Archive for the ‘Queensland’ Category

Queensland

Friday, February 26th, 2010

The northeastern area of the mainland of Australia is home to the state Queensland. It borders with the states Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales. Queensland has many world heritage sites, landscapes, vibrant cities, golden beaches, clear blue waters and warm temperatures. The state is named in honor of Queen Victoria. Its nickname is the Sunshine State.

The capital city is Brisbane, which has a lively atmosphere. Other cities are the popular Cairns in the north, Mount Isa, Charleville, Townsville, Port Douglas, Bundaberg, Caloundra, Noosa, Mackay, Hervey Bay, Gladstone and Rockhampton. Each city and town in Queensland has its own atmosphere but you will always enjoy real hospitality from the citizens. To the south of Brisbane lies the Gold Coast, a popular tourist area with beaches and resorts. To the north of the capital city lies Sunshine Coast, an area with many different cities.

Queensland has many amazing landscapes and natural treasures. You can visit the Great Barrier Reef, one of the great wonders of the world. It is home to more than tens of thousands of species, including colorful fish, coral, dolphins, whales and turtles. Another great site is the Daintree National Park with rain forest, swamps, beaches and mangroves. You can follow walking tracks to see this nature. In the southeast of Queensland lies Gondwana Rainforest, an extensive area of rain-forests. Bloodjamulla Lawn Hill National Park also has many rain-forests.

Other great national parks are Fraser Island off the Hervey Bay coast, Bunya Mountains National Park and Carnarvon National Park. You can also visit the Great Dividing Range with waterfalls and picnic areas, the Glass House Mountains, Cape York Peninsula, the white sandy beaches of Whitsunday Islands and Hinchinbrook Island.

The state of Queensland offers everything for every tourist. It has the most beautiful nature of the world, including rain forests, lakes and beaches. The people are friendly and most of the time laid-back. The climate offers warm temperatures with a subtropical to tropical climate in the east and arid climate to the west. The north has a wet season. The best time to visit Queensland depends on your destination.

Travelers to Queensland need a valid passport and visa. Citizens of America, Canada and Europe automatically after application receive a tourist visa that is valid for 12 months. It permits multiple entries into Australia for a stay of up to 3 months on each visit.

Great Barrier Reef

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

Great Barrier Reef is the globe’s largest coral reef which composes over 2900 individual reefs and 900 islands located in the Coral Sea, just off the coast of Queensland in north east Australia. The great barrier reef can be seen from space as the globe’s largest single structure made by living organisms, the reef is built by billions of tiny organisms known as coral polyps.

The Great Barrier Reef is a site of remarkable variety of life and beauty and therefore is a World Heritage Site since 1981. By known latest known measurements the great barrier reefs counts 400 types of coral, 1500 species of fish and 400 types of molluscs. Also, the great barrier reef has been labeled as one of the 7 natural world wonders on this globe. The Great Barrier Reefs hold an important note in scientific knowledge, latest research include the habitat species of dugong “sea cow” and chelonia mydas “green turtle”.

The most convenient way to reach Great Barrier Reef is through Townsville and Marinepark, it consist out of hundreds uninhabited islands with bounty sand white beaches where you can stay and explore the reef by snorkeling or diving. As accommodation (when available) is rather expensive, most travelers choose to camp on the beaches. Make sure to bring a local tour guide that’s booked through a certificate company. The Long Island is the reef’s most visited island, the reasoning is that it’s close to the shore and excellently suited for a day trip. From there, it’s easy to navigate towards Whitesunday Islands, Molle Islands, Hamilton Island, Hook Island, Daydream Island and any of the other 900 plus islands located in the reef. There’s several national parks in the reef including Tyron, Lady Musgrave and North West which are excellent for relaxation and perfection.

Travelers to the Great Barrier Reef are recommended to get an accommodation in Queensland, Australia mostly Townsville. For entrance an valid passport and visa need to be shown at immigration. Citizens of America, Canada and Europe will automatically after application receive a tourist visa that is valid for 12 months. It permits multiple entries into Australia for a stay of up to 3 months on each visit.