Mauritius takes a hit April 26, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Africa, Airlines, Travel.Tags: airlines, Mauritius, tourism, Travel
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Travel to Mauritius will take a hit when the national carrier withdraws its services next month. Air Mauritius will stop direct flights to Sydney at the end of next month, making it harder for travellers to reach the idyllic destination in the Indian Ocean.
The managing director of Mauritius specialist Beachcomber Tours, Rod Eather, says the withdrawal of the flights is sure to have a negative impact, especially on travellers with limited time.
However, Eather says travellers from Sydney have the option of flying with Virgin Australia to Perth and connecting with twice-weekly Air Mauritius services. ”Air Mauritius have increased their services from Perth and have changed their schedules to ensure smooth connections into and out of Perth,” he says. “Flights from Sydney will (more…)
Live like a local without any fuss April 23, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Hotels, North America, Travel, Travel tips & trends, UK & Europe.Tags: acccommodation, hotels, London, New York, Roomarama, tourism, Travel
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The Simply Red singer Mick Hucknall put it so well when he wrote the lyrics “the rooms in these hotels are the same around the world”. Hotels, particularly big hotels, tend to be much of a muchness wherever you go these days, offering plenty of comforts and consistency but little in the way of atmosphere or local flavour.
Enter hotel alternatives, a rapidly growing sector aimed at those who want to have a taste of living like a local rather than a visitor. Companies offering travellers the opportunity to stay in real homes and apartments are popping up all over the place and say they are doing a roaring trade with Australian travellers.
The New York-based Roomorama, which has just announced a merger with competitor Lofty.com to become a leading provider of short-term accommodation, says Australians have become its second biggest market, just behind the US. The site launched in Australia last year and now offers more than 1500 alternative accommodation options around Australia, along with its overseas offerings.
Another website, onefinestay.com, which is currently limited to London but preparing to launch in other world cities, also puts Australia in second place for usage. The point of difference with these websites and others like them is… (click here to keep reading this article by Jane E. Fraser)
Cruising: Germany April 23, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Cruising, Travel, UK & Europe.Tags: cruise, cruising, Germany, Rothenburg, Travel, Uniworld
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This article is part of a weekly series on cruising in The Sun Herald, Sydney. If you have done an interesting shore excursion and are interested in being featured, please send an email to jane@janeefraser.com.au.
WHO Heather Fisher of North Epping, on her second cruise in Europe.
WHAT Medieval history and architecture.
WHERE Rothenburg, Germany.
THE SHIP Heather and her husband, George, took a 15-day cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest on Uniworld’s River Empress (uniworldcruises.com.au).
“The bus pulled up outside the town wall and we walked through the old timber entry into the city. It was straight out of a medieval book, with gabled houses and medieval buildings.
“The market square was just beautiful and we were in time to see the magnificent clock on the town hall strike. Little gentlemen holding steins of beer come out of windows either side of the clock and when the clock stops striking they disappear again.
“We then went on a walking tour to the rampart that goes right around the outside of the city and were showed… (click here to keep reading)
Cruising: Fiji Islands April 21, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Cruising, NZ & Pacific Islands, Travel.Tags: Captain Cook Cruises, cruising, Fiji, Travel, Yasawa Islands
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This article is part of a weekly series on cruising in The Sun Herald, Sydney. If you have done an interesting shore excursion and are interested in being featured, please send an email to jane@janeefraser.com.au.
WHO Janet Hall, from Ruse, NSW, on her third cruise; her first cruise in Fiji.
WHAT Visiting a Fijian school.
WHERE Northern Yasawa Islands, Fiji.
THE SHIP Janet cruised with her husband Barry, sister Jo and adult daughter Casey on Captain Cook Cruises’ MV Reef Endeavour (captaincook.com.au), on a four-night Northern Yasawa Islands itinerary.
“It was January and therefore it was school holidays, so there was no school on, but some locals go around the village and ask the kids if they would mind coming. There must have been 25 kids, maybe more, of all ages, to meet us at the school. I think it shows that they have a lot of pride in their school, that they were willing to come.
“It said in the Captain Cook brochure that you could take a gift of money or school supplies and we took both. We took pencils, rubbers, sharpeners; quite a big parcel of school supplies. My husband also put some money in the donation box. I don’t know if it was because we took a gift but one of the boys came and introduced himself and offered to take us on a tour of the school. He was probably 14 or 15 years old and he was a lovely boy.
The school was… (click here to keep reading)
Hotel watch: Dubai April 20, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Hotels, Travel.Tags: Dubai, hotels, luxury hotels, Marriott, Travel
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If you are afraid of heights or lifts, this is not the hotel for you.
Dubai will lay claim to having the tallest hotel in the world with the opening of the JW Marriott Marquis Dubai in October. The hotel (not to be confused with the existing JW Marriott Dubai) will be 355 metres high, making it only 26 metres shorter than the Empire State Building in New York.
The hotel will open in two stages, with the total development to comprise 1608 guest rooms, nine restaurants, five lounges and several entertainment venues. The Vault lounge will occupy floors 71 and 72, with panoramic views of the city, and its restaurants will range in style from steakhouse to Arabic cuisine.
The hotel will also have the obligatory luxury spa and wellness facilities, including a 32-metre swimming pool and sundeck on the seventh floor. The spa will cover 1500 square metres and the “menu” of treatments on offer there will include locally inspired treatments involving (more…)
Cruising: Galapagos April 19, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Adventure travel, Cruising, South America, Travel.Tags: cruising, Galapagos, Travel, wildlife, wildlife experiences
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This article is part of a weekly series on cruising in The Sun Herald, Sydney. If you have done an interesting shore excursion and are interested in being featured, please send an email to jane@janeefraser.com.au.
WHO Caroline Melbourne, from Melbourne, on her first cruise.
WHAT Galapagos Islands wildlife encounters.
WHERE Bartolome Island, off Santiago Island in the northern Galapagos Islands.
THE SHIP Caroline cruised with her 16-year-old son, Bill, on the M.Y. Darwin, operated by Gecko’s Adventures (geckosadventures.com).
“With the Galapagos Islands, it is all about the shore excursions. Every island and every beach we went to was different and most of the islands are uninhabited, so the only way you can go on to them is with a National Parks guide. It’s highly organised, with slots for different groups to visit, so you rarely have any more people on the island than your own group.
“The one that really sticks out in my mind is Bartolome Island, because it was so beautiful and we got up so close with the wildlife. We parked the boat in a bay early in the morning and took the tender to a point where there was a boardwalk to walk up to the top of the island. It was a 30- to 40-minute walk, so reasonably strenuous, but when you get to the top you’re looking at a beautiful volcanic peak and looking down over two sandy beaches either side of a peninsula. When we got back to the beach there was a chance to go snorkelling and my son saw… (click here to keep reading)
Cruising: holy sites April 18, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Cruising, Travel, UK & Europe.Tags: Bethlehem, cruising, Jerusalem, MSC Cruises, tourism, Travel
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This article is part of a weekly series on cruising in The Sun Herald, Sydney. If you have done an interesting shore excursion and are interested in being featured, please send an email to jane@janeefraser.com.au.
WHO Nerryl Hagenbach of the Sunshine Coast, on her 12th cruise with MSC Cruises.
WHAT A full-day tour of holy sites in Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
WHERE The Israeli port of Haifa.
THE SHIP Nerryl cruised with a friend on MSC Orchestra (msccruises.com.au) on a seven-night cruise from Genoa, Italy.
“From Haifa, it was nearly two hours’ drive to Jerusalem, where we had a fantastic tour with a local guide. She took us up to the Mount of Olives, where we had a view over the city of Jerusalem and the garden of Gethsemane at the base of the mountain. She also gave us a good overview of the city and its history.
“We then got back on the coach and drove down to the old city to the Wailing Wall, or the Western Wall to give it its proper name. Our guide gave us all the information beforehand about this important site for Jewish prayer, as talking is not allowed. Most of us on the tour wrote little notes and prayers to … (click here to keep reading)
Beautiful one day, in shade the next April 17, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Australia, Cruising, Events, Travel, Travel tips & trends.Tags: Cairns, eclipse, Port Douglas, Queensland, solar eclipse, tourism, Travel
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(Apologies for the break in communications, I have been away travelling. Here’s this week’s column…)
When dawn breaks across tropical north Queensland on November 14, about 40,000 visitors are expected to be there ready to witness a total solar eclipse. It is rare for a total eclipse to be visible from land and this one, which can only be fully appreciated from the region around Cairns, is attracting a lot of attention from travellers around the world.
The eclipse will last just a couple of minutes but the celebrations will run for days, with events including a solar eclipse marathon, a music festival and a street carnival. Berths on many cruise ships have already sold out and hotel rooms are filling fast as awareness of the event grows.
The chief executive of Tourism Tropical North Queensland, Rob Giason, says the region has had a taskforce working for more than 12 months on arrangements for the expected 40,000 visitors. The visitor estimate is based on the region’s capacity and past events – more than 30,000 people travelled to Ceduna in South Australia for a similar event in 2002.
“We have been bombarded with requests from scientists, amateur astronomers and holidaymakers who want to be here to see the eclipse,” Giason says. ”Viewing an eclipse from [the land] is… (click here to keep reading this article by Jane E. Fraser)
Heading to London for the Olympics? March 22, 2012
Posted by janeefraser in Airlines, Travel, Travel tips & trends, UK & Europe.Tags: Britain, London, London Olympics, Olympic Games, Travel
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The London Olympic Games are playing havoc with travel patterns, sending bookings soaring and crashing around the event. Travel to Britain is expected to be disrupted well beyond the six-week period of the Games, with many avoiding London and other areas both beforehand and afterwards.
The holiday period leading up to the Olympic Games is also being affected, with travellers concerned about the availability and pricing of hotel rooms and other travel bookings and expenses. The online travel agency Zuji Australia reports a “clear change” in traditional booking patterns, with many people… (click here to keep reading this article by Jane E. Fraser)
