About Australia
Australia is a continent like no other. It is home to one of the longest surviving indigenous cultures in the world and is home to immigrants from all over the world.
Australia is also a land of liturgical connundrums - hot, balmy Christmas seasons, autumn leaves heralding Easter, gothic city cathedrals and outback sacred places with open sky ceilings.
Click here to explore the breadth and depth of Australia and its tourist opportunities.
Time
Australia has three time zones:
East: GMT + 10
Central: GMT + 9.5
West: GMT + 8.
Sydney is in the eastern time zone and in August, will be GMT + 10 hours.
Weather
Weather in August in Australia is extremely varied. It is very cold overnight in Canberra, Hobart, Alice springs and the snow-capped mountain ranges in Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania. Yet bush fires rage at the top end of the Northern Territory, with temperatures averaging over 30 C.
Travel within Australia
Flight time Sydney-Perth (East to West): 5 hours
Flight time Adelaide-Darwin (north to south): 3 hours 40 minutes
As a guide here are the distances from the major cities to Sydney:
Canberra: 292km or 181 miles
Melbourne: 873km or 543 miles
Brisbane: 984km or 611 miles
Adelaide: 1415km or 879 miles
Perth: 3972km or 2468 miles
Darwin: 4301km or 2673 miles