Two minutes on land proves the point but tourist maps press the case in bold print, just in case.

But wait a minute. How do you know your credit card is giving you the best transfer deal on frequent-flyer points? Is blowing those points on a return trip to Perth the best value you can get out of them, or would they be better saved for an international flight?

Briohny Gillespie, 21, Katherine Govey, 23, Adrienne Tawagi, 24 and Sophie Lane, 22, were ready to embark on their six-week backpacking venture around South-East Asia on Friday, the Northern Territory News reported .

They were expecting to catch a flight to Bangkok yesterday, and... Read More

Two Belgian entrepreneurs, David Ghysels and Stefan Kerkhofs, have come up with a way to host a dinner party while suspending diners 50m above the ground.

The Dinner in the Sky 'restaurant' has already served diners in Paris, Brussels, Lisbon and London.

"It's a very creati... Read More

THE male impotence drug Viagra may be useful for treating jetlag and shift work as well, according to Argentine researchers who gave it to hamsters made to feel like rodent globe-trotters.

In those days, when it was not unheard of to travel for up to 20 hours, passengers sat around in comfortable lounges, dined on elaborately prepared meals at tables covered with white linen, then retired to the luxury of private sleeping cabins.

Airlines fuel surcharges have all but destroyed the mega-cheap airfare, while petrol price hikes are forcing Aussies to holiday at home, literally, rather than hitting the open road.

Work on a $700 million domestic terminal expansion and a $1 billion parallel runway were due for completion by 2015 but are likely to be pushed back by several years.

Yes, the days are shorter and colder, but with a big warm coat, hat and gloves – and good boots – there's nothing more spectacular and romantic than wandering through these cities which are adorned with lights, and often piped music in the streets, creating an atmosphere that's... Read More

The A(H1N1) outbreak in Mexico, from which 58 have died, has sparked mass cancelations of tourist bookings to one of the world's top tourist destinations.

It will become an increasingly important destination for Australian tourists, with the incredibly cheap packages offered by Vietnam Airlines and, more recently, Jetstar.

The country Australia was once at war with has the potential to become our most popular Asian destination.

It... Read More

Even more amazingly, among the native pine woods of the Mt Remarkable National Park live grandma, the big bad wolf and a little girl wearing a red riding hood.

Second to none in appeal is the 150km finger of sand separating South Australia's famed Coorong from the Southern Ocean.

Turn on to the sand at Kingston S.E. and head northwest towards the mouth of the Murray River and the feeling of freedom is like opening a sunroof in your head.

"It was just 'bam' - you just saw something come down and hit the hood," driver Charles Everson told the Wenatchee World newspaper.

The Eversons were not injured but the cow had to be put down at the scene of the accident near the town of Manson, Deutsche Presse-Agentur... Read More

The airline said that customers need more time to transfer their frequent flyer points after many experienced problems completing the change.

AUSTRALIAN airports could join the rest of the world in screening passengers returning from swine flu affected areas.

Health Minister Nicola Roxon said passenger screening at Australian airports could be in place "in the next few days".

The Government will make a decisi... Read More

Baring her impossibly perfect teeth, she shouts at her man in a voice that rises above the cacophony of the slot machines in Las Vegas's Bellagio Hotel.

Few people look up. Sad... Read More

Tourism in Iraq? More hotels in a country whose name evokes images of truck bombs and mayhem, kidnappings and beheaded foreigners?

Welcome to The Other Iraq

This is what an advertising campaign in the United States called The Other Iraq, the three northern provinces that blossome... Read More

This is resortland, where chic new beachside hotels are attracting the cosmo Euro crowd – German and Italian travellers, in particular – who flock for the sting of the sun, the spice of the seafood cuisine and the relative emptiness of a 600km coastline of long white stretches of sand... Read More

"The nine people on board were all evacuated and we do not know the condition of the injured,'' an Airbus official said.

The plane was "seriously damaged".

Two of the passengers and another person on the ground were seriously injured, police said.

In all 10 ... Read More

In a doddery land five millennia old, Shanghai feels like it was born yesterday. Don't come here for the Great Wall or creaking, old palaces; Shanghai doesn't do those.

Other philosophical souls even suggest the Malaysian capital can provide a blueprint for world peace.

But most simply think of Kuala Lumpur as a vibrant and fun-filled city complete with quirky architecture, cheap shopping and even cheaper dining.

Our travelling party uncovered ... Read More

The airline has rushed to hire 60 extra staff from an outside agency for Qantas Flight Catering Ltd, which prepares food for its own and many other international airlines.

The deaths last week of a man and woman, both aged 46, from different villages brought the human death toll to nine, five of which had been confirmed through laboratory testing.

Spa retreats. In a world so focused on image we also need to care for our looks and bodies and in Melbourne and surrounds there is an array of possibilities.

If it's a quick-fix massage needed in your lunch hour, head to Balnae Aroma Spa at Australia on Collins.

They offer a 45-... Read More

QANTAS will expand its frequent flyer services to include one of the nation's largest supermarket chains.

A lone tree, artificially illuminated, reaches out proud and tall, its branches touching the young night sky as if to hold up a masterpiece – a scene to lose your thoughts and allow your imagination to run unharnessed while your palate is tantalised by a cool, crisp and refreshing wine... Read More