Australian Traveller May - July 2022

LET’S FACE IT, everyone has at least one childhood memory that involves a holiday road trip. Packing the car with snacks, “are we there yet?” diversion and even a menagerie of pets and hitting the open road has long been a holiday mainstay for Australian families in search of sun and fun. A rite of passage if you will, to be referenced – for good or bad – in fond family reminiscences through the years. But during the pandemic, with international travel bans and domestic border closures, the humble (some might even say daggy) road trip was rehabilitated to suit the times we were living in. Hitting the road became the ultimate freedom ride, allowing travellers to escape to places they had long heard of but never found the time…

10 HIDDEN-GEM ROAD TRIPS IN VICTORIA Take the road less travelled to find Victoria’s hidden gems. From mountain peaks and pink lakes to lush escarpments and pristine beaches, road-tripping here will leave you awestruck. THE BEST ROAD TRIPS IN SA Explore sinkholes, glowing pink and blue lakes, iconic wine regions and more as you journey through SA along the state’s best road-trip routes. TASMANIA’S BEST SEVEN-DAY ROAD-TRIP ITINERARY Immerse yourself in Tasmania’s extraordinary landscape by taking it on by road. Our itinerary around Australia’s island state will lead you to discovering majestic waterfalls, hiking around glacial lakes, and indulging in gourmet food and wine. LET’S GET DIGITAL Receive travel inspiration for only $13.99 for four issues. Subscribe at shop.australiantraveller.com CONNECT WITH AUSTRALIAN TRAVELLER FACEBOOK: facebook.com/AustTraveller TWITTER: @AustTraveller INSTAGRAM: @AustTraveller PINTEREST: AuTraveller THE ULTIMATE DARWIN TO BROOME ROAD-TRIP ITINERARY Starting in the country’s tropical Top…

AN EPIC REIMAGINING of a classic, Leah Purcell’s The Drover’s Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson is in cinemas now. The internationally acclaimed director and actor chose Australia’s alpine region to shoot the film, enlisting Mark Wareham as director of photography and together capturing the immense scale and beauty of the Australian landscape on location in NSW’s Snowy Mountains. The film features sweeping shots of the region and time-lapse footage by photographic artist Murray Fredericks, who captured this image in the backcountry of the Snowies, not far from Kiandra and Mt Selwyn, in 2019 while location scouting for the movie. “It’s the western side of the ranges that retain their sense of wildness, remaining rugged and relatively un-touristed,” he says. The white trunks are remnants of the bushfires that went through…

SOFITEL MELBOURNE ON COLLINS After an extensive $15 million refurbishment, Sofitel Melbourne on Collins has delivered a luxurious collection of guest rooms that ramp up the brand’s French heritage. Drawing on legendary architect I.M. Pei’s original design for the hotel, the new interiors have an understated minimalism that references his style narratives. Rooms have been installed with state-of-the-art room fixtures, contemporary furniture and carpet and French-inspired photography hung in the traditional French ‘salon’ style. sofitel-melbourne.com.au HOTEL MORRIS Built in 1929 , the West End Hotel at 412 Pitt Street in Sydney held the distinction of being Australia’s tallest hotel for more than 30 years. Now, after an extensive refurbishment program that respects the original early- 20 th-century style (and its distinctive painted wall advertising ), the heritage building has been transformed into the…

Southern Ocean Lodge Ground has been broken at the former site of Southern Ocean Lodge on Kangaroo Island, part of Baillie Lodges’ roster of luxury properties, which was destroyed during the Black Summer fires in 2019–20. All going well, the award-winning lodge will be reinstalled lightly on the island’s dramatic coastal landscape in late 2023. baillielodges.com.au QT Newcastle The first regional hotel from the funksters at QT is set to open imminently in NSW’s second city of Newcastle. Housed within the heritage-listed 113-year-old David Jones building on Hunter Mall, the property will offer up 104 rooms and suites in the brand’s signature quirky style, a destination restaurant and a rooftop bar with views in all directions. qthotels.com/ newcastle voco Brisbane City Centre Situated in the North Quay area of the Queensland capital, the new voco…

MAMMA’S BOY Mammoni is a term applied to single Italian men who are still living at home with their mothers. And mammoni looking to cut the apron strings and embrace independent living might be motivated to do so if they moved into the Quay Quarter and had access to chef Jason Duncan’s cooking. Let’s be clear about this: Bar Mammoni is a bar, but Duncan’s food (pizzetta, whipped ricotta and arancini) is as much of a draw. The bar is House Made Hospitality’s fourth venue in Hinchcliff House, built in the 1860s and named after Andrew Hinchcliff, one of Sydney’s first wool traders. The small bar is located in a newly loved-up laneway at the back of the heritage-laden building, which is also home to fine diner Lana (the Italian word…