By The World Awaits
Where does your wanderlust lead you?
To Melbourne’s cafes or the vast deserts of the Empty Quarter, a New Zealand vineyard or the pavements of New York… what’s your neighbourhood?
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“The thing I like most about Bali is [it’s] like one big resort, and when you go on holiday you leave all your baggage behind… so everyone is enjoying themselves, it’s very optimistic,” says esteemed Australian designer, artist and owner of Pineapple Hill, Stuart Membery.
Stuart, the former head designer of Esprit, now splits his time between Bondi, Australia and Bali, Indonesia. He talks to us about his new boutique luxury Balinese villa, Pineapple Hill, how Bali has changed over the decades and gives us some insider picks of where you should go on your next trip to the Island of the Gods, see stuartmemberyhome.com or instagram.com/pineapplehill_bali/
We also chat about life at sea, with one US residential cruise ship launching a multi-year, around-the-world voyage to 'escape' the incoming US presidency, and we reveal the world’s best vineyards, which includes several in Australia and New Zealand, see worldsbestvineyards.com
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Solo sailor Lisa Blair has sailed around Antarctica not once, but twice, and her book Facing Fear records that first, near-fatal expedition. Lisa has a rack of world records under her belt – just this year alone, she set the fastest time Sydney to Auckland and first woman solo monohull record, slicing an incredible four days off the previous record; and is the first person to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around New Zealand, a feat that took just 17 days.
Having spent so much time on the ocean and seeing the effects of pollution and climate change, she is a powerful advocate for sustainability with the Climate Action Now project and Boating Industry Australia's Sustainability Ambassador. See lisablairsailstheworld.com and the new movie about her adventures, Ice Maiden.
Which do you think are the safest countries to travel? Travel insurer Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection’s research shows some of the best are very, very close to home; bhtp.com/blog/safest-places-to-travel/
And how do you get a bargain in Bali? The Bali Bible shares some tips for getting not the lowest price, but the price that is fair for both you - the buyer - as well as the seller. The trick? To treat haggling as a charming game, see thebalibible.com
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Is the 'Land of the Long White Cloud’ on your travel to-do list? This week, our resident Kiwi, co-host Kirstie Bedford chats about all the reasons you should head to New Zealand’s far north.
From a moving cultural experience to bedding down in the ultimate luxury at Rosewood Kauri Cliffs, pretty Northland ticks many a box and you’ll leave with a new appreciation of this sacred land to Māori, the Indigenous Peoples of Aotearoa, rosewoodhotels.com/en/kauri-cliffs
Belle also takes us on a little detour to one of NSW’s major wine regions, and how long does it take to save for a holiday? Money.com runs the numbers. Finally, a hot tip on how to get a 10-day holiday with only a few days of unpaid leave, thanks to seek.com
Read Kirstie's story about Rosewood Kauri Cliffs, karryon.com.au/luxury/rosewood-kauri-cliffs-northland-new-zealand
And Belle's tips for a Hunter Valley getaway include:
Accommodation @ Cypress Lakes, cypresslakes.com.au
Oud massage @ Elysia spa, elysiaretreat.com.au
Vamp wine rooms by Lisa McGuigan, vampwinerooms.com.au and Make-up & Merlot by The Boys Studio theboysstudio.com
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Love a cruise but just can’t choose?
Cruise expert Honida Beram has sailed the seven seas on more than 50 cruises; she explains the best cruise for you to choose.
Also, Lonely Planet’s annual Best in Travel list – the breakdown of where to travel in 2025 and why, see lonelyplanet.com/best-in-travel
And if you’re heartbroken and footloose, we reveal the best places to travel after a break-up, with travel blogger Miss Tourist giving a ‘heartbreak healing’ score for each destination. misstourist.com
Belle’s reading tip for armchair travel to Savannah, USA; Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil by John Berendt
Kirstie’s tip for the adult-only island resort Likuliku likulikulagoon.com
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“Food is our love language,” says Lima-born chef Alejandro Saravia, who takes us on a culinary adventure through Latin America.
The chef, who recently opened Morena, two Latin American restaurants in Sydney and Melbourne, admits he didn’t like ceviche until he was 18. “It was a sacrilege for a Peruvian. At the same time, I’m not a soccer fanatic. But I learned to love it, and every time I visit Peru, I order beautiful fresh ceviche with lots of citrus and chilli. It’s a dish that makes you happy.”
Listen as Alejandro shares his top tips of where to eat ceviche in Peru, drinking tiger's milk, what a huarique is, and why you should order the classic Peruvian bar snack of anticuchos, ox heart skewers.
Staying on the food theme, which is the best airline food in the air? Money.com spills the beans on the best meal in the skies.
And finally, we list the spookiest tourist attractions around the world, from Edinburgh to Pittsburg; see planetcruise.com/en/top-haunted-hotspots-around-the-world For a deeper dive into Halloween’s origins, Belle chats about Ireland’s ancient celebration, Samhain, and the modern Puca festival, see www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmFQ1R2KVS4 and pucafestival.com
Alejandro Saravia’s top Lima restaurants
Restaurant Sonia, La Rosa Lozano Y Tirado 173, Chorrillos, Lima, Peru
La Mar Cebicheria, Av. Mariscal La Mar 770, Miraflores, Peru, lamarcebicheria.com
Morena Restaurant, GPO, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, and
71 Little Collins St, Melbourne, morenarestaurant.com.au
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Love islands? Australia has thousands of them to choose from, and Emma Shaw, author of Ultimate Islands Escapes (Hardie Grant), can help you find the island of your dreams. From such all-stars as Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays to the far-flung Cocos Keeling Islands, nearly 3000km north-west of Perth, there’s an island to suit every taste and every budget. See hardiegrantgift.com.au; @exploreshaw
Belle and Kirstie also chat about American Express Travel’s annual ‘Trending Destinations’ list – with the top global destination right here in Australia, americanexpress.com
Finally, keep your gut happy when you travel with this great tip. We’re talking the perils of earlybird dining in Spain, and at what time street eats become a bad idea, from Southern Cross Travel Insurance, scti.com.au
And a few notes from the show this week -
Brisbane: Gourmet Traveller magazine’s top restaurant is found in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley – visit Agnes for smoking hot wood-fire cooking, agnesrestaurant.com.au/ More on Brisbane’s new ‘green’ bridges here smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/the-new-global-design-marvels-to-bucket-list-including-two-here-20240830-p5k6m7.html
And Belle’s story on the ethics of swimming with whales here smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/i-swam-australia-s-humpback-highway-but-should-i-have-20240917-p5kbb7.html
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Co-host Belle takes us to Greece and Bulgaria, travelling by rail on a slow food, slow travel journey of these neighbouring countries, eurail.com She travelled on a Eurail pass, which criss-crosses 33 European countries, all without flying. She also gives us a peek at the new Mandarin Oriental Costa Navarino on the Peloponnese peninsula, on the Greek mainland - and it's as glamorous as you would expect! mandarinoriental.com
Also, would you let your 15-year-old train around Europe with their friends? And where's the most popular place to see the sunset in the world? The answer may not surprise you...
Finally, if you have Italian heritage, check out the Italea project, which aims to link people with the villages of their ancestors, see italea.com
Belle's notebook: where to eat and sleep in Greece & Bulgaria's two main cities
BOUTIQUE HOTELS
The Modernist in Athens & Thessaloniki, Greece, themodernisthotels.com
Oborishte63, Sofia, Bulgaria oborishte63.com
Vizualiza Hotel, Plovdiv, Bulgaria vizualizahotel.com
LOCAL RESTAURANTS in Greece & Bulgaria
Vosporos Restaurant & Bar, Larisa, Greece vosporos.gr
Olympos Naoussa (chef is ambassador) Leoforos Nikis 5, 546 24, Thessaloniki, olymposnaoussa.gr
Kourtis Winery, Rachi, Greece kourtiswinery.com & the indigenous pig farmers farma-fotiadi.gr
Sintrofi, Thessaloniki instagramcom/sin_trofi
Pod Lipite, Sofia, podlipitebg.com
Cosmos Restaurant, Sofia cosmosbg.com
Staria Chinar, Sofia, stariachinar.com
Pavaj, Plovdiv facebook.com/pavaj.plovdiv
Aylyakira, Plovdiv aylyakria.com
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Living a nomadic life; the ‘not-hot’ list and airport departure times
Have you ever dreamt of packing it all in and travelling the world? That’s what Tim and Sharyn Nilsen have done and the only retirement plans they have are to keep ticking off the list of countries they visit – well, those that are left.
This week, Sharyn gives some great advice as to how you can do it too.
https://catchourtravelbug.com
We also cover Intrepid Travel’s ‘not-hot’ list, a reaction against overtourism. These are their top picks of the best lesser-known places you need to have on your radar (intrepidtravel.com/au/newsroom/releases/intrepid-releases-2025-not-hot-list) and we have the great debate about what time you should arrive at the airport.
Follow our hosts on Instagram
Kirstie Bedford
Belinda Jackson
Audio production and editing by
Alaisdair Leith
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When was the last time you really soaked up the night sky? Spotted a full moon? Admired the Milky Way? Saw an aurora?
Marnie Ogg joins us to talk about astrotourism. Marnie designs and leads stargazing tours, and she is also the founder of the Australasian Dark Sky Alliance, which educates people about light pollution. So stay with us to learn the best places on Earth to go stargazing, aurora hunting and spotting all sorts of celestial bodies. See darkskytraveller.com.au
We also reveal the best little town in Australia: it's official, with the winner of the Top Tourism Town Awards, and we've got some tips about how to make the best memories when you travel. See toptourismtowns.com.au
Finally, it's giveaway time, thanks to Lonely Planet - win a guidebook to Vietnam, or their new book, Stargazing Around the World: A Tour of the Night Sky. To be in the running, email us at [email protected]
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Would you let yourself be dropped on a remote island, for total solitude? That's explorer and entrepreneur Alvaro Cerezo's job - he drops willing travellers on deserted islands in the most remote corners of the globe.
"We give fake names to protect our islands so they are secret to protect them from mass tourism.. [otherwise] we will destroy the feeling of isolation for the client… so that’s important to us to keep them secret,” he says. See
www.docastaway.com
We also cover off the top new international airline routes from Australia, and we have some tips about how to best take care of yourself while you travel; from Andrea Powis of travellingdivas.com
And a few of our stories up this week:
Read Kirstie's story on Melita Koulmandas of Cambodian retreat Song Saa
Read Belle's story on the next big things in travel: architecture and design
Read Kirstie's story about the All Black running a Sunshine Coast wine bar
and Belle's story about a self-guided hike from Falls Creek to Hotham
And for some hotel inspo, visit mandarinoriental.com
Support the show
Visit us at https://theworldawaits.au
The podcast currently has 74 episodes available.