The Sydney Morning Herald will take you there!
The SMH is giving you a chance to win 1 of 15 trips to Hamilton Island. They have 15 packages, so start entering now @ Sydney Morning Herald – Hamilton Island Competition
Thanks SMH! Good luck everyone!
FSF
Read mum’s latest articles at Essential Baby for clues and tips for travelling to Bali with kids! Enjoy!
Last week I enjoyed a cup of tea with an elephant. It’s not something you do everyday. And he was good enough to carry the pot of tea himself, using his very adaptable trunk. This gorgeous, new experience is available at the Sofitel Krabi Phokeethra Golf and Spa Resort, a beautiful colonial style property overlooking the Krabi Islands, where the James Bond film ‘Man with the Golden Gun’ was shot. The staff set up a decadent spread near the pool, including chicken sandwiches, chocolate and strawberry jelly cakes, rice paper rolls, iced tea, espresso and more. Then the special guest, four-year-old male elephant Som Chai (meaning strong man) made his entrance. This is a wonderful experience for Frequent Small Flyers (FSF’s) who get to feed the elephant bananas and have their photo taken with him, while mum and dad enjoy a decadent high tea. I must say Som Chai, who lives at a local elephant orphanage, was a delightful afternoon tea guest – even if he did give me a cheeky whack in the back with his ear. Why not add it to your itinerary when next visiting Thailand!
Most of us would have heard of Aspen and Vail, but the lesser known ski resorts of Crested Butte and Steamboat are fast gaining popularity with Australians. Last week I got the chance to ski at both Steamboat - popular with families and officially the home of Champagne snow – and Crested Butte, ‘newly discovered’ by the international market with stylish bars and a fab restaurant scene in its historic mining town with old storefronts that recall the era of prospectors and mules. Steamboat has a fabulous kids’s ski vacation centre for frequent small flyers (FSF’s), where kids as young as two can hit the slopes and littlies as young as six months can be cared for in the fantastic Kiddie Corral. All kids in Steamboat’s kid’s vacation centre wear jackets with handlebars so instructors and parents can easily lift them up if they fall and nifty GPS tracking systems so they’ll never get lost. Oh and it also means they can then show you where they skied on the mountain.
You don’t even need to ski to enjoy this magical winter wonderland. There’s horseback rides in the snow, ice bars, sleigh rides, snowcat driving, the Bridgestone Winter Driving School, the magical Strawberry Hot Springs and more. Or why not take the FSF to a dude ranch like Home Ranch, where they can play cowboys and indians, feed the horses in the snow and try tubing. Wouldn’t that be a wonderful place to experience a White Christmas. Have a great weekend everyone!
Who remembers family holidays in caravans by the sea? The entire family squashed in to small quarters, traipsing to the amenities block in the middle of the night, sunburn, ice cream and playing by the sea all day. For many, these holiday memories are among their happiest. Wellnow you can return to those simple holidays of your youth, but do it in style. Many caravan and holiday parks across Australia are now providing stylish, cabin-style accommodation including this one that we’ve just checked into with the Frequent Small Flyer (FSF) at Stockton Beach Tourist Park,near Newcastle. Think neutral, beachy interiors, comfy queen size beds, flat screen TVs, kitchens, sparkling new bathrooms and cute bunk beds for the kids. But the best thing is we can hear the waves crashing on the shore just across the dunes on Stockton Beach. Stockton, although just a short ferry ride from Newcastle City, almost appears trapped in a seventies time warp, with a quaint ‘Sea Change’ feel. I half expect torun into Diver Dan down the shops. We’re going to catch the ferry later and have dinner tonight on the harbour at the fabulous Nor’East. Now all we need is a Paddlepop, a couple of ice cold beers on the deck and we’ll be sorted. Have a great weekend everyone.
