Travel expert
Read about the city
Darwin is the capital of the Australian Northern Territory, and it is also the largest city in the territory. Darwin's close distance to Southeast Asia makes the city an easy gateway to all of Australia.
Darwin is located in the tropics, making the climate warm and with seasonal fluctuations between dry and humid weather. The location naturally provides Darwin with all the prerequisites for tourism and access to a lush nature.
In Darwin there are a number of exciting activities and sights. Nature is part of many of the experiences, but here are also interesting museums, colonial-style buildings, markets and more from the modern Australian society.
Darwin is the northern starting point for Stuart Highway and The Ghan Railroad to the south through Alice Springs to Adelaide. They are both unique experiences, and not far from Darwin there are national parks, etc. Everything for a memorable trip to tropical north Australia.
Other attractions
- Old Court House: Darwin's former court house and police station was built in 1884. It was the first of its kind in the Northern Territory. The fine building has over time housed various administration; for example, the Australian Navy had its seat here in 1942.
- Parliament House: Parliament House is the seat of Northern Territory Parliament. It is located in the complex of public administration buildings around Liberty Square and State Square.
- Chinese Chung Wah Temple: In the 19th century Darwin, many Chinese came to the area and the city's original Chinese temple was constructed on the Esplanade next to the Old Court House.
- Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory: Here you can get a good insight into Darwin and the Northern Territory. The collection at Northern Territory's leading museum and art gallery shows the region's natural, cultural and art history.
- East Point Military Museum: At the East Point Military Museum, you can see Darwin's war history, not least the story of the Japanese bombings during World War II.
History overview
[expand title="Read about city history" id="historie2" swaptitle="Hide content"]
European time on the Australian north coast started with the Dutch sailing here in the 1600s. They drew the first European maps and named some areas, for example Arnhem Land east of Darwin.
In 1839, the English ship HMS Beagle sailed to positions at present Darwin, and led by John Wickham they went ashore and named the port after scientist Charles Darwin, who had sailed on HMS Beagle on a previous expedition.
However, it was not until 1869 that an actual settlement became a reality. 135 people settled here and they called the place Palmerston. Already the following year, telegraph poles began to be erected, which would go from Post Augusta on the south coast via Darwin to the rest of the world, making the city strategically important.
In the 1880s, during the construction of the telegraph lines, gold was found at Pine Creek, which caused the population to rise. After some decades of progress, the town was officially called Darwin, Palmerston is today one of the city's suburbs, built in the 1980s.
On February 19, 1942, Japanese aircraft attacked Darwin. Several hundred people were killed and many buildings destroyed. The attack was the first of a long series in 1942-1943.
The next major disaster hit Darwin on December 25, 1974, when cyclone Tracy ravaged the city, killing 71 people and crushing 70% of the buildings.
Despite the destruction by Tracy and other cyclones over time, Darwin has been rebuilt over and over, and now with greater certainty built with protection against natural disasters. Darwin, with its 110,000 inhabitants, is the largest city on the Australian north coast.
Skjul indhold her[/expand]
