NEW YORK IS LIKE A MAGNET TO AUSTRALIAN TRAVELLERS

Australians continue their love affair with New York City despite the economy. Aussie visitation to the Big Apple reached nearly 200,000 last year and continues to increase in the face of the slowing global tourism according to Manhattan's Beacon Hotel General Manager, Tom Travers

A 19 year veteran of the 260 room hotel hosts more than 2,000 from down under each year and its rising

Situated on the upper west side one of Manhattans most sought after areas the Beacon Hotel is affordable and the only property in the vicinity with kitchenettes in each room and full kitchen facilities in all the one bedroom suites. Adjoining the hotel on Broadway is the famous Beacon Theatre that like the hotel has just been completely renovated. The theatre has been pulling massive crowds to its shows since the "roaring 20's" and to mark the re-opening in April more top talent with Paul Simon followed by Leonard Cohen and some upcoming acts include the Dalai Lama, Kiss FM, Bob the Builder live, Elvis Costello and Tom Jones.

Just a well judged nine iron shot over Broadway from the Beacon and right into the middle of the ‘Fairway’. It's not a golf course but a sensational delicatessen with take out and eat in and stocked with every food line imaginable. Yes "Deli heaven" for sure!!!. (Also sells booze). Very traditional fare upstairs at the Deli restaurant try the Rueben's sandwich (hot corn beef stacked high) . Take note;- share next time ‘cause they are bigger than the Empire State Building. Trivia buffs need to know that the Fairway Deli sells more than 60 tons of Parmesan cheese annually. How are their arteries going now? The big plus about the area around the Beacon is that one is treated as a New Yorker, not a tourist...that is until you open your mouth!

Central Park continues to be one of the most tourist frequented place in NYC and a highlight is Strawberry Fields across from the Dakota building where Beatle John Lennon was shot in 1980. More than 40 million tourists visit NYC each year and high on their attraction list are the Broadway shows, the Rockerfellow Centre for great views from the top of the Rock, Statue of Liberty, high class shopping on Fifth and Madison Avenue and great bargains at the cheaper end at Ross's and First National next to the currently being re structured twin towers. Be sure to include Radio City Music Hall. This iconic retro building has been restored to its glory days and is a sight to behold. Our visiting group had the chance to go on stage which only happens when there is a lull in showtime. Most shows on Broadway at the moment, have been boilin' for a while, Billy Elliott, Guys and Dolls, Heda Gabbler, Lion King, Mamma Mia, Mary Poppins. We saw Chicago as it was on the half price list. Wanted to see Jersey Boys depicting Frankie Valley and the Four Seasons but that was full price. When in a Jewish neighbourhood act accordingly. Its 25 years since first meeting the big Apple and things have certainly changed for the better, people are much more amiable, talkative and helpful and you can walk or run in Central Park and not get mugged these days. Can't wait to return. As Ol blue eyes says in song "if you can make it there you make it anywhere its up to you New York New York.

With a marked recent increase in carriers and availability from Australia to NYC and such seductive airfares, the lowest in more than 22 years, the floodgates from Oz to NYC will remain open to the max.

Welcome to the Hotel Beacon, a haven of comfort amid the bustling excitement of New York City. Located on the historic Upper West Side, amid tree-lined streets and landmark buildings, the hotel is a beacon for relaxation. Friendly and accommodating, we offer handsomely decorated, oversized guestrooms and suites. With wonderful views of Central Park, the Hudson River and Midtown Manhattan, the Beacon is the perfect vantage point from which to venture anywhere in New York. And when your busy day is done, you'll have a perfect place to come home to.

Orion OPERA UNDER THE STARS® Kimberley voyage 2009

Opera With The Stars Under The Stars

A grand night of operatic proportions awaits guests from the five star expedition cruise ship Orion at the conclusion of its Kimberley Expedition voyage in late August 2009.

Having absorbed the visual drama of the spectacular Kimberley coast with its vast tidal changes, emerging reefs, swirling waters, dramatic waterfalls and prolific marine life, Orion’s guests will be invited to enjoy Broome’s iconic OPERA UNDER THE STARS®, a highlight of Broome's cultural events calendar.

Overlooking Cable Beach, famed for its fiery sunsets, this ‘one night only’ evening provides a delightful contrast of informality countered by uplifting voices of opera singers who have received critical acclaim for performances both at home and overseas.

The musical programme includes the sublime aria “Casta Diva” from Bellini’s Norma, excerpts from Carmen by Bizet as well as duets by Verdi and Delibes.

Be it an impromptu glass of champagne on some remote sand bar, a seafood beach barbeque or an invitation to the opera, these are typical unexpected experiences Orion strives to provide guests on all Orion voyages.

Special offer – save 15% on these prices

10 nights Kimberley Expedition OPERA UNDER THE STARS® voyage

21 August 2009 Darwin/Broome departure only.

Fares begin from $8,790 per person for an ocean view Category B Stateroom.

Suites begin from $12,125 per person for a Junior Suite and Owners Suites with French Balcony are $18,410 per person

Expedition fares are per person twin occupancy include accommodation, all meals, landings and selected activities ashore plus invitation to OPERA UNDER THE STARS® in Broome on Saturday 29th August.

Limited availability.

Further information on Orion Expedition Cruises can be obtained by visiting the website www.orionexpeditions.com

For reservations or to obtain a brochure call Orion Expedition Cruises: 61-2 9033 8777 (Sydney callers) 1300 361 012 (regional and interstate) or your travel agent.
Email: info@orioncruises.com.au

GRIM START TO A SOUTH PACIFIC PARADISE

david Ellis

IF it was any consolation to those French deportees foolhardy enough to misbehave so badly in the one-time penal colony of New Caledonia as to warrant execution, it was that they went to their deaths on one of the most famous guillotines in French history.

Because when it became obvious to the commandant of the prison just outside Noumea that a few of his confinees were more fractious than he had been led to believe, he sent word to Paris asking permission to implement capital punishment upon the worst offenders.

And Paris obliged by delving into its prison armoury and despatching by the next convict sailing ship, the guillotine that had been used in 1793 to execute both Louis XVI and his queen, Marie Antoinette during the French Revolution... just four years, incidentally, after the contraption was refined by the French doctor, Joseph Guillotin.

Many people believe that it was Dr Guillotin who invented the guillotine, but in fact it had been around in various guises since the 14th century, and in England from the 15th century was known as the "Scottish Maiden."

Dr Guillotin was both a medical doctor and lawmaker, and believing that the guillotine was the "most humane" method of execution, was able to convince the government in 1791 to introduce "humane mechanical execution" using the device.

A fellow named Antoine Louis was engaged to build the prototype of Dr Guillotin's refined contraption, and in turn hired German-born Tobias Schmidt to actually build it – believing that Schimdt was ideally suited to this as he was a renowned harpsichord maker.

And some 90-odd years on it must have been a very sobering six-month's journey for those on board that convict ship to New Caledonia as they pondered every day the guillotine lashed to the aft deck...

Just how many convicts fell victim to that guillotine is in somewhat of dispute: official records say a total 27 convicts were executed by guillotine, but just before his death one executioner claimed that he alone had beheaded 74 miscreants.

Whatever the true figure, it was a minuscule proportion of the 18,000 hardened criminals, petty thieves, minor other crooks and political deportees who were transported on thirty-three convoys between 1864 and 1897.

And in their typically meticulous way, the French didn't send just any old rabble on their earliest convoys to New Caledonia: the very first were made up of tradesmen convicts who could build their own stone and timber prison, and the next were those able to read and write and who could work in the prison's and other government offices.

Then came those with agricultural skills who could run farms to feed the growing penal settlement, and after them, anyone France simply wanted to be rid of.

And when sentenced to a future on the other side of the world (and hardly considered a South Pacific holiday playground in those days,) convicts did not only their "time" but had to remain in the colony for an equal number of years as "free men and women."

It was a system that worked very well for France, as most prisoners on their release quickly found work, married and had little reason to bother about returning home. And they quickly established a solid community of largely law-abiding settlers in the sun and freedom outside the prison walls.

The last convicts arrived in New Caledonia from France in 1897, and although the gaol was officially closed in 1914, one long-term deportee with papers marked by the court "Never To Be Released" was shipped to another of France's penal colonies in Guyana in Africa.

The guillotine was moved to a new prison and last used in the 1940s. It is now dislayed in a museum at Bourail 150km north of Noumea. The museum has an interesting collection of photos, documents, work tools, and household and personal items of one-time convicts and prison staff.

[The Hotel Le Lagon Noumea has a current special of stay 4-nights/pay 3-nights including full buffet breakfast on three mornings and a free half-hour massage per person; see travel agents for fly/stay packages available until December 20 if booked by July 31. The hotel has a heated pool, shallow kids pool, two spas and gym with sauna and fitness instructor.]

…………………

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] THE guillotine used to deal out justice in New Caledonia up until the 1940s is on display at the Bourail Museum.

[] HISTORIC photo of a prisoner being led to his end on Noumea's guillotine

[] OLD wares at the Bourail Museum just north of Noumea

[] PICTURESQUE New Caledonia: little wonder few deportees went home to France after their release

Arctic Cruising

Been South? Then, the Arctic is a perfect complement to any southerly expedition and can be as simple as a cruise to Iceland or Greenland or as heroic as a nuclear icebreaker to the North Pole itself.

Generally speaking, there is more of the Arctic accessible to cruising than the Antarctic and, for better or worse, much less regulation.

Any student of geography will know the northern polar icecap is not the huge, deep frozen landmass of its southerly equivalent. The entire Arctic Ocean is the world’s largest slushy, varying in size depending on the season.

The rim of this ocean is the entire northern coast of Russia, the melee of islands and waterways of northern Canada, and the uppermost reaches of Scandinavia. All of this, yes all, hosts ocean cruises of one sort or another.

50 Years of Victory en route to the North Pole

Without doubt, the Holy Grail for polar adventurers are the Poles themselves. If money were no object, you could do both and still have change from US$50k. The North Pole can also be accessed by aircraft, but the signature product of Quark Expeditions is the mighty 50 Years of Victory, a 25,000 tonne, 75,000 horsepower nuclear icebreaker. The journey takes place each July and is 16 days Murmansk to Murmansk.

The other iconic journey, and a regular sellout, is the Northwest Passage from Alaska to Resolute, a regular journey that was impossible until late last century.

Recent scientific reports about retreating glaciers and the thinning ice pack have created some urgency for visitors to this region as they attempt to see the great polar bear in its diminishing natural environment.

Most specialised polar bear cruises take place around the islands of Svalbard, the largest of which is Spitsbergen, just 600 miles from the North Pole itself. Much history also surrounds these islands, being the launching point for many polar expeditions such as the famous airship flights of the 1920s.

Cruise ships in these waters vary enormously. From the 85,000 tonne, 2000 passenger Costa Atlantica to the minnow of the fleet, the M/S Stockholm (pictured) which carries just 12, passengers with all expectations are catered for.

Just like Antarctica, access is only during the brief summer window and most cruises take place between June and September, with July and August the preferred time.

Cruise Lines to Sue Alaska over Tax

Source: Travel Pulse

More than two years after Alaskan voters narrowly approved a measure that would levy a variety of taxes on the cruise industry, including a $50-per-passenger head tax, the cruise industry has adopted a much tougher stance to counter the move. A number of lines have dropped cruises and pulled out ships from the Alaskan market over the past few months. During a press conference yesterday onboard the new Seabourn Odyssey in Venice, Carnival Corp. Chairman Micky Arison (pictured) said his company and the rest of the cruise industry intended to pursue a legal remedy to reverse the head tax. He said Carnival and other lines had actively lobbied against the head tax but had not succeeded in getting Alaskan legislators to eliminate it, so he would soon turn to the courts.

Calling the head tax illegal and unconstitutional, Arison said it was not in the interests of Alaska or its neighbors, citing the harm done to such ports as Vancouver and Seattle. He also said that cruise lines had gotten nowhere with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. “Sarah Palin should stop running for president and focus on Alaskan issues,” Arison said. The head tax proposal was originally championed by activists who felt the cruise industry did not pay enough in taxes to Alaska for environmental protection, emergency services and waterfront infrastructure.

Pearl of a deal for Kimberley cruises

Pearl Sea Coastal Cruises is offering a $500 gift voucher per person at pearl specialist Linneys in Broome as well as a 15 percent discount on 2009 and 2010 Kimberley coast cruises.

This discount price on the seven-day cruises between Broome and Mitchell Plateau is from A$7093 a person (normally $8,345), from $10,280 (normally from $12,095) for the 13-day Broome-Wyndham cruises and from $4250 (normally from $5000) for the five-day Broome-Broome cruises.

Prices include a light aircraft and helicopter flight between Broome and the Mitchell Plateau (on 7-day cruises), private cabin with ensuite bathroom, full use of the vessel, guided land and water excursions and all chef-prepared meals served on the shady stern deck or in the air-conditioned lounge.

Rates for 2010 are the same as 2009.

Cruises operate during March to October.

Cruising is on board the 25-metre Kimberley Quest II, equipped with a spa on the deck and helipad for scenic flights.

The Kimberley Quest II has only nine double cabins, with a choice of four styles.

Cruise highlights are the Horizontal Waterfalls, the spectacular islands of the Buccaneer Archipelago, King Cascades, Montgomery Reef and the King George Falls, guided scenic tender rides gorges, a myriad of inlets, estuaries and unnamed creek systems, ancient art sites and colonial settlement ruins.

Email cruise@kimberleyquest.com.au or see www.kimberleyquest.com.au

Top 5 reasons why you both should experience magical Greenland cruise this season

MyPlanet has introduced a '2 passengers for the price of 1' offer on their Disco Bay Greenland Cruise. The tour takes you into the very heart of the magnificent wilderness cruising through the enormous fjord systems of West Greenland visiting the small communities that call this natural wonderland home. MyPlanet's Managing Director Glenyce Johnson gives Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Consider Travelling to Greenland this season.

1. "The special "2 passengers for the price of 1" is now valid until sold out and you also receive two optional shore excursions free."

2."The Cruise gives you a unique experience to see the largest, and one of the most pristine, islands in the world; a land of awe inspiring fjords, lush green valleys, rugged mountains, massive glaciers and icebergs the size of cathedrals. "

3. "Greenland is loaded with wildlife – polar bears, seals, walrus, reindeer, musk oxen; a destination where nature has gone wild to create a land of incredible beauty."

4." You will walk through Inuit towns and flower covered hills, look to the skies filled with migrating birds - this is western Greenland at its best. Pause on a hike in Greenland and enjoy the sound of silence."

5. "You will visit the town of Ilulissat (literally meaning iceberg in Greenlandic). Icebergs are on its doorstep, running aground at the entrance of the fjord. This ice fjord, home to the Inuit people for over 3000 years, was UNESCO World Heritage listed in 2004."

MyPlanet's nine day Disko Bay Cruise on board MS Fram is priced from $7,120 for two people, twin share in an I2 cabin grade. The package includes all meals and return flights from Copenhagen to Greenland. Cruise departures between June and September 2009.

For bookings and more information please call MyPlanet 1800 221 712 or email: enquiry@myplanetaustralia.com or visit www.myplanetaustralia.com.au

MyPlanet Australia, the leading travel company for Scandinavia, Russia and the Baltic's have an extensive cruise and tour program for 2009-2010 seasons. The program is a smorgasbord of independent and escorted tours and cruises, activity tours and sightseeing for the region all year round. Tour programs also feature Finland, Iceland, Ukraine and as a new destination, Poland. MyPlanet Australia Pty Ltd operates as a retail arm for MyBentours; a wholesaler and cruise specialist for the Australian and New Zealand travel industry. MyPlanet Australia Pty Ltd (trading as MyBentours and MyPlanet) is the Preferred Sales Agent (PSA) for Hurtigruten Group, and General Sales Agent (GSA) for Icelandair and Gota Canal in Australia and New Zealand. MyPlanet is part of TUI Travel PLC.