Worth the wait
Floating bars in Fiji, hidden restaurants in Rome and cool surprises in Canada. Australians are exploring the world again – and here, three Qantas travellers share highlights from their recent trips abroad.
My husband, two kids and I flew Qantas Business direct to Vancouver from Sydney at Easter. Boarding that plane was superexciting, knowing we’d be arriving in a country where it was snowing. We stayed at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler (hotel. qantas.com.au/fairmontchateauwhistler) and spent our days skiing. There were amazing instructors for the children and they gave us great tips, such as visiting Creekbread (creekbread.com), a pizza place the kids loved. We also spent a few days in Vancouver and the instructors told us to catch the ferry to Granville Island, which has food markets, craft stalls and live music. The trip was so brilliant that we’re going back at Christmastime!”
I lived like a local in Rome for a few days, staying in Trastevere, across the river from the main tourist spots. My goal was to have two gelatos a day and an Aperol Spritz by 11am. Each morning, my friends and I visited our local market, Mercato San Cosimato, where we’d pick up fresh fruit. I loved having a yarn with the growers. I had the best cacio e pepe of my life at Tonnarello (tonnarello.it), which is tucked in an alleyway. The waitress didn’t speak English so we communicated through smiles and hand gestures. We accidentally ordered fried artichoke and had no idea how to eat it. So we followed the lead of the Italians next to us. It was the most delicious mistake.”
My husband and I had our honeymoon in Fiji in March and it was heaven. Our Qantas flight was super-quick and the food was so delicious. We stayed at Tokoriki Island Resort (hotel.qantas.com.au/tokorikiislandresort) in a villa on the beach. We’d go for at least four swims each day. Everyone should get the boat to Cloud 9 (cloud9.com.fj), a bar in the middle of the ocean. We drank Margaritas and ate incredible woodfired pizzas. The resort organised a boat trip to a private island for a picnic. It was just us, a beach hut and a stretch of sand, where we ate green papaya salad and cheese. We also did a snorkelling tour and saw turtles and Nemo fish. It was the most relaxing trip.”