The Amazing Race Australia

Each team is composed of two individuals who have some type of relationship to each other. A total of 86 participants have joined The Amazing Race Australia.

A standard Route Marker looks like this.

Route Markers are yellow and red flags that mark the places where teams must go. Most Route Markers are attached to the boxes that contain clue envelopes, but some may mark the place where the teams must go in order to complete tasks, or may be used to line a course that the teams must follow.

Route markers were, however, coloured yellow and green in the second leg of the inaugural season to avoid confusion with the flag of South Vietnam. The route markers were not changed for a visit to Vietnam during the 4th season.

Clues are found throughout the Race in sealed envelopes, normally inside clue boxes. They give teams the information they need and tasks they need to do in order for them to progress through the Race.

• Route Info: A general clue that may include a task to be completed by the team before they can receive their next clue.
• Detour: A choice between two tasks. Teams are free to choose either task or swap tasks if they find one option too difficult.
• Roadblock: A task only one team member can complete. Teams must choose which member will complete the task based on a brief clue about the task before fully revealing the details of the task.
• Fast Forward: A task that only one team may complete, allowing that team to skip all remaining tasks and head directly for the next Pit Stop. Teams may only claim one Fast Forward during the entire Race.

During the Race, teams may face the following which may potentially slow them down:

• Intersection: When encountered, two teams have to mutually agree to team up and complete tasks together until they receive a clue indicating that they are no longer Intersected.
• Yield: At this obstacle, one team can force another trailing team to wait a pre-determined amount of time before continuing the Race.
• U-Turn: At this obstacle located after a Detour, one team can force another trailing team to return and complete the other option of the Detour they did not select.
  • In series 2, the "U-Turn Vote" was introduced, having all teams voting at the start of the leg for whom they wish to receive the U-turn. The team with the most votes would be U-Turned sometime during the leg.
  • Also, an "Anonymous U-Turn" is where a team may U-Turn another trailing team without having to reveal themselves.

At the beginning of each leg, teams receive an allowance of cash (in the first three editions this would be in Australian Dollars, for subsequent seasons, the leg money would be in the local currency) to cover expenses during the Race (except for the purchase of airline tickets, which are paid for by credit cards provided by the Race).

Teams then have to follow clues and Route Markers that will lead them to the various destinations and tasks they will face. Modes of travel between these destinations include commercial and chartered aeroplanes, boats, trains, taxis, buses, and rented vehicles provided by the show, or the teams may simply travel by foot. Each leg ends with a twelve-hour Pit Stop where teams are able to rest and where teams that arrives last are progressively eliminated from the Race until only three teams remain. Most legs comprise three or more challenges, often a Roadblock, Detour and a Route Info task. The first teams to arrive at the Pit Stop win prizes, usually from the show's sponsors.

Gameplay Prizes

Occasionally, the first arriving team will win an advantage in the game.

• The Express Pass: Introduced in season 1, the pass allows the holders to skip any task they want.
  • The Australia v New Zealand edition introduced a twist to the Express Pass, where the team that won the first leg won one pass for themselves and a second for another team.
• The Salvage Pass Introduced in season 2, The pass allows that team to either save the last team to arrive the current leg from elimination or gain a 1-hour time credit for the next leg.

Each Race has a number of predetermined non-elimination legs, in which the last team to arrive at the Pit Stop is not eliminated and is allowed to continue on the Race. However, that team is penalised for the next leg.

• Marked for Elimination It was used for seasons one and two, where the penalised team must arrive first in the next leg or face a 30-minute time penalty.
• Speed Bump: Two iterations of the Speed Bump exist on the Australian version
  • On season 3, the Speed Bump was an additional task that the penalised team must complete before receiving their clue and continuing with the Race. This resembles the Speed Bump used on most seasons of most versions of the show.
  • On season 4, the Speed Bump added an additional aspect to the first task of the following leg, making it more difficult for the penalised team. This version of the Speed Bump resembled the Handicap penalty used on The Amazing Race Norge. This Speed Bump variation was also used on the 27th American season.

Marathon legs occur when teams are instructed to go to the next Pit Stop but actually must continue racing without a mandatory rest period. The clue to the Pit Stop says "Grant Bowler Awaits" with no mention of elimination. It occurred once every season for Seven's iteration of the series.

• For the 1st season, both team members are to perform a maximum of 6 Roadblocks. It is assumed that a similar rule was used for season 2 but there were several Roadblocks that went unaired. The slightly shorter 3rd edition featured the rule with a 5-5 Roadblock split with the 11th and final Roadblock being open to either teammate. The 4th season did not feature such Roadblock rule.
• Unless otherwise stated, such as during Roadblocks, team members must stay within 6 meters of each other and stay close to their assigned camera and sound crew.

Most Penalties are adapted from the American version but sometimes the show will use its own rules.

• If a team fails to complete a Roadblock, Detour, Speed Bump, or Route Info task, they receive a 4-hour penalty. (In the American version the penalty for a Roadblock or a Speed Bump remains at 4 hours but 6 hours for Detour tasks and 2 hours for Route Info tasks.)
• If a team fails to complete an Intersection task, they receive a 2- or 4-hour penalty. This occurred to Anastasia & Chris and Sam & Renee of the 2011 edition. It is not stated but assumed that the larger penalty is given to the team that elects to quit with the smaller penalty given to the team forced to quit due to their intersected team quitting.
• If a team hitchhikes or travels in privately owned vehicles, they receive a 20-minute penalty. This occurred to Sam & Renae and Tyler & Nathan of season 1.
• If a team fails to take a particular type of transport or travel class, they receive a 10-minute penalty (which is a 30-minute penalty in the American version). This occurred to Jeff & Luke of season 1 who travelled on a second-class train carriage when told to travel on a third-class carriage.
• If a team sells their own items in order to raise money, they receive a 30-minute penalty (which is a two-hour penalty in the American version). This occurred to Adam & Dane of season 2.
• If a team pulls another team's belongings out of their taxi, they receive a 2-hour penalty. This occurred to Joseph & Grace on season 2.
• If a team, in a leg where they're required to drive themselves, goes over a speed limit, they will occur a one-hour penalty. This occurred to Sid & Ash on season 4. The equivalent penalty on the American show is 30 minutes and any time deemed to have been gained from the speeding.

This show has won the consecutive Asian Television Awards for "Best Adaptation of an Existing Format" and "Best Direction" for Michael McKay in 2011.[22]