worry not folks! We’re here to help you. We’re a traveller couple from Sydney who loves hitchhiking and if there’s one thing we’ve learned on the way, it’d be picking up suggestions from other travellers. Read along to discover some tips that may come in handy while you’re in Aussie land.

As important as it is to explore the lesser-known regions of the country, we believe it’d be best to tick off the prominent attractions first from your itinerary. From the famous Sydney Harbour to the Great Barrier Reef and the Outback, Australia is a gifted country indeed. Our top suggestion, to begin with, is Sydney Harbour, the place where history meets the future each day. Hop aboard a Sydney dinner cruise to enjoy the grandeur of the world-famous harbour in a different light while enjoying a freshly prepared dinner.

There are numerous niche places in and around the harbour that are perfect for a waterfront dining experience. But a harbour cruise dinner surely hits different–with a winning combination of exquisite dishes, views and light entertainment. I and my boyfriend love cruising for the sheer joy of it, and of course, its cost-effectiveness. Compared to all those fancy waterfront places where you have to spend a grand or two for a simple meal, a cruise dining experience for two won’t cost more than 300 bucks.

While you’re on Sydney Harbour, do check out places including The Rocks, the Royal Botanical Gardens, Luna Park, Fort Denison and Kirribilli House. It’s quite a task to cover all these attractions in a single day. But thanks to the harbour cruises that offer a spectacular panorama of all these landmarks, all in under just a few hours. And that’s Sydney Harbour for you! To experience the stark contrast between the Aussie landscapes, you could head out to Queensland, which is home to two amazing World Heritage sites: The Daintree Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef. The great Outback and Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory are two other oft-known places that are worth visiting. We understand it might be impossible to travel between the Aussie states within a short period of time. Because Australia is massive and each state is vast with plenty of things to do. While a flight from Brisbane to Perth takes some five hours, a drive would take you at least three days, which we understand isn’t an easy feat. So don’t be disappointed if you can’t explore every facet of the country in one single go.

Before we conclude, we’d like to give you some tips on how to gel in to the ways of the country and learn from the community.

• Be prepared to go offline as the network connectivity in some parts of the country can be slow and expensive. It could come as a shock to many of us who are used to easy internet access. So make a valuable investment of getting yourself a hotspot in case of a blackout.

• Cars drive on the left. Or if you’re out for a walk, always remember to look right, or both ways several times before crossing.

• Respect the native communities. The Aussies show great respect towards the Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginal people. So in case you’re visiting them, always remember to behave with the utmost respect. Some places even restrict photography.

• Think before you pack. Australian borders can be very strict and that implies everything you bring into the country would be monitored carefully. Some of the forbidden things include fruits, plants, vegetables, seeds, feathers and more.

We hope you find this article helpful. We will be back with more new facts and stories. Till then, stay tuned folks!

She is travel blogger who travels through diverse places and write about it.