Trips Down Under: Steps In Acquiring An Australian Tourist Visa

Officially called the Commonwealth of Australia, this country is located on the southern hemisphere, and is considered the world’s smallest continent. It’s comprised of mainland Australia, the major island of Tasmania, and other islands located within the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Its capital is Canberra, which is situated in the Australian Capital Territory, or ACT. The country has a population of just around 21.3 million and 60% of the country’s population lives mostly around the state capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. For those who wish to acquire a tourist visa for short visits or long vacations to this lovely part of the planet, you could ask for assistance from your travel agent, go personally to any Australian visa center, or mail your passport and visa application forms to this office.



Australia is considered to be among the most popular and exciting tourism destinations in the world. It attracts millions of tourists annually, who frequent its lovely beaches, scenic landscapes and adventure destinations. Among the top tourist attractions here is the Great Barrier Reef, which is the world’s largest coral reef system which stretches for 2,000 kilometers. This natural wonder consists of 20,000 individual reefs and 600 islands, and many waterfront resorts, beach side condominiums and mansions abound in this area.



Sydney is also one top destination. This city is considered as one of the world’s most beautiful cities, and is surrounded by lovely beaches, lush hinterlands, wine-producing districts and world-class entertainment and cultural facilities. The Opera House and Harbour Bridge are really nice places of interest as well as the Harbour itself, which is noted for offering spectacular views of the city and the bay, particularly at night. Byron Bay is also another popular destination here with its numerous beaches, relaxed lifestyle and wide Array of adventure activities. Ayers Rock, also called Uluru by the indigenous Australians, is also a famous Aussie landmark. This large sandstone formation is located in Central Australia, and is listed as a World Heritage site.

For those who wish to personally apply for an Australian tourist visa, these can be issued on the spot, usually within an hour or two, and won’t require you to return the next day. According to visa experts, there may or may not be a charge levied for the tourist visa. First, you should, fully determine your length of stay for a specific visit, and you may choose from an electronic travel authority (ETA) visa, which is applicable for up to 3 months or a tourist visa which will allow you to stay up to 12 months. Next, make sure that you provide all the required information for your visa application. You need to have your passport ready, since an ETA visa will be linked to your passport number you’re currently carrying. However, if you wish to renew your passport, then wait to apply for your visa first. Third, pay the required service fees. While ETA visas do not have any fees levied, you still need to pay for the processing charges.



Australian visa applications done by mail or personal application require the payment of fees. After the processing and payment of required charges, you may now be able to get your tourist visa once it’s approved. You need to print all the documents you receive and include these with your valid travel papers when traveling. In addition, you need to remember that your passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of your departure, as well as check in advance the passport requirements with your local or national carrier when booking a flight to this destination.

Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia – Part 1

The Whitsunday Islands. 74 magical islands floating on an aquamarine pillow. Closely situated to each other and mainland Australia. To the east of the islands lay the Great Barrier Reef.

There are 9 island resorts spread amongst these tropical isles that hide such treasures as Whitehaven Beach, Blue Pearl Bay and Nara Inlet.

The truly beautiful ones don’t have any resorts on them, they are the same as when James Cook named them in 1970, pristine. Their waters hide all kinds of marine life in an awesome imagery of colour. From the tiniest nudibranch to the Humpback whales that inhabit our mild winter waters. Coral is prodigious, diverse in species and spectacularly colourful.

A short trip eastward will find you at the GBR with massive coral formations and huge amounts of fish of all varieties. Manta Ray dot the waters and mid tide lagoons and waterfalls form It is amazing to see waterfalls 90 km’s form the mainland. Hardy Reef provides some good ones.

No ocean swell passes through this 2500km long coral fortress and our coast receives no surf. This has all helped shape these wonderfully unique natural attractions.

The islands are the worlds best waters for sailing and many people realise that. Calm seas with good trade winds and naturally spectaular anchorages all make for excellent conditions. Islands like Hamilton have big well maintained marinas. It is a mini city on HI with 5000 permanent residents and 2000 guests when full. They have their own banks, real estate agents, medical centre and post office. As well as fire, ambulance and security forces. The key to these island resorts is that you use them to see the best sights on the rest.

For those who don’t like the solitary island life, Airlie Beach the mainland port has a thriving nightlife and great restaraunts in a chilled village atmosphere. Visitors from around the world visit this place for it’s proximity to the islands. Sipping a drink from the sailing club and watching the yachts sailing with Hayman Island in the background only 15 nautical miles off shore is a very comfortable feeling. Airlie is a very social place and if you can’t chill here you can’t do it anywhere.

The best way to experience these islands is to take one of the many cruises that sail these waters. There are all types for all tastes and budgets so there are no excuses. Waltzing with whales, diving with dugong, flying with fish, lost in paradise. It’s a beautiful place, the best place in OZ.

Melbourne City Travel Guide

There are loads and loads of things to love about the city in Australia, Melbourne. This classy city in south-east curve of the mainland Australia inspires deep zeal in those blessed enough to reside here.

Melbourne, the capital city of Victoria is relatively a modern place which is not even 200 years of age and by no chance sits still. This beautiful place is a lot about the lifestyle. The new ultramodern designs add a lot to the charming mix of the architecture and make sure that the skyline is persistently changing. It is not a surprise that this superb city is ranked among the best cities to live in.

Melbourne people known as Melburnians embrace 3 things in exacting:

1. Sports: here the game of football is next to a religion. People go crazy during a football match.

2. Festivals: It seems that the people in this city always look for a chance to celebrate. The calendar is full of special dates and occasions.

3. Fashion: Now this is one of the major things which Melburnians are good at. They always look in the style with a dash of originality.

Melbourne has a notoriously changeably climate. There is even a joke on the weather of this city. It is said that this place can see 4 seasons in a single day. But, honestly, it is just an example of how this city has it all!

Not only these, Melbourne a great place with loads of attractions. People from all over the world come here to see the wonders of this city. Some of the major tourist attractions are art galleries, museums, zoo, parks and a lot more.

Shopping in this fantastic place is also great. It has everything from the locally made stuffs to the best international brands. You will surely get spoilt for the choice in the city’s shopping precincts.

A city is well known from its nightlife. Melbourne has a superb nightlife which is great for every age group. A lot of tourist gets attracted to this city because of its awesome nightlife. There are trendy clubs, bars with live and rock music, theaters and a lot more.

Melbourne’s culture is well reflected in the restaurants, bistros and cafes of this city. It has some of the best place to dine.

Melbourne is a city with vibrant energy with astounding choice of funky boutiques, restaurants, classy bars, luscious parks, and galleries, each with some special character.

For the budget traveler who loves to eat, Melbourne is a favorite hot spot. Eating here is economical, affordable and enjoyable given the fact that Melbourne has so many cuisines and culinary delights to offer. Service might be biased towards those customers who are paying about 10% of the bill as tip, although tipping is not compulsory. It is advised to tip the waiter in advance at high end restaurants if you desire perfect service, otherwise you might have to contend with some pretty ordinary and cold service.

No matter what reason you have for coming into Melbourne, you are bound to be swept away with its historic and fruitful past and the beauty of Victorian era architecture combined with the warmth of demographically split people mesmerizes one and all, no matter what ethnic or cultural group you belong to.