I bought this for my 5 year old son but had to eject the tape when it began with a re-enactment of a public flogging, then panned over to a store with paintings of nude women.

The video was more educational than scenic. It was more interested in going over the history and way of life of Australia than showing us the pictures of Australia. This is a valid objective of travel books and videos, but just realize this if you decide to buy the video.

The narrator is Australian so the Aussie accent may be hard to follow at times and the treatment of the subject is quirky. There's more time spent on Ayers rock than on the Great barrier Reef. More time spent on crocodiles than on koalas.

BUT -- the quirkiness is fun at times. We see a part of Australia that we don't often see on TV. Too bad the cinematography and camera work does not match that of National Geographic or the Discovery Channel. The best parts were the close-ups of the jumping crocodiles and the feeding of the fishes swimming around people's legs.

I think there ought to be a requirement somewhere that everyone should have to take the time and watch just one video about the place they are going to travel to. I guess I feel a little silly saying that because most of the people who read this might already have purchased video's before traveling on vacation. I'll try to defend my lack of awareness by saying all of my local video stores had no travel videos to rent to me. My local library had a couple. But Amazon.Com served me well by having such a wonderful assortment of Australian videos for me to purchase. This one is a must. YOur understanding of the country as a whole is enlightened by this video.A traveller to this country gets such a visual treat from seeing where you want to go before you get there. If the pictures don't all turn out, you're covered here too. And when the kids want something great to watch at any time they can get this video out and learn as they are entertained.You can't go wrong purchasing this one , it is a jewel.