At WOW! Travel we are extremely fortunate to visit many exotic countries and interesting places on educationals. These educationals allow us the opportunity to visit destinations, experience airlines, stay in numerous hotels and visit interesting sites that we can inturn pass onto to our clients as first hand knowledge and advice. Even when on holiday we still take part in hotel inspections and take note of details to better know each destination we visit.

 

In 2009 WOW! Visited

 

Lisa Myers

  • USA (Disneyland/Anaheim)
  • Viking River Cruise in France
  • Langkawi, Malaysia

  • Kuala Lumpur

 

 

 

Robyn Lawley

  • Dubai, Oman & Jordan
  • Reunion Island & Mauritius
  • Canada (Vancouver, the Rockies and Calgary)

 

 

Dubai, Oman & Jordan

 

Dubai - I was very fortunate to have had the experience of visiting Dubai again allowing me to update my Dubai knowledge of the new hotels that are now newly open. I loved Atlantis, it’s a huge resort and great for the kids. The fish tank is impressive, as are the restaurants and “that” water slide – just scary!

 

  • The Harbour Hotel and Residence is brilliant for families having 3 bedroom apartments. It is also located near the marina so you can actually walk along the the esplanade to restaurants
  • Of course Madinat Jumeriah is still in my top choices – The 3 hotels are very unique and ooze Arab character.
  • It goes with out saying that The Hyatt’s, in particular the Park Hyatt, are still among my favourites.
  • The Palms are all progressing, with a lot of building on standby. It will be lovely when Dubai finishes construction and blue skies prevail.

 

Oman - This is a stunning destination and will take you around 7days to experience. However if time permits, take time to smell the roses and relax for a few days in Muscat.

 

The Shangrila Hotel in Muscat is stunning. A set of 3 hotels lodges at intervals up the mountain. Stunning restaurant views with beautiful menus, a spa to die for and  wonderful pools – you can loose the kids here for days or even venture yourself into the lazy river (you sit in a tube and meander through the property).

 

The Chedi as always impresses!

 

I visited Nizwa, however sleepy heads in our group meant that we missed the outdoor live stock market – I would suggest overnighting in Nizwa, as it is a long drive from Muscat very early in the morning.

 

Oman is definitely a hidden treasure – the people of Oman are indeed treasures themselves.  I would call Oman of today, modern Islamic. You still need to cover your

head, arms and ankles to enter the Mosque (which is stunning), however Oman is truly a destination of tradition, culture and forward thinking.

 

Jordan - What can I say!

This country blew me away, definitely a high light in anyone’s itinerary.  I arrived here exhausted from Dubai and Oman hotel inspections, however time was of the essence and I had 4days to do an 8day tour.

So upon landing I headed straight to Um Qais, this is a historical site still under excavation – and worth the drive. I headed back to Amman via Jerash which reminded me of Ephesus in Turkey. The next day I headed off to Petra. Along the way I stopped at Madaba, known for its stunning mosaics (yes major damage on the credit card here but well worth it!!) Mount Nebo – which has a monastery in honour of Moses – and has spectacular views. Kerak with its crusader castle – well worth the private tour, and finally arrived at Petra.

 

The next morning I embarked on the longest walk I think I have ever done in a day, 35km in thongs (don’t forget to pack your runners as I did!) Make sure the camera has fresh batteries and a 2nd memory stick.

Petra is amazing make sure that you walk right up to the Monastery and beyond, its well worth the effort for the views and solitude. I missed the light and sound show (I fell asleep) however this is also a highlight.

 

Next day I headed to Wadi Rum (home of Laurence of Arabia !) this area is worth an overnight stop in the desert – accommodation is basic but worth while for the experience. Back to Amman via the Dead Sea, also a bizarre experience floating in the water. The sea side resorts are of a very good quality and well worth a day of R&R. I didn’t get to see anything of Amman so there is my reasoning behind revisiting this ancient country a 2nd time.

 

For those not wanting to kill themselves with a rushed itinerary, I would suggest at least 7days of touring with a day or two at the Dead Sea for a well earned rest.

 

 

Reunion and Mauritius

 

Air Austral – a new carrier to the Australian market place.

Not quite Emirates and most certainly not a Jetstar,  this carrier is just finding its feet service wise. The seats are comfortable, meals are a bit light on, in flight amenities pack is very good however movies are played from a drop down ceiling screen. I would suggest purchasing a hand held DVD player and some DVDs that you would like to watch unless you speak fluent French or engross yourself in a very good book.

 

Reunion - This was a surprise island as I knew nothing of this destination at all. It is a hidden department of France, French being the first language spoken with English NOT widely spoken nor understood. But WOW! this is a great location - Beaches are not fantastic but the 3 cirques are great. Reunion has 3 volcanoes and I walked to the “plug hole” of one of the Volcanoes. The island is very diverse and well worth a 4 to 5 day stop over staying at different locations around the Island.

 

I liked the small boutique hotel (Geckos) lovely character and well located for a self drive holiday.

 

Mauritius - I loved this destination - 10 days here for R&R is perfect!

Things to be very mindful of is the wind May/June/July, otherwise the temperature is mostly around 29 Celsius year round. I would divide my time between two areas -  the east coast and the south/west coast.

 

Absolute favourites are:

The Residence – Not in the windy season though

Four Seasons

Le Telfair

 

Flic en Flac is also a great little spot – cafes/public beach with lots of local buzz.

 

 

Canada - My trip to Alberta was brilliant!

 

I flew Air New Zealand via Auckland to Vancouver. The inflight service was faultless, the seats were still comfortable, even after 14 hours. The inflight movies were diverse with the latest releases and of course personal screens. All of the meals came at just the right time of either hunger or the need to fidget!

 

On landing I had a few hours prior to the overnight train trip, so I jumped on the monorail and headed to the old part of Vancouver ‘Gastown’, where I enjoyed a delicious meal looking over the beautiful original steam clock (a most see tourist attraction). Then back to the train station to board the Via Rail Canada trail to Jasper.

 

The train is in need of a bit of a refurbishment but it is meticulously clean. The porters were all wonderful with turn down and setting up the beds. I kept my curtains open all night and lay in bed watching the sun rise as the countryside flew past (down fall to this is that people can see you in bed at the stations – although at 5am there are not many people about!) Breakfast in the dinning cart is very good, with a great range to eat, like wise lunch. Then its just sit by your huge window or up in the dome to watch the world go by.

 

Jasper – a quaint township with some shopping and good restaurants – Earls restaurant was terrific with good atmosphere and food.

The accommodation standard is very good, as there is a Fairmont just out of town. I stayed at the Tonquin, which was a short walk from the centre of town. I then coached to Lake Louise Via Maligne Valley and Lake, well worth the stop to walk through. Once again it is the scenery that passes you by that is brilliant (note: STAY AWAKE! A lot of people tend to fall asleep don’t miss what you have paid for).

 

Lake Louise – This was by far my favourite location! I can not verbalise how spectacular this location is. You must see it once in your life time. Take the time to climb to the tea house, it takes about 4 hours and requires a bit of fitness. The actual lake is stunning and the hotel to stay at no matter the cost is the Fairmont, the only hotel that looks on to the lake and glacier.

 

Next stop Banff Springs via the ice fields, an absolute must. The huge glacier trucks are just that- massive. To Banff Springs you must catch the gondola and walk the boarded walkway to the look out, once again stunning views over Banff. The town ship of Banff is quaint, larger than Jasper and has lots of souvenir shops.

 

Then a bit of mountain biking – will leave that to the teenagers next time. However for those slightly fitter, it’s a world class facility which you will see in the 2010 winter Olympics where they are holding the cross country skiing events. Rafting here was so much fun and also a must for all ages.

 

Then off to Calgary – The bull riding was hysterical and I must admit to only viewing from the side line but once again a great night out to meet the locals. The heritage park was historically interesting similar to Sovereign Hill in Ballarat.

 

The Calgary tower is also worth a visit to see the entire city and if the Calgary Stampede is on, that would be a must see. If you missed a photo opportunity with the bears etc – stop off at the zoo to capture that missed shot.

 

 

 

Melanie Brown

  • Tahiti

     

 

  • Papua New Guinea (Tufi, Port Moresby & Rabaul)

 

  

 

 

 

Melissa Briggs

  • Cook Islands

 

 

Emily Finch

  • Macau

 

Emily travelled to Macau in December, on the inaugural Viva Macau flight from Melbourne. Macau as a destination is an ideal side trip from Hong Kong and is only one hour via fast ferry. Macau represents east meet west in so many ways: Originally home to Cantonese Farmers and Fujian Fishing Folk when Portuguese merchants arrived in the 1950’s. To this day the Cantonese and Portuguese influences are prevalent in Macau’s Culture and Architecture.

 

The famous Ruins of St Pauls are a world heritage site. It’s façade and grand staircase are all that remain of the original church. What is fascinating about the church is how the façade shows the story of Christianity in Asia. Once again bringing out the East meets West theme throughout the country. The best part about this is the amazing Portuguese tarts!

 

Not only is Macau fascinating for it's history and culture, but it is mainly well known for the casinos and hotels. Macau is only 28.2 km square in total! This is including the newly reclaimed land between the two areas of Taipa and Coloane called Cotai. The Main peninsula is really where it is, as the main casinos are all located here : Including Wynn and The MGM Grand and Lisboa.

 

Emily inspected both the Venetian and the MGM Grand, both very different properties. The Venetian is on Taipa, located very close to the airport. It is exactly the same layout as the Venetian in Las Vegas but closer to home! The casino is huge and right in the middle of the hotel, so if you're not interested in gambling this hotel is probably not for you. The Venetian has amazing facilities, first class shopping including all the major brand labels. One unique feature about the Venetian is its purpose built theater for its own Cirque De Soleil Show. This show in particular doesn’t travel around the world and can only be viewed in Macau. If you were in Hong Kong and wanted a getaway, the ferry across and one night at the Venetian is worth it, just to see the show – I was amazed!

 

The MGM Grand is located in a more central area to the other casinos and shopping. It is a truly beautiful hotel and unlike the Venetian, it is not designed exactly the same as it's Las Vegas counterpart.  The rooms are located separately to the casino, so the areas around the accommodation don’t smell like cigarettes! The hotel features a Michelin starred restaurant and rooms are extremely nice, especially the suites !

 

A city tour is worth doing in Macau, giving you a feel of the place. From the historical monuments to the Macau Tower, that has a glass floor you can walk on to A Ma temple (this is the temple Macau was names after) to Casinos galore (even the ones that are half finished are fascinating to look at). It’s a quick trip for something a little different !

 

 

 

Jade Crawford

  • Fiji