Cycle your way through South Australia with professionals | Tour Down Under | by DMC Australia

19-26 January  2014
See the WorldTour pro cycling teams race in South Australia for UCI WorldTour points and the Santos Ochre Leader's Jersey. 

This is the first stop on the world cycling calendar and the Santos Tour Down Under is sure to kick off the cycling year in exhilarating style.

The biggest cycling race in the southern hemisphere is a week-long event that brings the top WorldTour professional cycling teams to race on the streets of Adelaide and regional South Australia each January. Up for grabs are important UCI WorldTour points and the Santos Ochre Leaders Jersey.

Would like to try to join the professionals. It's now or never. Let us know, we are here to help with you travel to Australia.

Brand-new uniforms for Qantas staff. Travelling between Australia and Europe became even more stylish.

Qantas unveiled the fruit of a year-long labour: brand-new uniforms for 12,600 uniformed staff. But who is the guy behind the design work...

At 15 he dropped out of High School, at 16 he launched his own ready-to-wear fashion line, at 18 he was featured in Vogue Australia and at 20 he became the Cointreau young designer of the year.
And it doesn't stop here of course as after he moved to Paris he took the world by storm.
His immense success even allowed him to politely turn down an offer from Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton to take charge of its fashion label Celine. 

Source: AFP

Here is the whole story and why Martin Grant got involved in Qantas project http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/features/going-like-blazers/story-e6frg8io-1226611494527

True Australian experience - get cuddly with an Australian favourite: koala

Have you ever touched a koala? If you plan to travel to Australia, to pat a koala seems on par with  having a Vegemite sandwich, spotting a kangaroo in the wild or getting a sunburn.

One of the places in Australia to cuddle a koala is at Port Macquarie’s Koala Hospital – a renowned koala hotspot on the NSW mid-north coast. This hospital is the only one of its kind in the world dedicated solely to the care of wild koalas as well as being the world’s leading koala research centre.

You can also join the stunning 9km coastal walk that stretches south along the wild, windswept coast to the Sea Acres Rainforest Centre. Pass through a string of white sandy beaches punctuated by rocky outcrops linked by wooden walkways and staircases. It takes about an hour but the scenery is so breathtaking that you will hardly notice any time has passed as you arrive at Sea Acres, the second largest coastal rainforest reserve in the state. There is a good chance of spotting koalas, along with flying foxes, ospreys and other creatures in the rainforest.

Travel to Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park for one of three daily koala talks, where you get a chance to have your photo taken with – and pat! – the cuddly marsupials.
The park, which in recent years has expanded its menagerie to include spider monkeys, a crocodile, reptiles, albino kangaroos, snow leopards and more, also functions as a koala breeding centre. Owner Mark Stone holds 20 koalas at any given time, passing them on to zoos throughout NSW, Victoria and Queensland to enhance their breeding programs.
This Australian experience is sure to make you feel just like the creatures –warm, fuzzy and, most importantly, like a true-blue Aussie.

Walk & Talk tours at the Koala Hospital are free, 3pm daily. Macquarie Nature Reserve, Lord Street, (02) 6584 1522, koalahospital.org.au.

Guided tours at Sea Acres Rainforest Centre are included in the boardwalk entry price: adults $8, children $4, open 9am-4.30pm daily. Pacific Drive, (02) 6582 3355, nationalparks.nsw.gov.au.

Koala shows at Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park are included in the entry price: adults $22.50, children $13, daily at 10.30am, 1.30pm and 3.30pm. The park is open 9am-5pm daily. 61 Billabong Drive, (02) 6585 1060, billabongkoala.com.au.

Ultimate Journey from London to Sydney by Private Jet

A truly rare opportunity to travel in luxury of the private jet without the need of owning your aircraft. Journey across the world with other like minded travellers in comfort of private jet's plush leather interior with stops in the world's most interesting destinations. View full itinerary of the ultimate journey from London to Sydney.

Here are just a few highlights you will get to experience while you journey to Australia by private jet.

Explore the ancient walled city of Dubrovnik, with marble streets and baroque buildings that exude a pearly light in the Adriatic sun. 

Discover Udaipur, the medieval town considered one of India’s most beautiful places set around a patchwork of lakes, and ringed by low hills.










Relax in the stunning Oberoi in Lombok, a hideaway with acres of tropical gardens, shimmering ocean and golden sands along a private beach.









 
Visit the Orangutan Sanctuary where captive orangutans are reintroduced into the wild. You will be able to observe them at their feeding stations in the rainforest

See some of Australia’s most iconic destinations including Cable Beach, Broome, Ayers Rock and Sydney




View full list of experiences of this ultimate journey from London to Sydney by Private Jet

Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is a place reserved for the fortunate few

Little wonder this island consistently makes the Top 10 Hotels of the World list. The beaches of this Great Barrier Reef island resort are plentiful, 24 in all, with fine powdery white sand, undisturbed but for the occasional footprints.

Queensland nature photographer Adam Gormley gives a snapshot of the beauty of Lizard Island, through his amazing images and experiences exploring the area.

  The tropical paradise, secluded from the rest of the world. Lizard Island is the Northern most beach resort in Australia, and boy it is fantastic!











Can you think of a better place to sit, relax and watch the beauty of nature as the full moon sets? Yes I know, this is too early in the morning for most people, but it's well worth getting up early on a full moon, especially when you’re in a paradise like Lizard Island

Mermaid Cove, Lizard Island

It has to be the most fitting name for this beautiful cove beach on Lizard Island. If you do visit Lizard Island, do yourself a favour and order a packed picnic lunch, jump on a tinnie and it's a 20 minute trip. You'll most probably have the whole cove to yourself, with nothing but the coral sea on the horizon.


  
This amazing juvenile Barramundi Cod was photographed just off Lizard Island, in Watsons Bay. They call this area the Giant Clam fields, and there are hundreds of the clams










Let us know if you would like to explore this part of Great Barrier Reef and we will help you to customize your trip to Australia.

The Best Coral Reefs in Australia

If you are after Australia's most amazing scenery, you can definitely find some of it beneath the waves. Here are some recommendations put together by Australian Geographic

 1 Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia
About 1055km north of Perth, this park is home to the largest fringing coral reef in Australia. Swim among whale sharks, the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef's most famous regular visitors, when they arrive in April for the coral-spawning season.

2 Rottnest Island, Marine Reserve,
Western Australia
Scalyfins, nudibranchs and Western Australian dhufish are just some of the many marine creatures gracing the reefs near Rottnest Island, 25km off the coast of Perth. Snorkel at the coral communities near one of the island's secluded beaches, or join a guided diving tour to see the surrounding reef's treasures.

3 Solitary Islands Marine Park, NSWMore than 550 species of reef fish, 90 species of hard coral and 600 species of mollusc have been identified in the 72200ha park. The first marine park established in NSW, Solitary Islands is home to a range of habitats - open ocean, estuaries, beaches and subtidal reefs.

4 Ribbon Number Three Reef, QLDLocated in the north of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, this 1100ha outer-shelf ribbon reef has benefited from its remoteness. At Steve's Bommie dive site you can see minke whales, barracuda and batfish between June and August, and other species like whitetip reef sharks and blue-stripe snapper year-round.

 

5 Green Island National Park, QLDJust 27km offshore from Cairns, this is a popular place to explore reefs in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Snorkel near the fragile, branching corals in the sheltered lagoon, or see almost 200 varieties of hard coral and more than 100 types of soft coral from a glass-bottomed boat.

Here are many more places in Australia perfect for nature lovers.

Iconic Australia in photos

If you are planning a trip to Australia or already decided to go to Australia, here are some photos to inspire you to see and experience this amazing country.
 
"Ta-da!" | Uluru, Northern Territory, Australia



 "Well, it has been a very long week" | Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia


 
Only in Australia.... | Birdsville, Queensland, Australia



Sydney Skyline | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia


 
"The coast is clear!" | Kings Canyon, Northern Territory, Australia
 
 

Sydney Harbour Lights Up | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia


 
Simply stunning |  Bunker Bay, Western Australia


 
"Road-trip time!" | Going across the Nullarbor on the Eyre Highway, Western Australia



"Come on Mum, let me out!" | Cleland Wildlife Park, South Australia