Winter wonderland option 1: Head to ski heaven
Where to go: Whistler Blackcomb, Canada
Easily the most popular international destination among Australian skiiers, Whistler Blackcomb is a European-style resort nestled at the foot of some of the world’s best ski terrain.
After hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics, prices at the resort remained competitive compared to those over the border in the US Rockies. And thanks to Canada and Australia’s near-parity exchange rate, it has remained a popular family holiday destination ever since.
Offering a whopping 2833 hectares of ski terrain on two mountains connected by the Peak-to-Peak gondola, Whistler’s retail, restaurant and recreation facilities are legendary.
Winter wonderland option 2: Chill out on a polar cruise
Where to go: Antarctic Peninsular
A pristine world of sculpted ice populated with penguins doesn’t do Antarctica justice. Its ethereal beauty is the next best thing to visiting another planet and the Lemaire Channel, also known as “Iceberg Alley”, is like arriving at a gallery on the other side of the galaxy, where ice sculptures the size of battleships are on display.
On a good day, when the prevailing winds – ominously named the “screaming sixties” – are still, the world is white with a thousand shades of blue. As the mercury hits 4°C, the air is snowdrift quiet.
Until, that is, we arrive at a Gentoo penguin colony on Cuverville Island on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula, where there’s an overwhelming chorus of honking.
A pod of humpback whales breaks the ocean’s glacial stillness and a giant leopard seal with what looks like a satisfied smile on his face dozes on a blood-soaked ice floe next to the remains of his penguin dinner.
Six days have passed since the ship left the Argentine port of Ushuaia and we’ve visited several islands, two research stations, a post office and a pub, but it’s the landscape and wildlife that keeps everyone enthralled.
An Antarctic cruise is more than a ship sailing over an ocean – it’s a wildlife safari through a pristine continent twice the size of Australia, as yet unspoilt by development.
Getting your travel essentials
Where to go: Australia Post, the one-stop travel shop
• You can exchange foreign cash with no commission at your local Post Office
• Have photographs taken for your passport and visa applications
• You can even get Travel Insurance and a travel card:
LOAD & GO TRAVEL CARD: Enables you to load up to five currencies at locked-in rates. It works like a debit card. Buy it at your local Post Office and use it anywhere that takes Visa and at international ATMs.
LOAD & GO CHINA: Access Chinese Yuan and Australian Dollars easily with this prepaid card which uses UnionPay, China’s most accepted card network. It’s free to load and reload currency, plus you can lock in the exchange rate before you go.
MULTI-CURRENCY CASH PASSPORT: Gives you access to 10 currencies and is accepted at 35.9 million MasterCard retailers or online, plus ATMs around the world.
Keep in touch whilst overseas
Where to go: Australia Post, the one-stop travel shop
Big phone bills clocked up overseas can cast a shadow on any holiday. Remember the time a family member had to talk to a friend on the other side of world, or your best friend rang you up for a chat and forgot to tell you your provider would be charging you for a big slice of the call?
Those days are now behind you. All you need is an Australia Post Prepaid TravelSIM®+. This allows you to keep in touch with your loved ones and remain in control of your phone bill.
Make calls, send texts and access the internet wherever you are in the world – data, calls and text from $0.25 in UK, Europe, New Zealand and USA. Now that makes good travel sense!
Sponsored by Australia Post. To discover more great travel products or to find your local Post Office, visit auspost.com.au.
