Travel | GlobalSalsa: travel writer Belinda Jackson

Jul

TRAVEL DEALS 8 July 2012

Varanasi, Indina

Meet the living goddess in Kathmandu or walk God’s own country on the Great Ocean Walk in this week’s best international and domestic travel deals:

NSW

Ski Thredbo and Perisher without the crush of commuters.
Lake Crackenback Resort & Spa is on the border of Kosciuszko National Park,
and 15 minutes from both skifields, with a free shuttle to Thredbo’s ski tube
daily. The resort is throwing in $100 credit to spend in its restaurants, 10
percent off ski hire, hot brekky, and use of all resort facilities. Costs from
$266 a person for two nights’ accommodation based on four sharing a two-bed
lakeview apartment. Stay before September 30, 1800 020 524,
lakecrackenback.com.au

QUEENSLAND

North of Cairns and south of Cape Tribulation, with the
Daintree within cooee, Port Douglas has some pretty impressive neighbours. Take
a 4WD out for a bash, cruise the mangroves on a paddle boat or walk the
rainforests. Lazy options include hitting the spa or cranking up the barbie on
the rooftop terrace of Peppers Beach Club. Stay four nights, pay for three in a spa suite
at the Mediterranean-style resort. For travel until September 12, costs from
$331 a night, minimum four nights, 1300 987 600, peppers.com.au

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Crank up
the action on Kangaroo Island with a Winter Family Pack for four people, which
includes a private two-hour quad tour for four people, from six years and up,
and one sandboard and one toboggan ride down KI’s sand dunes, Little Sahara.
They’ll even wax your bottom to make you slide faster. The bottom of your
board, that is. Save $103 until August 31, costs $559, (08) 8559 4296, kioutdooraction.com.au

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Stay at one of the most glamorous addresses in the state,
Empire Retreat and Spa, in Margaret River. With just 10 suites around a rustic
farmhouse and its famed day spa and get a
gourmet hamper on arrival and $450 worth of spa treatments, as well as 15
percent off the nightly rate. Minimum stay two nights, book seven nights in
advance, until July 31. Costs from $1070 for two nights in a deluxe balcony
suite, 1300 896 627, mrandmrssmith.com

VICTORIA

Loving being single? Celebrate your freedom with
Bothfeet, which has waived the single supplement on its four-day self-guided Great
Ocean Walk. The deal includes three nights in the four-star bothfeet sustainable
eco-retreat at Johanna Beach, all meals by the in-house chef, transfers, track
notes and a satellite tracking beacon. Those canny creatures at bothfeet have
also included a foot spa in the deal. Book before July 31, costs $1325 a person,
1300 767 416, bothfeet.com.au

TASMANIA

Described as one of the world’s last true wildernesses
and boasting the purest air on earth, the Tarkine region contains the world’s
largest untouched rainforest. It is a highlight on the seven-day The Unknown
Wilderness through Tassie’s beautiful nature sites. Save $190 when you book
seven-day journey six months in advance, for travel between September 1 2012 –
August 31 2012. Costs from $3560 a person, twin share, 1800 467 747,
inspiringjourneys.com.au

USA

Bibliophilists staying in the Big Apple make for the four
boutique hotels of the Library Hotel Collection; #1 on Trip Advisor, The
Casablanca near Times Square, The Library Hotel on Madison Ave, the romantic
Manhattan Hotel Elysée, and the Art Moderne Hotel Giraffe on Park Avenue South.
The hotels are including breakfast, tea, coffee and snacks during the day,
daily wine and cheese reception, wi-fi and passes to the nearby New York Sports
Club, together worth $220 a night. Book by 31 July, get a box of Belgian
chocolates, a bottle of red and a novel. From $237 a night, +1 212 201 1155,
libraryhotelcollection.com

MALAYSIA

Reserve your slice of paradise on a private tropical
island off the Malaysian coast. Book a stay in a new Signature Villas Retreat
in the Pangkor Laut Resort and all meals, free spa treatments and a guided walk
through the two-million-year-old rainforests and Emerald Bay with the hotel’s
resident naturalist. For online bookings only until July 31, travel until
December 19. Save 44 percent, normally $994, now costs from $533 a room, a
night, 0011 800 9899 9999, ytlhotels.com

ENGLAND
This four-day tour does a genteel trot through the
rolling countryside of the Cotswolds,
before stopping in Bath, Stonehenge and popping in to see Windsor’s most
famous inhabitants. There’s old English ale to be drunk and late November and
December tours visit local Christmas markets. Book before July 31 and travel
before March 31 to score a 7.5 percent discount. Earlybird fares cost from
$1198 a person, twin share, 1300 100 410, backroadstouring.com.au

SOUTHERN AFRICA

Watch the savannah plains pass your window on a 15-night
train journey on the Shongololo Express, from Johannesburg to Victoria Falls,
through South Africa, Swaziland, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana. Book
by July 31 for 2013 earlybird discounts as well as two nights’ accommodation
before or after the journey, airport transfers, wine and off-rail activities.
The Southern Cross route departs six dates in 2013. Ivory class costs from
$4099, saving $1667 a person, 0402 251036, discoverytravel.com.au

NEPAL & INDIA

The Kumari is the living Goddess, and her home is the
centre Kathmandu, in mystical Nepal. Pop in and say hi to the goddess on this
14-day tour of India and Nepal, visiting revered temples, stupas and shrines,
and maybe fly over Mt Everest, if your heart desires. Further south, play
chicken in Delhi’s traffic and pay homage to love at the Taj Mahal. Save up to
$551 a person on a Classical India with Nepal premium tour, departing 14
December. Now costs $5099 a person, twin
share, 1300 237 886, insightvacations.com

TOURWATCH

Hamilton Island is one of the Whitsundays’ most beloved
islands, yet 70 percent of it is national park. Whether you’re staying in the
super-luxe qualia or in the wallet-friendly Palm Bungalows, its new audio tours
will take you for a walk through the island’s history and botany, revealing
private beaches and top sunset-watching possies. Available in five languages, the
guides are a collaboration between a heritage writer and botanist, charting
Captain Cook’s journey through the Great Barrier Reef and chasing the island’s
beautiful blue butterflies. Download for free through Apple iTunes or stream
the Village Trail tour at www.hamiltonisland.com.au/activities/audio-tours
and m.hamiltonisland.com.au. You can even hire a pre-loaded tour on an iPod at
the Resort Centre or the Reef View Hotel.

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald newspaper

Jul

TRAVEL DEALS 1 July 2012

Nashville to New Orleans

QUEENSLAND

Noosa’s restaurant scene just keeps getting bigger, so
it’s convenient that the Outrigger Little Hastings Street Resort & Spa is
set up on a hill overlooking the town, letting you stretch your legs and work
off those calorific meals. Stay three nights and get a free buffet breakfast
each morning (if you’re still hungry). Normally from $299 a night, costs from
$159 a night until December 31, quickbeds.com/escape

NSW

The 18th
Biennale of Sydney, a celebration of contemporary arts, is full-steam until
September 16, with performances across the city including Cockatoo Island, the Museum
of Contemporary Art and the Art Gallery of NSW. Every event, from
performances to film screenings and artist talks is free. BLUE Sydney, on Woolloomooloo’s
wharves, is giving the fourth night on the house when you stay three nights or
more until July 31, so you can stay longer to celebrate the three-month
festival. Costs from $900 for four nights, (02) 9331 9000, tajhotels.com

VICTORIA

The Olsen, Melbourne

Immerse yourself in the landscape art of painter John
Olsen, in a five-star suite at South Yarra’s The Olsen hotel. Suites include a kitchenette and the hotel’s
glass-bottom pool hangs over Chapel St for a bit of light exhibitionism. Book
two nights and get $100 credit to spend at its Spoonbill Restaurant or hire a
scooter or smart car to gad about town. The Ultimate Indulgence package applies
to stays until August 31. Costs $209 a night, 1800 278 468, artserieshotels.com.au

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Warm up in the Red Centre
with the Ayers Rock Resort Family Escape package. Save 30 percent, or $342,
staying in a four-star one-bedroom apartment at Emu Walk Apartments from July
1-November 30. The deal includes free
kids’ activities in school holidays, free Indigenous guest activities, and kids
under 12 stay and eat breaky free. Also includes airport transfers and Ayres
Rock Resort shuttle bus service. Costs from $798 per person for three nights, 1300 134 004, ayersrockresort.com.au/family-holiday/

SOUTH AUSTRALIA
“A zoo without fences” is how the locals describe Kangaroo Island.
Happily, most of the animals are herbivores, and the rest are just too small to
tackle us humans. Bring on the cable knits and cute hats when you brave the
wilds of Kangaroo Island’s spectacular beaches with a cosy coastal getaway.
Kangaroo Island Seafront’s new three-star garden villas beside the ferry
terminal at Penneshaw are offering four nights for the price of three until
August 31. Costs from $1350 for four nights, 138 833, sunloverholidays.com.au

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Gun your 4WD down one of Australia’s most iconic outback
routes, the Gibb River Road in the Kimberley, on a 13-day exploration of deep
gorges, wide rivers and ancient cultures. The 4WD Kimberley Complete journey
starts and ends in Broome, and includes stays in luxurious tented camps,
wilderness lodges and outback stations and a helicopter flight over the
magnificent Mitchell Falls. Save $1000 a couple on August departures when
booked by July 14. Costs $12,990 a couple, 1300 336 932, aptouring.com.au

INTERNATIONAL

ABU DHABI

Tonight’s dinner will be served at a Bedu (bedouin) camp
amidst the sand dunes, with camel rides and a relaxing shisha (tobacco water
pipe) for afters. Stay four nights at the five-star Intercontinental Abu Dhabi and
pay for three, with breakfast, airport transfers, dinner in the dunes and entry
to the Ferrari theme park, with the world’s fastest rollercoaster, as you’d
expect. Book and travel by September 8. Costs $525 a person for three nights, 1300
747 400, creativeholidays.com

MALAYSIA

Book your slice of paradise on a private tropical island
off the Malaysian coast. Stay in a new Signature Villas Retreat in the Pangkor
Laut Resort and get a free spa treatment and a guided walk through the
two-million-year-old rainforests and Emerald Bay with the hotel’s resident
naturalist. Book online only until July 31, travel until December 19. Normally
$994, now costs from $533 a room, a night, 0011 800 9899 9999, ytlhotels.com

CHILE &
ARGENTINA

Shimmy your way through sultry Buenos Aires and shoot the
rapids in adventure-loving Pucon, across the border in Chile, in a 13-day
exploration of these two beautiful countries. The small-group tour also pulls
in at chic Bariloche, a delight for both powder hounds and summer hikers. Book by July 22 for August 1 departure to
save 25 percent. Was $1450, now $1087 a person, 1300 018
871, intrepidtravel.com

Nashville to New Orleans

USA

If your soul resonates to the twang of a slide guitar, if
Graceland is your heartland, or your jazz hands just can’t stay still, head from
Nashville to New Orleans on a 10-day tour of the American South. Highlights
including making a recording at the RCA Studio B and visiting plantations and
antebellum mansions. Save 10 percent on bookings made 12 months in advance. Costs
from $2,359 a person, 1300 230 234, globus.com.au

SPAIN

Visit what could be the world’s most beautiful bullring,
in Ronda, as part of this 10-day journey through the best of Spain, from the
promenades of Barcelona to the fantastical architecture of Granada’s the
Alhambra. Book by July 31 and travel by December 20 to get a free night’s
accommodation at the beginning or end of your trip. Costs from $11,285 per
person, twin share, 1300 851 800, abercrombiekent.com.au

TOURWATCH TURKEY

Get your hands dirty on an archaeological exploration of
the ancient caves and villages of Turkey’s UNESCO-listed Cappadocia region. Led
by archaeologist Dr Nota Karamaouna, the six-day journey is based in the
village of Üçhisar. “Walking through the Ihlara Valley is a truly heavenly
journey,” says Dr Karamaouna, who is working on her PhD on the region’s
Byzantine churches. “On the slopes of this 150m deep canyon, amongst the
abundance of fruit trees, are cave chapels and monasteries which always brings
to my mind the first Christian hermits and monks who began their religious
lives in the region over a thousand years ago.” Departs September 3 and
includes five nights at the Kale Konak cave hotel, most meals and balloon
expedition. Costs from $2145 a person twin share, +44 1600 888 220, petersommer.com

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald newspaper

Jul

Taking it easy: Bali or bust?

Warm sun, icy cocktails, hot Petitenget restaurant, fabulous fashion stores that I’ve cruised, but not shopped.

Head down, I’m writing Bali. The island of the Gods is so close, just 5.5 hours from Melbourne, and I soooooooooo want to go back. But then I think:
there are so many other places to be going at this moment. Should you just go with
what you know and love, or head somewhere different?

Egypt is, of course, massively on sale, but with many waiting to see how the new Muslim Brotherhood president beds in, it’s a waiting game. Vietnam is on fire and Cambodia is going crazy while the South Pacific’s Cook Islands are getting a run at the moment. The inbox is full of Asian deals, and the US, particularly Hawai’i, is going crazy, with more and more Aussies flocking to its gentle shores.

If you could snap your fingers now, where would you be? Shaking it at Burning Man? Standing in the middle of the Atacama Desert? Chasing wildflowers in the French Alps or chewing bagels in summery New York City. (Notice the ‘warm’ theme creeping through here?)

PS: If you boggled at the idea of 5.5 hours being ‘close’, then you’re obviously not Australian. Or maybe Russian. Russians understand what it is to be far away.

Jun

TRAVEL DEALS: embrace or escape winter around the world

Oia village, Santorini, Greece

ESCAPE WINTER

GREECE

Received travel wisdom states that some of the world’s best
sunsets are to be viewed in the village of Oia, on the island of Santorini. Save
$963 when you book the cliff-top Fanari Villas for four nights between July 1
and September 30. Includes breakfasts and a bottle of local wine. Costs $1310 a
suite for four nights, 1300
853 953, travel agents, iconholidays.com

VIETNAM

For a steamy city break, you can’t go past Saigon, with its
rich food culture, so it’ll be as hot in the kitchen as it is poolside. Temps
don’t change much, the difference is how much rain you get. A three-day cooking
package includes classes at the Saigon Culinary School, accommodation and
airport transfers, travel July 1-September 30, from $275 a person, twin share,
1300 747 400, creativeholidays.com

MEXICO
The hotter the better: the Banyan Tree Mayakoba, in Cancun, puts its money
where its mouth is, offering a discount on your room, spa and boutique
that’s based on the temperature at noon
that day. Balmy Cancun sees noontime temps of around 30 Celsius, which will
give you 30 percent off. Book July 1-20, stay July 1-September 30. Costs from
$643 plus tax a night (before discount), 1800 050 019, banyantree.com

NORTHERN TERRITORY

The coldest you’ll
get on the Mary River wetlands, two hours from Darwin, is 19 degrees at night,
but in the daytime, up to a toasty 33 degrees, nirvana for us southerners. With
low rainfall, millions of birds gather at the remaining waterfalls, making this
a great time for twitchers. Stay three nights, pay two on stays Monday-Friday.
Book by July 31, travel by November 30. Includes breakfast and
three-course dinner daily. Tours and transfers from Darwin cost extra. Costs
$490 a person, two nights in a safari tent, (08) 8978 8955, wildmanwildernesslodge.com.au

ANGUILLA

Hot nights
in the Caribbean come with a cool price tag at the five-star Viceroy Anguilla,
which is offering four nights for the price of three until end October. Design
aficionados will know the resort, decorated by US interiors goddess Kelly
Wearstler. The rest of us just love the white-sand beaches, the spa, the
saltwater infinity pool… Costs
$1185 for four nights, +925 298 9325, viceroyhotelsandresorts.com

EMBRACE WINTER

Kenya Mt Kilimanjaro from Elerai

KENYA

Winter in Kenya isn’t exactly hardship, and it’s when all
the animals are most active. Save $1000 a couple on a seven-night Out of Africa
Air Safari departing July 15. Zip between the top game parks including Masai
Mara in a Cessna Caravan aircraft, staying in the tiny, beautiful Satao Elerai
near Amboseli and Satao Camp in Tsavo. Costs $4870 a person, twin share, 1300
195 873, benchinternational.com.au

VICTORIA

The young and the old get the best deals at Hotham, with
under 5s and over 70s skiing free, while kids 6-14 years ski free when they’re
with a paying adult who’s booked a three-night accommodation package during the
Value Season (September 17-30). Adults are best to snap up a three-day ski pass
for $270, saving $48, 1800 468 426, hotham.com.au

NSW

The Sydney Winter Festival runs July 22 – August 11, with
ice shows, ice-skating and, best of all, winter food to warm the cockles of
your heart and stomach. The InterContinental Sydney does its bit, serving
mussels and wine daily for $20. Save 20 percent off the best daily rate Fridays
to Sundays until September 30, includes buffet breakfast, internet and late
check-out. Costs from $550 for two nights, (02) 9253 9000, intercontinental.com

NEW ZEALAND

New
Zealand’s iconic Huka Lodge turns up the heat with cosy log fires and throws in
very special events at no extra costs. Get your pencils out for the Big Red
Dinner hosted by Waiheke Island’s Stonyridge Wines (August 11) or the Marlborough affair that
is Dog Point Winemaker’s Dinner (July 14). Costs from $795 plus GST a person, +64
7 378 5791, hukalodge.co.nz

South Africa Hluhluwe (Gecko Adventures)

SOUTHERN AFRICA

Rug up and climb aboard your safari vehicle to cruise the
wildlife parks of South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland. The trip stars in
Jo’berg, finishing in Cape Town and includes guides, park fees and camping
gear. Get 30 percent off Gecko’s 23-day African Mosaic trip departing July 20.
Was $2583, now $1985 a person, twin share, 1300 791 478, geckosadventures.com

Source: Belinda Jackson, Sun Herald newspaper

Jun

TRAVEL DEALS: 24 June 2012

NSW

Senator Bob Brown, ex-judge Michael Kirby and sailor
Jessica Watson are all packing their bags and heading to Byron Bay for the
annual writer’s festival, 3-5 August, when the town goes crazy. Get in early to
grab a twin or double room at the Byron Bay YHA and save $25. They’ll also
throw a bacon & egg roll and coffee in for good measure. Costs $175 a room for two nights, 1800 678
195, yha.com.au

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Deep in the heart of Kakadu lies the Holiday Inn Gagadju
Crocodile, an Indigenous-owned, crocodile-shaped hotel 2½ hours from Darwin,
and close by the celebrated Aboriginal rock art galleries Nourlangie Rock and
Ubirr. Stay before September 29 and quote ‘stay clever’ to get up to 30 percent
off with free breakfast. Kids under 17 get to stay free, under 12s get to eat
free, too, until September 30. Normally $292 a night, costs from $244 a double room,
two-night minimum, 1800 007 697, holidayinn.com

Medina Executive South Yarra

VICTORIA

Facelifts deserve a party to show off, so the Medina
Executive South Yarra is cutting 10 percent off two-night stays in its newly
revamped hotel. With new furnishings and
kitchens, the apartment hotel includes a revamped pool, if you’re up to braving
the Melbourne winter, or the more sensible option, the Drawing Room’s fireplace
and cosy chairs. The deal includes continental breakfast for two, parking and
noon check-out on stays until August 31. Costs $294 for two nights, 1300 633
462, medina.com.au

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Truffle
season has begun in WA, and with the added lure of truly beautiful wine, why
aren’t we in the Margaret River right now? The tiny 4.5-star Losari Retreat is
carving 34 percent off stays in its six spa villas until September 4. With
their lake views, hot outdoor Jacuzzis, double showers and cosy lounges, the
villas are built for snuggling up. Otherwise, get out with horseriding on the
property or cruise the nearby world-class cellar doors. Costs from $490 for two nights, 1300 130 485, travel.com.au

QUEENSLAND

There’s a reason why Daydream Island is thus named: its
white-sand beaches and golden sunsets are the stuff of screensavers. Stay five
nights for the price of four in a garden balcony room with breakfast daily. Drawcards
include coral reefs, starlit cinema, the popular kids’ club and its famed spa. Book by December 20, travel by March 31, 2013,
land only. Costs $612 a person, twin share, 1300 747 400, creativeholidays.com

SOUTH
AUSTRALIA

One of Australia’s great multi-day walks, the Arkaba Walk
takes the slow route through the Flinders Ranges. The four-way walk covers 45km
and does it in style: it’s fully guided and fully catered for, with
pre-bush-dinner drinks and star-gazing from your cosy swag deck. Save 25
percent on departures on July 5 and 19, and August 23. Costs $1500 a person,
1300 790 561, wildbushluxury.com

NEW ZEALAND

Hurl your skis into the back of your campa van and head
for the hills this winter. JUCY Rentals is throwing in a free six or seven day
adult ski pass for Treble Cone ski field in Wanaka, worth NZ$570, with every
car or campa hired in NZ during July 1-September 30. Vans cost from NZ$25 a
day, 1800 150 850, jucy.co.nz

MALAYSIA

Stay three nights for the price of two at the five-star
Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur. Pay from $465 per person twin share for your stay in a
Horizon Executive room and get breakfast daily, return airport transfers and
club access with free non-alcoholic beverages and snacks all day, a free
cocktail buffet, drinks in the evening and internet. Valid for sale until
August 31 and for travel until October 31 and also between November 5and December
20, 1300 939 414, flightcentre.com.au

THAILAND

Get out of Phuket’s concrete jungle and into the tropical
jungle at the five-star Trisara, which has just 39 pool villas and 18 private
compound-style residences. The little resort, just 15 minutes from Phuket
airport, has 2km of private coastline. Book a two-night stay before October 31
and get US$200 credit for each night to spend in the resort’s restaurants, bars
and spa. Package includes airport transfers, breakfast, wi-fi, kids’ club and
daily snacks. Pool villas cost from US$695++ a night, +66 76 310
100, trisara.com

FIJI

The five-star Jean Michel Cousteau eco-resort, near
Savusavu, is offering six nights for the price of four, as well as free
massage, diving for certified divers, all gourmet meals, non-alcoholic drinks,
snorkelling trips and a marine biologist on tap, saving 35 percent. Garden view
bures can accommodate two adults and two kids under 13. Stay October
14-December 21, and January 7-March 31. Costs $2148 an adult for six nights, fijiresort.com

CRIMEA &
CENTRAL ASIA

Registan Square, Samarkand

Get around diabolical transport conundrums in Georgia,
Armenia and on the Silk Road by travelling by private jet. Fly Singapore
Airlines to Istanbul where your jet awaits to whisk you away to Kashgar in
western China, Samarkand, Bukhara and the walled city of Khiva. Armenia reveals
Yerevan, and explore cave frescoes in Georgia’s David Gareji Monastery before
arriving in Ukraine’s Yalta and Sevastopol. The
19-day tour departs September 3, 2013. Book by March 31, 2013, save $500. Costs
from $28,915 a person, twin share, 1800 650 738, captainschoice.com.au

Extreme 19th hole, South Africa

TOURWATCH

Tee off from the Extreme 19th Hole, which is accessible
only by helicopter, and aim for the green, which is 420 meters below, in the shape of the
continent of Africa. This par-three hole, in northern South Africa, is a golfer’s
dream. According to South African golfing great Gary Player, it takes 24
seconds for the ball to hit the ground, and there’s $1m for anyone who gets a
hole-in-one. Each hole of the 8km-long championship course was designed by top
golfers including Bernhard Langer, Luke Donald and Vijay Singh. This package
includes two nights at the Legend Golf & Safari Resort and green fees on
the 18-hole Signature golf course. Book and travel by August 31. Costs $499 a
person, 1300 320 795, adventureworld.com.au

Jun

Where I (and you) should be right now

SOS Supperclub, on top of the Anantara Seminyak, Bali. You know you want to be there right now. It looks like it’s set up for a wedding in this shot, but if you could look behind you, you’d see all the day lounges set up to catch the sun setting over Seminyak beach.

Jun

TRAVEL DEALS: 17 June 2012

Cambodia: World Expeditions

$ TRANS-AUSTRALIA

Campervans are officially hot – you can strap your board
on, pack the kids or set up a moving lounge room and head across Australia. An
army of Dutch and German tourists can’t be wrong. Crank up the cost-effective
Aussie road trip adventure and save 5 per cent off for campervan bookings
before June 30 for travel until December 31 2012. Quote the promo code “FAIR”
when booking. Costs from $28 a day for a two-berth vehicle, relocations cost from
$1 a day, drivenow.com.au

$$ VICTORIA

Victoria’s little sister
of ski, Lake Mountain, is best known for its 37km of cross-country skiing and toboggan
slopes. Just two hours north of Melbourne, save $200 when you buy a Works
Package, which gets two adults and two children ski and toboggan hire, a 90-minute
cross-country ski lesson, family lunch voucher and vehicle entry. Costs
$249 for a family of four, (03) 5957 7201, lakemountainresort.com.au

$$ SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Lake Mountain, Victoria

Soak up the serenity in the Clare Valley, a renowned
antiques haunt 1½ hours north of Adelaide. Save $150 on a midweek deal
(Mon-Thurs nights) at River Walk Cottage until end July. The new two-bedroom
B&B sleeps six for an instant house party, with open fires and provisions
for the big brekky, chocolates and a bottle of Taylor’s wine. The nearby Rising
Sun is worth a visit for lunch. Costs $300 for three nights, riverwalkcottage.com.au

$$$ WESTERN
AUSTRALIA

The dolphins are on tap at the Shark Bay World Heritage
region, so it’s not a case of ‘blink and you’ll miss ‘em’. Stay four nights,
get one night free in a garden villa at the 3.5-star Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort.
Includes breakfast for you and the dolphins at a daily feed’n’frolic session.
Travel before until December 14 (excluding 4-21 July). Costs $830 for four
nights, 138 833, sunloverholidays.com.au

$$$$ QUEENSLAND

Take to the Sunshine Coast by foot on an eco-tastic,
small-group walking trip along the Sunshine Coast Hinterland Great Walk,
through the Glass House Mountains and Noosa National Park. Book the Sunshine
Coast Hinterland (6-10 August) followed by a Lamington National Park trip
(13-17 August) and save $200. Trips are fully guided and include meals, transfers
and accommodation, including O’Reilly’s Guesthouse. Normally $1690 a person for
a tour, book both by August 5, costs $3180 a person for two tours, (03) 9877
9540, parktrek.com

$$$$$ TASMANIA

The
Freycinet coast is home to one of the world’s best beaches, Wineglass Bay, and
the 11-day Forgotten
Coast trip lets you explore by boat, foot or kayak up to the wildly beautiful
Bay of Fires, on to Launceston and across the island in a small group of up to
16. Save $290 on bookings
made six months before departure, with departures from October 31 to April 24.
Costs from $5540 a person, twin share, 1800 467 747, inspiringjourneys.com.au

INTERNATIONAL

French food and tropical weather: Noumea

NOUMEA

French
food and tropical weather – isn’t Noumea just perfect? Stay five nights, pay
for four at the Ramada Plaza Noumea, which is also throwing in a Flavour Savour
tour, a French cooking class, daily breakfasts, a two-course lunch, 10 percent
off spa treatments and a voucher to blow at Le Casino. Costs from $1559 a
person, including flights with Aircalin, book until 3pm June 29, 1300 130 485, travel.com.au

$ MALAYSIA

Sandakan,
in Malaysian Borneo, is an eco-tourism paradise with bizarre proboscis monkeys,
love-filled orang utan sanctuaries and amazing caves. Times are a-changing with the arrival of the
first international hotel brand: the new harbourside Four Points’ opening
special runs until December 31 and includes breakfast for two, wi-fi and 4pm
check out. Costs from $67++ for a deluxe room, +60 89 244 888, fourpoints.com/sandakan

CAMBODIA & LAOS

Treat your bestie to an adventure with World Expedition’s
buy one, get one free 11-day small-group tours to Cambodia and Laos departing
July 20 and August 3 and 24. In Cambodia, discover Phnom Penh, take a cooking
class in Battambang and explore Angkor Wat by bike, then it’s all bears and
Buddhas in Laos. Costs $2790 for two people, 1300 720 000, worldexpeditions.com

$$$$ INDIA

Riding the Himalayas, Extreme Bike Tours

Ride an Indian through the Himalayas: the Indian is a
Royal Enfield motorbike, and the 15-day journey traverses the world’s highest
rideable roads from Leh, in eastern Kashmir, along Khardung La and into the
Nubra Valley, within co-eee of the Tibetan border and down to Manali, stopping
for pics of two-humped camels. Cut a third off the price when mentioning this page,
departs August 22-September 5. Now costs $2,565 for riders, $1,971 for pillion, land only, +91 9665 377 344,
extremebiketours.com

$$$$$ TURKEY

Your steed is a late model BMW motorcycle, the biking
nirvana is Turkey. Ride the stunning Turquoise Coast, visit poignant ANZAC battlegrounds
of Gallipoli and sleep in a cave hotel in the fairy chimney landscape of
Cappadocia on the 21-day Treasures of Turkey. To save 10 per cent on bookings
before July 31 for a September 4 departure, quote ‘SHTOT12’. Includes bike, fuel,
meals, accommodation and guides. Costs $10,208 for riders, $5,598 for pillion, land only,
1300 887 327, compassexpeditions.com

TOURWATCH

Visit Europe on a small-group, fully escorted tour that
includes boutique hotel accommodation and plenty of free time for your own
exploration and picnics! With transport in new nine-seater mini coaches,
Interlude Tours’ annual 35-day autumn Europe tour travels through France, Italy
and Spain. “We have a lot of repeat customers, so we go to different places
each year,” says tour owner and driver Jeanette Savage. “This year, we’re doing
a D-Day tour in Normandy, visiting the Guggenheim in Bilbao and we’ll stay
longer in Tuscany.” She’s also excited
about seeing the historic Bayeux tapestry for the first time. The fare includes
return air fares Sydney to Paris with Thai Airways, departing September 18.
Costs $10,995 a person, twin share, (02) 94052218, interlude-tours.com

Belinda Jackson
Source: Sun Herald

Jun

The best little baby muffins

What’s cooking in the kitchen tonight: banana, sultana and coconut muffins. Best ever, thanks Bern!

From “How it all vegan”
anything-goes, fruit-filled muffins

2 cups flour (I split wholemeal and plain for extra grunt)
½ tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
½ cup sweetener (honey, syrup, apple juice concentrate, rice malt, date
syrup…)
2 eggs
¼ cup oil
¾ up milk – add 1 tsp vinegar to milk or use buttermilk
1½ cups fruit fresh or frozen (a great way to use up aging bananas)

Oven 180 degrees. Large bowl, stir flour, salt baking
powder. Add sweetener, eggs, oil, milk and fruit. Stir together till just
mixed. Scoop into oiled muffin tins and bake 35-40mins. Makes 6 big muffins or gazillions (ok, 20) little tiny baby muffins, baked for around only 15 minutes.
Because of the fruit, these muffins don’t keep that well. They can also be used
as a vehicle for adding healthy oil to a diet.

Jun

Tea-leaf theif: Tease of the teas

Banyan Tree Seoul

Ok, so I put my hand up to souveniring interesting teas from any hotel I find myself holed up in.

Let me tell you: there is nothing worse than checking in to a
no-holds-barred hotel or villa, complete with hefty price tag, then finding miserable, cheap tea and nasty instant coffee in the room. It’s
like lining the bins with plastic Coles bags. Yet hoteliers do it
time and time again.

If I want tea, I want the real McCoy. Little leaves floating and ultimately drowning in piping hot water, a cute strainer and a pretty cup and saucer. Right now, a white ceramic teapot sits on the desk, and my office is perfumed with freshly brewing Earl Grey tea.

Recent notable exceptions include Sentosa Villas in Bali, which had not only sachets of Balinese coffee but also some pretty special peppermint leaves and great Earl Grey and the Banyan Tree Seoul, for its tea pyramids of silk, cocooning lavender earl grey. Mind you, they did offer to charge me $6 to have milk delivered to the room. Lucky it’s drunk black.

Recently, at the gorgeous Eclectic Tastes cafe in Ballarat, I was served
a pot of tea, complete with nana-knitted tea cosy and a strainer that I
just couldn’t work out. It was a rubik’s cube for tea drinkers. It was
fantastic.

A tea drinker from my teenage years, I’ve just realised why I stopped
ordering tea in cafes so many years ago – because I got sick of being
charged $3 for a cheap, tannin-stained mug filled with hot water and a
20-cent bag. At least coffee looks like it has a bit of work put into
it. At least, that’s what the psychology grads – sorry, baristas – tell us.

Eclectic Tastes, 2 Burnbank St, Ballarat (03) 5339 9252

Jun

Travel deals: Destination Canberra special! 10 June 2012

Hyatt Hotel Canberra

$150 Happy Hour deals

Click onto ‘Happy Hour’, between 12-1pm every Thursday in
June, to book a great accommodation deal and get a $150 voucher to spend at the
Canberra Centre, National Zoo & Aquarium, Canberra Glassworks or a combined
3inFun pass plus Skate in the City experience. The 3inFun pass includes
entrance to the Australian Institute of Sport, Cockington Green Gardens and
Questacon (The National Science and Technology Centre), 1300 889 026, visitcanberra.com.au/winter

HYATT HOTEL CANBERRA

Canberra’s most historic hotel, the Hyatt, is a sprawling
1920s pile in the parliamentary triangle, renowned for its afternoon tea in the
Tea Lounge and the place to be seen for Friday afternoon drinks. Stay two
nights in a Park Room and get 50 per cent off the Hyatt Daily Rate on stays
from Thursdays to Sundays until December 31. Costs from $187.50 a night, (02)
6270 1234, canberra.park.hyatt.com

MANTRA ON NORTHBOURNE

Warm up for
your ski trip with an overnighter in Canberra. Mantra on Northbourne gets you
up early and primed for the snowfields with a couple of beanies, two travel
mugs and a bacon & egg brekky roll and muffin with hot coffee or chocolate
thrown into the deal. The Go Ski Package is for stays Friday to Sunday until August 31 and saves
$50 a night. Costs from $219 a room, 131 517, mantra.com.au

NOVOTEL CANBERRA

Travel the world’s oldest highway through an exotic
exhibition now showing exclusively at the National Museum of Australia. Great
for kids and parents, with interactive computer displays and rooms lush with
silks and life-sized camels. The Novotel Canberra’s Cultural Getaway includes
tickets to the exhibition, a full buffet breakfast and a bottle of wine on
mentioning this column. Travel until July 29, costs from $180 a room, (02) 6245
5000, novotelcanberra.com.au

Crowne Plaza

CROWNE PLAZA

Get the winter woollies and the walking shoes out and
discover Canberra’s parklands and riverside walks, the National Gallery and the
National Portrait Gallery. Stay two nights at the Crowne Plaza Canberra and
save up to $230. Book the Discover package until August 17, stay until August
31, includes buffet breakfast. Costs from $175 a room a night, 138 388, crowneplaza.com/roadtrip

YHA

Families get the
best of the bunch with a Family 3-in-1 Fun Pass giving two adults and up
to three kids entry to Questacon, the Australian Institute of Sport and
Cockington Green Gardens when they stay at the Canberra City YHA. Package
includes breakfast and one night’s accommodation, until October 31. YHA members
get another 10 percent discount: membership costs from $32 for adults, kids
under 18 free with an adult. Costs from $295 per family a night, ensuite room
(non-members), save $49, (02) 6248 9155, yha.com.au

MEDINA APARTMENT HOTELS

Stay at one of Medina’s two apartment hotels, the Medina
Executive James Court in central Canberra on Northbourne Ave, or Medina Classic
Canberra in swanky Kingston, and get 25 per cent off the best available rate
and free parking for travel before July 10, quoting this deal. Costs from $230
a night before discount, (02) 6240 1234 (James Court), from $210 before
discount, (02) 6239 8100 (Classic Canberra), medina.com.au

Source: Sun Herald

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