1 With the Australian dollar in the doldrums, even against the punt, it's great value.

2 Many Aborigines have Irish surnames - you may find your namesake in the outback.

3 Thanks to transportation and the potato famine, 42 per cent of Australians claim some Irish heritage.

4 Bloomsday is a major event for bookish Sydneysiders, when every bona fide Irishman or woman will be treated like a celebrity.

5 Tasmania is roughly the size of Ireland and almost as green, with just 400,000 generally friendly inhabitants.

6 You can celebrate Christmas Day on Bondi Beach with 30,000 other backpackers and at least not be called a Pom (slang term for Brit).

7 If you get bored with the earthly delights of the city you can head bush, stake a claim and become an opal miner. Some people even get rich.

8 The beer is pretty middling but the food and wine are fantastic. However, for some reason the meat pie is still said to be the national dish.

9 There are communities here from more than 160 countries and life between nearly everyone is surprisingly peaceful.

10 There are some great adventures to be had in the south Pacific. The Fiji Islands are only three hours' flight from Sydney.