Australia is a wild and wonderful place full of contrasting surroundings and unique wildlife. The country is best known for its long stretches of pristine coastline, tropical jungles, arid interior desert, known as the outback, unique cities and of course the iconic wildlife such as the kangaroo and koala bear.

Australia is the sixth largest country in the world in terms of landmass — it’s huge! Its population is comparatively small at 24.7 million (2018) with most people living around the eastern and south-eastern coastlines. It is situated in the southern hemisphere and is surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans. The major cities are Perth, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Canberra — the country’s capital.

Language

English is the most widely spoken language here with over eighty percent of the countries population speaking it. The next most common spoken languages are Mandarin (2.5%), Arabic (1.4%), Cantonese (1.2%), Vietnamese (1.2%) and Italian (1.2%).

Money

The currency is the Australian dollar (AUD), note denominations come in $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 dollar bills. You can exchange currency at most banks, hotels and airports around the country, ATM’s are generally widespread but limited in smaller towns and outback areas. Most major credit cards are accepted such as Mastercard, American Express and Visa, but it’s always best to carry a couple of different credit cards in case one isn’t accepted.

Best Time To Visit 

Australia is huge and therefore the climate does vary greatly by area. The northern regions are typically warm all year round and tend to have more of a tropical climate with the south having drier summers and mild winters.

The best time to visit Australia on a whole would be Spring (September to November) or Autumn (March to May).

Winter runs from June to August and is cool but not too cold, it also tends to rain more in the southern areas. December to February is the summer season, it’s very hot and usually peak season with the Christmas and holiday time being the busiest.

Perth

Situated in Western Australia lies the beautiful city of Perth, with miles of pristine, uncrowded beaches, peaceful parks, relaxed city vibes, long sunny days and wineries, it’s easy to see why we decided to spend a year living here on a working holiday visa. Perth and Western Australia are often overlooked with many people visiting the eastern and southern regions of Australia instead, but with so many beautiful places to see it is fast becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination. Read more about Perth in our travel guide.

• Australia is the only continent in the world without an active volcano.
• There are 4 species of kangaroo in Australia with the red kangaroo being the biggest. The largest Big Red ever seen was 2.1 metres (6.9 ft) tall and weighed 201 Ib (91 kg).
• Aboriginal culture is the oldest on earth.
• Voting in Australia is compulsory for everyone over the age of 18 and fines are issued for non-voters.
• A whopping 85 percent of Australia’s population lives within 38 miles (60 km) of the coast.
• If you were to visit one new beach in Australia everyday it would take you at least 27 years to see them all.
• Australia’s first police force was made up of ex-convicts (only the well-behaved ones of course).
• It would take less time to fly from Perth to Melbourne than it would to fly from one end of western Australia to another — Australia’s largest state.
• Australia’s largest property (a cattle station) is bigger than Belgium.