Australia

Setup

If ~/australia/ doesn't exist or is empty, read setup.md and start naturally.

When to Use

User planning a trip to Australia or asking for local insights: where to base, how to handle huge distances, what to prioritize by season, and how to manage transport, costs, weather, and safety.

Architecture

Memory lives in ~/australia/. See memory-template.md for structure.

~/australia/
└── memory.md     # Trip context

Quick Reference

| Topic | File | |-------|------| | Major Hubs and Regions | | | Sydney complete guide | sydney.md | | Melbourne complete guide | melbourne.md | | Brisbane and Gold Coast complete guide | brisbane-gold-coast.md | | Cairns and Great Barrier Reef complete guide | cairns-reef.md | | Adelaide and South Australia complete guide | adelaide-sa.md | | Perth and Western Australia complete guide | perth-wa.md | | Hobart and Tasmania complete guide | hobart-tasmania.md | | Uluru and Red Centre complete guide | uluru-red-centre.md | | Great Ocean Road complete guide | great-ocean-road.md | | Planning | | | Core itineraries | itineraries.md | | Long-distance route patterns | road-trips.md | | Where to stay by style | accommodation.md | | Entry and biosecurity planning | entry-and-biosecurity.md | | Useful apps | apps.md | | Food and Drink | | | Regional dishes and restaurant strategy | food-guide.md | | Wine regions and bar strategy | wine.md | | Experiences | | | Signature experiences | experiences.md | | Beaches and coastal planning | beaches.md | | Hikes and trail safety | hiking.md | | Nightlife by city type | nightlife.md | | Reference | | | Regions and route differences | regions.md | | Culture, etiquette, expectations | culture.md | | Seasonality and climate strategy | seasonality.md | | Traveling with children | with-kids.md | | Wildlife and outdoor safety | wildlife-safety.md | | National parks and permits | national-parks-and-permits.md | | Practical | | | Intercity transport and flight/rail tradeoffs | transport.md | | Phone and internet | telecoms.md | | Payments and cost planning | payment-and-costs.md | | Emergencies and safety | emergencies.md |

Core Rules

1. Specific Over Generic

Do not say "do Australia highlights." Say "pick 2-3 anchors max for short trips, then build each around one urban cluster and one nature block with transfer buffers."

2. Local Perspective

What locals and repeat travelers actually do, not brochure advice:

• Australia rewards fewer bases with deeper local coverage
• Domestic transfer days often consume most useful daylight
• Weather windows can reshape coastal and outback plans quickly
• Car vs flight decisions should be route-specific, not ideology

3. Regional Differences

| Region | Key difference | |--------|----------------| | NSW (Sydney and coast) | Big-city pace plus coastal add-ons and strong weekend demand | | Victoria (Melbourne and surrounds) | Food and culture density, strong road-trip overlays | | Queensland | Tropical north, reef logic, humidity and cyclone-season considerations | | South Australia | Wine and outback gateway routes, lower crowd pressure | | Western Australia | Huge distances, premium nature routes, transfer-heavy planning | | Tasmania | Cool-climate food and nature with weather-sensitive driving | | NT Red Centre | Desert conditions, heat risk, sunrise/sunset pacing |

4. Timing is Everything

• Australian seasons are opposite to northern-hemisphere assumptions
• School holidays and long weekends can spike pricing and occupancy
• Wet season affects parts of tropical north route reliability
• Bushfire and heat periods can change road and park access
• Shoulder windows often give best crowd-value balance

5. Flag Tourist Traps

Be explicit about what to avoid:

• Trying Sydney, Melbourne, Uluru, and Reef in one short trip with no slack
• Overpaying in harbor/beach strips without quality checks
• Ignoring realistic self-drive fatigue on long open-road segments
• Treating every reef or outback day as weather-guaranteed

6. Match Trip Style

| Traveler | Focus on | |----------|----------| | Foodie | food-guide.md, melbourne.md, sydney.md | | Coast and beaches | beaches.md, cairns-reef.md, brisbane-gold-coast.md | | Nature and hiking | hiking.md, hobart-tasmania.md, national-parks-and-permits.md | | Family | with-kids.md, accommodation.md, itineraries.md | | Nightlife and city | nightlife.md, sydney.md, melbourne.md | | Long route explorer | road-trips.md, transport.md, seasonality.md |

Common Traps

• Treating Australia as one compact destination.
• Too many bases for the available days.
• Underestimating domestic flight and transfer overhead.
• Ignoring seasonal weather and bushfire dynamics.
• No backup plans for coastal or remote-day routes.
• Assuming late booking works in all regions year-round.

Security & Privacy

Data that stays local: Trip preferences in ~/australia/

This skill does NOT: Access files outside ~/australia/ or make network requests.

Related Skills

Install with clawhub install <slug> if user confirms:

• travel — General trip planning and itinerary structuring
• food — Deeper restaurant and cuisine recommendations
• english — Communication support and booking clarity
• booking — Reservation and scheduling support workflows

Feedback

• If useful: clawhub star australia
• Stay updated: clawhub sync