Business Hours -- Banks are open Monday through Thursday from 9:30am to 4pm, Friday 9:30am to 5pm. General business hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5:30pm. Shopping hours are usually 8:30am to 5:30pm weekdays and 9am to 4 or 5pm on Saturday. Many shops close on Sunday, although major department stores and shops in tourist precincts are open 7 days.

Dates -- Australians write their dates day/month/year; so March 6, 1958, is 06/03/58.

Drugstores -- These are called "chemist shops" or "pharmacies." Australian pharmacists are permitted to fill only prescriptions written by Australian doctors.

Electricity -- The current is 240 volts AC, 50 hertz. Sockets take two or three flat, not rounded, prongs. North Americans and Europeans will need to buy a converter before they leave home (don't wait until you get to Australia, because Australian stores are likely to stock only converters for Aussie appliances to fit American and European outlets). Some large hotels have 110V outlets for electric shavers (or dual voltage), and some will lend converters, but don't count on it in smaller, less expensive hotels, motels, or B&Bs. Power does not start automatically when you plug in an appliance; you need to flick the switch beside the socket to the "on" position.

Embassies & Consulates -- Most diplomatic posts are in Canberra: British High Commission, Commonwealth Avenue, Canberra, ACT 2600 (tel. 02/6270 6666); Embassy of Ireland, 20 Arkana St., Yarralumla, ACT 2600 (tel. 02/6273 3022); High Commission of Canada, Commonwealth Avenue, Yarralumla, ACT 2600 (tel. 02/6270 4000); New Zealand High Commission, Commonwealth Avenue, Canberra, ACT 2600 (tel. 02/6270 4211); and the United States Embassy, 21 Moonah Place, Yarralumla, ACT 2600 (tel. 02/6214 5600).

Emergencies -- Dial tel. 000 anywhere in Australia for police, ambulance, or the fire department. This is a free call from public and private telephones and needs no coins.

Information -- For telephone directory assistance within Australia, call tel. 12455.

Internet Access -- Internet access is available just about everywhere, including some of the smallest Outback towns, which generally have at least one cyber cafe, coin-operated machines, or both. Coin-op terminals are also available at larger airports. Major tourist towns such as Darwin and Cairns sometimes have whole streets full of cyber cafes.

Liquor Laws -- Hours vary from pub to pub, but most are open daily from around 10am or noon, to 10pm or midnight. The minimum drinking age is 18. Random breath tests to catch drunk drivers are common, and drunk-driving laws are strictly enforced. Getting caught drunk behind the wheel will mean a court appearance, not just a fine. The maximum permitted blood alcohol level is 0.05%. Alcohol is sold in liquor stores, in the "bottle shops" attached to every pub, and in some states in supermarkets.

Lost & Found -- Be sure to contact your credit card companies the minute you discover that your wallet has been lost or stolen, and file a report at the nearest police precinct. Your credit card company or insurer may require a police report number or record of the loss. Most credit card companies have an emergency toll-free number to call if your card is lost or stolen; they may be able to wire you a cash advance immediately or deliver an emergency credit card in a day or two. In Australia, call toll-free: American Express (tel. 1300/132 639), MasterCard (tel. 1800/120 113), and Visa (tel. 1800/125 440). Visa's U.S. emergency number is tel. 800/847-2911 or 410/581-9994. American Express cardholders and traveler's check holders should call tel. 800/992-3404. MasterCard holders should call tel. 800/MC-ASSIST or 636/722-7111. For other credit cards, call the toll-free number directory at tel. 800/555-1212. If you need emergency cash over the weekend when all banks and American Express offices are closed, you can have money wired to you through Western Union (tel. 800/325-6000; www.westernunion.com).

Mail -- A postcard costs A$1.10 (US88¢) to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, or New Zealand.

Maps -- Newsdealers, auto clubs, and bookstores are your best sources for maps.

Newspapers & Magazines -- The national daily newspaper is The Australian, which publishes an expanded edition with a color magazine on Saturday. Most capital cities have their own daily papers, usually a tabloid and a broadsheet. The Australian current-affairs magazine, The Bulletin with Newsweek, is published weekly, and there is an Australian edition of Time.

Pets -- Leave 'em at home. You will be back home planning your next vacation before your pet clears quarantine in Australia.

Police -- Dial tel. 000 anywhere in Australia. This is a free call from public and private telephones and requires no coins.

Safety -- Violent crime is uncommon, and the political situation is stable. Guns are strictly controlled. Purse-snatchers are the same threat they are all over the world.

Smoking -- Smoking in most public areas, such as museums, cinemas, and theaters, is restricted or banned. Smoking in restaurants and pubs may be limited -- Western Australia New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania ban it altogether, and in other states, restaurants have smoking and nonsmoking sections. Victoria and New South Wales will go the same way in 2007. Australian aircraft on all routes are completely nonsmoking, as are all airport buildings.

Taxes -- Australia applies a 10% Goods and Services Tax (GST) on most products and services. Your international airline tickets to Australia are not taxed, nor are domestic airline tickets for travel within Australia if you bought them outside Australia. If you buy Australian airline tickets once you arrive in Australia, you will pay GST on them.

Through the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS), Australians and international visitors can claim a refund of the GST (and of a 14.5% wine tax called Wine Equalisation Tax, or WET) paid on a purchase of more than A$300 (US$240) from a single outlet, within the last 30 days before you leave. Do this as you leave by presenting your receipt or "tax invoice" to the Australian Customs Service's TRS booths, located beyond passport control in the International Terminal departure areas at most airports.

Items bought in duty-free stores will not be charged GST. Nor will items you export -- such as an Aboriginal painting that you buy in a gallery in Alice Springs and have shipped straight to your home outside Australia.  Basic groceries are not GST-taxed, but restaurant meals are.

Other taxes include departure tax of A$38 (US$30) for every passenger 12 years and over, included in the price of your airline ticket when you buy it in your home country; landing and departure taxes at some airports, also included in the price of your ticket; and "reef tax," officially dubbed the Environmental Management Charge, of A$4.50 (US$3.60) for every person over the age of 4 every time he or she enters the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. (This charge goes toward park upkeep.)

Telephones -- The primary telecommunications network in Australia is Telstra (www.telstra.com).

To call Australia: If you're calling Australia from the United States:
1. Dial the international access code 011.
2. Dial the country code 61.
3. Dial the city code (drop the 0 from any area code given in this guide) and then the number. So, if you're calling Sydney, the whole number you'd dial would be 011-61-2-0000-0000.

To make international calls: To make international calls from Australia, first dial 0011 and then the country code (U.S. or Canada 1, U.K. 44, Ireland 353, New Zealand 64). Next dial the area code and number. For example, if you wanted to call the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., you would dial 0011-1-202-588-7800. For other country codes, call tel. 1222 or look in the back of the Australian White Pages.

For directory assistance: Dial tel. 12455 if you're looking for a number inside Australia, or tel. 1225 for numbers to all other countries.

For operator assistance: If you need operator assistance in making a call, dial tel. 1234. To make a collect call, dial tel. 12550. To find a number, call Directory Assistance at tel. 1223 for numbers in Australia and tel. 1225 for international numbers.

Toll-free numbers: Numbers beginning with 1800 in Australia are toll-free, but calling a U.S. 1-800 (or 1-888, 1-877, or 1-866) number from Australia is not toll-free; it costs the same as an overseas call.

Other numbers: Numbers starting with 13 or 1300 in Australia are charged at the local fee of A25¢ anywhere in Australia. Numbers beginning with 1900 (or 1901 or 1902 and so on) are pay-for-service lines, and you will be charged as much as A$5 (US$4) a minute.

Time Zone-- Eastern Standard Time (EST, sometimes also written as AEST) covers Queensland, New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, and Tasmania. Central Standard Time (CST) is used in the Northern Territory and South Australia, and Western Standard Time (WST) is the standard in Western Australia. When it's noon in New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, Queensland, and Tasmania, it's 11:30am in South Australia and the Northern Territory, and 10am in Western Australia. All states except Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia observe daylight saving time, usually from the last Sunday in October (the first Sun in Oct in Tasmania) to the last Sunday in March. However, not all states switch over to daylight saving on the same day or in the same week.

The east coast of Australia is GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) plus 10 hours. When it is noon on the east coast, it is 2am in London that morning, and 6pm in Los Angeles and 9pm in New York the previous night. These times are based on standard time, so allow for daylight saving in the Australian summer, or in the country you are calling. New Zealand is 2 hours ahead of the east coast of Australia, except during daylight saving, when it is 3 hours ahead of Queensland.

Tipping -- Tipping is not expected in Australia. It is usual to tip around 5% or round up to the nearest A$10 (US$8) for a substantial meal in a restaurant. Some passengers round up to the nearest dollar in a cab, but it's okay to insist on every bit of change back. Tipping bellboys and porters is sometimes done, but no one tips bar staff, barbers, or hairdressers.

Water -- Water is fine to drink everywhere. In the Outback, the taps may carry warm brackish water from underground, called "bore water," for showers and laundry, while drinking water is collected in rainwater tanks.