Australia is a very large island country surrounded by the Indian and South Pacific Oceans; it is so large that it makes up its own 2,941,299 square mile continent. While Australia is mostly desert or at least semi arid land and there is not much variation in climate or geography throughout the center of this country, it is the flattest, driest, and most barren continent. However, this cannot be said about the coastal regions and many surrounding islands. Its diverse range of habitats around the coast earns it classification as a versatile vacation destination.

There is a large mountain chain called the Great Dividing Range, and Mount Augustus on the west coast is claimed to be the world’s largest monolith at 7,310 ft. There are several pockets of temperate and tropical climates lining its 21,262 mile coastline. To the north, the climate is tropical and consists of rainforest, woodlands, grasslands, and mangrove swamps. Most of the population resides in the larger pockets of temperate climate at the southeast and southwest corners of the continent.

Aside from the mainland, Australia has many offshore islands and other territories. Some of these are; Jervis Bay, Norfolk Island, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and several largely uninhabited external territories: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, and the Australian Antarctic Territory. Possibly the most popular sailing getaway in Australia is the Whitsundays, a chain of islands off the coast of North Queensland. They offer beautiful sheltered waterways and islands packed with dense rainforest and sandy beaches and they are fringed with large reefs. The Whitsundays are located in the tropics and they are cooled by trade winds year round to create the perfect climate. They are very similar to the Caribbean islands as far a climate, water, terrain, and reefs. The only differences are that the seasons are reversed and the tides can reach upwards of 15 feet!

The most stunningly attractive feature of Australia is the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest coral reef. This reef is just off the northeast coast and extends over 1,250 miles. Needless to say, this sounds like a diver’s dream come true with endless exploration potential.

Australia’s age, low levels of fertility in the soil, extremely variable weather patterns, and long term geographic isolation contributed to form a completely unique and diverse flora and fauna, most of which is endemic. Plants have adapted to drought, fire, and nutrient poor soil. Species unique to Australia include kangaroo, koala, wombat, emu, kookaburra, and it also harbors the largest venomous snake population in the world.

It is estimated that Australia has been inhabited by the native Aborigines and Torres Straight Islanders for the past 42-48,000 years and they likely arrived here via land bridges.

Australia was established as a British prison colony, and English remains as the official language. Australian English has its own distinctive accent and vocabulary. Other common languages include Chinese, Italian, and Greek. The country has no official religion but most of its inhabitants are Christian.