TOUR
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INDIA
Save $1500 a person on this Mantra Big 5 Safari Private Tour. The tour starts in Delhi before moving on to India's six Premier National Parks in search of the Asian Big Five.
The package includes game drives, most meals, transfers, and accommodation.
The discount price is $5999 a person twin share. Book and pay deposit by May 20 for travel October 2016-April next year. Blackout periods apply. Phone 1300 036 782. See mantrawild.com.au.
NAMIBIA
Save $650 on a safari in the Skeleton Coast National Park, one of the most remote areas of the Kaokoveld. Stay at the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp, with game drives and nature walks.
Included is four-star tented accommodation, all meals and local drinks, and transfers in Windhoek. The price is $3745 a person twin share for travel April 27-June 14 and November 1-December 19.
Phone 1300 237 422 and quote "Skeleton Coast Safari". See benchinternational.com.au.
ISLAND
MAURITIUS
This package for Outrigger Mauritius Beach Resort includes return airfares from Australia, all meals and six nights accommodation. Honeymooners get some great add-ons and one child up to 12 stays and eats for free.
$2600 a person from the east coast and Adelaide and $2050 ex Perth. On sale till June 30 for travel May 10-September 30. Phone 1300 362 166. See aboveandbeyondholidays.com.au.
PHUKET
Enjoy a seven-night holiday at The Village Coconut Island in Phuket with lots of great inclusions. The Village Coconut Island is a Thai island resort with its own beachfront on Phang Nga Bay.
Bonuses include unlimited gourmet dining (breakfast, lunch, dinners every day), unlimited beer, wine and cocktails, airport pickup, lots of spa treatments, day trips and more. All up, it's worth more than $4000 but pay $999 an adult twin-share.
The deal is on sale until May 14, for travel until October 2017 with minimal blackout periods applying. Phone 1300 889 900. See LuxuryEscapes.com.
FAMILY
CANBERRA
Spend two nights at the new Vibe Hotel Canberra Airport and get family passes to The National Zoo & Aquarium and Questacon.
The package includes two nights' accommodation and breakfast daily for a family of four plus $180 of family passes to the attractions.
The package price is $649. Valid for sale and stays until April 24, 2017. Blackout dates may apply. See tfehotels.com.
GALAPAGOS
Take teenagers 15 and over on the trip of a lifetime with this affordable tour of the Galapagos, now $150 a person off.
Departing from Baltra, the seven-day tour visits Isla Isabela, Santa Cruz Island, Isla San Cristobal and finishes in San Cristobal. It includes four nights in hotel and two nights in hostel accommodation.
From $1119 a person twin share. Valid for sale until May 14 for departures before December 15.
Phone 1300 021 123. See myadventurestore.com.
CRUISE
FRANCE
Save $1000 a person on Collette's 12-day Timeless France tour from Alsace to the French Riviera. It includes a five-day cruise along the Saone and Rhone rivers from Lyon to Provence, a night's hotel accommodation in Frankfurt, two in Antibes and three in beautiful Strasbourg plus meals.
From $3809 a person twin share for the June 26 departure. It's on sale until May 31. Phone 1300 792 195. See gocollette.com.au.
EUROPE
Tempo Holidays has a two-for-one last-minute sale on cabins across a range of 2016 river cruises.
For example, the deal applies to the eight-day Classical Rhine which goes from Basel, Switzerland, to Amsterdam at the North Sea, travelling through four countries with highlights including the vineyards along the Moselle.
Under the sale, prices start from $2201 for two people. Departures applicable are June 2, September 5 and October 27 this year.
Phone 1300 362 844. See tempoholidays.com.
HOTEL
SYDNEY
Holiday Inn Express Sydney Macquarie Park, Holiday Inn Macquarie Park is the first Holiday Inn Express in Australia. The rate includes Wi-Fi, express breakfast and self-service business centre and laundry.
Special opening rates from $146 a night in a Queen Standard Room for weekend stays, valid for booking and travel until October 31. See www.holidayinnexpress.com/macquariepark.
SINGAPORE
Take a long weekend in Singapore with three nights for the price of two at the Grand Park Orchard hotel. The package includes three nights in a Deluxe Room, breakfast daily, 20 per cent food and beverage discount and return airport transfers.
From $420 a person twin share Friday-Sunday, for select travel periods until February 26, 2017. On sale till May 31. Phone 1300 883 887. See travelonline.com.
All travellers heading for the US need to complete an online Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) form but be sure to go to the official ESTA site – the charge is just $US14 but there are scam sites about and they charge far more.esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/.
THE BIG ISSUE
Star Ratings Gold List
By Michael Gebicki
Star Ratings Australia has just released its Gold List of Australian accommodation, determined by more than 200 criteria ranked by Australian travellers according to what matters most to them in their choice of where to stay. As well as a best-dressed list, this is a benchmarking exercise that takes a wide-angle view of Australia's accommodation industry, from five-star city hotels to serviced apartments, country B&Bs to island resorts to caravan parks.
Does it matter? At a time when TripAdvisor has become the go-to resource for travellers looking to book accommodation, do star ratings still hold currency?
"It's not a case of either/or," says Michael Reed, CEO of Star Ratings Australia. "TripAdvisor is often one of the websites that travellers use whilst researching accommodation, and Star Ratings work in tandem with these reviews to ensure travellers get a complete picture."
In fact, Sweeney cites research suggesting "85 per cent of Australian travellers use stars when choosing accommodation".
One of the surprises revealed on the 2016 Gold List is the power play by the Sunshine State. Brisbane accounted for over a third of the capital city Gold List winners and 60 per cent of the Gold List winners for best serviced apartments.
"A few years ago Brisbane had a shortage of hotel rooms," says Reed. "Since then the city has attracted an influx of accommodation providers who have built brand new complexes which cater to the increasingly discerning traveller … Out of the new properties that have been built and those that have been renovated, serviced apartments have been particularly responsive in adapting to the needs of the travellers."
Regional accommodation is another rising force, with country Victoria accounting for nearly a third of Australia's best hotels in the Star Ratings.
See the Star Ratings Gold List at www.starratings.com.au/search/gold-list/national.