All posts filed under: Travel

Exploring new destinations

Dublin Cool: The Dean

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We were in Dublin for a good time, not a long time, so The Dean was the perfect place to elevate our stay in one of the coolest cities in Europe. As much as we would have loved to stay longer to linger on the rooftop balcony over a few Guinesses and try the brunch menu at Sophie’s upstairs, or sample an Irish whisky at the entry bar, we found this place helped us to stay in style, while also hopping about Dublin easily. Definitely a superior crash pad, and one that we imagine would have some pretty awesome post-rock show parties. The Dean was so damn great because of the attention to detail – the room card that was ‘The Key to A Deadly Time’, the cheeky do not disturb signs, the Smeg fridge and subway tiles in the bathroom, the vinyl player with well curated records (Chemical Brothers! Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks!), the craft beers and ciders and boutique snacks not to mention barber products, the punchy prints, bright rug and those blue …

36 Hours in Bangkok

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I was all gearing up to host my Wanderlust 5 year anniversary show on Bondi Beach Radio when I got a call from AirAsia – want to come to Bangkok next week to help celebrate the fact we’ve flow half a billion passengers? I hit pause on the playlist prep, packed my passport and that was that. Show? What show?! Arriving in Bangkok, after getting a pretty decent sleep on a Premium Flatbed (which, BTW, is the way forward when it comes to flying overnight to Asia), I was reminded of the few days I had spent in the Thai capital many years before. There was the chokey traffic and wide, in-progress highways, as well as humidity and haze, but as the cityscape flickers by you also glimpse the tops of Buddhist temples and signs with curly-edged Thai script. It has an exciting energy and I couldn’t wait to see how much I could ram into a short (two days and one night!) stay. Shopping at Siam Square I’d been reading about the cutting-edge fashion …

The Garden Isle: Kauai, Hawaii

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The most spectacular green-ridged peaks, lazy ocean-side walks, canyons, food trucks and palm trees everywhere you gaze: Kauai is proper paradise. By law, no building can be higher than the highest coconut tree, which means you see lush vegetation and sky wherever you look – gaining it the name of the Garden Isle, which is apt my friends, very apt. We stayed on the south end of the island at Koa Kea Resort near Poipu Beach, so all of the exploring mentioned below began by driving north, usually through Old Koloa Town. Old Koloa Town When heading through the South (or exiting to explore North as we commonly were), it’s worth a stop off at Old Koloa Town, even if just for the coffee – seriously the best we found on the island! This is an old sugar plantation town from the 1830s, and the best way to arrive is through Malahui Road where you’ll drive beneath a luscious green Tree Tunnel. But back to the coffee – Aloha Roastery sits in the Waikomo courtyard …

STAY: Koa Kea Resort, Kauai, Hawaii

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Choosing to stay on Kauai was easy. Choosing somewhere to stay on Kauai was hard. There are the Marriotts, Hyatts, Sheratons of the world which I wasn’t that interested by, and then I was very tempted by The Palmwood, but given it was our honeymoon, we actually wanted to sip cocktails by the pool if we so chose to, so the B&B vibe was less what we were going for. The pick of the bunch seemed the St Regis Princeville which is on the North Shore (which we discovered was our fave part of the island), but holy shit dude it be expensive! So, we opted for the Koa Kea Hotel and Resort which is a resort, but a slightly smaller resort and pretty perfect for what we were after. Situated on the south of Kauai, the Hawaiian island known as the Garden Isle – which is the luscious green paradise that this implies (check out this post on our helicopter ride over the island to see just how green) – Koa Kea sits next …

Sydney Weekend Getaway: Ettalong

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Determined to explore more of Sydney and surrounds by water, we escaped the city for the Central Coast by ferry from Palm Beach. A rather beautiful way to spend a sunny summer birthday weekend. First stop was The Boathouse at Palm Beach, but as is typical, we didn’t really leave enough time, so just had a little squizz, found non-metered parking (outside The Boathouse Home), and walked over the hill and down to the ferry wharf, knowing we would dine as soon as we docked on the other side. The ferry trip only takes around 25 minutes from Palm Beach Wharf and is done through FantaSea Cruising. You can get your ticket on board. We were blessed with a stunning day so the water passage of this trip was just one big tempting swim land. Sitting inside was never considered. We sat on the back lower deck and jumped up often to hang over the rails and watch as the ferry went past bush-covered land and little inlets. It felt miles away from Sydney. It was sizzlingly …