If you want to know how to combine California with Australia you can – cross the Atlantic AND the Pacific.
Here’s my round up of hotel recommendations and things to do for California city stopovers:
Continue reading...Planning Your Trip
01
Sep
2010
Back to School time…Or is it? Australia and School holidays
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| It’s worth thinking about when school holidays are and aren’t when you plan and book your holiday to Australia |
Because the seasons are back to front in most of Australia then it’s not actually back to school time Down Under. In the the southern half of Australia the seasons are reversed, while the top half of Australia is ‘tropical’ so has ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ instead of more recognisable Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter. Anyway as I was saying, because the seasons are ‘back to front’ then our summer holidays coming to an end does not mean its back to School for Australian small people. In fact they have all been at school throughout August!
26
Jul
2010
Want to go on my holiday? Great places to stay in Tropical North Queensland
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| Splashing in the HUGE pool at the Sea Temple in Palm Cove |
We stayed in some amazing accommodation while visiting Tropical North Queensland last month. Obviously I do a fair bit (OK tons!) of research before we go, but I also got a lot of help from the fabulous team at Bridge and Wickers. I like booking my holidays to Australia with Bridge and Wickers as it’s pretty much a no-brainer as they have high standards like me 
As you can imagine I am a reasonably (alright, very!) demanding client so anyone with the patience to deal with me must be good.
Actually I do have to add that Bridge & Wickers have in fact just won the ultimate ‘Ozcar‘ from Tourism Australia as the best travel company so you don’t just have to take my word for it!
So here’s where we stayed and a mini review of each place:
21
Jul
2010
Want to fly to Australia for Christmas 2010? Here’s some options…
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| Fancy Christmas on 4-mile beach, Port Douglas? |
As ever you all seem totally obsessed with flying to Australia for Christmas. I could write about this every week I am sure and you won’t tire of it (don’t worry – I would tire of it!)
BUT as I know I am going to get asked again and again, I’ve done some research (OK, hands up - I cheated and got the lovely people at Freedom Australia to do all the research!) and I’ve found you some options for flying to Australia for Christmas. AND (be impressed!) some of the flights are less than £1k.
18
May
2010
My near perfect plan for eliminating jet lag to Australia
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| We received brilliant service and attention on Cathay Pacific, as did small people |
So I think I’ve (finally!) worked out how to manage jet lag when flying to Australia. And be impressed – this is also when travelling with a baby and a toddler!
If I can whip jet lag into shape in these circumstances then any grown-ups on their own should have no problems (my challenge to you!)…
16
May
2010
G’day!
Just a quick “G’day” from Down Under! Yes I am in Australia. I am ‘loving it’.
Have heaps to tell you soon, but first I need a little bit more sleep (oh, and a cold beer!)…
Quick summary of what’s to come…
12
May
2010
Planning your Australia holiday: Booking flights to Australia with babies and children
If you are traveling with infants, toddlers or children to Australia, chances are your criteria for choosing a flight are going to be a little bit different to, say, a backpacker. But if you are after the cheapest fare you can get, you might want to have a quick think about what that might mean… a longer stopover en route, a less comfortable airline, a lower standard of facilities on board, less choice of flight times…, etc.
Flying as a family to Australia is no mean feat and it’s a very good idea to book your flight wisely!
Here are my tips…
07
May
2010
Planning your Australia holiday: Flights with stopovers on the way
Now you have 2 choices here (well, sort of 3)…
- you can decide where you want to stopover and pick the corresponding national airline
- you can fly with an airline that has a few different routes to Australia
- or you can ask an expert…
05
May
2010
Planning your Australia holiday: How to find a cheap flight to Australia
It’s easy to get tempted by the ‘cheap’ airfares you see advertised to Australia, but remember there is sometimes a catch…
- the cheapest flights to Australia are not always the most direct
- the cheapest flights to Australia may not be to where you want to go
- the cheapest flights to Australia might not be for when you want to travel
And it’s also definitely worth remembering that the cheapest flight to Australia may well not be the most sensible option if you value your sleep, your comfort, and your sanity
04
May
2010
Planning your Australia holiday: How to book your flights
OK… so if you’ve been following the ‘planning’ tips then so far you know WHEN you want to go to Australia on holiday and also what you need to do BEFORE you book your flights (get a visa!). Now… how to get there!
Technically you can overland most of the way to Australia (see Ozbus) and you can sail there (read to the end)… but most people tend to take a plane. Here’s how I go about booking my (cheap if I can help it!) flights to Australia.
