Welcome to Wollongong!
Wollongong is a city in the Illawarra region of New South Wales. Heading south, Wollongong starts where Sydney finishes. It is the third largest city in the state behind Sydney and Newcastle and is thinly wedged on a coastal plain between an escarpment and the Pacific Ocean. It is pronounced Wool-un-gong.
Wollongong informally referred to as "The Gong", is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. Wollongong lies on the narrow coastal strip between the Illawarra Escarpment and the Pacific Ocean, 68 kilometers (42 miles) south of central Sydney. Wollongong had an estimated urban population of 302,739 in June 2018, making it the third-largest city in New South Wales after Sydney and Newcastle and the tenth-largest city in Australia by population. The city's current Lord Mayor is Gordon Bradbery AM who was elected in 2018.
The Wollongong area extends from Helensburgh in the north to Windang and Yallah in the south. Geologically, the city is located in the south-eastern part of the Sydney basin, which extends from Newcastle to Nowra. Wollongong is noted for its heavy industry, its port activity, and the quality of its physical setting, occupying a narrow coastal plain between an almost continuous chain of surf beaches and the cliff line of the rainforest-covered Illawarra escarpment. It has two cathedrals, churches of many denominations, and the Nan Tien Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere. Wollongong has a long history of coal mining and industry. The city attracts many tourists each year and is a regional centre for the South Coast fishing industry. The University of Wollongong has around 38,000 students.