Back in the 1940s, getting to London from Australia involved a four-month cruise or a four-day flight that hopped via Darwin to Singapore, Calcutta, Karachi, Cairo, Tripoli and Rome. It was known as the Kangaroo Route. Today you can fly there in 17 hours 30 minutes from Perth. But Graeme Kemlo discovers a 14-day nostalgic nod to the Kangaroo Route in the latest Airbus, A330 300. He speaks with the CEO of Captain’s Choice, Bas Bosschieter.
Photo: The Kangaroo Route 1940s Constellation, supplied by Captain’s ChoiceRead More 

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Flooding rains have caused chaos on the roads in Bali but the good news in Australia’s favourite holiday destination is the streamlining of visas on arrival. Reporter Suzanne Hart says completing the process online before you leave home helps.
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Our Perth-based reporter Carmen Jenner has been in Vietnam where she checked out two of the country’s most popular destinations, Da Nang and the island of Phu Quoc. Carmen tells Graeme Kemlo the best times to go, most interesting experiences available and the good value this destination offers.
She stayed courtesy of Radisson hotels.Read More 

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Carmen Jenner believes the best way to get a taste for a destination is to take a guided street food tour. She recently joined Bangkok Food Tours and shares her tips for where to go and what to try with Graeme Kemlo. More: fluffytowel.com.au
Image Carmen Jenner -Chinatowns Ann Guay Tiew Kua GaiRead More 

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Helen Hayes kicks off the show following her visit last week to ILTM Asia Pacific, the luxury travel expo in Singapore. She reports on the trends in luxury travel, who is travelling, the new affluents and the trends in this sector for 2025/26.Read More 

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One of the headline acts at the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak last week was Earth Wind and Fire, which reporter Carmen Jenner says sounded just the same as the original despite having a number of new members. It was just one of the memorable three-day festival at the Sarawak cultural village on one side of the island of Borneo that belongs to Malaysia. While Carmen has been to the city and the festival before one other highlight was quietly observing a family or orang0utan at the city’s rehabilitation centre…mothers with their young orangs together with other males climbed down from their canopy to spend time on the ground. And the 40 visitors to the reserve just loved the rare encounter. Next year;s event is from June 26 through 28 2026.
Photo: Earth Wind & Fire by Carmen Jenner
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That’s the sound of the Vespa – Love them or hate them, Vespa is undoubtedly an iconic Italian scooter that was incredibly popular prior to the war in Vietnam. And Stephen Mueller should know as he bought and restored 1000 of them after he moved from Hawaii to the south of Vietnam in the late ‘90s. But he knew eventually these scooters would disappear as locals traded up, so Steve pivoted to running tours in Vietnam with a driver provided so guests could sit back and relax amid the chaos that is Saigon’s roads. Niowhe operates a team providing day tours of Saigon (as he calls it), Hoi An, Hue and Hanoi, plus Chiang Mai in Thailand and Siem Reap in Cambodia. He spoke with Graeme Kemlo.
Photo: Steve Mueller on a Vietnam Vespa TourRead More 

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One of the headline acts at the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak last week was Earth Wind and Fire, which reporter Carmen Jenner says sounded just the same as the original despite having a number of new members. It was just one of the memorable three-day festival at the Sarawak cultural village on one side of the island of Borneo that belongs to Malaysia. While Carmen has been to the city and the festival before one her highlight was quietly observing a family or orang0utan at the city’s rehabilitation centre…mothers with their young orangs together with other males climbed down from their canopy to spend time on the ground. And the 40 isitors to the reserve just loved the rare encounter.
More: vivrecatering.com
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And while we’re on the topic of Bali, Graeme Kemlo met up with a very busy Suzanne Hart who has been our correspondent in Bali for six years. Suzanne talked about the latest developments in Bali, including a large new Bali International Hospital, due to open next month in Sanur and its impact on Bali as a medical tourism destination. More than 1.5 million Australians visit Bali every year, making them the largest tourism generators for the island province three hours from Perth and 5 ½ hours from Melbourne.
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Akira Mori is 18th generation family owner of the historic Japanese inn – Ryokan Sakaya – which is ideally located in the mountainous Nozawa Onsen (hot spring) resort area – a haven for guests both in winter and the warmer months. It’s a town where visitors are often seen wearing traditional yukata robes on their walk to and from the hot springs. To stay at his ryokan is an experience in the true sense, far from the typical western style of accommodation. Guests can even help with the harvesting of vegetables for the dinner table as team member and veteran reporter Mike Smith Mike discovered during the interview.
Photo by Mike Smith – Akira Mori and daughter YukimiRead More 

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