Australia

Australia is too big for most imaginations, too varied and diverse to get your mind around. This is, of course, a large part of its appeal. The continent can fulfill just about any travel dream, whether it be for big city living, lazy beach vacations, or mind-bending adventures in the remotest back of beyond. Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Brisbane offer urban attractions to match any interest. From world class performing arts to cultural festivals and fine dining, Australia's cities, though young on a European scale, easily hold their own against other great world cities of similar sizes. The Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, the Cape York ...

Australia is too big for most imaginations, too varied and diverse to get your mind around. This is, of course, a large part of its appeal. The continent can fulfill just about any travel dream, whether it be for big city living, lazy beach vacations, or mind-bending adventures in the remotest back of beyond. Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Brisbane offer urban attractions to match any interest. From world class performing arts to cultural festivals and fine dining, Australia's cities, though young on a European scale, easily hold their own against other great world cities of similar sizes. The Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, the Cape York Peninsula and the Northern Territory offer every conceivable tropical experience, with the added bonus of profound cultural encounters when you begin to move inland and discover the ways of Australia's Aboriginal people. Forays into the Outback, the vast arid regions that make up most of the continent, provide opportunities for contact with these indigenous people and their cultures, especially through their art. The Outback has some of the oldest land on earth, outlandish geological features, wildlife unknown elsewhere in the world and countless remote gorges awaiting exploration, so long as you know what you're doing. The biggest issue facing any visitor to Australia is deciding what to choose, because the options are almost as vast as the landscape.

About the Expert

Larry Habegger is Triporati's editor-in-chief and executive editor of Travelers' Tales, where he has edited or coedited dozens of books including Travelers' Tales Australia and Ireland.