Travel guide New South Wales for Accessible

Once upon a time, planning a holiday was both time-consuming and expensive. It could involve a lot of map reading, phone calls and visits to bookshops or the library. Doing all that research and then developing an organised system to record all your findings was a major trauma. Thanks to the internet, everything is now so much easier - and often cheaper, too. For our Great Ocean Road accommodation, I went to the local travel agency and picked up a few tourist brochures on the areas we intended to visit. These are useful to get an idea of the significant sites and tourist spots, so I can choose to include them in our itinerary – or, in some cases, avoid them.   I then worked out a route using the NRMA Trip Planner, www.drivethere.com.au, which gives you the distance betwe... Read more

Talk to any adult who grew up in Sydney, and there’s a good chance they have fond memories of spending family holidays driving up the Pacific Highway to the Mid North Coast. For decades it has been a popular holiday region, with plenty of farms, quaint towns, parks and wildlife to enjoy. Year-round pleasant weather combined with delightful scenery beckon families, couples and groups alike. Wauchope is a small country town, which was originally home to a thriving timber industry. Today the timber mill is gone but the town has immortalised its origins by building a historical tourist attraction called Timbertown, which recreates the early settlement of the area.   Wauchope also prides itself on a thriving dairy industry and within Timbertown itself, you can visit a cheese makin... Read more

Have your say in the ‘people’s choice’ voting on the best Accessible Holiday Accommodation in Australia The 2009 state winners have been chosen for the leading holiday rentals across Australia with guests rating their favouritehotels, motels, hostels, B&Bs and accommodation parks.    TakeABreak.com.au, Australia’s only independent boutique accommodation website, is presenting the “Best Places to Stay” awards for the tourism industry, which recognise outstanding service in specialist segment categories.    State winners were selected via an exhaustive process from over 13,000 properties in 1400 localities and 39 accommodation types. National winners will be announced in early Nove... Read more

We’ve made planning your accessible day trips easy. We have highlighted a variety of wonderful day trips with specific information about the many accessible options that can assist in making touring easier for people with disabilities. Whether it is marvelling at the landscape, visiting the vibrant cities, trying the local produce, or meeting the characters and experiencing the unique Australian way of life en route – these trips will leave you feeling inspired. And no matter whether you pack up a car, board a plane, jump on a train or float on a boat, the stories you’ll bring back will stay with you forever. The Hunter Valley The town of Cessnock is gateway to the wine-growing region of the Hunter Valley, Australia’s oldest commercial wine-growing district, with ... Read more

Those of us who live in Australia grow up understanding the joys, dangers and safety rules that make it such a great place.  However, many visitors to our country find Australia an alien, but starkly beautiful country, and they have little or no understanding of the best way to stay safe and enjoy their time here. A few very simple rules can help to make a visit to Australia a safe and pleasurable experience, and Tourism Australia has a brochure available for download that lists safety tips in a variety of languages. Driving tips One of the first things to remember is that speed limits are strictly enforced in Australia, more so than in many countries overseas.  Generally, when driving in urban and suburban areas, the speed limit is between 50 and 60 kilometres per hour. When ... Read more

When you’re disabled it’s a lot easier - and cheaper - to stay at home. But after our family came home from a trip away, I realised the memories would be there with our boys for the rest of their lives.  It’s certainly not easy (when you’re disabled what is?) but it is worth it. My favourite Australian  destinations are: 1. Darling Harbour, Sydney I never visited Darling Harbour when growing up in Sydney.  But our family came up here and stayed 3 nights last year and had a wonderful time!  It was great being a tourist in what was once my own backyard.  After seeing a fair bit of overseas, I still think Sydney stacks up pretty well. The terrific thing about Darling Harbour is that it’s so much like Tasmania; a lot to do in such a sm... Read more

  Weddings are wonderful, glorious, exciting, romantic, memorable … and fraught!  It doesn’t matter how well-organised you/your partner/your mother/your wedding planner is …no-one can deny that arranging a wedding is an exercise in endurance, as well as joy. So, the honeymoon should be the time to wind down, enjoy one another and do as much or as little as you please.  But that brings up another problem, because these days, honeymoons are nearly a competitive sport!  Where are you going, how long for, is there a spa, is it 5 star, is it eco-friendly, can your furry family come too, can your normal family come too???? Whew! - honeymoon options need to be as modern and flexible as weddings have become. And they can be! First, decide what you want &... Read more

 There’s no place in the world like Sydney for style There’s no place in the world... Read more

There’s no place in the world like Sydney for events Sydney is a sensational events capital. Its record for hosting large-scale events, including major sporting events such as the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and the 2003 Rugby World Cup, is well known around the world. Sydney will host World Youth Day in 2008 and will welcome Pope Benedict XVI along with more than 100,000 youths who will follow a spectacular pilgrimage across Sydney. www.wyd2008.org In 2009, Sydney will host the World Masters Games, which is the biggest mass participation, multi-national, multi-sport festival in the world.  www.2009worldmasters.com The city also hosts a glittering range of artistic, cultural, social and community festivals and events. Here are some of Sydney’s annual event highlights: JA... Read more

Holidays are all about making wonderful memories that get us through the daily grind until the next time you take a break. If you are looking for a holiday that will live in your memory forever, then look no further than the historic and welcoming Heritage Guesthouse at South West Rocks. Located on the rim of Horseshoe Bay and only 5 hours north of Sydney or 51/2 hours south of Brisbane, this is the ideal place to break your journey if you are travelling up the east coast.  However, there is so much on offer in the region and the guesthouse is such a refuge from the everyday that you may wish that you had booked in for a few days to refresh and revive. The property is a lovingly restored 1880s guesthouse boasting 9 rooms, all with ensuites and uniquely decorated and with different s... Read more