Wye River

Last school holidays, I was lucky enough to venture to my holiday house at Wye River for a relaxing week on the beach.

My holiday to Wye River began with a scenic drive along the Great Ocean Road to the small beachside town’s secluded location just past Lorne. The journey (about 3 hours from Melbourne) is relaxing and enjoyable, and provides you with plenty of time to absorb the wonders of this beautiful part of Victoria.

 

 I’ve been going on holidays to Wye River since I was a baby, and never fail to enjoy my time there. The beach is clean and provides heaps of room for anything from beach sports to picnics. The water is safe enough for children to play in the shallows but also kicks up waves big enough for the pro surfers to surf in.

 

My family and I make good use of the Wye River Hotel’s food when we’re at Wye River, and eat there most nights. The hotel has a few rooms for guests to stay in, but is more commonly visited for drinks and dinners. On my last holiday there, I arrived on AFL Grand Final day and joined in the celebrations they have. Don’t worry about missing out on hot pies and jam donuts, sweeps, or even the people dressed up in their team’s colours: Wye River has them all. And after the game, most people hang around to have dinner as well.

 

My favourite thing at Wye River, though, is definitely the wildlife you see. Koalas, kangaroos and every sort of wild bird comes to visit my house up the hill, in the trees. I’ve seen koalas up close, and seen them hanging on as the branch they are sitting on whilst eating starts to blow in the wind. I’ve fed birds out of my hand, and watched them as they enjoy the seed I give them in their birdhouse on our balcony.

 

Wye River is a fantastic place for anyone to visit and will definitely deliver you with a relaxing, enjoyable and exciting holiday.

April Austen

Graceland - Phuket

November 18, 2013

After a cold start to winter in July, I was lucky enough to visit Thailand and stay in the Graceland resort located in Phuket.

The hot sun shining down, the sound of water running and the smell of delicious food make this place relaxing and an enjoyable place to be. The staff were always friendly, funny and nice. They offered great sightseeing tours around the area. The resorts features were fun and entertaining. Including 3 pools, a massage salon, a bowling alley, a pool bar, a bar, free Wi-Fi, games room, and a gym! I never got bored of this hotel, with plenty of activities to do and food and drinks to eat this is the perfect vacation for you.

Graceland is right beside Patong and is an easy and enjoyable walk down to the markets, restaurant and night life. Thailand is famous for their night life and nothing was more interesting than walking down the streets of Phuket late at night. It was very different from what we have here in Australia which made it even more exciting.

They way Graceland treats there quests with generosity and kindness is exactly the reason why I would be happy to go back and visit any day.  I would definitely recommend going to this resort in your holidays, it was really a joy to be there.

Dana Pettit

 

 

Mount Buller - Nikko Shaw

Mount Buller is one of the greatest places in Australia and I recommend that everyone should go there at some stage of your life. Mount Buller is located in Victoria, around 30 - 60 minutes from Mansfield (approx 3 hours from Melbourne) and is has amazing conditions and weather for skiing, snowboarding and tobogganing. With a total of 22 lifts you have a huge variety of slopes to ski down, from the easy green slopes to the expert black slopes. There are a huge range of hotels and lodges to stay at for great deals! I've been to Mount Buller 4 times and have loved it every single time.

Ski and Snowboarding

Mount Buller is great for snowboarding and skiing, it has plenty of rental stores where you can hire ski and snowboard equipment for good prices! Mount Buller also holds many ski and snowboard events every year as the mountain has such good conditions and weather. The mountain also provides ski and snowboard school for those wanting to learn how to ski or snowboard. 

What to do at Mount Buller

You can never get bored at Mount Buller, there's so much to do! You can either go skiing or snowboarding, tobogganing, watch a movie at the cinema, go out and have lunch at the many restaurants and cafes or even go play in the gymnasium. Mount Buller also has heaps of fun and exciting events which are open for anyone to come along and join in to have a great time!

Food

The food at Mount Buller is amazing! There's a huge variety of restaurants and cafes to try from, serving a large range of different foods. The best food there though is the delicious hot donuts made under the main stairs. If your staying in a hotel, they even make you free breakfast in the morning which includes bacon and eggs, sausages and more!

Mount Buller is an amazing place and everyone should go there, you wont regret it!

South Australia: Eden Valley- Morgan Trencher

A long eight hour drive with the most charming scenery was the start to my trip. Fields, quaint little houses and horses were what my eyes flashed past as the car raced down the long stretch of road. The trip finally ended when we arrived at my family’s farm. As I stepped out of the car a wave of fresh air breezed over me. The property was huge, full of fields and trees and animals. The area was so peaceful and serene, no traffic, no cities and no pollution. The break from the busy city was very pleasant.

The days were very hot, so during the day my cousins and I swam in the lake on their property, which probably had snakes swimming in there. We also fed the baby calves who quite enjoyed to break into the neighbour’s field in the middle of the night. During the night we saw the starry sky, as we were far away from the city. It was so beautiful to gaze at the sky as my cousin and I swang on a tyre attached to a tree.   

We took a trip to the Barossa Valley which was very beautiful. We visited all the wineries and saw the rows and rows of grape vines. The view was beautiful and it was very peaceful. I would definitely recommend for anyone to visit Eden Valley for a quiet retreat away from city life. I really enjoyed the chance to relax and step away from a busy city and day to day stress. This would be a fantastic holiday for someone who enjoys a quiet and slow holiday.        

 

 

Bali:

A long 13 hour flight paired with a baby on the right crying most of the way, did not make an enjoyable journey to Bali. Then there was check-in but we all know what that’s like. When we finally arrived at our 5 star hotel, we were greeted with shelled necklaces and refreshing fruity beverages. After being escorted to our rooms, we fished out our bathing suits and went straight down to the pool.  The weather is always ideal for a swim. Bali’s weather is known to be humid sometimes a little rain but the majority of the time it is very warm (around 30°).

 

The place where the most markets are found is in Kuta. The streets are filled mainly by little market shops selling many things, including, Louis Vuitton and Gucci immitations that look quite genuine, jewellery and wooden carved goods. If you have a family then Nusa Dua is the place to be, it is an enclosed area with lots of security. The hotels are very child friendly and there are lots of activities to entertain.

 

 

 

 

 

There is also a theme park, Water Bomb Park, it is a great attraction for all ages. It has more than 21 water slides and leisure facilities. It is located in Kuta and is open daily from 6am to 9pm.

 

Bali is a place that is good for relaxation, one of my favourite things to do and that I recommend is, at some point during your trip, take a moment to enjoy a massage. Imagine lying on a beach whilst having massage, it was one of the most relaxing things I have ever experienced.

 

The sunsets are amazing, picture an orange haze casted over the moving sea, reflected off every wave. Half of a glowing radiant light loomed on the water’s horizon. That’s what I was seeing almost every day.

 

 

Nicole Zervos

 

 

Tiffany Douros

Santorini is one of my favourite places that I’ve visited. I hope to go back to one of the most mesmerising islands in the world.

 While the rest of Australia were hiding away from the terrible cold, my family and I enjoyed part of our summer on the Greek island of Santorini. We spent our nights watching the beautiful, romantic sunsets fill the crystal clear blue sky which matched the colour of the ocean.

 

 

There are many things that make this island unique, though the main reason why Santorini is like no other island in the world is because of how it came to be. It is essentially what remains after an enormous volcanic explosion. The main island slopes downward to the Aegean Sea leaving us with incredible views of the sparkling and magical blue ocean. The island is also famously known for its unusual red and black beaches. The Greek Island of Santorini is located in the central south end of the Cyclades in the Aegean Sea.

 

Everywhere you go in Santorini is magical. It has some of the nicest villages and towns, my personal favourite being the town of Oia, for its unforgettable sunsets, little shops and beautiful food. Fira is the capital of the Island and is another beautiful place to visit whilst in Santorini, it is a city of beaming white houses and glorious vistas. It’s also worth visiting The Museum of Prehistoric Fira which gives you some interesting insight on the history of the island.  The island has many other small towns which are less than a 5 minute drive or some even walking distance from one another, and each one is just as beautiful as the other, that is what makes the island so special.

 

Where ever you are in Santorini you are sure to be blown away by your surroundings and pleasantly blinded by the beautiful things around you, you surely won’t be disappointed in what Santorini has to offer!

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Zealand- Waitomo  By Adeja-Rose Puroku

How would it feel being able to look into a night sky whilst it’s day? Or having such and adrenalin rush, water rafting underground? Or to be able to see unforgettable sights that will create memories that will last a life time. There is only one placed you can go to have all this and more. The only place that will give you this experience is Waitomo.

They have the most beautiful caves I have seen in the world and Waitomo is well known for their cave walks but also their glow worm caves. The glow worms light up the cave and it looks like you are traveling through the night sky. It’s an experience that is remarkable, but that’s not the only thing that the Waitomo caves offer, there are many different caves that display ornate cave decorations.

Waitomo’s scenery is not the only thing you should check, but also the Unique Accommodation. I don’t just mean the accommodation is unique but the actual place is known for its unique accommodation.  Waikato Accommodation allows you to either sleep in the Worlds First Hobbit Motel, a 1950’s Bristol Freighter- which is fully refurbished, 1950’s rail car which has also been refurbished or a WW2 Patrol Boat. Now I know it sounds different to a normal place that you could stay at but I can guarantee that the Waikato Accommodation will be worthwhile. The Waikato Accommodation is only located 2 minutes away from the spectacular Waitomo Caves, so traveling there and back isn'tt a problem.

Waitomo is located in the more green and country side of New Zealand and is only 2 hours away Auckland, Rotorua and Taupo by car. It is a beautiful drive there with many green healthy fields. The scenery seen on the way there is really stunning and looks and feels really clean.