By John Rozentals.
Berkeley River Lodge … luxurious accommodation in private villas.
Book through Luxury Escapes and save 60 per cent on an all-inclusive four-night adventure to Berkeley River Lodge in Western Australia’s Kimberley region.
Pay $4999 for two people, instead of the standard $12,400, including accommodation in a private villa, breakfasts, lunches, nightly five-course degustation dinners, unlimited beverages, daily excursions and return plane transfers from Darwin.
The deal is valid for sale until May 2.
Phone 1300 889 900 or visit www.luxuryescapes.com.
Truly breath-taking views … the top of Mount Bishop and Clerk. Image: Luke Tscharke.
Tour company Maria Island Walk has combined the Tasmanian island’s renowned natural landscapes and wildlife with comfortable heritage-listed accommodation at the old convict settlement of Darlington in Bernacchi House.
A two-night winter-friendly experience provides spectacular walks during the day, followed by delicious meals and matching wines in the evening — and a warm, comfortable bed.
The house, dating back to 1880 when it was home to Italian settler and pioneer Diego Bernacchi, has been beautifully restored, with guests being greeted by a roaring open fire.
The guided winter walks leave and return to Bernacchi House daily and vary in length and difficulty.
Those who the climb to the top of Mount Bishop and Clerk, the highest point on the island, enjoy panoramic views over the eucalypt forests and across the Pacific Ocean.
The ‘Winter Escapes’ walk is priced from $1490 per person twin-share, including return transfers from Hobart to Triabunna, the scenic cruise across Mercury Passage to Maria Island, gourmet Tasmanian food and wine, two experienced guides, National Park entry fees, accommodation and use of waterproof jackets and day packs.
Phone 03 6234 2999 or visit www.mariaislandwalk.com.au.
Curtin Springs Station … a great base for exploring the Red Centre.
May through to October is probably the best time to discover the big Outback skies of Australia’s Red Centre and explore Uluru, one of the country’s most famous natural icons.
For the local Yankunytjatjara people there are three seasons during this period —Wanitjunkupai in April/May, the cooler winter weather of Wari in June/July when there can be frost on the ground, and Piriyakutu in August/September when animals breed and food plants flower.
During these times, the cooler weather makes it easier to walk longer distances amongst a desert landscape splashed with the vivid rusts, ochres and violets of Albert Namatjira’s famous watercolours.
As an added bonus, those visiting after the rains will see wildflowers in bloom, their vivid colours and green stems in sharp contrast to the red hues of the desert.
And there are no city lights to distract from the clear night skies above.
Visit www.northernterritory.com.
The Prairie Hotel in Parachilna … a very different dining experience.
Ever eaten emu-egg omelette? How about kangaroo-tail soup, or camel sirloin with sweet-potato wedges, native thyme and garlic-chive butter?
When you pull up at the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna, you’ll find all of those on the top-notch menu.
Listed as one of the top 100 gourmet experiences in Australia, the Prairie Hotel’s ‘feral menu’ gives visitors a slightly bizarre, yet totally exclusive, chance to devour roo mettwurst, emu-liver pate and camel sausages.
The Prairie Hotel is a quintessential outback pub, fit for true Crocodile Dundee characters — a place were locals and travellers sleep, recharge and swap stories from the seemingly endless surrounding Outback.
Visit www.southaustralia.com.
See the world through purple-coloured glasses … Bridestowe Lavender Estate in full bloom.
Uncover rugged landscapes, striking coastlines and unique wilderness when you join Travelmarvel on a Tasmanian adventure. Discover sites steeped in history, listen to compelling tales of convict life, and indulge in some of the freshest produce in the world.
Book before July 31 and save up to $300 per couple on tours featured in the company’s 2018/19 Tasmanian program.
Travelmarvel’s 10-day ‘Grand Tasman’ itinerary includes highlights such as Cradle Mountain, Port Arthur and Freycinet National Park, and is priced from $3295 per person twin-share.
Guests will also visit the Bridestowe Lavender Estate, cruise the Gordon River aboard the brand-new Spirit of the Wild, and sample some of Tasmania’s finest chocolate delights during a special tour at the House of Anvers.
Phone 1300 196 420 or visit www.travelmarvel.com.au.
As fresh as it gets … street food in Battambang.
Cambodia is renowned for its ancient Khmer temples, especially around Angkor Wat.
Far fewer know about its delicate cuisine, which forms a crossroads between fresh Vietnamese and fiery Thai.
Former Sydneysiders Robert Carmack and Morrison Polkinghorne, of Globetrotting Gourmet, now call Cambodia home, and are keen to share their delights, and delicious prejudices, in an upcoming food tour.
‘Gourmet Cambodia Temples & Tastings’ begins in Phnom Penh and includes little-visited temples along the frontier plus the charming colonial city of Battambang.
The 10-night tour ends in Siem Reap with a gala dinner at Cambodia’s finest, and includes cooking tours, market excursions and temples galore, plus meeting the country’s best cooks and chefs.
Prices start at about $3855 per person twin-share.
Visit www.GlobetrottingGourmet.com.
Mostar … and its famous stone bridge. Image: Chip Popescu.
Those looking for the next big thing in European travel should include Bosnia & Herzegovina on their wish list.
That’s the message from Europe Holidays MD, Chip Popescu, who has just spent time reconnoitering the country: “While neighbouring Croatia is so popular it has challenges with over-tourism to Dubrovnik, we don’t focus enough on what’s just across the border and equally enticing.”
He reports that the heart-shaped land in south-east Europe has many fascinating locations to explore, including Sarajevo’s Bascarsija (Old Town) which he says offers one of the most impressive and charming market centres in Europe.
Europe Holidays offers several tours that incorporate Bosnia & Herzegovina, including a 10-night journey which includes Sarajevo and Mostar, with its famous stone bridge, as well as Dubrovnik, Split and Trogir, a centre of artistic activities.
Highlights include a ride on a miniature electric train through Postojna’s subterranean caves, a visit to Bled Castle, perched high above a lake on cliffs, a tour of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, before finishing in Zagreb.
Prices start of $2527 per person twin-share, including accommodation in first-class hotels, breakfast daily and six dinners, transport, touring and sightseeing.
Visit www.europeholidays.com.au.
Not for the faint-hearted … walking on a glacier in Iceland.
UTracks is offering a three-day Northern Lights winter walking experience in Iceland especially designed for time-challenged travellers interested in pushing themselves physically.
The guided walking itinerary, exploring Iceland’s Golden Circle, will run between November and March, when the days are short and the nights are full of the possibility of viewing the extraordinary coloured lights streaming through the northern sky.
The tour departs from the capital Reykjavík and includes two-to-four hours walking each day amongst some of the country’s most dramatic landscapes.
Highlights include geysers, majestic waterfalls, and the fault lines of Thingvellir National Park to Glacier Lagoon, complete with its huge icebergs and sunbathing seals, and exploring an ice cave in the heart of Vatnajökull.
Prices are from $1690 per person twin-share, including two nights accommodation, services of an experienced walking guide, internal transfers in a minibus, glacial walk and ice cave and pre- and post-tour transport from Reykjavík hotels.
Visit www.utracks.com.
Iguazu Falls … of the world’s largest waterfalls.
Contours Travel, whose portfolio includes Awasi Iguazu hotel, is offering $1200 per person discount on three-night stays at that property between April and October.
Newly opened Awasi Iguazu hotel is an all-inclusive retreat close to one of the world’s largest waterfalls, Iguazu Falls, in Argentina and comprises 14 stilted private villas nestled amongst rainforest, each with a private plunge pool, outdoor shower and spacious living area.
The surrounding jungle is home to hundreds of bird species, rare mammals and endangered trees and ferns.
The stay includes excursions visiting 18th-century Jesuit ruins, kayaking, bird-watching and sharing time with local Guarani tribes. Each guest is allocated a private guide and excursions can be customized.
The resident chef sources seasonal produce from the rainforest surroundings as well as the kitchen garden.
A three-night stay is priced from $3205 per person twin-share, including private transfers from and to Puerto Iguazu Airport, all meals, open bar for beverages and customised private excursions, including the use of a 4WD vehicle and a private guide.
Phone 1300 135 391 or visit www.contourstravel.com.au.
A five-star experience … Seadream I off the Italian fishing village of Portofino.
Motorsports buffs aboard Seadream I will have the chance to take in a day of the Monaco Grand Prix during a nine-day sailing next May from Rome’s port of Civitavecchia.
Mind you, it will only be an outing for the well heeled.
Prices for the cruise start from about $8170 per person twin-share, including five-star dining, drinks with meals and from the bars, power and sail water-sports, use of SeaDream I’s onboard golf simulator and fitness centre, port charges and taxes, and crew gratuities. And tickets and transportation to the race are extra.
Other ports of call include Cannes, Saint-Tropez, Villefranche-sur-Mer and Nice on the Riviera, Porto Cervo Marina in Sardinia, Bonifacio and Calvi on Corsica, Portovenere on Italy’s medieval Ligurian coast, and the Italian fishing village of Portofino.
Visit www.seadream.com.
