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Captain Cook Cruises will showcase some of Australia’s finest food, wine and liquor in its Gold Lunch cruise series for 2020, each cruise offering a six-course menu, paired with wines and beautiful harbour views.

Harbour Spice, Paddock & Claw, Aqua Fizz, Cut Above and Vino Botte make up the 10 cruises which will held on board the flagship MV Sydney 2000.

Harbour Spice pairs Asian cuisine favourites with ales and wines and departs Sunday 23 February 2020.

Paddock & Claw celebrates Australian beef and shellfish paired with cocktails and wine and departs Friday 20 March and 7 August 2020.

Aqua Fizz combines seafood and sparkling wines and departs Sunday 05 April and 13 September and Thursday 3 December 2020.

Cut Above partners the finest Australian beef and wine and will be held on Friday 1 May and 16 October 2020.

Vino Botte takes the best rustic Italian food and pairs it with the best wines and departs Sunday 28 June and 15 November 2020.

Premium food and beverage suppliers from across Australia will share secrets of their success.

The 2020 Gold Lunch Series cruises depart 12 noon from King St Wharf No 1, returning at 3.30pm, and an ‘Early Bird’ special of only $129 per person is available online compared with the normal $169 per person.

Visit www.captaincook.com.au.

The Flinders Ranges: spectacular peaks, rugged gorges and the rich desert colours.

Australian Walking Holidays has added a new nine-day ‘Flinders Ranges Artist Expedition’ to its line-up.

The escort is experienced teacher and artist, Michael Herron, and the tour features the area’s spectacular peaks, rugged gorges and the rich desert colours.

Under Herron’s guidance, aspiring and accomplished artists will have ample opportunity to practice painting skills on this carefully crafted itinerary.

The trip balances challenge and discovery in the Outback with wonderful opportunities to savour the vibrant colours of one of Australia’s most picturesque and distinctive landscapes.

Visit www.australianwalkingholidays.com.

 A loft-style one-bedroom apartment at Metro Apartments on Darling Harbour: available with a Sydney-attractions family pass.

Metro Apartments on Darling Harbour is offering a ‘Sydney Attractions Package’, including a Sydney-attractions family pass and a kids’ goodies pack on arrival, from $269 per night in a loft-style one-bedroom apartment Sunday through to Thursday, increasing to $369 Fridays and Saturdays.

Also, kids under-12 stay free.

The pass includes admission for two adults and two children (under 12) to a choice of any two attractions including: Sydney Tower Eye; Sea Life Sydney Aquarium; Madame Tussauds; Wild Life Sydney Zoo; Manly Sea Life Sanctuary.

The offer includes complimentary wifi, guaranteed early check in at 1pm and late check out at 11am.

The offer is not available over special-event periods and is based on a minimum two-night stay.

Visit www.metrohotels.com.au.

Western Australia’s new museum: a landmark building. Image: courtesy of Multiplex.

Western Australia’s new museum will open in late 2020 in the heart of Perth’s cultural centre.

The landmark building will showcase the State’s extraordinary people, places, culture and stories in one world-class facility.

The dramatic design of the building takes inspiration from WA’s iconic land formations, such as Nature’s Window in Kalbarri, objects from the State Museum collection, and key moments in WA history.

The exhibitions are presented with visitor experiences, innovative technology and dynamic display methods and include a strong focus on Aboriginal and multicultural stories.

To top off a state-of-the-art build, an iconic 24-metre blue whale skeleton will return in a spectacular new display.

Visit www.oma.eu.

 Rottnest Island. Image: Garry Norris.

With its 63 secluded white sandy beaches and 20 bays, it’s easy to see why the people of Perth proudly declare Rottnest Island their very own island paradise — especially as it’s located just a 30-minute ferry ride from Perth’s coast.

A redevelopment of Hotel Rottnest, which overlooks Thomson Bay, will see it double in size to 17,800 square metres by 2021, adding 80 rooms to its current offering of 18.

The hotel will be re-branded as Hotel Rottnest Resort and will include four pools, a restaurant, large function space, and beach club.

This will be a welcome addition to the island, which saw the opening of Discovery Rottnest Island in 2019 – a contemporary and environmentally-conscious accommodation comprising 83 low-impact tents, nestled a few steps away from Pinky Beach.

The island will welcome several new tourism offerings this summer, including Rottnest Cruises’ ‘Hooked on Rotto’ and ‘Cast & Crew Sundowner’; a sunset sail with Charter 1; skydive and transfer package with Skydive Geronimo; daily island transfers with Swan River Seaplanes; new water adventures with Aquaplay Rottnest; and food trucks at some of the island’s most visited locations, including West End and Wadjemup Lighthouse.

 Salamanca Wharf Hotel.

This May, Marta Dusseldorp is performing in The Bleeding Tree in Australia’s newest theatre, which is attached to Australia’s oldest theatre, Hobart’s Theatre Royal.

The backstage pass guest receive as part of this deal will not only get them premium seats, it will also get them into her dressing room and onto the stage after the show.

Guests will stay two nights at Salamanca Wharf Hotel.

Marta Dusseldorp stars as the vengeful matriarch in this defiant, Australian, blackly comic tale of survival. When a family is driven to breaking point, there is no telling where their vengeance will lead them.

Cost of a Premium-Apartment deal is $650, including two nights accommodation, bottle of sparkling wine, two premium tickets to the play and two backstage passes to meet Marta.

Accommodation can be upgraded to a Loft Penthouse for $850.

Visit www.salamancawharfhotel.com.

 Double Bay: is this more Sydney than the Bridge or Opera House?

InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, one of the world’s largest luxury hotel brands, has launched InterContinental ICons, inviting a global conversation to help travellers uncover the true essence of some of the world’s most exhilarating cities after its research indicated that four in five luxury travellers want to experience cities ‘like a local’.

While Sydney’s Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House topped the list of heavily posted Australian sites, 65 per cent of Australian travellers feel the destinations are over-exposed.

Only 39 per cent of Sydneysiders felt tourists actually saw and experienced what Sydney truly had to offer, including where to discover the melting pot of cuisines across Sydney’s food scene, or the unmissable smells reminiscent of a Sunday afternoon barbeque at Bronte Beach.

A global panel of judges, including Australian artist and collector Dina Broadhurst and National Geographic Photographer Charlie Hamilton James, will lend their expertise to curating the top five InterContinental ICons in each city.

Visit www.intercontinental.com.

 Oceania’s Regatta: a new look.

Oceania Cruises has welcomed its recently refurbished Regatta to Australia, now the cruise line’s second largest global market and from where Regatta will sail a variety of itineraries over the next few months.

Following in the footsteps of Insignia and Sirena, Regatta has undergone a rejuvenation as part of the line’s OceaniaNEXT initiative.

Highlights of Regatta’s refurbishment include: reimagined menus featuring more authentic regional flavours and local wines; transformed public spaces; refurbished restaurants and lounges featuring fresh furniture, lighting and ocean-inspired colour palettes; and brand-new staterooms and suites.

All accommodation on board Insignia, Regatta and Sirena has emerged with new bathrooms, closets, desks and vanities, sofas, chairs and tables, lighting and mirrors, upholstery, carpets and drapes, and state-of-the-art technology including interactive TV systems and USB ports.

Visit www.oceaniacruises.com.

 Scotland: rugged ruins add to the mystique of world-famous distilleries.

Rugged ruins, ancient villages, world-famous distilleries and whales are just some of the highlights of an Adventure Canada expedition voyage of Scotland in 2021.

Also, there is the offer of a 15 per cent earlybird saving on the ‘Scotland Slowly’ cruise as well as a free night’s accommodation, meaning couples can save up to US$4000 if they book by June 1, 2020.

As well, no solo supplement will be charged for single travellers in selected cabin categories.

Highlights of the 10-night cruise’ which begins in Glasgow on board the 198-passenger Ocean Endeavour, include Scotland’s wildest, farthest-flung islands – the Hebrides, Orkneys and the Shetlands.

Visit the Norse town of Kirkwall, filled with rugged ruins, and stop at Foula, the most remote, inhabited island in Great Britain, with a population of just 30 people.

Guests will also have an opportunity to purchase the world-famous Harris Tweed, which is hand-woven from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides Islands.

Prices start at US$7050 per person twin-share.

Visit www.cruisetraveller.com.au.

 The KK Collection’s Kahanda Kanda.

Uncover the some of the best of Sri Lanka with The Unique Sri Lanka Collection’s new pay-two, stay-three.

Ranging from national parks to tea covered hillsides, members of The Unique Sri Lanka Collection include The KK Collection, Why House, Teardrop Hotels, Manor House Concepts and Water Garden Sigiriya.

Explore the lesser-trod temples, trails and jungle on the outskirts of Kandy, spend time on the relaxing west coast at stylish Kumu Beach, visit Sigiriya, Dambulla and other Cultural Triangle World Heritage Sites, wander around the colonial-era Dutch Fort of Galle, and indulge in shopping and dining in Colombo.

The offer is valid until July 1.

Visit www.srilankacollection.com.