HOW BIG IS AUSTRALIA?
It’s easy to look at Australia on a map and think, ‘It’s really only one island, it can’t be too big.’ But truth is, it’s actually a huge and diverse country.
Made up of six states (one of which is the island of Tasmania) and two mainland territories, Australia is the sixth largest country in the world, coming in after Russia, Canada, China, the USA and Brazil. It’s actually only slightly smaller than mainland USA, and is 32 times bigger than the UK. At it’s widest point it’s 4,030 km, and it takes over four hours (non-stop) to fly from Sydney to Perth, or 41 hours if you choose to drive.
Still think it’s small?
The country has three different time zones, not just because of its size but because not all of the country turns their clocks forwards and backwards throughout the year.
As you might expect every state and territory has its own individual character (both natural and manmade). Just for starters, while we’re known for our often sand-scorching, hot weather we also get snow and ice - the tropical weather across the top and alpine in the south-east.
In fact, approximately 18% of Australia’s mainland is named desert - even though about 35% of the country receives so little rain that it could actually be labelled as desert. All of which means, should you choose to go travelling through the Outback make sure you plan ahead because unless you know what you’re doing it’s pretty easy to get in to trouble. And I’m pretty sure that most people’s ideal trip away doesn’t involve getting stranded in a desert far away from everywhere.
Another interesting aspect about Australia is that many people who travel here tend to go straight to Sydney and the east coast. But why wouldn’t you, it does have more cities, states and activities? However, there’s also the presumption that WA’s not worth the extra time, travel and expense of visiting. After all, how different can one state be from the others? The answer is vastly. It’s almost like an entirely different country - despite the similarities of stunning beaches, the traditional Aussie lingo and relaxed lifestyle.
All of which is just another indication of how huge this country really is…
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