Roavina

Country guide

Australia

A photograph of Australia
Photograph · Corey Leopold · CC BY 2.0

Australia covers 7,688,287 km², sixth largest in the world, and close to 4,000 km separate its east coast from its west. Nearly 28 million people live here, about 80 per cent of them within 25 km of a mainland coastline 35,821 km long — which is the fact that governs any trip taken across it. The cities form a rim around an interior that stays largely empty; Sydney and Melbourne pass five million each, and Canberra, the capital, is neither of them. Six states and ten territories, and a sensible visit chooses two of them rather than the map.

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

Cities

Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.

Practical information

Language spoken
English is the principal language; no federal official language
National practical orientation; regional and minority languages may also be used
Dialling code
+61
International calling code; local area and mobile prefixes still apply
Currency
Australian dollar (AUD)
Use the official local currency; card acceptance varies by place
Emergency number
000
Use only for an emergency; tourist assistance may use a separate number
Plug type
Type I · 230 V
Check that chargers support the recorded voltage before using an adapter
Tap water
Safe from treated public supplies
Follow local notices in remote communities and after disruptions

Planning a visit

  1. January: seasonal closure recorded
  2. February: seasonal closure recorded
  3. March: seasonal closure recorded
  4. April: seasonal closure recorded
  5. May: seasonal closure recorded
  6. June: seasonal closure recorded
  7. July: no seasonality data recorded
  8. August: no seasonality data recorded
  9. September: no seasonality data recorded — this month
  10. October: no seasonality data recorded
  11. November: seasonal closure recorded
  12. December: seasonal closure recorded

Top things to see

Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.

  1. Art Gallery of Western Australia Art Gallery of Western Australia
    02 1 hour

    Art Gallery of Western Australia

    The Art Gallery of Western Australia is a public art museum located in the Perth Cultural Centre. It serves as the principal state art collection holder for Western Australia.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Perth
  2. Perth Cultural Centre Perth Cultural Centre
    03 1 hour

    Perth Cultural Centre

    Perth Cultural Centre is a public cultural precinct in the heart of Perth, Western Australia. It serves as a hub for arts, culture, and learning, bringing together several major institutions in one connected space.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Perth
  3. State Library of South Australia Mortlock Wing State Library of South Australia Mortlock Wing
    04 1 hr 30 min

    State Library of South Australia Mortlock Wing

    The Mortlock Wing is a heritage-listed reading room and exhibition space within the State Library of South Australia on North Terrace in Adelaide.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Adelaide
  4. Fremantle Arts Centre Fremantle Arts Centre
    05 2 hours

    Fremantle Arts Centre

    Fremantle Arts Centre is a public arts venue located in the port city of Fremantle, part of the greater Perth metropolitan area in Western Australia.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Perth
  5. Queensland Performing Arts Centre Queensland Performing Arts Centre
    06 2 hours

    Queensland Performing Arts Centre

    The Queensland Performing Arts Centre is a major performing arts venue located in Brisbane's South Bank cultural precinct. It serves as Queensland's premier destination for theatre, music, dance, and opera.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  6. State Library of New South Wales State Library of New South Wales
    07 1 hr 30 min

    State Library of New South Wales

    The State Library of New South Wales is Australia's oldest library, established in 1826. It occupies a prominent position on Macquarie Street in Sydney's central business district, adjacent to the Royal Botanic Garden.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  7. State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland
    08 1 hr 30 min

    State Library of Queensland

    State Library of Queensland is the principal reference and research library of the state, located in the Queensland Cultural Centre on the South Bank of the Brisbane River.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  8. National Gallery of Victoria National Gallery of Victoria
    09 1 hour

    National Gallery of Victoria

    National Gallery of Victoria is an art museum and one of Melbourne's highest-priority visitor stops in the current curated list.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  9. Art Gallery of New South Wales Art Gallery of New South Wales
    10 1 hour

    Art Gallery of New South Wales

    Art Gallery of New South Wales is a major public art museum beside the Domain, combining historic collections with contemporary exhibition spaces.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  10. Art Gallery of South Australia Art Gallery of South Australia
    11 1 hour

    Art Gallery of South Australia

    The Art Gallery of South Australia is a major public art museum in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It forms part of the North Terrace cultural precinct alongside other significant institutions.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Adelaide
  11. Museum of Contemporary Art Australia Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
    12 1 hour

    Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

    Museum of Contemporary Art

    Museum of Contemporary Art Australia occupies the former Maritime Services Board building on Circular Quay West, beside Sydney Harbour. Its galleries bring contemporary art into direct conversation with the waterfront, ferry movement and the Opera House across the quay.

    • Must see
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  12. Heide Museum of Modern Art Heide Museum of Modern Art
    13 1 hour

    Heide Museum of Modern Art

    Heide Museum of Modern Art is a Melbourne museum devoted to Australian modern and contemporary art.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  13. His Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre
    14 1 hour

    His Majesty's Theatre

    His Majesty's Theatre is a historic performing-arts venue in central Perth, Western Australia. It is a destination for theatrical productions, musicals, and live entertainment, as well as a notable heritage building within the city.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Perth
  14. Gallery of Modern Art Gallery of Modern Art
    15 1 hour

    Gallery of Modern Art

    Gallery of Modern Art, known as GOMA, is Brisbane's modern and contemporary art museum within the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art complex.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  15. Australian Centre for Contemporary Art Australian Centre for Contemporary Art
    16 1 hour

    Australian Centre for Contemporary Art

    The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art is a leading Melbourne institution dedicated to exhibiting and promoting contemporary art from Australia and around the world.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  16. Princess Theatre Princess Theatre
    17 1 hour

    Princess Theatre

    Princess Theatre is a historic theatre in Melbourne, Victoria. It stands as a significant performing arts venue within the city's cultural landscape. The building contributes to Melbourne's reputation as a major centre for theatre and live entertainment in Australia.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  17. Regent Theatre Regent Theatre
    18 1 hour

    Regent Theatre

    Regent Theatre is a historic Melbourne theatre and a destination for visitors interested in the city's entertainment heritage. It continues to function as a performance venue, bringing contemporary audiences into a building whose architectural character is part of the experience.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  18. Queensland Art Gallery Queensland Art Gallery
    19 1 hour

    Queensland Art Gallery

    Queensland Art Gallery is a public art gallery in Brisbane. The current curated ranking identifies the exact production place and prioritises it for art collections and exhibitions within Brisbane's South Bank cultural precinct.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  19. Capitol Theatre Capitol Theatre
    20 1 hour

    Capitol Theatre

    Capitol Theatre is a heritage-listed theatre located in Sydney, Australia. The building occupies a prominent position within the city's entertainment district. Originally constructed in the early twentieth century, the theatre has undergone various transformations throughout its history.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  20. Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre
    21 1 hour

    Her Majesty's Theatre

    Her Majesty's Theatre is a historic performance venue in Melbourne's East End Theatre District. The theatre opened in 1886 and remains a working commercial venue for musicals, plays, and live entertainment.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  21. White Rabbit Gallery White Rabbit Gallery
    22 1 hour

    White Rabbit Gallery

    White Rabbit Gallery is a contemporary art museum in Chippendale, Sydney, founded by Judith Neilson to present her collection of twenty-first-century Chinese art. The gallery occupies a converted four-storey knitting factory, giving the visit an industrial architectural setting.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  22. Melbourne Recital Centre Melbourne Recital Centre
    23 1 hour

    Melbourne Recital Centre

    Melbourne Recital Centre is a dedicated live-performance venue in Melbourne's arts precinct, focused on chamber music and recital programming. Its purpose-built architecture and acoustic design place the listening experience at the centre of the visit.

    • High
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  23. Forgotten Songs Forgotten Songs
    24 1 hour

    Forgotten Songs

    Angel Place Birdcages, also known as Forgotten Songs, is an outdoor artwork in Sydney’s central business district. Suspended cages fill the pedestrian laneway overhead, while recorded birdcalls recall species that once lived around the Tank Stream valley before European settlement.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  24. Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide
    25 1 hour

    Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide

    Her Majesty's Theatre

    Her Majesty's Theatre is a historic performing arts venue located in Adelaide, South Australia. The theatre serves as a significant cultural institution within the metropolitan area, hosting a diverse range of live entertainment productions.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Adelaide
  25. Brett Whiteley Studio Brett Whiteley Studio
    26 1 hour

    Brett Whiteley Studio

    Brett Whiteley Studio is a gallery and studio museum in Sydney dedicated to the life and work of Australian artist Brett Whiteley. The preserved working environment offers a more intimate encounter than a large museum collection.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Sydney
  26. Goolugatup Heathcote Goolugatup Heathcote
    27 1 hour

    Goolugatup Heathcote

    Goolugatup Heathcote is a cultural precinct and heritage site in the Perth metropolitan area. Its name, Goolugatup, reflects the place’s significance to Noongar people, the Traditional Owners of the land.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Perth
  27. Hosier Lane Hosier Lane
    28 1 hour

    Hosier Lane

    Hosier Lane is Melbourne’s celebrated open-air street-art corridor, a public laneway whose identity is made by walls layered with changing murals, tags and painted interventions.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Melbourne
  28. Institute of Modern Art Institute of Modern Art
    29 1 hour

    Institute of Modern Art

    The Institute of Modern Art is a contemporary art institution located in Brisbane. It serves as a venue for the exhibition and promotion of modern and contemporary art practices.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  29. Ipswich Art Gallery Ipswich Art Gallery
    30 1 hour

    Ipswich Art Gallery

    Ipswich Art Gallery is a public art museum in the centre of Ipswich, about 40 kilometres west of Brisbane's central business district.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane
  30. QUT Art Museum QUT Art Museum
    31 1 hour

    QUT Art Museum

    QUT Art Museum is a contemporary art museum located in Brisbane, Queensland. It forms part of the Queensland University of Technology's cultural precinct at Gardens Point campus.

    • Notable
    • Art and culture venue
    • Brisbane

Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·

Common questions

How long should a first trip to Australia be?

Ten to fourteen days should cover one coast, one city pair or one city plus a nearby landscape, not the continent. Sydney and Melbourne can share a southeastern route; Perth, the tropical north and the Red Centre each demand separate flights and more time.

What entry documents are needed for Australia?

Australia’s Department of Home Affairs is the authority for Visitor visas and electronic travel permissions. Select the product for the passport and purpose, complete required declarations, and remember that visa approval does not remove Australia’s strict biosecurity obligations.

What is the best way to travel around Australia?

Flights are usually the efficient link between distant states. Rail and coaches serve selected corridors, cars become important outside cities, and urban fare cards are local rather than national; remote drives require fuel, water, communications and realistic distance planning.

When is a practical time to visit Australia?

Australia’s seasons and hazards vary dramatically by latitude. Southern-city summers, tropical dry seasons and Red Centre heat create different windows, so choose dates for the selected region and check official fire, cyclone or flood advice before road travel.

What money and payment basics apply in Australia?

The Australian dollar is the sole recorded currency. Contactless payment is common, but remote roadhouses and small services justify a backup card or cash; check surcharges at the point of sale and budget fuel around long gaps rather than metropolitan prices.

What practical safety details should I save for Australia?

Use 000 for urgent police, fire or ambulance assistance; Australia uses Type I power at 230 V. Treated public tap supplies are recorded as safe, but remote-site notices take precedence, and travellers should save the state emergency service relevant to their route.