TDC200 TA
Destination
Research
Professor:
Heather
Keddie
By: Brittny Stevenson-Byers, Kar Hung Michael
Cheung, Bryan Marks, and Hau Man Colin Siu
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• Australia is a unique and widely
diverse country from culture,
population, climate, geography,
and history
• Australia has 19 listed World
Heritage sites
• Diversity in deserts, coral reefs,
forests
• Great for adventure seekers –
surfing, bungee jumping,
snorkeling, eco-tours
• Culinary tourism destination –
great wines and vineyards,
variety of dishes
Capital City: Canberra (CBR)
Other Major cities:
• Sydney (SYD)
• Melbourne (MEL)
• Brisbane (BNE)
• Perth (PER)
• Adelaide (ADL)
Australia Airport
Map:
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Australian Time Zones:
Time Zone During Standard
Time:
Time Zone During Daylight Savings:
Australian Time Zone Abbreviations:
Bodies of
Water:
Great Dividing Range:
• Varied mountain
ranges separating the
dry Australian interior
from the coastal
areas.
• The highest point is Mt.
Kosciusko in the
Australian Alps at 7,310
ft. (2,228 m) high.
• The Blue Mountains
World Heritage Area in
New South Wales,
about two hour's drive
from Sydney is one of
Australia's most visited
spots.
Sandy Deserts:
Great Sandy Desert:
At 150,000 square miles located in
Western Australia, south of the
Kimberley Plateau, features
scattered scrub vegetation and
rocks. It has miles of red sand
ridges (dunes) and very few
people.
Great Victorian Desert:
Known for its red sand dunes,
indigenous wildlife and
segregation, 250,000 sq. miles in
size and extends for about 450
miles, and is mainly a barren area
of red sand hills and ridges, dry
salt lakes, with very little
grassland.
Valuable Information:
• Currency and currency code:
Currency is Australian Dollars (AUD)
• Currency conversion rate: Australian
Dollar equals 0.99 Canadian Dollar
• Language(s) spoken: English
• Voltage: Electricity 220-240 volts, AC
50Hz
• Most common credit cards are
accepted: American Express,
MasterCard, Visa
• Post offices are generally open from
09:00-17:00, Monday to Friday
Australian Lingo:
A travel Visa is required to enter Australia
No vaccinations required unless you
come from or have traveled a yellow
fever infected country within 6 days
upon arrival
 Goods and Services Tax (GST) of 10%
for amounts over AUD300$
 Usual tip at a restaurant is 10% of bill,
or to travelers discretion (it is not
expected)
 Popular beaches are supervised by
lifeguards from October to April
 Insurance highly recommended
especially if planning adventure sports
and excursions such as bungee
jumping, scuba diving, bushwalking,
skiing, etc.
Weather and
Climate:
Climate can vary due to the size
of the continent
Northern Australia tends to be
more warm
Southern Australia cooler winters
Quite dry: Average rainfall is less
than 600 millimeters
Southern hemisphere means the Seasons are opposite to those in
Northern hemisphere:
Summer: December to February
Autumn: March to May (High Season)
Winter: June to August
Spring: September to November
Travel Advisories
AUSTRALIA - Exercise normal security precautions
There is no nationwide advisory in effect for Australia.
Exercise normal security precautions.
Entry/Exit Requirements
Canadians must also be in possession of an Electronic Travel
Authority (ETA). Ensure that you travel with the same passport
used to apply for your
Tourist visa: Required
Heath requirement:
Business visa: Required
The standard of health facilities in Canada is
Student visa: Required
comparable with that in Australia but the provincially run
health care systems are not easily accessible to
temporary visitors. Many physicians will not take new
patients, however walk-in medical clinics are available
throughout major cities. Visitors who seek medical
attention in Canada should be prepared to pay in full at
the time the service is provided. This includes dual
Australian-Canadian citizens who may not be eligible for
free Canadian healthcare due to provincial residential
requirements. There is no reciprocal health care
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agreement in place between Australia and Canada .
Food & Beverage
Can you drink the water?
• You can drink water in Australia, but many prefer to drink bottled
water after they found parasites in the water.
• The problem was fixed before the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and now
Australians are returning to drinking tap water.
• Australia only monitor the water for 70 chemicals, when most
developed countries monitor for over 300 chemicals.
• Some travelers may feel uneasy about drinking tap water, and
should stick to only bottled water.
Bottled Water brands available in Australia:
http://www.cleverwater.com.au/blog/is-australia-s-tap-water-safe-for-drinking/4
Local Food
• Australian food is influenced by British and Irish foods, since Australia
was former colony of Britain and part of the commonwealth
• After World War II ended new immigrants brought over food from
the Mediterranean and Asia
• Natives originally ate bush food, like Emus, kangaroos, and
crocodiles, you can still buy bush food in some grocery stores but its
not as popular as used to be
• Some popular Australian restaurants are Red Rooster, Hungry Jack's,
Henny Penny
Popular Dishes:
The Chiko Roll: consists of chopped
Fish and Chips:
Battered Fish and Deep Fried Chipsmeat, celery, cabbage, barley, rice,
carrot, onion, green beans and spices in
a cylinder tube of egg and flour dough
Local Food
What is Vegemite?
Vegemite is a dark brown food
spread made from leftover
brewers yeast extract with
various vegetable and spice
additives.
How to Enjoy Vegemite:
Great on toasted bread with
one layer of butter or
margarine before spreading a
thin layer of Vegemite.
Make a Vegemite sandwich
with two slices of buttered
bread, Vegemite and cheese.
Some add other ingredients
18 and
such as lettuce, avocado,
Local Beverage
Lift Lemon
There are 16 flavors of Lift that you
can get in , Latin America,
Germany, Austria, and Eastern
Europe, but Austrians only get the
lemon flavor because its "an
Australian phenomenon,
designed for the Australian
market"
What makes it special?
Its unique because
Australia is the only place
in the world you can get
the lemon flavour.
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Culture and Customs
Aboriginal Culture:
Aboriginal Australians are people who
are indigenous to Australia.
Practices and Ceremonies:
A Bora is an initiation ceremony in which
young boys become men.
A corroboree is a ceremonial meeting for
Australian Aboriginal people.
A smoking ceremony is a cleansing ritual
performed on special occasions.
Tjurunga or churinga are objects of
religious significance by Central Australian
Aboriginal Arrernte groups.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Aboriginal_culture
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Culture and Customs
Clothing: There are no laws or rules on clothing, but you must wear
certain clothing for work situations. Most workplaces have dress
standards.
http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/choose-australia/about-australia/au-customs/clothing.htm
Cultural standards: Australia is an egalitarian society. This does not
mean that everyone is the same or that everybody has equal wealth
or property.
http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/people_culture.html
Culture and Customs
Religion in Australia (2011)
Protestant (33.2%)
Roman Catholic (25.3%)
No religion (22.3%)
Undeclared (9.4%)
Eastern Orthodox (2.6%)
Buddhism (2.5%)
Islam (2.2%)
Hinduism (1.3%)
Other religions (1.2%)
St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney
Holidays and Celebrations:
1 January: New Year's Day
28 January:Australia Day
11 March: Canberra Day
29 March: Good Friday
30 March: Easter Saturday
1 April: Easter Monday
25 April: Anzac Day
10 June: Queen's Birthday
30 September: Family & Community Day
7 October: Labour Day
25 December: Christmas Day
26 December: Boxing Day
Shopping & Entertainment
Where is the best shopping area? – Queen Street Mall - Brisbane, Queensland
500 stores and Brisbane’s biggest shopping centre
What items are considered best buys for this destination? Australia’s Opals
Australia’s national gemstone
Is bargaining allowed or do you pay the price quoted?
Bargaining is not common, you pay quoted price.
Recommend local souvenirs, handcrafts or artefacts to purchase.
Boomerangs, Didgeridoos, Aboriginal Art
Describe local sports visitors could observe?
Australian Football League (AFL), A-League Soccer, F1 Australian Grand Prix
Describe local night life:
Surfers Paradise Nights - bars and clubs and concerts near Surfers paradise
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Australian Clothing Items and Styles:
• Australia has no official designated
national clothing or dress
• Iconic local styles include bushwear
and surfwear
• UGG boots worn for comfort and
preferred by the working classes in
Australia. Increase in world-wide
popularity over the last 10 years
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Sydney Opera House is located
inside of the city
Address: Bennelong Point, Sydney
NSW 2000, Australia
Man-made
Sydney Opera House is near the
Sydney Bridge which is also a manmade attraction
Performance Enquiries and Bookings;
Monday to Saturday 9am - 8.30pm,
and 9am – 5pm Sunday
Tour Enquiries and Bookings;
Monday to Saturday 9am - 5.30pm
Prices vary from different events and
tours
Appeals to music, history,
architectural and romantic tourists
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A massive stone outcropping
Natural attraction; scared site for
Aborigines
348 metres high and 10 kilometres
around
Best time to go is the morning
Australian government banned for
climbing Uluru because of sacred
grounds
In the Northern Territory, near Alice
Springs
No entrance fees; possibly get a
private tour about Uluru will have
a price
Appeals to cultural, adventure,
history, and “experience new
things” type tourists
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Located north of Queensland
Access from the city of Cairns
The Great Barrier Reef is the longest living organism and it is made up of hundreds of offshore
coral island
Natural attraction, that visitors can experience diving, snorkelling, and marlin fishing
Best time to go is morning or afternoon
No entrance fee; possibly renting a motorboat or snorkelling equipments will have a price
Appeals to unusual habitat, divers, nature, “experience new things” type of tourists
Fun Facts:
• Canberra was chosen as the capital
of Australia as they could not decide
between Sydney and Melbourne.
• There are more than 40 millions of
kangaroos in Australia now. This is
more than the total population of
Australia!
• But there are more sheep than
kangaroos! There are about 140
million sheep. That's why Australia is
worldwide famous for their wool
quality.
• Australia is the smallest continent in
the world
• The world's largest reef system, the
Great Barrier Reef, is found off the
north-eastern coast of Australia.