A tourist's personal property generally is exempt from customs duty. Pets are allowed entry only after long periods of quarantine outside Australia, if at all. Australia has no unusual health problems or serious endemic diseases, and no special health precautions are necessary for tourists. Hospitals are modern. Reliable international telephone, telegraph, telex, and postal services are available.
Australian football attract large crowds.
Surfing carnivals are staged by Surf Life Saving Association on summer weekends in many parts of Australia. Melbourne is renowned for fine race and golf courses and for its Royal Botanical Garden. The Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Queensland, is renowned. Australia has three time zones. When the US resumes standard time, the difference generally becomes 16 hours.