A campaign has begun to try to prevent British tourists from getting into difficulties in the strong surf on Australian beaches. There have been a growing number of incidents in recent years – some fatal.
The British Consulate in Sydney has joined with Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA) to create a series of advertisements warning travellers about the dangers. These hazards include strong rip tides, large waves, wayward surfboards and ‘things that sting’. The ads will be shown on flights to Australia from Britain during the busy tourist season from November to April.
Alcohol is often a factor. Anthony Bradstreet, the public safety education co-ordinator at SLSA said the main message to British visitors was ‘don’t drink and drown’. “You do lose a lot of swimming ability if you have been drinking – you can get quite disorientated,” he said.
Mr Bradstreet stressed that it was also important to remember that holidaymakers should swim between the red and yellow flags, where lifeguards watched the water. “If we can’t see you, we can’t save you.”
by Andy Moreton
If you’re planning a visit to Australia’s most vibrant city, check out Luxique’s selection of luxury hotels in Sydney.
A French exotic dancer has caused outrage in Australia by performing a strip show on one of the country’s most famous tourist attractions, Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock.
Alizee Sery put on the show for a friend with a video camera. The video – which was posted on YouTube – shows her climbing the red sandstone monolith in conventional dress and then stripping at the top to a white bikini, white high-heeled boots and a bushman’s hat.
The 1,142ft high rock is sacred to Australia’s Aborigines, who have asked tourists to respect its significance and not even to climb it. What Miss Sery had done, said one, was the equivalent of someone defecating on the steps of the Vatican.
Ms Sery insisted that she hadn’t meant to offend anyone – it was more of a tribute to the greatness of the rock. “What we need to remember is that traditionally, the Aboriginal people were living naked. So stripping down was a return to what it was like. After such a hard climb, when you reach the top, the view and the magic of the place gives you an amazing feeling of peace and freedom. You want to sing, dance –and strip.”
This explanation didn’t cut much ice with the Central Land Council, which represents the traditional owners of Uluru. The Director, David Ross, said Ms Sery should be deported.
by Andy Moreton
Luxique offers a range of luxury hotels in Sydney, Melbourne and many other parts of Australia.
The Australians are to try a new strategy for keeping beachgoers safe from shark attacks off Sydney in the forthcoming summer months.
They’re going to try helicopter patrols during weekends and public holidays in December and January when the waters off Sydney are at their most crowded.
The trial will take in the 51 beaches between Newcastle to the north and Wollongong to the south, including the popular Manly and Bondi beaches, which are already protected by shark nets.
The New South Wales minister responsible, Ian MacDonald, said nets and common sense were still the best way to avoid a shark attack, but the government had a duty to do all it could to protect bathers.
Three people have been attacked by sharks off Sydney this year, although Mr MacDonald observed:
“You’re more likely to be killed driving to the beach than being taken by a shark.”
Marine experts say that environmental protection of Sydney’s beaches and harbour has created a cleaner sea, but is also attracting sharks closer to shore as they chase fish.
by Andy Moreton
If you’re planning a visit to Australia’s most vibrant city, check out Luxique’s selection of luxury hotels in Sydney.
One of the most famous tourist attractions in the world – the Sydney Harbour Bridge – was turned into a giant picnic area last weekend.
Six thousand people, who’d won their places in a lottery, settled down to enjoy breakfast on the bridge, which had special turf laid on it for the occasion. The 100,000 drivers who normally use the eight-lane bridge every day had to make alternative arrangements.
The picnic was part of a month-long festival of food, art, comedy and outdoor living and it might now become an annual event.
A government spokesman said: “I don’t think we were ever doubtful of the success of this event today. It was a unique world first for this iconic attraction. This type of event typifies the Australian personality.”
by Andy Moreton
The Harbour Bridge, the Opera House … there’s so much to see in Australia’s liveliest city and Luxique has a varied selection of the finest luxury hotels in Sydney.
Some of the most famous landmarks in Sydney, Australia, were obscured from view yesterday by red dust blown in from the deserts of the outback.
Strong winds had swept tons of dry soil from drought-hit areas, lifting the dust high into the air and carrying it hundreds of miles.
In Sydney, Australia’s largest city, flights were diverted and ferries suspended after visibility was cut to a few feet. Cars, buildings and beaches were coated and there were many calls to the emergency services from people with breathing difficulties.
Experts said it was the worst dust storm since the 1940s and it followed days of unusual weather all over Australia. Some areas of the country have been bombarded by hailstones while others have been basking in a mini-heatwave in early spring.
John Huxley of the Sydney Morning Herald said it would be remembered as an extraordinary end-of-the-world sort of day when the bush came to Sydney.
“Most people just stopped and stared, peering myopically for lost landmarks, like the Harbour Bridge or the Opera House or the bus. All disappeared in the swirling dust.
Many did what Australia usually does in such circumstances: took photos, at least until their cameras became jammed with dust, and swapped Tweets, saying how bizarre everything was.”
by Andy Moreton
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Coastal erosion is threatening Byron Bay, one of Australia’s most popular tourist areas.
Severe storms and tides have combined to push the shore at Byron Bay back by 20 yards in some places.
The local council has closed paths on some of the town’s beaches and has warned that the weather has created dangerous vertical sand dune escarpments of up to 16 feet along the shore.
Situated on the north coast of New South Wales, the Bay is a favourite stop-off for backpackers on the route from Sydney to Cairns.
It’s also home to some of the most expensive properties in the country, with some selling for the equivalent of £3.5 million ($5.7 million). It’s these waterfront homes that have been most at risk from the advancing waters.
Locals believe the council is not doing enough. They’ve warned that if the spit of sand at Belongil, which separates the ocean from the Belongil estuary, is breached, the ocean will flow into the low-lying town of Byron itself.
by Andy Moreton, with Bonnie Malkin in Sydney
Luxique has a wide selection of luxury hotels in the New South Wales region and throughout Australia.
A row has broken out in Australia after a bid by a New South Wales state politician to have topless sunbathing banned on Sydney’s famous beaches, including Bondi and Manly.
The Rev Fred Nile, a veteran morals campaigner, said: “The law should be clear. It must say exposure of women’s breasts on beaches will be prohibited.” Other politicians backed his stand. One said that families at the beach in summer did not want to see topless women.
The proposal prompted howls of protest from Sydneysiders, who have just begun their long summer holiday. Outraged callers deluged radio stations, and the ACT nudist club in Canberra, the national capital, warned that Australia was in danger of appearing like a ‘haven for prudes.’
Australians love their suntans and topless sunbathing has been common on most beaches since the 1960s. But the country also suffers the world’s highest rate of melanoma skin cancer. A new and graphic government advertising campaign warns there is no such thing as safe tanning, building on decades of similar official warnings.
New South Wales Assistant Health Minister, Jodi McKay, said banning topless sunbathing was a step too far. “We don’t want to go down the slippery slope of banning activities like this. What would be next, banning breastfeeding?”
by Andy Moreton
Visiting Australia? Luxique can help you choose a luxury Sydney hotel at the best rate available.
