Sep 14
0

Lazy Ballerina, K1, Three Brothers Arms, Longview and Royal Oak

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Having read, heard and talked about wineries and pubs in the Kuitpo, Meadows and Macclesfield area my husband planned a surprise mystery tour for me on the Monday of the recent long weekend – yes he listens really well! Scott likes to trick me though so we seemed to be going in another direction, pulling off the road at different places along the way that weren’t the right places and taking an interesting route.

First stop was the gorgeous Lazy Ballerina with pretty grounds, a modern cellar door and a down to earth approach to wine making. After trying a number of wines we each had a glass of white and pink moscato with a rustic tasting plate featuring cheeses, crackers, pear, grapes, almonds, olives and local dips. Read More

Aug 13
2

What can you do in 30 hours on Kangaroo Island?

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Getting up early on a Sunday morning is worth it when you are travelling across to Kangaroo Island (KI) in South Australia for a 30 hour mini break.  With the drive from Happy Valley to Cape Jervis to board the 10.00 am Sealink ferry taking about 1 hour and 15 minutes you need to leave at least 30 minutes to check in and for your driver to see the car on board too.

The trip across Backstairs Passage was fairly choppy as it was a very windy day and there is the opportunity to walk around the ferry from the inside lounge and kiosk area up onto the top deck or outside onto the bow of the ferry, port or starboard.  It takes 45 minutes on the ferry and then we arrived at Penneshaw a cute and welcoming little seaside village.
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Mar 14
0

Airlie Beach for Australia Day 2015

By | wendy | No Comments

With workshops in Mackay on the Thursday prior, the 2015 Australia Day weekend was the ideal opportunity to visit one of my favourite locations, Airlie Beach.

Driving up to Airlie, I had visited the August 2014 before with Scott, Mum and Dad, but only for 1 night.  On that visit we stayed at a fantastic hotel, Boathouse Apartments by Outrigger on the marina, and this time we had an apartment with a view at Peppers.

On the Friday afternoon we checked out the main street albeit with the weather being very steamy and local places like Magnums where we had a cheap meal and listened to a good local duo. Read More

Jan 05
2

Gold Coast Mini Break – something different

By | wendy | No Comments

On the back of a conference in the Gold Coast, we had a few days as a mini break with my parents joining Scott, Jess and I.

When we picked up Mum and Dad, Scott had them believing that the accommodation wasn’t that great… it was anything but that!  Kirra Beach Surf Apartments staying in the 3 bedroom, 2 storey penthouse meant amazing views of the beach and surrounds – 180 degrees.

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Combining a bit of work and meetings with a mini break saw us fit in half day activities.  Having been to the Gold Coast quite a number of times before we didn’t go to the theme parks but aimed to find different sorts of activities to do. Read More

Jul 14
1

Mildura Houseboat Adventure

By | wendyperry | No Comments

Hiring a houseboat for the weekend in winter (June-July 2014) means that you’ll get a very good price and lots of choice, and probably with good weather because you are in the Riverland.

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After meeting the family at the Mildura Visitor Information and Booking Centre, we headed to the Mildura Brewery which is located in the former Astor Theatre for Friday lunch.  Allowing the waiter and chef to decide our light lunch we enjoyed fresh bread, bruschetta, meats, pasta and salads.  The boys ordered the beer tasting plates and picked up a couple of boutique beers for the trip. Read More

Jun 12
0

Queen’s birthday long weekend in Rockhampton

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Rocky is a large regional centre with cowboys, utes, beef, historic pubs and the Fitzroy River (crocodiles in there?) contrasted with modern developments, apartments, restaurants and shops.

My recent trip to Rockhampton to work with a client meant that I was in town from Wednesday to Wednesday including the Queen’s birthday long weekend.  Staying at the Edge Apartments on the Fitzroy River it was a modern place to stay with a great restaurant and a bar downstairs.  Picking up the local tourist information on the first night I checked out things to do. Read More

Jun 09
0

Margaret River (WA) Mini Break

By | wendy | No Comments

With a weekend in Perth I wanted to do something different, fun and that fits with all the things I like.  So I chose to explore the Margaret River region as it had been on my list of mini breaks to do for a while.

Driving in peak hour traffic out of Perth I was held up by a couple of accidents so it took a while and then the drive was fairly straightforward down to Busselton where I had booked 2 nights at The Sebel Busselton.  I arrived in the dark after a 3 hour drive and relaxed by watching Escape to the Country in the Western Australian country. Read More

May 29
0

Dad’s Military Vehicle Adventure

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Dad and I considered a number of potential adventure activities outlined in the About Time: South Australia’s History Festival program choosing to visit the National Military Vehicle Museum.

IMG_5570Located at Edinburgh, I didn’t expect to see such a significant collection of so many vehicles and displays depicting life in war time.

From tanks to people carriers, mobile kitchens, trucks and cars you can see that the volunteers care about sharing these vehicles and they have a sense of humour too (see the lizard on the plate and fish in the oven).

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Apr 02
0

New Zealand Holiday – North Island Highlights

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For a long time I’ve held a romantic view about travelling around New Zealand.  When flights were advertised by Jetstar for $149.00-199.00 from Adelaide to Auckland I had to take advantage of it.  Scott and I also celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary on 19 February 2014 and so I wanted to do something special.

When booking and planning a holiday I like to spend time researching and working through different activities, places to visit and consider recommendations from friends, family and colleagues.  I booked most of the accommodation from Australia but not car hire or any of the activities. I also contacted a couple of business networks with events sourced via Eventbrite to make arrangements to connect in New Zealand. Read More

Nov 01
0

Aloha from Hawaii – Wendy’s 40th birthday present

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Aloha!  For my 40th birthday in October I wanted to go somewhere special – that place was Hawaii (particularly after watching The Descendants multiple times).

I booked very cost effective flights from Melbourne to Honolulu on Jetstar and used my Virgin Velocity reward points for a return flight for Scott and I from Adelaide to Melbourne.

When travelling to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program you need to apply for authorization via the Electronic System for Travel Authorization.

With lots of research and questions to those people that I knew had holidayed in Hawaii I had a long list of possible activities and places to visit. Read More