Nothing captures the spirit of Australia like a single pub in a lonesome one horse town. When the red dust shimmers, what could be more welcome than a shady verandah and beer taps running icy cold? Historically these far flung outposts were a lifeline for weary travellers and isolated locals alike, united in tales of hardship. More than just a watering hole, they became a lifeline and the humble Aussie pub still embodies the frontier spirit of resilience, mateship and the lure of the open road.
This iconic yet completely unique Great Aussie Pub Crawl will see you travelling more than 4000km by air and visiting 8 Outback pubs in just five days. Taking off from Bankstown Airport, Sydney you’ll head first to Bourke. Continuing to Tibooburra, Innamincka, the Simpson Desert and Lake Eyre you’ll witness some of the world’s most extraordinary landscapes, taking in the Marree Man and ‘Big Red’ (sand dune) en route. You’ll stop off at iconic watering holes including the famous Birdsville Hotel where your plane will taxi you right to the front door!
Through the safari you’ll enjoy the top class service of a proudly Australian outfit, along with the comfort of a private aircraft with no security lines, boarding delays or baggage carousels at airports. Travelling this way you can maximise your holiday time, seeing what might take up to a month in a car in just five days.
See Australia from a whole new aerial perspective and drink in the proud nostalgia of the Outback’s true blue Australiana.
Japan Holidays promise a unique and dynamic culture that effortlessly combines ultra-modern with deep tradition.
On the streets of innovative, futuristic cities glass towers and tranquil temples stand side by side, whilst picturesque old towns, and gorgeous landscapes are an easy bullet train ride away. Mix these spectacular sights with a welcoming people, delicious cuisine and rich culture and you’ve got yourself a holiday to remember.
The country’s historic isolation has produced a unique culture that flourishes to this day. Distinctive traditions are still honoured from the reflective beauty of intricate tea ceremonies and zen garden design to the raucous spectacle of sumo wrestling. Grand castles are spectacular reminders of the country’s feudal pasts and ancient temples also bear witness to Japan’s deep spiritual connections.
Natural Wonders
It’s not all about man-made delights though by a long chalk. A holiday in Japan will also deliver scenic beauty by the bucketload from the perfect symmetry of Mount Fuji’s iconic cone to the coastal beauty of Matsushima Bay that has inspired poets and writers for centuries.
The wildlife may not be the first reason you visit but it may well leave a lasting impression, Bears can be seen foraging in the forests of Hokkaido, Honshu and Kyushu and Shikoku, you can see cranes dance in the winter snows of Hokkaido and perhaps most adorable of all are the Japanese macaques, or ‘snow monkeys’, which can be seen bathing in the steaming hot springs of the Japanese Alps.
Culinary Delights
Dining will be one of the highlights of your Japan holiday from the freshest of fresh sushi to delicious teppanyaki and warming ramen broths. Each regions boasts its own speciality and the culinary delights range from steaming street-side stalls to fine dining in some the most highly regarded restaurants in the world. Tokyo alone boasts over 200 Michelin starred restaurants!
At long last, Australian travellers can return to New Zealand. With NZ’s border restrictions coming down there’s no longer a need to quarantine or isolate on arrival.
But it’s not a free-for-all. Travellers must still meet vaccination and testing requirements. This includes testing both before and after arriving in NZ. Visitors from countries other than Australia will also need to wait a little longer before Aotearoa welcomes them back.
Here’s what you need to know.
New Zealand’s phased border opening
New Zealand will welcome visitors back in stages, with its border opening as below.
From 12 April 2022, 11:59 pm – Australians could travel to New Zealand quarantine-free.
Come May 1 2022 – Nationals of visa-waiver countries can visit quarantine-free. This roster includes those from the United Kingdom, United States, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and more. Those with a valid visitor visa can also travel quarantine-free from this date.
From October 2022 – Travellers who don’t qualify for visa-waiver entry or who don’t have a standard visitor visa can come quarantine-free. The New Zealand Government expects to provide more information for these travellers soon.
If coming from Australia, do take note of the specific start time on 12 April for quarantine-free travel. Arrive during that day and you’ll cross New Zealand’s border under the ‘old’ rules, requiring isolation on arrival.
To play it safe, we’d suggest planning your travels from 13 April onwards. There’d be nothing worse than a late-night flight pulling in a few minutes early, and touching down just before the isolation requirements ease!
Vaccination and testing requirements for travel to New Zealand
To cross New Zealand’s border without quarantine, you’ll need to be fully vaccinated.
In most cases, this means two doses of an approved vaccine such as Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, Oxford/AstraZenica or Novavax. But under NZ’s current rules, there’s no requirement for a third dose or booster shot.
The New Zealand Government’s website outlines the requirements based on each vaccine type. This includes four brands of COVID-19 vaccines not normally administered in Australia, but which some travellers may have received elsewhere.
As well, you’ll need to undergo COVID testing to meet New Zealand’s requirements, with multiple tests needed as follows.
A pre-departure PCR test within 48 hours before your flight’s scheduled departure time. Or a supervised RAT or LAMP test no more than 24 hours before departure.
A self-administered RAT after arriving in New Zealand. This test must be performed either on the day you arrive (‘day zero’) or by the end of the next day (‘day one’).
If you’re still in the country, another self-administered RAT on day five or six. If you entered New Zealand on a Monday, that means completing the test later that week on either Saturday or Sunday.
While COVID-19 tests are never fun, you’ll receive two free RATs at the airport when you arrive in New Zealand. This means you won’t need to bring any with you, or hunt them down while you’re busy enjoying your holiday or business trip.
Summing up
New Zealand is welcoming Australian travellers back earlier than planned, while paving the way towards a broader return of international visitors.
While NZ has kept its borders largely closed for the past two years, it’s great to see things change. Families will once again be reunited, business travel gets back on track, and holidays across the ditch will return as a reality.
The only hard part is deciding where you’ll visit first!
It’s great when your carry-on bag has wheels, making that last minute sprit for the plane just a bit quicker.
But when you get off at the other end you’ve got luggage to wrangle and too many wheeled bags can only result in wrist-twisting luggage lambada.
That’s when something like the High Sierra Freewheel Wheeled Backpack comes ito its own. This terrific all-rounder wheeled backpack is cabin size and features a padded laptop sleeve for up to 17-inch laptops in addition to general storage space making it suitable for short work trips, adventure weekends away and everyday use at work.
This bag can be wheeled around when suitable, and when the terrain, activity or crowds demand it, you can pick it up and throw it on your back meaning nowhere is off-limits.
Key features
Cabin size
Padded laptop sleeve for up to 17-inch laptops
Front organisational panel
Backpack straps tuck into a zipped compartment when not in use
5-year limited warranty
Product Specifications
Capacity: 37L
Weight: 2.5 kgs
Handle: Single telescopic trolley handle, padded top grab handle
Wheels: Skate-style wheels are inset into corner-mounted wheel housings.
Material: 600 x 600-denier Duralite features a special water-resistant coating to help keep gear dry; 600 x 300-denier ripstop; 500 x 500-denier waffle ripstop Duralite
Packing Structure:
The main compartment has the padded ‘cushion zone’ laptop sleeve in addition to the general packing space. The wide opening opens on three sides to pack like a suitcase allowing great visibility into the suitcase section.
The larger front pocket features an organisational panel with multiple compartments and a keyring
Small zipped top front pocket suited to media thanks to the headphone port
External:
Corner guards & rub rails
Padded bottom panel to protect contents
Front hook for attaching extra gear
We recommend this suitcase for:
The High Sierra Freewheel Wheeled Backpack is a terrific value option for those seeking a wheeled backpack with business and travel capability.
Jimmy Thomson spends almost two weeks in Vietnam’s southern metropolis … and survives to tell the tale.
I recently visited Saigon in Vietnam on my own, abandoning friends and family over Christmas, partly to aid in my attempts to finish writing my latest novel.
The following is based on notes I made and posted on Facebook – not a platform I usually use very much at all – and fills in the many gaps in the narrative that truncated form of communication tends to leave.
Day 1: The Grinch has landed
I am not a Christmas person; I am a “bah, humbug” person. It’s me, Santa, not you. So when the combination of a crowded house full of my wife’s friends and relatives – lovely people though they all are – and the need to finish my new novel (writing, not reading), plus a refund from Vietnam Airlines all intersected, I grabbed the chance to go and spend a couple of weeks in Saigon.
Ho Chi Minh City, to give it its proper name, is one of my favourite places in the world. Noisy, lively and offering some of the best food on the planet at ridiculously low prices, it also presents the opportunity to lose yourself in your own thoughts, something you need when you’re writing long form … well, it’s something I need.
I couldn’t get a direct premium economy flight on my departure dates but Scoot Plus allowed me a couple of nights in Singapore to visit my Vietnamese friend Lily and her Swedish husband Gustav. Scoot Plus is possibly one of the best value-for-money premium fares you can get for international travel in this corner of the Asia Pacific. Very comfortable, with lots of leg room (that I don’t need), and wide separate seats (that I kind of do). No fighting over shared arm rests for this laddie.
Suddenly I’m there, in Saigon, arriving just in time for the evening rush-hour madness. First there’s the insanity of immigration at Ho Chi Minh International the weekend before Christmas. Anyone who tells you the easiest way to do this is to get “papers of transit” at home and convert them to a visa when you get here is a sadist or just likes lining up for hours. That’s just two queues instead of one and you can easily get a proper visa online a week before you leave.
The room in the Sunny Serviced Apartments on Le Thanh Ton is huge. The view over the street is … um … lively. Le Thanh Thon is basically a direct route from Ben Thanh Market to Japan Town and my apartment is towards the latter end, just a block from Dong Khoi (formerly Rue Catinat of The Quiet American fame) and two from Nguyen Hue, the broad, mostly pedestrian boulevard that runs from the fabulously ornate old Town Hall down to the river.
I wander down to Japan
Town, a maze of bars, massage parlours and excellent restaurants – such a
confusion of laneways that even when you know exactly where you want to go you
often can’t find the place. I settle for
Rosie Garden Vietnamese restaurant, mainly because it’s the first one I hit
just inside the criss-cross of laneways, and enjoy a seafood pancake and fried
tofu. Sensational! Still haven’t
mastered how to say “I am a vegetarian but I eat fish” in Vietnamese.
It’s something like “Toi an chay, va ca” if you want to try it. Tick
that box and it’s holiday sorted!
I congratulate myself on
having dropped my original plan to stay in a “chill” apartment right inside
Japan Town – it would have been too chaotic.
Now I know why they wanted payment in full, up front. I’m guessing more than a few tourists bale
out after a few sleepless nights. There’s lively and lively.
I bump into a couple of Brit backpackers trying to get into exactly the kind of accommodation to which I’d given a body swerve. There was no one there and the phone number wasn’t responding. I explained that because they were using their UK phone, they had to dial +84 as if they were calling from overseas. I also told them to get a local sim card pronto. Vietnam is not a Region 1 country so your “roaming” charges could mount up very quickly. In any case, no one was answering the phone so they wandered off to find a proper hotel.
On the way back to my apartment, I spot a lively looking open-air barbecue restaurant with what seems to be the meatiest menu I have ever seen. The 5KU station looks like fun, and I’ll put it on my list, but could be a challenge for a newly minted pescetarian.
That night, the café across the road keeps going until 4am but ear plugs do the trick. A good night’s sleep on a huge bed and next day I am ready for anything … almost.
Chilli snapper, morning glory and 333 beer at the Ben Thanh night market. Bliss!
Day 2: Me and my emotional support monkey
The trick to an extended
stay in one place is to get the logistics out of the way first. So I head down
to my favourite Saigon tailor, Minh Nguyen, at 38 Thu Khoa Huan St (near Ben
Thanh) to get measured up for a suit and jacket.
Before I left I gave away my two off-the-peg linen suits to charity because I’ve only worn them once. They were designed for a hypothetical person who was either my height or my girth but not both. For $400 I was able to purchase a new suit and a lightweight unlined blazer, both of which I’m pretty sure will actually fit. The service here is so good that I once went back with a jacket bought the previous year and Ms Loan adjusted it for free. Brilliant!
On the way there I
notice a flashy looking gym in the Vinacom centre – a massive shopping centre,
as big as a Westfields here, maybe bigger and with many of the same brands – and
check out its casual memberships rates. The Elite Fitness centre had all the
gear you could ever need and a weekly membership rate to match – $150. I said I’d have a think.
On the way to the tailor’s I notice a very funky looking gym, all red and black and shiny glass. Citigym Le Loi is not quite as posh as Elite but less than half the cost. I take a tour and despite the booming music, agree to sign up and immediately find myself filling in ridiculous numbers of contracts and forms, some of them in Vietnamese, which I refuse to sign on principle, then do so without reading when I get an English version (also on principle).
I confuse the hell out
of the gym membership guy by asking 1) if I could bring my emotional support
monkey (the gym has a no-pets policy) and 2) if the ban on bringing in anything
fragile extended to my ego. Not fair, I
know. He was only doing his job. But sometimes the best way to combat excessive
bureaucracy is with humour … even if you are the only person who finds it funny.
Just around the corner,
literally, is one of my favourite haunts, the Old Compass Café. I climb the endless stairs to the cool oasis
of calm for lunch, thinking maybe I didn’t need the gym after all. Just eat here once a day. Then it’s back to
the room for work.
Problem. Although I asked for a non-smoking room the
place stinks of cigarette smoke. It
doesn’t make any sense as I don’t smoke and the fumes seem to be coming out of
the aircon which the receptionist assures me is self-contained. Eventually they explain the smell has come
from another room, occupied by a heavy smoker, and the cleaners have left the
door open to clear the air.
“When is this person
leaving?” I ask.
‘Five years,” the
receptionist replies.
“Five years?”
‘He has a lease for
seven and he’s been here for two,’ he explains, then assures me that he can
find me another room, at the back, quieter and smoke free.
Let’s hope so. As a reformed smoker, I can’t bear stale cigarette smoke. The answer seems to be to put the cooker hob and bathroom extractor fans on at full blast, so I get some work done. Later, I take a brisk walk down to the Ben Thanh night market for my traditional chilli snapper and morning glory and I feel like I’m home.
The view from my room at the back. Quieter and with an outlook that marries Rear Window with The Quiet American.
Day 3: Call of (gym) duty
OK, if I don’t go to the gym this morning, I’m never going to get there. That’s just how it works. I discover I have packed only one pair of gym shorts and I’m already sweating buckets before I even get to Citigym. I had no idea I was going to be so diligent. I’m doing a workout on my new birthday watch – Rapid Fat Burn, it’s called (the program, not the watch) – and it almost kills me. Two things I note, the place is being cleaned obsessively … like every droplet of sweat is mopped up immediately.
However. the music is ridiculously
loud and very, very inappropriate.
Gangsta Rap songs extolling the charms of date-rape have no place in
public, even if the majority of patrons, and management for that matter,
probably don’t pick up on the references.
I think about taking this up with the toddlers on the front desk but
realise that there is a world of confusion awaiting me, and one that my pocket
phrasebook simply won’t be up to.
I go back to the Old
Compass Café for the lunch of poached egg on smashed avocado that I thought
about having yesterday but chose not to because it seemed a bit pathetically
Sydney. FYI: I had the Vietnamese special vego option
instead. But when you’re not eating till noon, and pushing through a punishing
workout in the morning, comfort food is the first things that comes to mind.
Had a long chat with the
owner, Duong (pronounced Yoong) about the culturally respectful tours they do,
including to the Cu Chi tunnels where they urge you not to fire the guns at the
firing range. Actually, they say “if you
want to fire guns, finds another tour.”
Back at the Sunny
apartments, they tell me they’ve found me another, non-smoky room that I can
move into tomorrow. Great. The air is OK for now, but I know it’s going
to get nasty after Smokin’ Joe along the corridor opens his door. In any case,
I get a lot of work done.
At night, I venture out to the open-air barbecue restaurant I spotted on the way back from Japan Town the first night. 5KU Station is bright, noisy and serves every bit of every animal you can think of (apart from what we would call pets). I have sea fish (mackerel, I think) and cauliflower and sweet potato chips. It’s fabulous.
On the way back to the room, I buy some tonic water and soda for the duty free gin and whiskey I bought in Singapore, thinking that I will donate the remnants of both bottles to the receptionists when I leave.
Author and travel writer Jimmy Thomson has been to Vietnam more times than he can recall without checking his passports. Here is his guide to the best experiences in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) – many of which your regular tour guides won’t even know about.
Take a food tour with the same people. Or, if you’re more adventurous, go with the “back of the bike” tours and see the city the way locals see it. https://backofthebiketours.com/
GO UNDERGROUND
Go to the former Presidential Palace and make sure you go down into the underground war room bunkers. Look at all the telex machines and giant radios and take a moment to consider that you have more communications power in your smartphone than all this equipment put together. And see if you can spot the entrance to the tunnel that ran between here and the old palace … and an escape route to the river.
GO NIGHT FISHING
Eat chilli snapper with morning glory and drink 333 beer at Ben Thanh Night Market. The market gets going after 6.30pm and goods are often the same but cheaper than in the day-time market.
SHOP SMART, BARGAIN HARD
Shop for genuine discounted “end run” gym and hiking gear around (and inside) the Benh Thanh market. Look for the Made In Vietnam or brand name stores in nearby streets. The market also has homewares, bales of cloth, watches of dodgy provenance, fresh food and souvenirs. Bargain hard – you’ll only hate yourself if you don’t and your tour guide laughs when you tell him or her how much you paid.
If the market is too hectic, cross from the Eastern entrance of the market to Luu Van Lang which is a street selling end-run genuine articles of anything made in Vietnam. Shoes, jackets, shorts and bags, including Nike, Adidas, UnderArmor and North Face. Get your winter gear here. We like Shop 24 where not bargaining is rewarded with an automatic discount. $55 North Face hiking shorts for $10 – can’t be bad.
USE YOUR NOODLE
Have lunch at a noodle stall inside the market. About $5 will get you a bowl of pho and a soft drink. Pointing at pictures on the menu will do the trick when your Vietnamese is limited to Kam-un (thanks). Check out other examples of Vietiquette here.
Have lunch or dinner at the Old Compass Café. This a favourite with expat business types and locals alike so it is a lot less touristy. Check out their website for details of walking tours of Saigon and an outing to the Cu Chi Tunnels that definitely doesn’t have playing with guns on the menu. https://www.oldcompasscafe.com/
See the AO show at the Opera House. It was devised by a former member of Cirque De Soleil so it is the musical and visual feast you’d expect from the above trailer: https://www.luneproduction.com/saigon-opera-house.
GO POSTAL
Go inside the amazing Central Post Office (NOT designed by Gustav Eiffel) and look for the old man who used to write letters for locals.
The main trade in there has been mostly replaced by sales of collectable stamps and souvenirs and many of the old phone booths have been converted into ATM booths.
The old maps high on the entrance walls blur the boundaries between Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, giving a viviid insight into France’s colonial ambitions for Indochine.
Buy stack of old postcards from one of the vendors outside and look to your left as you exit and you’ll see the rooftop of the old CIA building (not the US Embassy as is often misreported) where that famous picture of the last chopper out of Saigon was taken.
Treat yourself to a luxurious Spa and massage, or Korean bathhouse treatment, or just get a hair and face wash (bliss!). Some massage places are cheap and cheerful, many are neither, but for an inexpensive VIP treatment try the Sol spa on the top floor of the Liberty Central Hotel in Le Than Ton st. Private rooms, sauna and steam rooms, beauty treatments and male and female therapists. With discounts you could have a 90-minute massage with hot stones for around AU$30. Or try the Golden Lotus Massage Club https://golden-lotus-spa-massage-club.business.site/ which is also highly regarded.
NAUGHTY BUT NICE
Visit Japan Town. Now, this is not to everyone’s taste as it is a bit full-on. Think of Sydney’s Kings Cross or London’s Soho 20 years ago and you get the idea.
Japan Town, or Little Tokyo, is a maze of lanes in a two-block quarter that used to be frequented almost exclusively by Japanese sailors and even had its own police force. Now the sailors have been replaced by salarymen and tourists and in between all the “hostess” bars – which are mosltly quite innocent – and the massage parlours (which definitely aren’t) there are several top class Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese restaurants.
A new favourite of ours is Rosie Garden which offers tasty fresh Vietnamese food, as well as supplying meals to staff and customers in the hostess bar across the lane. Don’t be shocked to have the freshest Banh Xeo (savoury pancake) you ever tasted interrupted by collective squeals of “Konichiwa!” as a new customer enters the Japan-styled bar opposite. FYI, the hostesses are more likely to be from the Mekong Delta than Japan, even if the customers aren’t.
Our tour guide Mr Sok looks angry, very angry. “But I have told you this before!” he snaps, not even bothering to try to conceal his irritation. “Were you not listening?”
It had been an innocent question about how long Cambodia’s Angkor Watt had taken to build, but Mr Sok takes it as a personal affront. After all, he’d delivered a 45-minute preamble to my visit the day before, but I’d tuned out after 15 and obviously missed the most important part.
He sighs deeply. “OK, I will tell you again,” he says with a show of great magnanimity. “Now pay attention, please. In the ninth Century AD, King Jayavarman the Second … “
A good tour guide can add so much to a traveller’s understanding of a landmark, a city, a country, a culture. A bad one can detract hugely from the experience.
As I tried hard to concentrate on Mr Sok’s droning soliloquy about the various kingdoms of Cambodia – that would only turn out to answer my question in the 39th minute – I had a horribly queasy feeling that he was going to be in the latter group.
But however awful they might turn out to be, I’m not belittling tour guides. By anyone’s measure, they do a bloody hard job.
Pull a rabble of very different people together from various backgrounds, of diverse ages, and often with sharply contrasting expectations, and you’ll have trouble anywhere. But being the person in charge of taking them to a place with which they’re unfamiliar, feeding them food they don’t know, and doing things that may be completely outside their comfort zone, can so easily turn into an absolute nightmare.
For it can take only one bad seed to start the rot in any situation, and it can then be almost impossible for a tour guide to stop the spread.
Infectious grouchiness
I was on a tour around southern Europe, for instance, where one woman was always the last out of bed to breakfast, the last to bring her bag down to the hotel foyer and then the last to get on the bus every day. At every coffee and meal break, we all had to hang around to wait for her to return to join us and then listen to her complain incessantly about … pretty much everything.
We were all growing more and more fed up with her and, as a result, with the trip. Her grouchiness was becoming dangerously infectious.
The tour guide tried valiantly to solve the problem by having a quiet word with her. Unfortunately, it had no effect. But then he did the best thing possible: he left it to us fellow travellers to become so irritated, we tackled her ourselves, demanding she change her behaviour. It worked. Smart move.
Another tour guide on a friend’s trip around China was more proactive in trying to quieten a pair of whingers. After a week, they declared they were sick of eating rice and insisted they needed “good Aussie food”.
The resourceful guide phoned ahead and, at the next destination, while everyone else was ushered into a banquet hall with a table laden high with delicious-looking local specialities, the crabby couple were shown into a small room off to the side. There, they were treated to what their hosts considered to be typical Australian gourmet fare – plates piled with curling cheese sandwiches.
No one heard a peep of complaint out of them about the food again.
Being a guide is a skilful balancing act, to be sure. They’re expected to be cheerful and smiling at all times, unfailingly good-humoured in the face of usually startling ignorance about their culture and country, pretty much fluent in everyone else’s languages and to display the patience of Job.
At the same time, they need always to be able to fulfil some basic duty of care in making sure their guests are feeling safe and comfortable, as well as demonstrating a degree of highly-developed empathy somewhere in the mix – so notably absent in Mr Sok – to judge exactly how much information their clients would like, or can handle, and how to make it both accessible and palatable.
Horribly homesick
The best seem to perform to their audiences, with enthusiasm, personality and an openness and generosity about their own lives in the place you’re visiting. And I’ve experienced some wonderful guides like that over the years.
In Egypt once, it was the first time overseas for one of our tour party who was horribly homesick and terribly out of his depth. Our guide went out of his way to reassure him, pay him special attention and always keep a kindly eye on him to make sure he was OK.
In southern Iraq, in the old Sumerian city of Ur, I met the most enthusiastic tour guide of my entire life. He was third-generation guide Dhaif Muhsen (corr) who showed me around the Ziggurat, the massive stepped edifice built in 21 BC in the desert 345kim south of Baghdad, only a little newer than the pyramids at Giza.
Despite the fact we both had to wear body armour because of the war, he oozed excitement. “I haven’t seen many tourists for years,” he explained. “And it is so wonderful to show you the beauties of my country – and before any more rockets come to destroy it.”
Yet there have been some horrors of guides, too.
In India, I was driven from Delhi to the Taj Mahal and then Jaipur by Mr Anand, who spoke constantly (and I mean constantly) in such a high-pitched whine, it gave me a headache for three days straight.
“Shah Jahan, he love his wife too much, too too much ..,” was his favourite line. “It is too much, too too much.” He had that right enough.
Drunk men with AK47s
It was also hard to warm to a tour guide in southern Ethiopia who kept vanishing at every opportunity, on increasingly inventive pretexts (I have to go see my wife; my friend has died; my girlfriend needs to talk to me).
OK, I get it. He perhaps didn’t want to show me around or talk to me much, or maybe couldn’t stand the sight of me, but leaving me in a remote Daasanech tribal village for four hours, full of young men drinking and fooling around with AK47s, with not the slightest hint of how to get out of there, was a bit rich.
A local tour guide in our own Daintree also appalled me by being so disparaging of Asian tourists and local Aboriginal residents, I complained both to him, and his company.
And once I had a tour guide in Tanzania who insisted on speaking to me and my companion, who happened to be a zoologist from the Classic Safari Company, as if we were small children. “You remember The Lion King?” he cooed to us. “Well, some of the animals you’ll see …”
But then the good ones are priceless for the valuable insight they give you into a whole new world.
I was delighted when my little boy guide Soni in Varanasi, India, showed me where he went to school as well as his aunt’s house where he ate lunch every day, in addition to the obligatory stroll around the ghats of the Ganges.
Karaoke tragic
It was equally fascinating to hear the tales of the bizarre world that’s Lightning Ridge in NSW from a local who confessed she’d visited, fallen in love there, and just never been able to leave.
And I loved the tour guide in Siem Reap who told us about his guilty love of performing karaoke alone (his voice was too bad to do it in company, he insisted) on his afternoons off and his other passionate love – of rice.
His chats were frequently interrupted by calls from his mother who phoned to check on his welfare after he’d left home to live with an aunt in order to study since rejecting the family tradition of becoming a fisherman.
I must confess I learnt far more about Cambodia from him than on the five previous days with Mr Sok. Alongside the wonders of the stunning Angkor Watt, the memory of him that endures most strongly is that sterling cry that so many tour guides must secretly long to say, but usually resist: “Now pay attention, please!”
The resort
is high on a cliff face over the ocean at tranquil Cape Panwa, 30 minutes’
drive from the busyness of downtown Phuket, and just 55 minutes from the
airport with direct flights from Australia. Rooms facing one side look out to
the pretty bay and sunsets. Guests on the other overlook the ocean and
extraordinary sunrises. Villas and rooms are hidden away in a lush
frangipani-perfumed tangle of forest and towering bamboos, with the soft babble
of brooks and paths littered with hibiscus petals. There are steps down to a
private sheltered beach.
THE SPACE
Everywhere
you are at the resort feels incredibly secluded and cocooned. The paths lead to
a choice of three restaurants, the main reception area with a well-stocked
library behind where there are also computers to work and afternoon tea is
served every day, and the infinity pool with loungers and a bar for drinks and
lunch orders. Nearby is the main spa building, a stunning edifice dotted with
still ponds, a yoga pavilion where early morning sun salutations are performed
looking out over the ocean, and the gym beneath, with glass doors onto the
greenery. For those wanting to exercise there’s a whole timetable of classes
like Pilates, Thai boxing, flexibility-training and stacks of weights and
plenty of machines; while for the leisure guests who aren’t so interested in
health, there are plenty of places to relax, as well as lots of beach and water
activities. Oh and yes, great Wi-Fi throughout.
THE ROOM
My
ocean-view villa was vast and enormously comfortable. The bed sits on a
platform, along with the desk, and then down two steps is the main lounge room
with a sofa and comfortable chairs and coffee tables. The bathroom is massive
with a high vaulted ceiling and a feature free-standing circular bath and separate
basins and dressing areas on opposite sides of the room. From both the bathroom
and lounge there are glass doors out to the veranda, with its own private pool,
loungers and table and chairs. It’s all so discreetly arranged, skinny-dipping
is the order of the day. There’s also a range of smaller rooms but all are a
variation on the villas, with slightly less space, fewer chairs and some
without pools. All have espresso machines but when you’re a leisure guest,
there’s chocolate in the mini-bar fridge; when you’re a health guest, it’s best
not to know that. You make do with dates, nuts and dried fruit.
THE FOOD
There are
three separate restaurants dotted around the resort, all with wonderful
elevated views of the water. The Retreat is set beside another pool and is
exclusively for those of us on a health program, offering ‘wellness cuisine’
which was actually quite delicious; think great juices, curries, quinoa risotto
and beetroot an astonishing four ways! The Restaurant is for everyone and
anyone, with both healthy options and ‘soul food’ like burgers and pizza, and
Thai food. The Grill is the fine-dining restaurant with beautiful seafood and
meats, spectacular smoking nitro-sorbets between courses and a lengthy wine
list. On its roof is a cocktail bar looking out far over the Andaman Sea and
nearby islands.
STEPPING OUT
There are
regular complimentary shuttle buses to the centre of Phuket, to Patong beach,
the nearest big shopping mall 15 minutes’ away and the night markets. Meanwhile
the little golf carts that trundle around the resort picking up guests who
prefer riding to walking, also take you to the ATM just outside the resort and
the little village centre beyond. There are also world-class golf courses
within a 25-minute drive. Boat rides, paddle boarding and water activities are
all organised around the beach, also with its own bar.
THE VERDICT
I stayed
three nights and lost 2kg as a result of probably all the exercise, yoga,
treatments at the spa and good, healthy food. It felt pretty effortless and
extremely relaxing too.
THE ESSENTIALS
AMATARA
WELLNESS RESORT, Phuket, Thailand. Package rates for four days and three
nights, including accommodation, wellness consultations, three meals a day,
treatments and activities, start from Thai baht 41,800 per person twin-share
(excluding VAT, tax and service charges). There are two special offers
currently running: bonus nights for stays from November 1 to December 25; or
free flight with minimum five-night booking now till December 25. Phone (+66) 7631
8888; See amataraphuket.com.
HIGHLIGHT
I’m hopeless
at yoga but while I didn’t quite learn to love it, it was a hell of a lot more
pleasurable having expert tuition in a pavilion in such an incredible setting
looking over the shimmering Andaman Sea and watching the boats through downward
dog legs.
LOWLIGHT
Little Red Riding Hood couldn’t have got more lost than me every day following the tangle of paths through the resort’s enchanted forest. A few more signs pointing to where the villas and main buildings are wouldn’t go amiss. Sue Williams travelled courtesy of the Amatara Wellness Resort
HOTEL REVIEW: AMATARA WELLNESS RESORT, PHUKET, THAILAND
Cooking classes on a cruise are among the top foodie experiences for luxury travellers. Today, Regent Seven Seas Cruises® revealed 16 new Culinary Arts Kitchen classes that will debut during the 2020 inaugural season of Seven Seas SplendorTM, the ship that perfects luxury.
Inspired by Seven Seas Splendor’s inaugural 2020 season sailing the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, the new classes are listed on Regent’s website and include:
· ISLAND FUSION. Each with a unique culinary footprint, the Caribbean islands are the perfect place to learn about where you are travelling through the regional cuisine. Local traditions and native ingredients illuminate the indigenous culture and natural resources of each island, while the influences of France, Spain, Africa, India and China reveal how the culinary heritage of the Caribbean was shaped by colonialism.
· FARMSTAND FABULOUS. This class focuses on how to shop and cook like a chef, inspired by what you discover at the farmer’s market or in the produce aisle. Learn to approach your shopping trip like a blank canvas that takes shape based on what fresh ingredients you find in season. Recipes will change depending on the region and time of year, but the techniques for preparing seasonal masterpieces remain tried and true.
· TREASURES OF THE AEGEAN. Cast off the mythology surrounding Greek food in this immersive class that reveals the essence of the Mediterranean diet and one of the healthiest cuisines in the world. Through favourite dishes from Corfu, Crete, Rhodes and Santorini, discover local ingredients and traditional techniques used to prepare these recipes during a magical exploration of Greece and its mouth-watering cuisine.
· BATTER UP. After learning about batter-based recipes ranging from French crêpes and Tuscan flatbread to Santorini tomato fritters and Turkish zucchini fritters, you will see – and taste – that the simple things in life are often the best. Sweet and savoury, crunchy and fluffy, memorable and delicious … you’ll savour it all as you explore the world, one batter at a time.
· THE NOURISHED KITCHEN: PLANT-BASED COMFORTS. Whether you follow a plant-based diet or simply wish to introduce more plant-based dishes into your culinary repertoire, learn the hottest new trends that embrace the flavours of nature’s bounty and enhance longevity. Prepare healthy, innovative and delicious plant-based recipes developed through our work with the Teaching Kitchen Collaborative of Harvard University and The Culinary Institute of America.
· SENSUOUS SPAIN. The rich tradition and culinary integrity of Spain are evident in its tapas – small plates best described as little bites with big flavour. As you sip sangria blanca and prepare classic tapas recipes, you will begin to understand why many believe that tapas are more than food – they are a lifestyle. You’ll be ready to share this delectable lifestyle with friends at your next Spanish-themed dinner party.
· WORLD OF FLAVOUR: STREET FOOD. If you’re familiar with the joy of finding a buttery waffle at a street stand in Belgium or a delicious falafel at a family-run stall in Haifa, this globetrotting exploration of street food is for you. Learn about secret ingredients, special techniques and family recipes that our chefs have discovered as they’ve travelled the world in search of great street food and conversed with the locals who create it.
The two-hour classes were designed by Kathryn Kelly, Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ executive director of culinary enrichment. Chef Kelly, a Culinary Institute of America graduate, has spent 40 years travelling to explore the world’s many different cuisines and the cultures that created them. She and other Master Instructors teach the classes.
“Our curriculum appeals to a broad range of tastes and caters to all experience levels, from beginner to seasoned chefs, delivered in the most advanced teaching kitchen on the seas,” Kelly said. “We teach the culinary techniques that chefs use every day, build a recipe and skills repertoire that can be easily transferred to guests’ home kitchens, explore cuisines, spices, recipes and ingredients from our ports of call, and most of all, have fun together sharing stories with people who enjoy cooking.”
Kelly added, “When I was younger, we used to go to friends’ homes and they would pull out their projector and tell us about their trip through pictures. Today, our guests can share their cruise experiences at home by cooking meals for their friends that represent the destinations they explored during the voyage.”
The new classes will be expanded to Seven Seas Explorer in April 2020.
Guests attending classes in the Culinary Arts Kitchen will receive highly individualised instruction, as each student will cook from their own personal workstation for authentic, hands-on training, and see close-up details on large-screen monitors. Eighteen individual cooking stations sit atop three long curved rows with white quartzite countertops and stainless-steel accents. The workstations are fully equipped with top-of-the-line induction cooktops, stainless steel sinks and a comprehensive collection of additional cooking essentials. The state-of-the-art culinary centre also features floor-to-ceiling windows to offer magnificent ocean vista views from its perch on Deck 11.
About Seven Seas Splendor
Currently being built in Ancona, Italy,Seven Seas Splendor will offer her 750 guests the most luxurious accommodation as she visits the world’s iconic destinations and less-familiar hidden gems when she sets sail in February 2020.
The all-suite, all-balcony ship perfects uncompromised luxury with elegance, comfort and personalised guest service. More than 4,275 square-metres of Italian marble will adorn Seven Seas Splendor – over an acre of marble – and her 375 suites include nearly 4,820 square-metres of balcony space – among the largest balconies at sea. Thebeautifully appointed suites range from the 28 square-metre Veranda Suite to the lavish 412 square-metre Regent Suite.
The Regent Suite sets the tone for Seven Seas Splendor’s 14 other astonishing suite categories in offering the most luxurious accommodation at sea. It features the ultimate comfort of a US$200,000 Hästens Vividus custom handmade mattress, an in-suite spa retreat featuring a personal sauna, steam room and treatment area with unlimited spa treatments, unobstructed 270-degree views over Seven Seas Splendor’s bow from the 120 square-metre wraparound veranda, and a glass-enclosed solarium sitting area on top of the bridge for a Captain’s view to see the world’s most beautiful destinations. Guests in the Regent Suite also enjoy a dedicated personal butler to manage all the details of the guests’ experience, and a personal car with driver and guide in every port.
A new globally inspired spa, Serene Spa & WellnessTM, was created for SevenSeas Splendor and offers exclusive treatments that integrate techniques and ingredients from destinations around the world to soothe both the body and mind.
Exquisite restaurants onboard Seven Seas Splendor include Compass Rose, the largest speciality restaurant at sea; Pacific Rim, a dramatic Pan-Asian restaurant with a mythical dragon greeting guests; Prime 7, an intimate and elegant steakhouse; Chartreuse, featuring classic French fare with a modern twist; and Sette Mari at La Veranda, serving guests authentic Italian specialities and featuring stunning, over-water alcove seating that jets out over the ocean for an even closer connection to the sea, surrounded on three sides by inspiring, magnificent views.
During her inaugural 2020 season, Seven Seas Splendor will be helmed by 30-year veteran Captain Serena Melani. Captain Melani will be the first woman to captain a newly built cruise ship in maritime history.
About Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Regent Seven Seas Cruises offers an unrivalled experience to luxury travellers. The cruise line’s modern four-ship fleet — Seven Seas Explorer®, Seven Seas Mariner®, Seven Seas Navigator® and Seven Seas Voyager® — sails to more than 450 iconic and immersive destinations around the world and reflects US$150 million in stunning refurbishments over the past three years. Regent will add Seven Seas Splendor™ in 2020 as the fleet’s fifth ship and then grow by a sixth ship in 2023. All luxuries are included in Regent Seven Seas Cruises voyages, such as all-suite accommodation, the largest collection of unlimited shore excursions, unlimited internet access, highly personalised service, exquisite cuisine, fine wines and spirits, pre-paid gratuities, transfer between hotel and ship and one-night, pre-cruise hotel packages for guests staying in Concierge-level suites and higher.
To learn more, please visit www.RSSC.com, call 1300 455 200 (AU) or 0800 625 692 (NZ) or contact your preferred travel agent to enquire about specific Regent Seven Seas Cruises voyages.
A US$200,000 Hästens Vividus custom handmade mattress filled with horsetail hair, cushioning flax, slow-growing pine, superior wool and long-fibre cotton. Bed linens made from batiste makò cotton and 100 percent virgin white down from Alaskan geese that keeps bodies at the correct temperature. A Serene Spa & WellnessTM restorative sleep ritual treatment. These are ingredients to a perfectly tranquil sleep experience, and collectively they are only available to Regent Suite guests onboard Regent Seven Seas Cruises’® newest luxury ship debuting in February 2020 — Seven Seas SplendorTM.
The Regent Suite, also known as the Most Exclusive Address At Sea, is 412 square-metres of palatial elegance, complete with an in-suite spa retreat featuring a personal sauna, steam room and treatment area with unlimited spa treatments, unobstructed 270-degree views over Seven Seas Splendor’s bow from the 120 square-metre wraparound veranda, and a glass-enclosed solarium sitting area on top of the bridge for a Captain’s view to see the world’s most beautiful destinations. Guests in the Regent Suite also enjoy a dedicated personal butler to manage all the details of the guests’ experience, and a personal car with driver and guide in every port. The price is approximately AU$15,000 per night, based on double occupancy.
But perhaps most impressive is the extravagant sleep experience that enables Regent Suite guests to rejuvenate and reenergise.
Hästens Vividus Mattress
Guests in the Regent Suite onboard Seven Seas Splendor sleep on the exquisite, all-natural floating comfort of a custom, US$200,000 Vividus bed from the renowned Hästens brand, handcrafted over nine weeks by certified bed artisans in Köping, Sweden.
The mattress’ wooden frame is made from slow-growing northern Swedish pine. On top sits a box spring that has pure steel springs and multiple layers of flax for soundproofing. Above that is the mattress, which holds more springs, layers of superior cotton and wool batting, and horsetail hair lining. The mattress pad, or “topper,” has its own layers of cotton, wool, and horsetail hair. The Vividus is constructed in Swedish style, with dovetail joints instead of screws or nails, and the springs are connected to the mattress interior using a step-stitching process, accomplished by hand with a 46cm long needle.
The horsetail hair is braided by hand, then unwound, to give it even more bounce. Every curled strand acts like a tiny spring, providing support and pliability. Unlike human hair, each horsetail hair is a hollow tube, enabling it to function as an airway to wick moisture away. The cumulative effect of all these layers is that Regent Suite guests feel as if they are floating while sleeping with zero gravity, with legs slightly raised, helping circulation and overall heart health.
Bellino and Med1994 Bedding Selections
Guests select their bed linens and pillows from a prestigious Italian bedding menu. Regent Suite’s distinguished bed linen menus come in two categories: Bellino Fine Italian Linens and the Med1994 Aria line.
The Bellino Samurai Collection is made from 100 percent pure, crisp, breathable linen. Bellino’s Eleganza Collection is comprised of 600 thread-count sateen and 100 percent long staple cotton, making it exceptionally soft and smooth, as is Bellino’s Adriana Collection, made with 500 thread count percale and 100 percent long staple cotton for an indulgent, sumptuous feel.
Med1994’s hypoallergenic Aria line is made with a patented technology called SISTEMA ARIA®, which builds a free layer inside every duvet as an active suspension that helps humid air to be released and replaced with clean, dry air, thereby keeping bodies at the correct temperature. It uses 100 percent virgin white down from Alaskan geese from the harsh Arctic regions in order to get the best results.
The type of pillow guests choose to rest their head upon is also critical to a peaceful sleep. Regent Suite guests select from a gel pillow, water pillow, memory foam pillow, buckwheat hull pillow or tri-side anatomic pillow.
Serene Spa & WellnessTM Restorative Sleep Ritual
The new globally inspired spa Regent unveiled earlier this month, Serene Spa & WellnessTM, will offer an exclusive sleep ritual available only to Regent Suite guests. It begins with a transcendent, nourishing milk bath — a light and gentle milky formula rich in vitamins, amino acids and natural plant collagen from Japanese Camellia oil that reveals satin-soft skin. As guests indulge in the bath, their senses are enticed through touch and aroma with calming lavender and chamomile during this journey of peace and relaxation. Serene Spa & Wellness’ Powered by Flowers face mask with Star Arvensis and Indian Night Jasmine then works to leave thirsty skin looking rehydrated and refreshed.
Prior to the sleep ritual, Regent Suite guests may wish to indulge in Serene Spa & Wellness’ calming Around The World massage. Performed in the Regent Suite treatment area, this choreographed therapy fuses techniques from the corners of the world for optimal wellness: the earthly scents of Indian cardamom, Egyptian coriander and eucalyptus soothe the mind; Swedish massage movements work freely throughout the body to relax; volcanic rocks release muscle tension and stagnant energy in the legs; bamboo stalks glide over muscles to deeply alleviate discomfort; warmed coconut poultices are delicately worked over the face, neck and shoulders; and argan oil from Morocco conditions the scalp.
“A great night’s sleep is essential to overall health and well-being, and the holistic Regent Suite sleep experience is personalized for each guest to help them soothe their mind, body and spirit at night after they immerse themselves in the world’s mesmerizing destinations during the day,” says Jason Montague, president and CEO of Regent Seven Seas Cruises. “Deep, relaxing sleep has become an elusive luxury for many and nowhere else at sea can luxury travelers find such a restorative, customized night’s sleep than in the Regent Suite.”
Regent Suite Onboard Seven Seas Explorer
Guest staying in the Regent Suite onboard Seven Seas Explorer® also enjoy a renowned sleep experience, complete with the Serene Spa & Wellness sleep ritual and the enveloping comfort of a US$150,000 Savoir No 1 bed, handmade over 120 hours in London. Guests also choose from four exquisite bedding selections.
About Seven Seas Splendor
Seven Seas Splendor is being built in Ancona, Italy and will offer her 750 guests the most luxurious accommodation as she sails to the world’s famous destinations and less-familiar hidden gems. The all-suite, all-balcony ship is a work of art, from bow to stern, perfecting uncompromised luxury with elegance, comfort and personalised guest service. More than 4,275 square-metres of Italian marble will adorn Seven Seas Splendor – over an acre of marble – and her 375 suites include nearly 4,820 square-metres of balcony space. The Regent Suite sets the tone for her 14 other astonishing suite categories to offer the most luxurious accommodation at sea. Seven Seas Splendor will be the first newly built cruise ship to be helmed by a female captain, Captain Serena Melani.
About Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ modern four-ship fleet — Seven Seas Explorer, Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Navigator and Seven Seas Voyager — sails to more than 450 iconic and immersive destinations around the world and reflects US$150 million in stunning refurbishments over the past three years. Regent will add Seven Seas Splendor™ in 2020 as the fleet’s fifth ship and then grow by a sixth ship in 2023. Every luxury is included in Regent voyages, such as all-suite accommodation, the largest collection of unlimited shore excursions, entertainment, unlimited internet access, highly personalised service, exquisite cuisine, fine wines and spirits, gratuities, transfer between hotel and ship and one-night, pre-cruise hotel packages for guests staying in Concierge-level suites and higher.
To learn more, please visit www.RSSC.com, call 1300 455 200 (AU) or 0800 625 692 (NZ) or contact your preferred travel agent to enquire about specific Regent Seven Seas Cruises voyages.
