The Ultimate Travel Guide to Australia: History & Attractions

The lucky country — ancient Aboriginal culture, Great Barrier Reef, red outback desert, Sydney Harbour and the world's most unique wildlife.

A Glimpse into History

Australia has the world's oldest continuous culture — Aboriginal Australians have inhabited the continent for at least 65,000 years, developing the world's most ancient oral traditions, spiritual practices (the Dreamtime), and land management techniques including fire-stick farming that shaped the Australian landscape. Over 500 distinct language groups existed before European contact. Captain James Cook claimed eastern Australia for Britain in 1770 at Botany Bay, and the First Fleet arrived with 1,487 convicts and marines in 1788 to establish the penal colony of New South Wales. The dispossession and killing of Aboriginal peoples — through violence, disease, and policies including the forcible removal of children (the Stolen Generations) lasting into the 1970s — was catastrophic and remains the great unresolved wound in Australian history. The 1851 Gold Rush transformed the colony, bringing 500,000 migrants in three years and creating the multicultural foundations of Australian society. The six colonies federated into the Commonwealth of Australia on January 1, 1901 — a nation that immediately granted women the right to vote (1902) while simultaneously passing the White Australia Policy restricting non-European immigration. That policy was dismantled from 1966, and Australia's post-WWII embrace of immigration from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East created the most diverse society in the world by birth origin. Today 30% of Australians were born overseas, and Aboriginal culture is experiencing a powerful renaissance.

Top Attractions in Australia

Sydney Opera House & Harbour

Jørn Utzon's shell-sailed masterpiece on Bennelong Point — completed in 1973 after 16 years of construction and cost overruns that drove the architect to resign — is the defining image of Australia and one of the 20th century's greatest architectural achievements. The Sydney Harbour Bridge walk (134 metres above the water), the Royal Botanic Garden, and the Rocks historic quarter together make Sydney Harbour the world's most beautiful urban waterway.

Great Barrier Reef

The world's largest coral reef system — 2,300 km of reef built by billions of living coral polyps, containing 1,500 fish species, 4,000 mollusc species, 240 bird species, 6 sea turtle species, and 30 whale and dolphin species — is visible from space and is the largest living structure on earth. Cairns and the Whitsundays are the main gateways for snorkelling and diving.

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

The sacred red sandstone monolith rising 348 metres from the central Australian desert changes colour through ochre, orange, purple, and red as the sun moves — particularly at dawn and dusk. Uluru is the spiritual centre of the Anangu people who have lived in this landscape for at least 10,000 years. The Anangu asked visitors to stop climbing Uluru in 2019, redirecting focus to the 10-km base walk and Aboriginal cultural experiences.

Great Ocean Road

The 243-km coastal drive between Torquay and Allansford in Victoria — built by WWI veterans as a memorial and hugging sheer sea cliffs — passes surf beaches, rainforest gorges, and the iconic Twelve Apostles limestone sea stacks rising from the Southern Ocean. Early morning visits before the tour buses arrive reveal them at their most atmospheric.