Shopping

Australians are keen shoppers. Cities and towns have commercial and shopping centres surrounded by extensive leafy suburbs served by large shopping malls. All have plentiful parking. Some are huge and include department stores which rival those in the city centres.

There are also smaller shopping centres and corner stores: nowadays small grocery stores are often linked with petrol stations.

Public transport is useful for going to work, but it is less effective for shopping. But the roads are of a high standard, and almost all Australian families would consider a car to be a basic necessity.

Unless you live very close to a shopping mall, you too will need a car - unless you prefer to use a taxi.

Top international names

In Sydney, Melbourne and some other major cities the central business district offers some of the best shopping in the world, with international names like Cartier, Salvatore Ferragamo, Chanel and Louis Vuitton.

Most shops open some time between 8 and 9 am and close between 5 and 6 pm; there is usually late shopping on one night of the week. Shops are open on Saturday mornings, and more and more of them are opening on Saturday afternoons and Sundays.

The suburban malls are often centred on a major department store like Myer's or David Jones. They also feature supermarkets, specialty clothing and other shops, chain stores and a wide range of cafes and fast food outlets. Many of them also have cinema complexes and other entertainment like ice skating rinks or bowling alleys. Malls generally open every day and keep the same hours as city shops.

Neighbourhood stores

Smaller suburban shopping centres are like small malls and keep similar hours, but may not open on Sundays. These centres are often very useful for bread, vegetables and other perishable food items. There is usually a pharmacy, which sells hygiene items and medicines and fills doctors' prescriptions.

Neighbourhood grocery stores and petrol stations (many of which sell basic groceries as well) are open very long hours, some 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

Australia has adopted the British concept of the newsagent, a shop which sells mainly newspapers, magazines and stationery items as well as cigarettes and sweets. Newsagents also sell lottery tickets, bus passes and telephone cards.

Duty-Free shops can be found at airports and in the centre of cities. Australian duty free prices are quite competitive with the rest of the world. Wherever you are in an Australian city or town, you are never far from a shopping centre.

Whether you wish to buy a formal gown, your family's weekly groceries, some fresh bok choy or a tube of toothpaste, the right shop is waiting for you in the right place.