Tourism in Australia

1.) Importance of tourism to Australia (numbers, origin of tourists)

• During 2012, there were 6.1 million short term international visitors to Australia, which was an increase 4.6% from 2011 (Australia Bureau of Statistics).
• China is Australia's largest tourism export market with $3.8 billion annual expenditure.
• More than 583,000 Chinese visitor arrivals in 2011-12, which was a 17% increase from the previous year.

2.) Major tourist attractions

• Sydney- Opera House, Darling Harbour, shopping malls, museums, etc. 
  
• Carins- Great Barrier Reef, Daintree National Park.
  
• Gold Coast- large city with a lively nightlife, surrounded by mountains and national parks with lots of wildlife and waterfalls
• Ayers Rock- close to the city of Alice Springs, it's the biggest rock monolith in the world and a sacred place to the Aborigines.
  
• Tasmania- island to the south of Australia, with 18 national parks and lots of surfing beaches.
• Melbourne- larger in area than Sydney, most culturally diverse city in Australia, Port Phillip Bay has water temperatures that are suitable for penguins, the red Tram is available to take a tour around the city for free, lots of shopping and restaurants. Home of the Australian Open tennis grand slam event.
  

3.) National parks, wildlife, or nature preserves

• Australia has over 500 national parks.
• Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park- lots of cultural and spiritual significance for the Anangu people who were the original owners of the land.
• Great Sandy National Park- this park is basically Fraser Island, and is a World Heritage site. It has sub-tropical rainforests that grow extraordinarily well in infertile sand.
• Kakadu National Park- filled with many wetlands, waterfalls, and saltwater crocodiles.
• Port Campbell National Park- known as "Shipwreck Coast" and includes the Twelve Apostles.
  

• Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park- home of Cradle Mountain and Australia's deepest lake, Lake St. Clair. Possible to see platypus, Tasmanian devil, wombats, and wallabies.
• Nambung National Park (and the Pinnacles)- north of Perth and filled with unusual limestone pillars.
  
• Purnululu National Park (and the Bungle Bungles)- home of the domed Bungle Bungles.
  
• Daintree National Park (and Cape Tribulation)- one of the world's most diverse ecosystems, filled with lush rainforests that connect to white sand beaches.
  
• Freycinet National Park- A Tasmanian park home to the Wineglass Bay.
• Kosciuszko National Park- where Australia's highest peak is located. Large, snowy mountains that are popular skiing attractions.

4.) Important museums

• National Gallery of Victoria- located in Melbourne and founded in 1861. It is the oldest public art museum in Australia.
• National Museum of Australia- located in the national capital of Canberra, and explores the history of Australia including social issues, indigenous heritage, and events that shaped the country.
  
• Art Gallery of New South Wales- located in Sydney. It's the most important public gallery in Sydney and the fourth largest in Australia.