Mention Australia to those who have never been there and, chances are, they’ll think outback, or Sydney Harbour’s internationally recognizable bridge and opera house or putting shrimp on the barbie, mate. But as a cruising destination, Australia has vastly more to offer than the standard Down Under stereotype suggests, as an increasing number of Northern Hemisphere superyacht owners are discovering.

Combine this with the equally superb cruising to be found across the Tasman Sea in New Zealand along the Coromandel Coast, in Auckland Harbour and in the Bay of Islands, and Down Under makes for an extremely attractive alternative to the more crowded locations in the Mediterranean and Caribbean.

When Australia’s Alan Bond defeated Dennis Conner to win the America’s Cup in 1983, and then lost it back to Conner in 1987, the world’s yachting community began to turn its attention to this part of the Southern Hemisphere. Slowly, superyachts began appearing in local waters. When the 2000 Sydney Olympics closely followed the Louis Vuitton Cup regatta and the New Zealand America’s Cup defenses in Auckland, an unprecedented number of vessels larger than 100 feet made their way to the region and word began to spread north.

Still, an estimated 95 percent or more of recreational vessels in excess of 100 feet worldwide have never ventured south of the equator, with the main obstacles being the travel distance and corresponding cost and the lack of internationally standard facilities for yachts over 100 feet. But some of those obstacles are falling away.

Accompanying the growth in large-yacht visitors in the nineties was the acknowledgement of the need for an infrastructure upgrade to accommodate those vessels. Both the private sector and the state and federal governments of Australia have subsequently made substantial investments. A recent audit of superyacht-oriented facilities either completed or under construction in Australia showed an asset value well in excess of $1 billion nationwide.An industry representative body, Superyacht Base Australia, was formed in 1999 to develop, promote and facilitate the Australian region as a desirable and easy destination for superyacht owners and skippers alike. A private-sector initiative known as the Great Southern Route is expected to be launched this year, offering a one-stop shop for skippers needing berthing, service and provisions information for travel en route to and around Australia. It includes transit information and information on cruising in other locations such as the Galapagos Islands, the Cook Islands, Tahiti, Fiji, the Maldives and Southeast Asia.

A vessel-exchange option has also recently become available through fractional exchange network Global Boating Limited, which provides reciprocal access to yachts in cruising grounds around Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Fiji.

Simultaneously, the increased interest in the Australasian region and demand for more affordable ways to transport yachts from the Northern to the Southern Hemisphere has resulted in the introduction of a regular Fort Lauderdale–to-Brisbane transportation service by the float-on, float-off shipping company Dockwise Yacht Transport in August 2003, and a new Europe-to-Cairns service via Southeast Asia, due to commence in May of this year.

With more than 7,000 superyachts over 24 meters currently cruising the Northern Hemisphere’s waterways, and another 700-plus under construction or in the planning stage, the shortage and unreliability of berthing and marina facilities in the traditional European and North American cruising regions is not likely to improve any time soon. The Southern Hemisphere is poised to become the largest destination growth market for superyacht owners over the next 10 years.