Quick Info

Name:
Oceania

More about Oceania

Oceania, the planet’s smallest continent, located to the southeast of Asia, is without doubt one of the most diverse and fascinating areas on the planet.  A large percentage of geography experts now consider the long-established continent Australia to be more accurately defined as Australia/Oceania.  Collectively it then combines all of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, as well as the thousands of coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific Ocean, including the Melanesia and Polynesia Groups.  Oceania also includes Micronesia, a widely scattered group of islands that run along the northern and southern edges of the Equator.

The continent is surrounded by the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.  Much of the region’s land mass is desert, but there are also very lush areas.  You will find some very unique animal life for such a small region of the world, some examples are the koala, the platypus and the kangaroo.  The name ‘Oceania’ was coined in 1812 by geographer Conrad Malte-Brun.  It is from a French word derived from the Greek word okeanos, or ocean.

Please look through our individual destinations to find out what adventures you can experience in this tranquil continent.