Australia features in new book: places to see before they disappear

Frommer's 500 Places To See Before They Disappear, written by Holly Hughes, lists the top 500 sites to see before climate change, development, or lack of finances for restoration or conservation renders them non-existent or ruined. 

Sydney's famous Luna Park, an Art Deco theatre in Adelaide, and the underground world of Coober Pedy, are just three of the 21 Australian features in the travel guide. 

"No child who has ever walked into Luna Park, through the grotesque gaping grin of the face, could fail to be wowed," Ms Hughes said in her book.

The Daintree Forest, Fraser Island, the Great Barrier Reef and Kakadu National Park each have their own listings, while Tasmania gets a whole section to itself. 

"Many unique species thrive in Tasmania, one of the world's most unusual ecosystems," Ms Hughes wrote.  "However, increasing development, including logging, mining and other industries, threaten many of the island's most beautiful places."

In related news, Tourism Australia recently released a $40 million campaign to ride on the back of Baz Luhrmann's new film Australia, which invites urbanites to "go walkabout" in Australia and rediscover their sense of adventure, romance and themselves.  The campaign is an attempt to lure more Australian holiday visa holders to holiday in Australia in response to recent drops in Australian tourism.

The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with their Australian visa application.

Article by Jessica Bird, Australian Visa Bureau.