My friend and I are going on a trip to Australia for a month next year?

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Ozmaniac

Funny isn't it that America is so far behind the rest of the world in not using the far simpler and more logical metric system?

Other answers have given you distance and petrol measures, but you should note that there are 3.79 litres to a US gallon.
That means that a price of say AUD$1.60 per litre is AUD$6.06 per gallon (USD$5.76)

Another thing that you'll find confusing is temperature and that's not a straightforward conversion so here are a few that you may find useful at this time of the year:

10C = 50F (exactly)
13C = 55.4F
15C = 59F
18C = 64.4F
20C = 68F
22C = 71.6F
You probably won't need any more unless you're heading north to Queensland.

Here's a few other things you'll find different...

In Australia, tipping is not the norm. If you receive great service and would like to show your appreciation, a tip will be appreciated but it's not virtually mandatory as in the US. Our waiters, cab drivers, bus boys, doormen etc are paid the same sort of hourly rate as other people and tips are a bonus on top - not an integral part of their income. If you don't tip - they won't starve.

In Australia, an entree is a starter - a smaller serving taken before your main course.

If you order a salad and a main dish, you will be served both at the same time unless you specifically ask for the salad first.

If you see that a restaurant is BYO, that means Bring Your Own and you are expected to take your wine and other alcohol with you. At many BYOs, you will be charged 'corkage', usually on a per head basis, but it may be on a per bottle basis. That is intended to compensate the restaurant for not making a profit on liquor sales and for supplying glasses, ice buckets etc.

Have a great time - it's the differences, not just the scenery that makes travel so interesting and memorable.

Elizabeth

The main thing is for you to have a wonderful time visiting us.
I hope you have a great holiday (vacation) here.
It seems you are trying to do plenty of research and that's great.

My main concern is that you say you have a rental car organised. Now that's fine BUT.....
Please, please be very careful driving.
We have tourists injured or killed, from left hand drive countries, in head-on road accidents every year.
We drive RIGHT HAND DRIVE cars.
We drive on the LEFT SIDE of the road.
It's easy to drift to the wrong side of the road and all of a sudden you are involved in a head-on crash.
So take care, especially at night.
Your rental car will take unleaded petrol unless it's a deisel engine. The rental company will tell you about that so don't worry.

Remember, we DO NOT TIP.
The only time we tip is if we receive really exceptional service otherwise we don't. Don't let people tell you otherwise just because you're an American tourist. Keep your cash for stuff you want to do.

I don't think you'll have any real problem with Metrics. The only measurements you'll need to worry about is driving speed and that's marked on the side of the road and the speedometer will be in kilometres per hour.
Here are rough conversions of driving speeds.
100kph is the speed limit on the highway approx 60mph.
80kph is in slow down areas approx 45mph.
60kph is in built-up areas (towns) approx 35mph.
Unless the road signs says otherwise.
Also the weather temperature and you can easily walk outside and find out if it's hot or cold.

It's not just our Metric System.
It's the same Metric System 98% of the world uses.
So no matter where you travel you'll have the same problem.
The only countries which don't use it are:
Liberia in Africa
Myanmar (formerly Burma) in Asia
and
The United States of America
http://shs.westport.k12.ct.us/mjvl/biology/intro/non-metric_countries.htm

nellephant_1

first thing you need to know is that Australia is BIG and each state is different. if you are coming to melbourne in winter you are in for some serious cold and fog - but it is the best city in the world! northern states don't get as cold - their seasons are tropical. if you are only here for a month get yourself a converter for the metric system - no need to learn it all by heart.

METATARSELS!

uummm sometimes they have travel guides online you can also find metric converters online......hope i helped!have fun
and dont act like too much of a yank

Gypsy Whitemoon

Petrol is sold by the litre (A metric volume measurement equal to a little less than one imperial quart). Its mostly sold unleaded and if you have a hire car that is what you will need unleaded. What part of Australia are you visiting its a big place.

if you can tell me where you are going I can better advise you.

Vairaâ˜…

Gas is petrol yes and it is any where between $1.50 and $1.80 a L. June/July is winter. End of July is the most cold. Depends which state you visit obviously as each and every state here is extremely different!

shazza

The answers above have pretty much said it all ,but one other thing is Yes the Legal drinking age is 18 ,but be very careful our drink driving laws are strict for a good reason and you the maximum is 0.08% alcohol in your blood ,they say this is 2 drinks in the first hour and one there after but I would really would not drink and drive at all as you are not used to our roads ,most of our clubs/pubs have courtesay buses that will drive you home for free so take advantage of them and stay safe hope you have a great trip.

Black Cat

What are you going to be measuring when on holiday?

Buy a lonely planet guide and that should answer all your questions.

Bob Y

GOOOOLLLLD COASTTT, a must visit, the beaches and the tallest residential tower in the world.. Q1..

BONZAAA

jennifer h

You don't say what city you will be in, as you have a hotel booked it is sounding like you intend to stay in the one place. also we need to know how long you are here for. also you have a car booked. If you where
landing in Sydney then public transport would really be the way to go. So much easier and you can get an all day fare that takes you on buses trains and ferries. If you are able to leave your hotel and have several weeks then I would suggest to drive North up to the Queensland coast. It will be warmer that time of year. You have the answers to your petrol query so I suggest you ask another question with more details. One way or another I'm sure you will love your trip. goodluck

nrginequalsnrgout

OK metrics, we measure liquids in litres. there are 4.5 litres to the gallon (roughly) so petrol is a little more expensive than the States.
Distances are measured in km. There are about 1.6 km per mile so if somthing is 80km away that's about 50 miles.
Can't understand why you're going to Aussie though. You should hop the "ditch" (Tasman Sea) and come to New Zealand. It's much nicer.

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