Cooma Region

Cooma is a town in New South Wales located 114 kilometers from Canberra. It is the largest town in the snowy mountains region and has a population of 6,301.

It was the discovery of gold in the 1860's that brought an increase in Cooma's population. Cooma's weather has warm summers and cool to cold winters with an annual rainfall of 532.9 millimetres, and also gets about two good snow falls each winter season.

Its tourism is growing and is the main rest stop for travellers heading to nearby snow fields in the Australian winter months and has named itself the 'Gateway to the Snowy Mountains'.

A plane crashed in the Australian Alps in 1931 in which Cooma built the Aviation Pioneers Memorial which contains artefacts recovered from the aircraft. Other points of interest for Cooma include nanny goat lookout, snowy hydro information centre, Monaro railway and the NSW correctional centre museum.
Australia's first female mayor Elizabeth Lilian Maud Fowler was born in Cooma.