As Australia's most eastern winery, Raleigh Winery is an unlikely foodie hub. Perched on the Bellinger River, around fifteen minutes south of Coffs Harbour, Raleigh Winery produces small batch wines and has a superb on-site restaurant and newly opened accommodation. The verandah restaurant has given Raleigh Winery a big local following, making it one of... Continue Reading →
I’ll admit I went to Goonoo Goonoo because of the name. Even by Australian standards it’s a strange one. Goonoo Goonoo (pronounced gunna g’noo), which means plenty of water in local Kamilaroi/Gomeroi language, is near the town of Tamworth, around four hours north-west of Sydney. Once a wealthy working merino property, rich in colonial history,... Continue Reading →
If you fancy an escape from the increasingly maddening world, Round & Round vintage coffee van is just about as chill as it gets. Set in the vast picnic grounds of the world’s only Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie, it’s fair to say their social isolation picnic game is on point. “Roscoe”, their retro black... Continue Reading →
The famous Pumpkin installation greets us wharfside (that's the pumpkin themed ferry in the background) Take a nondescript fishing island in Japan's inland Seto Sea, build two world-class art galleries and a sleek art-themed ferry and commission a renowned Japanese artist to create outdoor sculptures. Build it and they will come is the ethos of... Continue Reading →
Timing is everything. For three weeks, sandwiched between the cold mistral winds in May and the June's canicule heatwave, was a grace period. Warm days, clear skies with a light breeze made it a cycling sweet spot in the idyllic (when weather conditions prevail) French countryside. Cycling holidays are the greatest … when the weather's... Continue Reading →
Your travel agent told you this is an active tour, right?”, our cruise director, Danielle, asks the group on Avalon Waterway’s inaugural Active Discovery cruise. There are groans from the passengers, by day three we are all weary, but all this activity on a cruise is a great way to counterbalance the French food and... Continue Reading →
It's so green it hurts my eyes. While most of NSW is currently bone dry, Dorrigo, on the edge of the Great Dividing Range, is a vibrant, emerald stripe. When it rains it gets even greener. And it rains a lot. People come here for the rainforest and the many walks and waterfalls in the... Continue Reading →
Italy's once beautiful Cinque Terre has been ruined by mass tourism. The buses and trains are bursting, pickpockets roam the trains, walking tracks are closed due to landslides that haven't been repaired and the charming towns are overrun with tourists. Locals look either bored or grim, tourists look harried and gelato costs a bomb. It's... Continue Reading →
This dot on the map is Sfântu Gheorghe. It’s Romania’s last stand before the Black Sea. To the east is Russia and to the right is Turkey and the architecture reflects that: homes with Ottoman Empire features, Orthodox church and, being Romania, communist era apartment blocks. It doesn’t much feel like Europe here with its... Continue Reading →
Everything good in Central Australia happens at dawn. Whether it be walking, hot air ballooning, photography or just admiring the views, dawn in the desert is outstanding. Getting up is hard but once you are up it's worth it. For us it was tackling Kings Canyon, the set piece walk of the vast ochre wonderland... Continue Reading →
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