Seven big myths we tell tourists about Australia, busted

Foreign visitors must get a little confused when they arrive in Australia and ask locals here about the destinations they’re considering visiting.

What’s Sydney like, they might ask. Should I go to Brisbane? What do I need to know about Perth?

And they will get a whole lot of answers from Australians that are absolutely untrue. Because though I’m sure we all mean well, unless you’ve visited certain places in this country recently, you probably wouldn’t realise that some of the old cliches and stereotypes about our favourite cities just aren’t true any more.

If you’re telling foreign visitors any of the following, you’re giving them the wrong information.

Myth 1: Perth is the world’s most isolated capital city

Perth: not as isolated as you think.Credit: iStock

This is a fact people love repeating, whether they’re from the east coast or the west. It feels correct, given the vastness of Australia, and the emptiness of the Nullarbor Plain. A decent boast. But firstly, Perth is only a state capital, so what does this statement even mean? And secondly, if we’re doing states, what about Honolulu, the capital of Hawaii, where you have to fly 5½ hours over the Pacific Ocean to find the next major population base? (Perth to Adelaide, for reference, is three hours.) Those in, say, Reykjavik, on a tiny island on the edge of the Arctic Circle, might also feel more isolated than Perth.

Myth 2: Sydney has Australia’s best weather

Sydney in summer.Credit: Dion Georgopoulos

This is something Sydneysiders once enjoyed lording over the rest of the country, particularly Melbourne. We have the best weather, they’d say. Perfect for enjoying Australia’s best beaches (also not true), and Australia’s best harbour (OK, probably true). But anyone who has lived in Sydney for the past five years or so could attest that the weather these days is middling at best, and in the case of the record annual rainfall in 2022, far worse. The words “La Nina” send shivers down any Sydneysider’s spine.

Myth 3: Melbourne has Australia’s best coffee

Melbourne was once the king of coffee, but the rest of the country has caught up.Credit: Chris Hopkins

Again, this was once true. There was a time when Melbourne cafes served by far the best coffee in Australia (and from my observation there are many Melburnians who believe this is still true, which might make the following opinion unpopular).

But the rest of the country has caught up on coffee culture, no doubt having learned from its southern brethren. In any big city in Australia – and even a smaller city like Hobart – you will be served reliably excellent coffee, and I don’t notice any increase in quality now in Melbourne.

Myth 4: Brisbane is a big country town

Brisbane really has come of age.Credit: Tourism and Events Queensland

I once worked at a small suburban magazine in Brisbane, and it felt like every couple of weeks we were writing cover stories declaring, “Brisbane has come of age!” – even though those of us writing the stories knew it wasn’t true.

These days though, it really is true. Brisbane has come of age. The Queensland capital has a great food and drink scene, high-quality hotels, top-class art galleries, lovely parks, good transport, decent road infrastructure and a population getting on towards 2.5 million.

Definitely not a country town.

Myth 5: Hobart is a cultural backwater

The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) is reason enough to visit Hobart these days.

Here’s another city that used to be the butt of jokes, and one that is most definitely having the last laugh. If you meet any Australian that tells you Hobart is a cultural backwater, a dull place with nothing to do, then they haven’t been to Hobart in a very long time.

You have a thriving restaurant scene in the Tassie capital, one of the most exciting in Australia. You have some of the country’s best wineries on your doorstep. There are burgeoning Indigenous cultural attractions and experiences.

And there’s MONA, the art gallery that has become a phenomenon, the sole reason some tourists cross the Bass Strait. Any city in Australia would be desperate for something similar.

Myth 6: Byron Bay is a hippie paradise

Byron Bay’s hippie vibe is long gone.Credit: Danielle Smith

Ah, beautiful Byron, home to all the flower-power hippies, the artsy, creative types, the people who get the vibe. And in some ways that old cliche is still true – that is, as long as you’re a hippie with a trust fund to fall back on. Because the Byron Bay of today is seriously expensive, so much so that many of the people who made it what it is have been forced out into surrounding towns.

There’s still no McDonald’s in Byron because the council won’t allow it – but there are plenty of big-budget property developments and cashed-up Sydneysiders desperate to buy them.

You know, the classic hippie dream.

Myth 7: There’s nothing happening in Canberra

The National Arboretum in Canberra.Credit: John Gollings

Ask any Australian outside the ACT and they will probably happily tell you that our national capital is a beige, lifeless collection of roundabouts and civil servants, where you can’t get a meal after 8pm.

But that’s the old Canberra. The new Canberra has some of the best wine bars in Australia, not to mention plenty of high-quality restaurants (some even open after 8pm), and then a swag of boutique hotels, plus art galleries and museums to match any in Sydney or Melbourne. It almost makes you … proud?