Monkey Mia is the place to go to interact with the bottlenose dolphins that swim to shore there. Located in Shark Bay, tourists can usually see between five and twenty dolphins coming in, three times a day, looking for the food they first received from local fishers. Now the park rangers allow a few tourists (usually the children, if any) to feed carefully controlled amounts of fish - it is important to make sure the dolphins do not become overdependent on humans.
2. Sydney Opera House
Answer: New South Wales
Located on Bennelong Point, in the shadow of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Opera House was designed by the Danish architect Bjorn Utzon. Although its exterior is amazing, and instantly recognisable, the quality of its performance spaces has always been somewhat controversial, since it was designed from the outside in, rather than starting with the needs of the various performance venues it contains.
3. Uluru
Answer: Northern Territory
Formerly known as Ayers Rock, this sandstone monolith is one of Australia's most recognisable sites. Its color changes at dawn and dusk are quite spectacular, and reward those who travel the 450 km from Alice Springs, the nearest sizable settlement, to view it. Because it is a sacred site for the local Pitjantjatjara Anangu people, tourists are discouraged from climbing the rock, but some still do so.
It's a difficult climb, not to be undertaken lightly for both ethical and physical reasons.
4. Big Banana
Answer: New South Wales
When the Big Banana opened in 1964, it was a pioneer in what has become a staple of the Australian tourism industry - the "Big Thing". the giant walk-through banana, located in the middle of a working banana plantation, features educational displays about the industry. Later expansions of the tourist park have led to the addition of a water park, mini golf, and (unusually, given its tropical location) an ice skating rink and a downhill toboggan run.
5. Great Barrier Reef
Answer: Queensland
The world's largest coral reef system is located in the Coral Sea, along the coast of Queensland, and can be visited in a day trip from many seaside locations. Scuba divers flock here from around the world; less adventurous types can view the spectacular tropical fish from the glass-bottomed tour boats. Sadly, large portions of the reef have suffered bleaching in recent years, due to rising ocean temperatures.
6. Coober Pedy
Answer: South Australia
Coober Pedy bills itself as the opal capital of the world, due to both the quantity and the quality of the gems that have been mined here. Nowadays, tourism is as important an industry as mining - visitors can have a go at swinging a pickax and seeing if they find anything. (My grandfather came home with a small opal when he visited 50 years ago!) Coober Pedy is also interesting for its underground residences, so built to use the earth as thermal insulation during the scorching days.
7. Nitmiluk Gorge National Park
Answer: Northern Territory
Formerly known as Katherine Gorge, this National Park now takes its name from that used by the local Jawoyn people, a name which means "place of the cicada dreaming". It is a series of gorges which can be travelled by boat (although some portaging is required in the dry season, when the falling water level divides the Katherine River into a series of stretches rather than a single piece of water) or by walking along the Jatbula Trail. Watch out for the crocodiles when you are near the water - both saltwater and freshwater crocodiles can be found here, and they bite.
8. Phillip Island
Answer: Victoria
The Penguin Parade, when the fairy penguins who live here come ashore in the evening, is a daily tourist highlight of Phillip Island. On a good evening, the beach is covered with hundreds of penguins flocking home; on the night when I visited, there were only a few dozen straggling across the sands, but they were still pretty adorable! Phillip Island also has some excellent surf beaches, and is host to a variety of motor sports races, both for motorbikes and for touring cars.
9. Bondi Beach
Answer: New South Wales
While Bondi Beach is far from being Australia's best beach, its proximity to Sydney (Bondi is a suburb of Sydney) has made it one of those with which overseas visitors are most familiar. It is the site of one of the largest New Year's Eve celebrations, as well as being a popular place for visitors from the northern hemisphere to spend Christmas Day.
In August each year, the City to Surf Fun Run terminates on Bondi Beach.
10. Margaret River
Answer: Western Australia
The Margaret River Wine District produces some of Australia's best wines, and tourists can enjoy sampling the goods at a number of the wineries. There are also a number of caves in the nearby Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, six of which are open to tourists.
The nearby coastal beaches are renowned for their surf breaks - you may remember that it was visited in the classic 1966 surfing documentary "The Endless Summer".
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