Australia Before Leaving Home Blog

Australia is a very welcoming country to travel to and appeals to a broad range of visitors from families with children to gap year students, and with wide open spaces, beautiful beaches, glorious sunshine, low crime statistics, and a vast and diverse landscape, it is one of the safest countries in the world to visit.

Driving in Australia, in this "Great Southern Land" is an experience to be savored. Get into the wide-open spaces and see nature at its best. Drive hard and see if you can put an end to that massive horizon - Some adventures can only be found by car. But before setting off you should make sure you are well prepared to ensure you have a great road trip. So "Keep your eyes on the road, your hands upon the wheel!" 

The sheer size of Australia means there is a wide variation in climate. These range from a ‘wet’ and a ‘dry’ season in the tropical north, an area that is also prone to cyclones to the outback ‘the Red Centre’ that experiences blistering temperatures with severe droughts.  At the same time down south in Tasmania, an icy breeze from Antarctica can prevail – So planning your holiday is essential.

Australian English is also referred to as "Strine". The word derives from saying the word "Australian" through clenched teeth - a local accent that some scholars claim arose from the need to try and keep ones mouth closed when speaking, in order to keep the flies out…….  

True Aussie “Strine” can be quite difficult to understand, especially if you are in rural or outback Australia. To confuse things further, some Australians join several words together as one - like 'waddayareckon' (what do you reckon?) or owyagoin (how are you going?) and so on.