Victoria | GlobalSalsa: travel writer Belinda Jackson

Oct

Best things to do on the Great Ocean Road with Lonely Planet

The Great Ocean Road is Australia’s most iconic road trip, running along the coastline of Victoria. I wrote this guide to the drive for Lonely Planet, sharing some of my favourite stops along the Great Ocean Road, with tips on the best places to eat, my favourite swim spots and some of the new, beautiful architecture along the way.

The route starts west of Melbourne at Torquay and ends at Allansford, on the way to Adelaide. Buckle up for 243km of heart-burstingly beautiful surf strips and quiet coves, pine-lined beach towns and country roads fringed by forests.

You can read more about the Great Ocean Road, the best walks along the route on the Lonely Planet website, or see more on the official website of the road here: https://visitgreatoceanroad.org.au/

and you can see more on Tourism Australia’s website: https://www.australia.com/en/places/melbourne-and-surrounds/guide-to-the-great-ocean-road.html

To read the full story, visit https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/guide-to-the-great-ocean-road

Jun

It’s a flower-powered Frida (Kahlo) fest in Bendigo. Canberra Times

“I’ve come to see Frida,” I overhear a woman telling another, as she admires a collection of perfume bottles. It sounds like she’s popping over to see a friend, not a woman who died more than 70 years ago, and who’d probably never, ever heard of Bendigo.

The speaker could be excused for her familiarity with Mexican artist Frida Kahlo; the latest exhibition at the Bendigo Art Gallery, Frida Kahlo: In her own image, is at times so intimate you’d think it was your bestie’s drawers you were rifling through.

My latest story for Explore Travel, in the Canberra Times, Newcastle Herald and regional Australian family of newspapers, goes to the Victorian town of Bendigo. Here, its excellent art gallery has hosted exclusive exhibitions on Elvis, straight from Graceland, and Grace Kelly’s style and fashion extravaganza from the Victoria & Albert Museum, so Bendigo’s got form, and does its current exhibition, an exclusive retrospective from Mexico, proud.

To read my feature, visit https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/8968858/discover-frida-kahlos-life-at-bendigo-gallery/ or see CANBERRA TIME Frida Kahlo – Belinda Jackson

I will say: some visitors have said they were disappointed there weren’t more works of art by Frida Kahlo – I say they’re missing the point. Her art was everywhere – in her clothes and in her hair, in her house and even on the plaster casts that held her broken body together. An indomitable spirit in the face of genuine, heartbreaking adversity. Go see the exhibition, if you can!

Oct

Should I swim with whales? An ethical debate

A few months ago, I jumped in the chilly waters to swim with whales, as a pod of over-excited humpback whales were tearing up the NSW South Coast on what’s known as the humpback highway.

Swimming with whales in Australia is still a fledging tourism activity – should we even be doing it?

This swim with whales is run by Jervis Bay ecotourism company Woebegone Freedive, and we also had whale scientist Dr Vanessa Pirotta on board, and together, we teased out the ethics of whale swimming and interaction, for this feature in the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers’ Traveller section.

For some whale background, every year, thousands of humpback whales migrate from the chilly waters of Antarctica to southern Australia, where the split around the continent – some going to the western coast, and others up the east coast, where they find their favourite creche to nurture and teach their babies about life on the humpback highway.

Interestingly, one of those creches is near Fraser Island, where I also spent my childhood. We never knew anything about whales, because by the 1960s, we’d killed most of them for a lucrative whaling industry.

Thankfully, Australia banned killing these marine giants, and the population has begun to swell again. Some scientists put the population at about 40,000, so now we can see them in places like Fraser Island, Warrnambool in Victoria and Albany in Western Australia which, ironically, was the site of Australia’s last whaling station. It now makes its money from tourism, as people come to see the majesty of the animals we used to slaughter.

The trip was hosted by Bannisters Hotels, which offers a stay-and-swim Mollymook Migration package https://www.bannisters.com.au/mollymook-migration/

To read my discussion about whether we should swim with whales, jump to https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/i-swam-australia-s-humpback-highway-but-should-i-have-20240917-p5kbb7.html

Jun

Best things to do on the Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria, Australia

In Melbourne, you’re either east or west holidaymaker. Mornington or Bellarine; pick your peninsula.

Never both – east is the Mornington Peninsula – a holiday hotspot close to my heart. It’s where I took my first holiday, at six weeks, and I’m still back there whenever I can shoot through from the city. Stylish and loaded with great wineries and restaurants, cafes and some of the state’s best hotels.

West is the Bellarine Peninsula. It’s the little sister. Also with great places to eat and drink, with fantastic produce and glorious views. But it’s quieter, it’s more low key. Less corporate, more family-run.

The two peninsulas are connected by a ferry across Port Phillip Bay, so I took the trip from Sorrento on the Mornington side to Queenscliff on the Bellarine, complete with dolphins surfing in the ferry’s wake- how’s that for a great omen for the holiday ahead?

The results of my finds on the Bellarine Peninsula are packed into this story for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers’ Traveller section, where I find all the gold; from gold-leaf facials to gold-medalled wines plus wild beaches, wild pinot, wild seals and wild convicts: all just 90 minutes from Melbourne.

https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/nine-must-do-highlights-of-victoria-s-underrated-peninsula-20240610-p5jkii.html

I was a guest of Visit Geelong & The Bellarine. See visitgeelongbellarine.com.au

Oct

Nominations for the Australian Society of Travel Writers’ awards 2023

Good things come in – whatever size, shape or form you’d like. But today, I have news of two very good things, I’ve received two nominations in the 2023 Australian Society of Travel Writers’ Awards; for Travel Writer of the Year (yep, the big one!) and Best Accommodation Story.

Some years are tough for those of us working in the creative industries: pandemics, deaths of loved ones, that sort of thing takes a toll on your creativity. Then there are the times where the light is golden, the stories pour into your lap and the words flow like sweet honey.

My three stories for the Travel Writer of the Year award are from far afield – from the deserts of Saudi Arabia and the jungles of Borneo – while my accommodation story is far closer to home, from lovely Beechworth, in north-eastern Victoria.

I’ve shared the links to my stories, if you’d like a read, and send especial thanks to my editors, who continue to commission me and are willing to listen to stories from these remote corners of the world.

2023 Travel Writer of the Year nomination:

Solo travel in Saudi Arabia (Sydney Morning Herald/The Age Traveller) : https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/visiting-saudia-arabia-as-a-woman-i-went-to-the-notoriously-sexist-country-as-a-solo-female-tourist-20220705-h24v9q.html

Women travellers in the Middle East (Sydney Morning Herald/The Age Traveller): https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/travel-guide-for-women-travellers-in-the-middle-east-tips-and-advice-20220624-h24nad.html

Lore of the Jungle (Gourmet Traveller) https://www.magzter.com/de/stories/travel/Gourmet-Traveller/LORE-OF-THE-JUNGLE

2023 Best Accommodation Story nomination:

Slow Road to a Blissful State (Explore/Canberra Times) https://www.exploretravel.com.au/story/8124768/slow-road-to-a-blissful-state/

Apr

High country luxury; The Benev, Beechworth

I love a small hotel with a history, and The Benev, in Beechworth, ticks all boxes for its beautiful restoration

For those following along on my instagram account, you’ll know I’ve been hitting the Hume Highway from Melbourne up to Victoria’s High Country a few times in the past six months. I dropped in to the new Bright Velo – a cycling themed hotel in Bright, (you can read my review here)

Click here to read my story on The Benev.

See https://www.exploretravel.com.au/story/8124768/slow-road-to-a-blissful-state/

Mar

Spend 15 minutes in Sarawak, Borneo

Would you travel for laksa? I would! Come spend 15 minutes in Sarawak, Borneo – as I chat about one of Malaysia’s easternmost states with Phil Clark, of ABC Radio’s Nightlife program.

And I’d definitely travel to Sarawak for its take on the famed Malaysian noodle soup, which the late American chef and food writer Anthony Bourdain thrust onto the world stage, declaring it the ‘breakfast of the gods’.

In the name of research for you all, I ate laksa for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but also managed to fit in a huge range of indigenous fruits and foods I’d never seen before (orange eggplants, wild mangoes easily mistaken for cannonballs).

Also, Kuching is the place to see semi-wild orangutans (the Borneo orangutan is endangered due to hunting, unsustainable illegal logging, mining and agriculture) I also met an ethical animal charity, Project Borneo, whose volunteers rescue and rehabilitate animals injured after human intervention, either from loss of habitat or as pet trade rescues – not only orangutans, but also sun bears, hornbills, sleepy binturongs (bear cats) and fresh and saltwater crocodiles.

I’ve included some great places to eat in Kuching, a couple of boutique hotels and a homestay in the jungle on the Malaysian-Indonesian border run by Saloma, a woman from Sarawak’s Bidayuh tribe.

Click here to listen to our interview on ABC Radio, which runs nationwide. And tune every Monday evening for the Monday night travel segment.

You can listen to past travel chats between me and Phil Clark, including Langkawi & Penang and, closer to home, hiking in Victoria’s Grampians on the new Grampians Trail.

https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/nightlife/nightlife-travel-sarawak-borneo/102090380

Mar

Stars of the spa: the best spas in Victoria

Victoria is up to its neck in hot water, and loving it. And our love of balneotherapy – to give mineral-water bathing its scientific name – shows no signs of drying up. Indeed, run your finger along a map of Victoria’s coast, and you’ll find aquifers aplenty, bubbling to the surface, and that’s before you head up to the spa country of Hepburn Springs, in central Victoria.

It’s not all facials and massages: hot springs and mineral water bathing taps into the aquifers below ground, to yield mineral-rich waters that help heal and detoxify our bodies and minds.

The bellwethers are Peninsula Hot Springs and Hepburn Springs, with two newcomers opening in recent months: the sparkling, new Alba on the Mornington Peninsula and Metung Hot Springs in East Gippsland. We’ve got an eye on Phillip Island, where a new hot springs facility is being developed in conjunction with Peninsula Hot Springs, to open later this year.

This wellness journey was a tough assignment, but I visited what I’m dubbing the UnDirty Seven: the best spas in Victoria who specialise in hot springs and mineral water bathing facilities in Victoria, on the Mornington Peninsula, the Bellarine Peninsula, in Gippsland and Hepburn Springs, not forgetting Warrnambool’s sleeper hit, The Deep Blue (see thedeepblue.com.au)

Click here to read my cover story for the Traveller section of the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers.

See https://www.traveller.com.au/the-best-spas-in-victoria-seven-top-soaking-experiences-in-australias-spa-state-h29r0u

Mar

Hotel review: cycling holidays at Bright Velo, Bright, Victoria Australia

Those who love cycling holidays in Australia will know that Victoria’s High Country is peak cycle territory. We’re talking lycra on the main streets, ebikes galore, kids’ tagalongs … it’s not just the pelotons who dominate the roads.

One of the main reasons this area – three hours’ drive from Melbourne, just before you hit the border with New South Wales – is such a cyclist’s paradise is that it caters for all comers, and its development of rail trails – the old train tracks that have been converted into scenic cycling roots that keep riders off the main highways.

So it makes sense that the newest hotel in the region is a cycling themed hotel. Originally built as the Empire Hotel during Bright’s crazy gold-rush days, Bright Velo is a smart renovation of this lovely building on Bright’s main street. It’s not going to bomb you out with cheezy bike paraphernalia everywhere – it’s a little more subtle than that. Stylish vintage cycling posters dotted here and there, the public bathrooms painted in the colours of the winning jerseys of the three great European tours.

There are three levels of accom – the five unique Heritage rooms, a three-bedroom apartment and the dorm accom which caters for groups. There’s also excellent eating, a whiskey bar and the amaretto sours should have cult status in this town.

Click here to read my review of the hotel for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s Traveller section.

See https://www.traveller.com.au/bright-velo-the-victorian-alps-welcomes-cosy-new-cycling-themed-lodge-h29qzl

Feb

Travel Writers Radio: Victoria’s High Country by ebike

Fancy cycling Victoria’s High Country, but don’t want to go the whole Tour de France? Ebikes, friends.

Recently, I cruised the 68km from Beechworth to Bright on the Mountains to Murray rail trail on an ebike; the first time I’ve traded my road bike for one of these cruisy little numbers.

I chatted to Graeme Kemlo on the Travel Writers Radio show, which airs on Melbourne’s J-Air 88FM about the experience,

We talked about High Country wineries, how beautiful Mt Buffalo is when seen from a bike, and why knicks are your best friend, even on an ebike with a saddle inspired by lounge furniture.

To listen to our chat, click here https://soundcloud.com/travelwritersradio

The Travel Writers Radio show runs on J-Air 88FM every Wednesday at 5-7pm (AEDT) or catch up online, anytime at soundcloud.com/travelwritersradio

For more about biking in Victoria’s High Country, see ridehighcountry.com.au

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