Travel | GlobalSalsa: travel writer Belinda Jackson

Oct

Bubbles and sunshine: Hayman Island, Qld

Sadly, this is not me. This is a leggy model,
at Hayman’s (and my)beach

The Sun Goddess awaits: my transport to Hayman Island is a gleaming white launch awash with sparkling wine.

The smooth journey from Great Barrier Reef Airport on Hamilton Island to Hayman takes an hour, which is long enough to nibble at a plate of canapes and toast the journey with flutes of sparkling wine from the Hunter Valley’s Bimbadgen Estate.

A little box with chocolates handmade on the island includes a white-chocolate prawn: that’s a first.

Alongside me on the Sun Goddess are urbane European couples (the women carry delicious handbags), newlyweds from Japan and a few families.

‘m told the resort is almost full when I arrive, yet I see but a handful of people the entire time I’m there. “It’s the great mystery of Hayman,” says a Hayman staffer, Sam. “Where does everyone go?”

If they’re one of a privileged few – and I’ve joined this elite group for only a few days – they’re most likely at a beach villa.

Click here to read more

Source: Belinda Jackson, The Age/Sydney Morning Herald, 27 October 2012

Oct

Lights out, Cairo! It’s 10pm already!

Downtown Egypt PIC: Belle Jackson

It’s not a hoax, the Egyptian government plans to turn the lights off in Cairo at 10pm.

Cairo’s been voted the world’s most 24-hour city, and I’ve heard it described not so much as ‘the city that never sleeps’ as ‘the city that sleeps in shifts’.

Most Egyptians here in Australia are amazed at how early we shut up shop, and our household is constantly scrounging for somewhere to eat, midweek at 3pm, when all the sandwich bars and cafes have packed up, and the restaurants are only starting to think about dinner (6-9pm, no latecomers) Admittedly, this is country Australia we’re talking, but they’re still horrified.

The plan to shut the country down at 10pm (midnight for restaurants) is the Egyptian government’s way to save electricity and increase productivity, to the tune of $1 billion a year. Hello? Cairo’s toddlers would laugh at the idea of being in bed at 10pm, let alone their parents doing so.

People celebrate the massive festivites of Eid al-Adha (think Christmas times 10) by giving new clothes to children, and I saw, with my own eyes, parents out shopping with their children for new threads at 3am. The kids didn’t seem to mind.

In a newspaper article I read this morning, locals laughed at the idea. One joker suggested the government “wants to turn us into Switzerland.”

Perhaps it’s easier, as a traveller, to love places like Cairo for their chaos and their unwieldy wildness when you don’t have to live there yourself. But my heart says this town won’t close down.

Eid Mubarak!

Oct

Seoul Purpose: a local’s guide to the South Korean capital

Gyeongbokgung Palace

The heart of Seoul lies in its palaces, skyscrapers – and its stomach.

Seoul is a city is split by the River Han – old money to the north, new money south of the
river. Northside, think palaces, president’s house and traditional hanok houses: snap up classic ceramics or
perhaps a hanbok dress in Insa-dong
and drink 100-flower tea in Bukchon.

To the south of the river, Gangnam is all
about Euro-luxe labels. Would-be models strut the streets as they shop at the Garosu-Gil
fashion strip, Asia’s largest underground mall, COEX, or too-cool
Cheongdam-dong, with its Italian boutiques and wine bars.

At any tick of the
24-hour clock, you’ll find some of Seoul’s 10 million inhabitants in the pubs, karaoke
bars, restaurants, internet cafes and saunas. Iif anything closes, it’s always
late. In Seoul, the neon lights are never switched off.

Tosokchon restaurant

Three things you
have to see in Seoul

Tea oils the wheels of Korean
society. The Beautiful Tea Museum is
a gorgeously serene space in the antiques hood of Insa-dong, selling and serving
130 beautiful teas and their accoutrements. It also exhibits perfect, simple
ceramics (Jongno-gu Insa-dong 193-1, www.tmuseum.co.kr ) Otherwise, go traditional at Cha Masineun Tteul, which lives up to its
name, ‘cosy garden where people drink tea’. Take a seat on hanok’s warm floor as tea ladies serve iced
strawberry summer punch or hot spiced dae
chu cha (Asian date tea), rice cakes and toasted sunflower seeds while you
look out on that cosy garden or out over the rooftops (Jongno-gu, Samcheong-dong 35-169).

Another
wonderful place to see Seoul’s traditional architecture is Bukchon
Hanok Village, considered the most beautiful corner of Seoul. Its neighbourhood
of 900 hanoks makes a welcome change to the industrial-strength
apartment blocks that pierce the city skyline. The tourist information booth
opposite Gyeongbokgung Palace (Jogno-gu, 1 Sejong-ro, www.royalpalace.go.kr) offers excellent walking maps of the area, including
a trail with eight signposted photo spots that give the best
views down tiny, picturesque alleyways and over the rooftops to the palace.

Of
a more transient nature are the comically named ‘tent restaurants’ that dominate the city’s streets: sun shelters
lined with clear plastic walls to keep out the fierce winter winds. Korea’s
food culture is wildly rich: walk any street and try fried silkworms, suck
down a live octopus, chomp on pig’s trotters or snack on a jeon (Korean
savoury pancake) washed down with makgeoli
(rice wine). At the massive Noryangjin
Fish Market, buy your seafood and have it thrown in the pot in seconds. No
matter how lean your purse or how limited your Korean, you’ll never starve in
this town.

Samcheong-dong

Artisan Mecca
Samcheong-dong’s
three-kilometer-long cobbled street, between the president’s house and Gyeongbokgung Palace,
sniffs at mainstream labels. On this strip, it’s all about one-offs and their stylish
producers – shoemakers, milliners, bespoke
designers and art galleries, with a hundred latte-pumping cafés in between. Cool,
yes, but also resolutely Korean. You’ll still find locals queuing for the
classic sujaebi, which is soup with dumplings, green onions and kimchi. You can get your fill of this dish for about $6 at Samcheong-dong
Sujabei (Samcheong-dong 102).

At the table

With hundreds of
eating-out options – from traditional Korean barbeques to fusion fare – in every
neighbourhood, Seoul cements itself as one of Asia’s prime food capitals.

JungSik

SUMMER FLAVOURS A visit to Tosokchon (Jahamun-ro 5-gil 5, Jongno-gu) means
tucking in to samgyetang, a summer broth of ginseng and chicken. Tosokchon enjoys
a cult following, with former president Roh Moo Hyun amongst its devotees.

LIKE A LOCAL Young chef Yim Jung Sik is
currently wowing New York diners with his ‘New Korean’ cooking. His Seoul
dining room JungSik (649-7
Sinsa-dong, Gangnam, jungsik.kr) is a celebration of truly beautiful plates.
The kitchen uses using quintessentially Korean ingredients to serve up fresh
delectable dishes.

CHEAP EATS Visit lpumdang (16-1 Dangju-dong, Jongno-gu, ilpumdang.co.kr) and you’ll
realise that Korea’s best chow isn’t necessarily found in the most expensive
restaurants. Order the Korean shabu shabu
– thin wafers of beef cooked in broth and served with dipping sauce.

Hidden cultural
gems

Want
to find out what the locals are really drinking? “We teach Korea’s drinking
culture – how to pour and what to drink,” says Korean-American guide Daniel Grey. His Korean Night Dining Tour steers you through the joys of
drinking soju (potent rice wine) and
snacking up a storm in the city’s alleyway barbeque cafés (ongofood.com).

Korean Night Dining Tour

After you’ve been fed
and watered, the place to be on the last Friday of the month is Hongdae
district for Club Day, where $12
gets you entry to a dozen or more clubs in the happening Hongik University area.
Don’t expect to get home early – it kicks off around 11pm and diehards call it
a night around 5am. The second Friday of the month is the smaller Sound Day,
with fewer clubs and a focus on live music, from 8pm-5am (02 333 3910).

Hongdae

After
a big night, recharge at a jjimjilbang (public bathhouse), which
is guaranteed to knock a dress size off you, thanks to a battalion of scrubbers and fiery steam
rooms: expect rampant public nudity (yes, they are segregated). Most hotels
have their own sauna, or try the foreigner-friendly, seven-story Yongsan Dragon
Hill Spa (dragonhillspa.co.kr)

The Westin Chosun

Pillow talk

FASHIONABLE
The Westin Chosun (Jung-gu, 87
Sogong-dong, westin.com/seoul) is walking distance to Namdaemun market,
Myengdong fashion town, beautiful department stores and two palaces.

SPA BREAK On the side of Mount Nam sit the luxe San
5-5, Jang Chung-dong 2-Ga Jung-gu,

banyan tree.com).
Each of the hotel’s huge 32 suites has a steamy indoor pool and sauna and its
spectacular outdoor pool is a favoured haunt of Seoul’s elite.

Banyan Tree Seoul

BUDGET Sophia’s Guest House (Jongno-gu, 157-1 Sogyeok-dong, sophiagh.com), a 150-year-old hanok with ondol
rooms (mattresses on heated floors) around a pretty courtyard, a short walk from
the arty enclave of Insa-dong.

BOUTIQUE In the expat district of Itaewon you’ll find IP Boutique Hotel (737-32
Hannam-dong, Yongsangu, ipboutiquehotel.com) It has has an Alice-in-Wonderland feel, with jungle swings in
the foyer and compact, mirrored all-white rooms.

LUXURY RakKoJae (98 Gye-dong,
Jongno-gu, rkj.co.kr) is a serene luxury hanok in Bukchon, with natural jade
floors in its ondol rooms and a yellow-mud sauna.

National Folk Museum

Don’t leave Seoul
without:

Visiting
Gyeongbokgung Palace, the first home of the Joseon dynasty.
Dating from 1395, it also houses the excellent National Folk Museum with a
great, kitch-free gift shop. Closed Tuesdays (royalpalace.go.kr) For live
entertainment, you can’t beat non-verbal theatre,
which is massive in Seoul – great if your Korean is rusty.

Nanta is a
blood-pumping kitchen comedy set to traditional samulnori rhythm, and audience
members are regularly invited on stage to participate (nanta.co.kr).

Finally,
spend a day at Namdaemun Market; stop for dumplings in alleys of food
stalls or buy jars of pickled ginseng or gorgeous kitchenwear from more than
1000 stalls. Nearby, you’ll find the 14th-century Sungnyemun Gate, officially Korea’s
Number 1 National Treasure.

Insa-dong

Q&A

Celebrity snapper Kim
Jung-Man is Korea’s top commercial photographer and been named one of the
country’s Men of Culture in 2000.

What’s the quintessential
photograph of Seoul? It lies somewhere between the historical past and
the advance of the modern structure: the juxtaposition between hanoks and palaces and its modern
architecture. It is best to find this in Gwangwhamun, near Gyeongbokgung Palace.

What is the most beautiful street in Seoul? Personally, I think I’m
the only one in Seoul who enjoys red lights. I take photos while stopped in
traffic.

Where’s Seoul’s
heart of art? Hongdae and Insadong. Independent musicians play in the park
at night in Hongdae and there is a great grunge feeling to the street art
there. Hongdae has various flea markets where artists sell their wares while Insa-dong
is famous for its many art galleries and historic feeling.

Where do you go to find nature in Seoul? Namsan, which is Nam
Mountain, the center of the city. There is nature even in the heart of Seoul,
if you know where to look.

Your favourite art gallery in Seoul? Gallery Kong (157-78
Samcheong-dong, Jongno-go, gallerykong.com)

Getting there: To book your flight to Seoul with our codeshare partner, Singapore Airlines, visit www.virginaustralia.com or simply call 13 67 89 (in Australia).

Source: Belinda Jackson, Voyeur magazine, Virgin Australia. October 2012.

Oct

Donkeys in Donegal, lounging on Lizard: travel deals 21 October 2012

Donkey and Mt Errigal, Donegal, Ireland.

Chase donkeys in Donegal, lounge like a lizard on Lizard Island (where else?) or off track into the Balkans on an Ottoman trek.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

With the Barossa to the north and Adelaide Hills to the
east, the centre of Adelaide is but a hop-skip to some of Australia’s most
exciting vineyards. If wine’s not your cuppa, the city has a plethora of
chocolate shops that would make a dietician blush. The Mantra Hindmarsh Square
is offering discounts of 13 per cent on stays in its Parkview suits on Thursday
to Monday nights until February 21, 2013. Costs from $199 a night. 131 517 mantra.com.au.

NSW

The Sheraton brand is celebrating 75 years in the
business and the Sheraton on the Park is kicking up its heels with a
stay-three, pay-two deal on stays until January 31, 2013 at the Elizabeth St
hotel until November 14. Costs from $587 for three nights. Otherwise, stay at
the standard rates, and pay 1937 prices for breakfast, a whopping 95 cents for
two. (02) 9286 6000, sheraton75.com.

The new Stormie Mills suite, Cullen Art Hotel

VICTORIA

Your dreams will be brightly coloured with Melbourne’s
famed street art, on a Street Art Sleepover at the edgy Cullen art hotel. The
package includes a night in its Street Art suites, with works by top artists
Swoon, Blek le Rat and D*Face and the newest, by Australia’s own Stormie Mills.
Also included is a one-hour street art tour and a bottle of wine. Normally $319
accommodation only, save over $100 on stays until December 30. Costs from $329
a night. (03) 9098 1555, artserieshotels.com.au.

TASMANIA

Discover the world’s first private nature photography
gallery, cruise the Gordon River and breathe in the exquisite beauty of Cradle
Mountain’s Dove Lake on a six-day self-drive ’Wilderness Wonders’ journey from
Launceston to Hobart, via Strahan. Includes accommodation at the Henry Jones
Art Hotel, Cradle Mountain Chateau
and Country Club Villas, Launceston. As an added bonus, buy one ticket, get one
free on the West Coast Wilderness Railway. For travel until December 20, costs
from $516.50 a person, twin share, quote code TOU1. 1800 420 155, puretasmania.com.au.

Lizard Island, Queensland

QUEENSLAND

Lizard Island is one of Australia’s top resorts,
literally: it’s 240km north of Cairns, at the top of the Great Barrier Reef.
Stay five nights, pay for four, saving $1444. Includes all gourmet meals, fine
wines and champagne, and if you go off-track to one of its 24 private beaches,
the kitchen will pack a picnic hamper, so you’ll never go without. Book until
March 31, 2013 for stays from December 1 until March 31, 2013 (excluding
December 21-January 7). Costs from $5776 a room. 1300 863 248,
lizardisland.com.au.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

With 22 kilometres of white sand, Cable Beach is one of Australia’s great beach strips, lapped by the Indian Ocean. Book five nights in a pool view studio at the four-star Cable Beach Club Resort & Spa, pay for four. They’ll also include breakfast daily and return airport transfers. Book until November 30, stay until March 31, 2013. Costs from $725 a person for five nights (excluding flights). 132 757, harveyworld.com.au.

The author’s lounge, Mandarin Oriental Bangkok

THAILAND

Jim Thompson, the man who brought Thai silk to the world,
is one of Bangkok’s great figures, and the Mandarin Oriental commemorates 45
years since his mysterious disappearance in 1967. Its package includes three
nights in a superior room with butler, a bespoke tour of Jim Thompson House, a
Thai massage, dinner and show at the hotels’ Sala Rim Naam restaurant and a
silk gift. Valid until March 31, 2013, with some blackout dates, save 18 per
cent, around $350. Costs from $1846 for three nights, +66 (2) 659 9000,
mandarinoriental.com/Bangkok.

INDONESIA

Prices in Bali are undoubtedly on the up, but the new 201-room Mercure Nusa Dua is celebrating its opening in late September with keen opening specials. Close to the convention centre and Bali Collection shopping mall and airport, it’s also a short hop to the restaurant strips of Seminyak and Kuta’s clubs. Costs from $85 a night on stays until December 20. 1300 656 565, mercure.com.

CHINA

Tick all China’s top sights – the Great Wall to the
Terracotta Warriors and the Three Gorges Dam – off your bucket list on this
14-day China Special, which departs April 6, 2013. Regular tours cost around
$3050, land only, but the price on this excursion includes return air fares to
China with Singapore Airways, so you can blow your savings on cocktails on
Shanghai’s swanky Bund. Costs from $3550 a person, twin share. 1300 720 000,
worldexpeditions.com.au.

BALKANS

Croatia may well have entertained the likes of Tom Cruise, but go off track into the Balkans on the Ottoman Trek to discover the romantic cities of Sarajevo, Belgrade and Sofia and the perennial traveller’s fave, Istanbul in the Ottoman Trek. Book by January 13 and save 15 per cent. Costs from $750 a person, includes walking tours, six nights’ accommodation, all transport and guides and a Lonely Planet guidebook. 1300 287 226, busabout.com/earlybird.

Beynac in Dordogne, France

FRANCE

French Travel Connection’s 17-day French tour starts in
Paris before exploring the WWII landing beaches of Normandy, the Loire Valley’s
castles, winescapes of Lyon and, of course, Champagne. Book by December 22 for
departure between May to September 2013, save from $300 a person and get a free
airport transfers. Includes 3 and 4-star accommodation, many meals and entrance
fees. Costs from $6486 a person, twin share. 1300 858 304, frenchtravel.com.au.

TOURWATCH

Breathe and feel the literary and cultural traditions of
Ireland, from Belfast in the north through Mayo to Tipperary down south, with
Donegal man James Clarke. “No, you will not rush to kiss the Blarney Stone,”
James warns. Instead, you’ll attend the spectacular Galway Writers’ Festival,
visit Fethard in County Tipperary where Ned Kelly’s folk hail from, and sail to
remote islands off the wild Donegal coastline. Includes all accommodation
(usually two-night stays), breakfasts, some lunches and all transport. Next tour departs Belfast April 20, finishes
in Dublin May 1, 2013. Costs $8000 a person (excluding air fares). 0417 206 932, irelandjourneys.com.au

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald

Oct

Where the wild things are: Ubud

Gateway to heaven: Villa Alamanda

The forest is absolutely roaring tonight. Frogs croaking, crickets creeping, there’s a bird that screams like it’s on a rotisserie. Well, it could be a bird. Our driver, Gusti, describes it as a ‘little animal’. It could be the small child in our party.

This is Ubud: fertile, fecund and slightly wild. And that’s just the people. With my unerring sense of bad timing, I’ve just missed the Ubud Writer’s Festival, where John Pilger was one of the headline acts, and again, I have failed to get to one of Ubud’s legendary yoga classes. Surely, however, nothing can top the inspirational class I did with Danny Paradise, years ago, for a mere $20 at one of the neighbourhood yoga hangs. The memory sustains me.

We’ve stayed in two places in Ubud this time, the first being a private villa, Villa Alamanda, and I’ve returned to the lodge at Taro Elephant Park for the second time this year.

The four-bedroom villa is set in a small village just outside Ubud, though you wouldn’t know it. It overlooks a river ensnared in wild jungle, and the grounds include a vast infinity pool that spills down the hillside, and breakfast each morning looks out onto the wilderness.

Yet at night, I can hear plenty of chatter and the chime and clang of gamelan. This past weekend was one of the two most auspicious dates in the Balinese calender, popular for religious ceremonies including weddings, so the streets are lined with decorations and occasionally, we’ll drive through a village where the locals are dressed in their Sunday best.

The village school took the opportunity to have its new classrooms blessed, and we wandered in to witness the ceremony conducted by our villa’s head chef. The very well behaved kids, lined up watching the ceremony, had a little riot at the appearance of the curly-haired babe, but unlike my strict Mass ceremonies as a child, nobody was waiting to whack them with a cane. Perhaps that’s why Hinduism has remained so strong in Bali…

Oct

Lemme hear you go Woo! Travel deals 14 October 201

WooBar at the new W Hotel Singapore

Snap up the bargain of the century with six cases of wine when you bed down in St Kilda, or throw your hands in the air like you don’t care at the new WooBar Singapore’s new W hotel in this week’s travel deals.

VICTORIA

If you ever needed a good reason to stay in St Kilda (aside
from it having the town’s best band pub, great pizza cafes, awesome spas,
smokin’ beachside cafes), here’s another. Book a standard non-bayview room at
the Novotel Melbourne St Kilda until October 31, get six bottles of wine, worth
$200, absolutely free. The deal also includes free car parking and breakfast
for two. Costs from $179 a room, a
night, quote ‘wine and wind down’. (03) 9525 6191, novotelstkilda.com.au.

NSW

Revel
in all things Polynesian, without leaving the state. The Sebel Resort & Spa Hawkesbury Valley’s midweek Polynesian
inspired special includes overnight accommodation in a deluxe spa room,
breakfast for two, $50 to blow at the restaurant and two hours of Polynesian
spa fabulousness at its Villa Thalgo. Start with a body scrub, lagoon water
bath and a Mahana massage using sacred oils. Just an hour from the city in the
Hawkesbury Valley, the 4.5-star hotel has been recently renovated. Worth $499,
pay $289 a room, a night, Mondays to Fridays until December 28. 131 515, sebelhawkesburyvalley.com.au.

TASMANIA

If you’ve got the time, then Tassie’s got the deal, with a
five Strange+Wild nights which includes accommodation for two, priority access
tickets to the Museum of Old and New Art’s (MONA) Theatre of the World extravaganza,
car hire, a ferry ride up-river to MONA, a bottle of Moorilla Muse chardonnay,
maps and tourist guides. Save up to $796
a person until April 8, 2013. Costs from $915 a person, (03) 6277 9900,
mona.net.au/short-breaks.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Lovers of the tv series ‘McLeod’s Daughters’ will already
know Kingsford Homestead, a beautiful five-star historic home in the Barossa
Valley, just north of Adelaide. Accommodating just 14 guests in its suites and
cottages, stays at the homestead include three or five-course dinners and big,
hearty country breakfasts, as well as drinks and canapés at sunsets and
lashings of local wine. Costs from $1580 for two nights for two people. 1300
130 483, travel.com.au.

TOP END

Discover some of the most remote beauty spots in
Australia, spending 13 days exploring the Kimberley. The Kimberley Complete
tour starts and finishes in Broome, cruising Geiki Gorge, Emma Gorge at El
Questro and the beautiful Windjana Gorge, staying in wilderness lodges and
taking a helicopter flight over Mitchell Falls. Couples can save up to $1500 on
departures between April and October 2013 when they book by December 31, 2012. Costs
from $7145 a person, twin share. 1800 240 504, kimberleywilderness.com.au.

SINGAPORE

I’d like to show you a room shot, but hey,
this is the ELEVATOR. W Hotel, Singapore.

Singapore
now has its own W Hotel, set on Sentosa Island, the city-state’s super-chi-chi
beach getaway. So naturally, the hotel’s three room types are classed as Wonderful,
Spectacular and Fabulous, normally priced from SGD430++ ($343) room only. Get ahead of the pack and
snap up an Island Glamour Welcome opening package, which includes one night in
the Wonderful guestroom, breakfast for two and cocktails, until March 31, 2013.
Costs from SGD$388++ a room. 1800 325 2525, wsingaporesentosacove.com.

INDONESIA

A magnet for surfers, Uluwatu is at the southernmost tip of the island of Bali and its famous sea temple. Nearby, the family-friendly Uluwatu Surf Villas looks over the high cliffs, down to the surf beaches, prime location for daily sundowners. Normally $290 a night, all accommodation bookings on TravelMob are 20 per cent off until November 10. Costs from $232 a room a night. travelmob.com.

BALTICS

Get off the beaten track with a journey through the
former Eastern Bloc countries of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia,
finishing in the glamorous museum mecca of St Petersburg. Book and pay for the
11-day journey 12 months ahead and save 10 per cent. Book by December 27, 2012
and fly from $1754 a person with Emirates, with a free stopover in Dubai. Costs
from $2319 a person, twin share. 1300 230 234, globus.com.au.

SPAIN

It’s got Gaudi, Picasso, the Alhambra palace and then there’s tapas. Oh Spain, we love you. The 10-day cultural extravaganza, Treasures of Spain, starts in Barcelona, and visits Valencia, Granada, Cordoba and finishes in Seville. Includes accommodation, some meals, transport and tour guide. Book before October 31, save on seven departures between May 19 and October 13, 2013. Past Peregrine travellers also get additional discounts. Normally $5090, costs from $4581 a person, twin share. 1300 854 400, peregrineadventures.com.

USA

The Hyatt Regency Century Plaza, Los Angeles

Girls, get your
scarves and sunnies on and hit the road with the ultimate road trip, from LA to
Vegas. The package includes four nights’ accommodation at the Hyatt
Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles,
three nights in the Westin Las Vegas, return flights and eight days’ car hire.
There are also bonus tours including a tour of Hollywood, a helicopter flight
over Vegas, entry to Madam Tussards. Book by October 20, travel November 9-30,
February 1 – March 20, 2013. Costs from $2290 a person, twin share. 1300 000 872, myholidaycentre.com.au.

TOURWATCH

Many Vietnam
tours take you through the Cu Chi tunnels, the elaborate tunnels of the
VietCong, but this is a tour with a difference. The guides are author Jimmy
Thomson and Sandy MacGregor, a former ‘tunnel rat’ serving in the Vietnam War
who led the group that discovered the tunnels and the underground city of Cu
Chi. The tour also visits the Vietcong Caves in the Long Hai mountains and a
few days in the sin city of Vung Tau, a notorious town where troops went for
R&R. Oh, and there’s time for shopping, too. The Tunnel Rats tour departs
October 26, 2012. Costs from $1900 a
person, twin share, land only. (02) 8229 4764, sapperswar.com.

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald

Oct

Who the hell is Rhonda? Bali fashion

‘Who the hell is Rhonda?’ I heard a fellow Aussie ask, here in Bali yesterday.

It must be the humidity, as it took me a while to figure this one out, too: I just couldn’t understand why the tat strips of Jl Legian and Double Six, in south Bali, were filled with singlets with such slogans as ‘Rhonda is Mine’ and ‘Keep your eyes on the road, Rhonda’.

Insurance company AAMI must surely be delighted with their star, Rhonda, who features in their safe drivers’ rewards campaign, has found international fame. Bintang beer singlets, it’s time to move over.

Oct

Washing instructions: Littlehorn designs

Washing instructions tag spotted on kid’s t-shirt by Littlehorn, at the other-worldly Horn Emporium, on Jl Petitenget, Bali.

Washing instructions: ask your mother,
she will know what to do.

Just in case you missed the shop,
here’s the exterior.

Even the shop’s loo is fab, thanks to
Alex Zabotto-Bentley’s impeccable styling.

Oct

Doing the Nile in style: travel deals 7 October 2012

Do the Nile in style, let Versace bags you a pool lounger on the Gold Coast or shop it up in Melbourne and Malaysia.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Yes, there are bargains to be had on the crazy Perth
hotel scene, creating a great excuse to go west and throw yourself into the
city’s delicious food scene, led by the newly crowned top eatery in town,
Fraser’s in Kings Park. Save 40 per cent on room rates at the Mantra on Murray
until March 31, 2013 when you stay on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nights. Costs
from $169 a night in a queen studio. 131 517, mantra.com.au

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Mount Lofty House lives up to its name, with panoramic
views over Adelaide and out to sea, yet it’s only 15 minutes from town. Stay at
the boutique country hotel and save up to 50 per cent with its ‘Discover the
Adelaide Hills’ package which includes overnight accommodation, breakfast for
two and one of three activities in the Hills: lunch for two at The Locavore in
Stirling, wine tasting at Shaw & Smith cellar door and winery, or a round
of golf for two at Mt Lofty golf club. Costs from $249 a room. (08) 8339 6777, mtloftyhouse.com.au.

The Novotel Melbourne on Collins

VICTORIA

One of Melbourne’s best shopping hotels, the Novotel
Melbourne on Collins, is 20 years old in October, and marks the occasion with a
$7 million make-over. Stay two nights until November 11 and get 20 per cent off
the best available rate, pay only $20 for breakfast (normally $29), $20 for
valet parking (normally $35) and $20 for internet (normally $27.95 a day).
There’s also a $20 deal on antipasto tasting platters and 20th birthday
cocktails. Costs from $412 a room, two nights. (03) 9667 5800, novotelmelbourne.com.au.

NEW SOUTH WALES

The
recently renovated Sebel Resort & Spa Hawkesbury Valley’s new midweek
‘Polynesian Stay & Spa’ package with a Polynesian inspired spa treatment at
its Villa Thalgo day spa. An hour from the CBD in Windsor, the 4.5-star hotel
spa’s deal includes overnight accommodation for two in a deluxe spa room,
breakfast, $50 to spend at the restaurant and two hours of body scrubbing,
lagoon water bath and a Mahana massage. Normally $499, costs $289 a night,
Monday to Friday until December 28. 131 515, sebelhawkesburyvalley.com.au.

QUEENSLAND

There’s no need for
bagsing your poolside lounger at dawn at the Palazzo Versace: the staff will do
it for you. In fact, you don’t know poolside lounging till you’ve lounged by
the lagoon at the Gold Coast’s most luxe address. We’re talking private
cabanas, chilled face sprays, platters of summer fruits, PV’s own sunscreen, a bottle
of sparkling wine and two nights in a superior room. Save up to $910, costs
from $938 for two people, for two nights. (07) 5509 8000,
palazzoversace.com.au/packages.

TRANS-AUSTRALIA

Traverse the country, from the chasms of the Blue
Mountains, across golden hay plains and the vast interior desert on a train
journey across Australia. Save 30 per cent on all journeys in Gold Service from Sydney to Perth, aboard The Indian
Pacific when you book by December 24 for travel until March 31, 2013. Save
$630, costs from $1584 a person, twin share. 132 447, greatsouthernrail.com.au

MALAYSIA

One of the best shopping destinations in Asia, Kuala
Lumpur is easy to get around, and Malaysians love a bargain, from the five-star
malls to Chinatown knock-offs. Bargain hunters will also love the 25 per cent
saving on the four-star aparthotel Swiss Gardens Residences. The recently
refurbished hotel between Chinatown and the main shopping strip, Bukit Bintang,
and has a free shuttle bus. Book by 14 days in advance until December 15,
travel by December 30. Costs from $103 a night. 1800 846 835, hotels.com.

USA

Soak up the magic at California’s Disneyland, staying at the Disney Paradise Pier hotel, which gets you in an hour earlier than the general masses. Kids stay free with the Disneyland Resort Magic package, which includes four nights’ accommodation, a three-day Park Hopper Bonus ticket, dining with Disney characters and airport transfers. Book until October 31, travel January 2 – February 14, 2013 (excluding January 18-19). Costs from $1009 adults, $325 kids, twin share, four nights. 1300 747 400, creativeholidays.com.

NEW ZEALAND

Stay four nights or more at The Rees Hotel Queenstown and
receive a NZD$100 voucher to spend in hotel’s True South dining room, as well
as complimentary wi-fi internet, free parking and a late check-out. Offer valid
for stays from October 7 – December 20. Email reservations@therees.co.nz with
“Booking Code SHD” in the subject line. Costs
from $390 a person, twin share. +64 (0)3 450 1100, therees.co.nz.

VIETNAM

Be one of the first to stay at the new Banyan
Tree Lăng Cô hotel in central Vietnam, which opens 1 November. Expect pool
villas, fabulous spas and an 18-hole championship golf course. Normally
USD850++ a night, its opening specials cost from USD735 a night (two night
minimum) plus USD765 worth of hotel credits to spend at the bar or the spa. Or
stay three nights, add round-trip transfers as well. Book now for stays from
November 1 – March 31, 2012. Costs from USD1470++ a room for two nights. +84 54 3695 888,
banyantree.com.

Cruising the Nile in style, Egypt.

EGYPT

Cruise the Nile with 11 of your best friends on a private
dahibaya, an elegant, 19th-century style riverboat, and save up to $21,300. The
boat has six cabins and a plunge pool and includes all meals, drinks, entrance
fees and an Egyptologist to explain the region’s rich treasures. Valid on
departures until February 23. Normally, $44,300 costs from $26,780 for 12
people for seven nights. 1300 851 800,
abercrombiekent.com.au.

Melbourne’s Arts Centre

TOURWATCH

In November and December, Melbourne resonates to one of
the great operatic events, Wagner’s four-opera Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring Cycle). Directed by Australia’s Neil Armfield and
conducted by Richard Mills, three cycles of the epic will be performed at the
Arts Centre Melbourne. The package includes eight nights at the Sofitel
Melbourne in a superior king room, daily breakfast, airport transfers, four
performances and transport to the Arts Centre. It also includes three small
group touring experiences in between the operas, including a tour of
Melbourne’s fantastic alleyways and arcades, a full day on the Great Ocean Road
and a day on the Mornington Peninsula, lunching and wining. From November 18 –
December 13. Costs from $5760 a person, twin share. (02) 9957 4511,
maryrossitravel.com.

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald newspaper

Oct

Lighthouses and London: travel deals 30 September

Cape Schanck lightstation, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria

From lighthouses to London, the chill of Beijing in winter to Tahitian summers, read on for this week’s international and domestic travel deals.

VICTORIA

The Mornington Peninsula’s in the midst of a Spring Fling, with 30+ special offers in its vineyards, galleries, accommodation and restaurants until end October. Down the tip of the peninsula, 90 minutes from Melbourne, stands the gleaming white Cape Schanck lightstation, and your bed for the night. Normally $158 a couple, costs from $110 in the self-contained Inspector’s Room, with breakfast and entrance into the museum. 1800 804 009, visitmorningtonpeninsula.org.

QUEENSLAND

There’s nothing like a post-winter pick-me-up than a
five-star escape to Noosa, with its superb restaurants, super-cute boutiques
and rainforest walks to secluded beaches. Check into the Sheraton Noosa Resort
& Spa and save 20 per cent on the room rate, with free breakfast for two
adults thrown in as well. Book by October 31, stay until December 22. Costs
from $204 for a superior twin room, a night. 1300 888 180, zuji.com.au.

Tasmania’s Derwent Valley
PIC: Tourism Tasmania and Geoff Murray

TASMANIA

Small, yet perfectly formed, Tassie is the ideal
self-drive destination, with hidden beaches, tiny wineries and oh-so-twee
villages made for meandering. The
self-drive Touring Afterglow package includes seven nights at one of 12
Innkeepers Apartments across the state, seven days’ car rental with a free $75
petrol voucher (October 8-December 21), entry for two into the Museum of Old
and New Art’s Theatre of the World exhibition, a World Heritage cruise for two
and a National Park pass, all up, worth $3433 for two people. Travel between
October 1 – December 21 and save up to $1235. Costs from $1099 a person. 1300
130 269, tassieafterglow.com.au, innkeeper.com.au.

NSW

Golf aficionados know the 18th hole at the championship course at the Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley has been redesigned, now a 454-meter par-5. Get out there and try it for yourself with a Stay and Play package, which includes two rounds of golf with a cart, deluxe room accommodation and breakfast, saving 30 per cent, or $136, off the regular rate. Available Sundays – Thursdays until December 31, book three days in advance. The hotel also offers free kids’ club. Costs from $280 a night for two adults. 138 388, crowneplazahuntervalley.com.au/stayandplay.

El Questro homestead, Kimberley, NT.

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Stay four nights, pay for three at the five-star El
Questro Homestead, a working cattle station in the eastern Kimberley. Don’t
worry, you won’t be coughing down cattle dust at The Homestead, a luxurious pad
enjoyed by the likes of Our Kylie. The deal includes all meals, most drinks and
tours around the station, such as the dramatic Chamberlain Gorge, on stays now
until October 30. Costs from $3645 a person. 1800 044 066 travel-associates.com.au.

TURKEY

Bodrum is Turkey’s playground, and with good cause: it’s
got the warm waters of the Mediterranean, a 15th-century castle and lots of
architectural ruins, sunshine galore and, the clincher, Turkish cuisine. Stay
two nights for the price of one at the 81-room Maçakizi hotel. Costs from $145 (E116) a night
including breakfast, wi-fi. until October 30. 1300 896 627, mrandmrssmith.com

ENGLAND

South Kensington is more London than Hugh Grant, what
with Kensington Palace, the Victoria & Albert Museum and two Royal Parks,
not to mention the High Street Ken boutiques. The Mercure London Kensington is
one of 1400 Accor hotels across the world currently doing a pay three-stay two deal,
knocking a third of your hotel bill. Book until October 21 for stays until
November 11. Mercure London Kensington costs from $367 for three nights. 1300
656 565, accorhotels.com/staysave.

AFRICA

Hit the African road, from the Kruger to the Kalahari, on
a seven-day overland tour. Your chariot is a safari vehicle, your bed a
sleeping mat. Spot the big five, hear the roar of Victoria Falls, sink a
sundowner on the Chobe River. Book by November 30 for travel until December 26,
and save 25 per cent. Costs from $756 a person as well as a local payment of
US$250 a person. 1300 320 795 adventureworld.com.au

The Temple of Heaven, Beijing.

CHINA

If you don’t mind rugging up, you can snap up a bargain
on a 14-day tour of China’s wonders, from the Forbidden City to Xian’s
Terracotta Warriors, the water town of Wuzhen, and, of course, the Great Wall
of China. Save $1000 a person and get two extra days in the itinerary on six winter
departures in February and March 2013, includes air fare from Sydney, visas,
four-star hotel accommodation, most meals and three cultural shows. Costs from $2880 a person, twin share. 1300
788328, helenwongstours.com.

TAHITI

Celebs love Tahiti, and with new flight-accommodation
packages, we commoners can learn to love it too. Save up to $660 a couple when
you book an Over Under Bora Bora deal, which includes return airfares with Air
Tahiti Nui from Australia to Tahiti,
domestic flights from Papeete to Bora Bora, breakfast, three nights at the
Intercontinental Tahiti Resort and four nights in an overwater bungalow at
the Maitai Polynesia Bora Bora. Book until March 31, 2013, travel between
November 1 – December 20, January 20 – March 31, 2013. Costs from $3250 a
person, twin share. From travel agents, 1300 858 305,
tahititravel.com.au.

TOURWATCH

Marrakech, Morocco. PIC: Belinda Jackson

The scent of the desert pervades Morocco’s beautiful
cities, the shifting sands dictating the style and colours of Meknes, Fez and
Marrakech. This tour goes off-track to palm-fringed oases, isolated kasbahs and
through the Sahara by camel and 4WD, to bed down for the night in a Berber tent. You’ll also visit the impossibly beautiful
seaside village of Chefchaouen and Roman ruins at Volubilis, before finishing
in Casablanca, with its tumble-down glory and gritty realism. Souks, alleyways,
traditional crafts and stucco villages: the tour’s style is about exploring,
rather than flag-waving guides, and you’ll sleep in family-owned riads – traditional buildings facing an internal
courtyard – as well as Western and Moroccan style hotels. Departs November
16-30 with a maximum of 14 guests. Costs from $3140 a person, twin share. 1300
783 188, activetravel.com.au.

SOURCE: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald

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