travel news review

24 May '99
Ansett Australia has commenced a new direct service from Brisbane to Nadi, Fiji. The weekly service will leave Brisbane at 9pm on Saturday night, arriving at 2.30am Fiji time. The flight will leave Nadi at 3.30am Sunday morning for the return to Brisbane.

18 May '99
Lauda Air has announced it will operate a fifth flight each week between Australia and Austria. Currently the airline operates four services per week from Vienna to Sydney via Kuala Lumpur. The new flight is expected to commence early next year.

14 May '99
Australians visiting South Korea no longer require a visa for a stay of up to 90 days. Previously Australian passport holders required a visa for a stay of more than 15 days. Australian travellers wishing to stay in South Korea for longer than the visa-free 90 days must apply in Australia for such a visa. Travellers are also advised that visa status cannot be changed when you are in South Korea.

3 May '99
Ansett's three-times-weekly air services between Broome, Port Hedland and Karratha in Western Australia have been suspended. The service, operated on behalf of Ansett by Skywest, was unprofitable.

27 April '99
If you are tired of getting wet'n'wild or watching dancing dolphins at one of the many theme parks on Queensland's Gold Coast, you could always take yourself off to get married at the newest park, Wedding World. While plans for Wedding World are yet to be finalised, the park will be a one-stop wedding shop, offering couples a choice of chapels, photo studios and reception facilities. The park has been developed by Japan's largest overseas wedding promotion company, and will be marketed worldwide.

19 April '99
The Australian government has issued a warning to Australian tourists returning from Asia not to enter Australia with souvenir monkey skulls. Monkey skulls have become an increasingly popular souvenir with Australian tourists over the past couple of years. As the monkeys are an endangered species - the skulls come from species such as the Crab-eating Macaque and the Pig-tailed Macaque - demand for the skulls by Australian tourists could put them on the extinct list.

12 April '99
The Queensland government has approved plans for a rail link connecting Caloundra, on the Sunshine Coast, and the capital, Brisbane. The new train service is expected to be a light rail, with a journey time of around 90 minutes.

7 April '99
As residents continue to clean up the devastation left by Cyclone Vance in the Western Australian town of Exmouth, officials have asked tourists not to visit. At the moment Exmouth has few essential services and road blocks have been set up to allow only residents and tradespeople in and out.

6 April '99
A new regional air services has commenced operation into Victoria. Horizon Airlines recently announced four flights per week from Sydney to Melbourne, via Deniliquin and Swan Hill in northern Victoria. The 19-seater plane departs from Sydney on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

31 March '99
April Fools Day (1 April) is the kick-off for Melbourne's International Comedy Festival. The festival, which run until 25 April, is now in it thirteenth year and this year features more than 100 events including stand up comics, theatre, music and film. More than 350,000 people attended the event last year and organisers this year are hoping again for a sell-out festival. A full festival program can be obtained from STA Travel offices or www.comedyfestival.com.au.

29 March '99
Near Boulia in northwest Queensland, the Min Min Light, a sort of earthbound UFO, is sometimes seen. It's said to resemble the headlights of a car and can hover a metre or two above the ground before vanishing and reappearing in a different place. The Boulia Council thinks the phenomenon is better than an episode of the X-Files and while the real lights are still out there, outback travellers will be able to experience a recreation of the lights when the new Min Encounter Centre opens in September. Boulia is a remote area in western Queensland, sparsely populated and with very low rainfall; a perfect setting for UFO landings.

22 March '99
Daylight saving ended in New Zealand on 21 March. Daylight saving applies in all parts of New Zealand, commencing in October and ending in March each year. In Australia, daylight saving ends on 27 March. But unlike New Zealand, only half of Australia turns the clock forward each summer. South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, the ACT and Tasmania are the daylight saving states in Australia.

22 March '99
Maclean (current population 3,000) on the New South Wales northern coast, is hoping to become the Reno or Gretna Green of Australia. Business interests in the town have put forward quick marriages as the next best thing to give the local economy a major boost. Maclean is hoping to become as popular as Gretna Green where more than 4000 couples travel to each year to marry, or Reno, in the USA, where getting a quick divorce is as popular as a quick marriage. Currently in Australia a couple must wait at least 30 days before they can marry.

15 March '99
Qantas will introduce a new direct service from Brisbane to Hamilton Island from 1 April 1999 on its regional subsidiary Airlink. The flights will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The scheduled flights will depart Brisbane at 10.30am on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 4.15pm on Saturdays. Hamilton Island is in Queensland's Whitsunday Islands, and is one of the most developed islands for tourists.

15 March '99
The recently opened Wonambi Fossil Centre in South Australia's Naracoorte Caves Conservation Park allows visitors to see what life in the swamps was probably like 200,000 years ago. There 18 life size replicas of marsupial lions, giants kangaroos and other animals, as well as a re-created swamp as the main attractions of the centre.

4 March '99
Last year more than 52,000 people made it to the Byron Bay Blues and Roots Music Festival. As this year is the 10th anniversary of the festival, organisers are expecting an even larger number at the festival, one of the most popular on the New South Wales north coast. The festival is held at the Red Devil RLFC, about 2.5km south of Byron Bay on Broken Head Road. More than 34 national and 23 international acts are scheduled for the festival, which takes place from 1 to 4 April.

1 March '99
Flight West Airlines will commence non-stop flights between Port Moresby and Brisbane, Queensland from 19 July. The flights will operate twice a week from Port Moresby, on Monday and Friday. Flight West Airlines operates as a code-share with Ansett, and travellers on the Port Moresby-Brisbane flight can connect in Brisbane with Ansett Australia for flights to other Australian cities.

22 February '99
The much discussed proposal for a Darwin-Alice Springs rail link has become a reality with the signing last week of an agreement between the Northern Territory government and the Aboriginal owners of the land. The agreement allows the train line to be built on Aboriginal land. The rail line was first proposed in 1877, when it was decided to build a rail line from Adelaide to Darwin. It took more than 50 years to get the rail line from Adelaide to Alice Springs and the 1500km (930mi) connection to Darwin was never built.

22 February '99
Surf lifesavers at Sydney's beaches continue to rescue swimmers who, despite a major television and newspaper advertising campaign, continue to swim outside the flags. This summer there has been a record number of people rescued who have been swimming outside the flags. Many Sydney beaches are prone to large swells and rips and the only safe place for a swim is between the flags. A similar advertising campaign was also launched in Victoria, which has its own fair share of dangerous surf beaches.

17 February '99
The Queensland government is considering on-the-spot fines for tourists on Fraser Island who feed the island's dingo population. More than 40 reports of dingo attacks have been reported in the past year and in the latest incident a dingo was put down after biting a German tourist. Conservation officers believe the attacks are increasing as the dingoes are loosing their fear of humans and see them as a potential source of food.

10 February '99
Travellers in southeast Queensland are advised that heavy rains in the area have closed many roads and caused major flooding. The Bruce Highway has been cut by floodwaters near Gympie and other smaller roads around Caboolture, Beenleigh and on the Sunshine Coast have also been closed. While heavy rains are expected to ease, showers have been forecast for the rest of the week.

3 February '99
Sydney's month-long Madi Gras festival commences on Friday, 5 February. The festival is a month long program of gay and lesbian arts and cultural events, plus highlights like the Fair Day, Shop Yourself Stupid, Harbour Party and a Swimming Carnival. The Mardi Gras Parade and party on Saturday, 27 February are the festival finale. To find out more of what's on and where, the festival is on the Internet at www.mardigras.com.au.

Melbourne is also in the middle of its own gay and lesbian festival, Midsumma. Next weekend, 6 and 7 February, the Arts Centre spire will be lit by a very fetching shade of pink in recognition of two Midsumma events in the precinct: a Judy Connelli/Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Concert at the Arts Centre on 6 February, and the festival finale, Midsumma Carnivale, in the Alexandra Gardens on 7 February. Midsumma has an Internet site, www.midsumma.org.au.

1 February '99
The weather bureau has issued a cyclone watch for coastal and island communities in the Gulf of Carpentaria as a cyclone is heading that way. The communities between Cape Shield in the Northern Territory and Karumba in Queensland are preparing for the worst as the cyclone travels in from the Gulf at 7 km (4 mi) per hour.

29 January '99
According to a study conducted by the James Cook University in Townsville, female backpackers are Australia's fastest growing tourism market. The study looked at international backpacking arrivals in Queensland and revealed that many international female travellers are leaving the boys at home on their own while they travel solo or with other females. It is believed the changing backpacking trend is a break from past travel patterns when women - for whatever reason - couldn't or didn't travel on their own.

25 January '99
British Airways recently announced schedule changes which will offer travellers more one-stop flights between London and Melbourne. Starting in March, BA will offer three new weekly flights to Melbourne via Bangkok, in a codeshare with Qantas.

18 January '99
The Australian government has proposed that the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park be expanded. It is expected the government will approve the plan to extend the park by about 6000 sq km (3720 sq mi).

Currently the park stretches 2000km (1240 mi) from just south of the Tropic of Capricorn, near Bundaberg, to the Torres Strait, just south of New Guinea. It is the most extensive reef system in the world.

14 January '99
Health authorities in far north Queensland believe dengue fever has returned, with the most recent cases reported from Mossman and Port Douglas. Early in 1998, more than 200 people contracted dengue fever in the Cairns region and this most recent outbreak could see a resurgence in of the disease in Cairns.

6 January '99
Swimmers on the north Queensland coast are advised that it is now jellyfish season, which makes many beaches unsafe for swimming. While most major beaches have protective stinger nets, the Irukandjii jellyfish, which is smaller than the box jellyfish, has been able to slip past the nets. At least 12 people have been stung this summer while swimming in protected enclosures. A proportion of the population is severely allergic to the lrukandjii sting, and deaths have been reported. Even if the sting doesn't kill you, it can still be very painful. Dousing the sting with vinegar will deactivate any stingers that have not 'fired' and calamine lotion is good for relieving both the pain of the sting and the reaction.

28 December '98
Two new museums have recently opened in Melbourne which may be worth a look on a wet and cold day, which is always a possibility in Melbourne. The Hellenic Antiquities Museum displays some of Greece's finest pieces of history and culture. The Immigration Museum focuses on the experience of migrants who have been coming to Australia since the 1800s. The two museums are located in the Old Customs House building in Flinders Street.

23 December '98
Further warnings about the Ross River and Barmah Forest viruses have been issued in Victoria and New South Wales. The mosquito-borne viruses struck Victoria earlier than expected, with northern Victoria and south west NSW being areas of greatest risk. Symptoms include rash, fatigue, headaches and muscular and joint pain, and the peak times are January and February. Fly-screens, long-sleeved tops, pants and insect repellent are useful in avoiding mozzie bites.

23 December '98
The north Queensland town of Mackay is angry at Lonely Planet for describing it as "nothing special" in the Australia Guide. Mackay Tourism Bureau chief Wayne Spencer has complained that "any bad comment is not a good comment and unfortunately a lot of people see the Lonely Planet as a bible and follow it...they'll be discouraged straight away and that's not fair." Incidentally, the sentence reads "Mackay is nothing special, yet its town centre is attractively planted and there are some good beaches a bus ride away."

23 December '98
Meanwhile the small New South Wales town of Wellington has gone global with a nude fundraising calendar. The "Wellington Naturally Calendar" features 12 nude men using their tools of trade, such as a painting or a sheaf of wheat, to cover up their private parts. The calendar has provoked overseas interest, and production has been doubled to meet demand. The local hospital receives $4 of the $8 for each calendar.

21 December '98
A new and very fast ferry has commenced services between Melbourne and Launceston in Tasmania. The DevilCat will operate up to 12 times per week over the summer until April 1999. The existing service, the Spirit of Tasmania, will continue to offer travellers a more sedate and relaxed trip. The overnight service on the Spirit of Tasmania and the six-hour DevilCat trip are the same price but in high seas (waves more than 4m) only the Spirit of Tasmania will be able to operate.

14 December '98
In the past few years Melbourne has been under the impression that a sense of place is not something that evolves naturally, but rather something that has to be built. It comes as no surprise therefore that approval has been given to construction magnate, Bruno Grollo, to build the world's tallest building in Melbourne's new Docklands precinct. The proposed building, 560m (1836ft) tall and with 113 floors, will comprise a mixture of office, residential and entertainment space.

9 December'98
The ritual of spraying international passengers with the insecticide d'phenothrin 30 minutes before arrival in Australia may now be a thing of the past on some airlines. The Australian Quarantine Service has recently relaxed its rule on aircraft spraying and will allow airlines to spray planes before passengers board. Despite pleas for many years from international tourism bodies to end the spraying, the Australian Quarantine Service has remained steadfast on its spraying rules, with the exception of Qantas and Ansett Australia which use residual sprays.

7 December'98
Qantas has commenced direct flights between Australia and Buenos Aires, via Auckland. The new flights, which started on 20 November, depart Sydney on Fridays and Sundays. Qantas is also code-sharing on flights operated by the Argentine airline, Aerolineas Argentinas, departing Sydney on Mondays and Saturdays. Return fares to Buenos Aires are priced from A$1999.

1 December'98
One of Australia's best long-distance train experiences, The Ghan, now operates between Melbourne and Alice Springs. Previously the Ghan has only operated between Adelaide and Alice Springs but as well as the new Melbourne service, a weekly service between Sydney and Alice Springs will commence in April next year. The Ghan departs Melbourne on Wednesdays at 10.30pm and arrives in Alice Springs 36 hours later.

1 December'98
The Sydney airport bus, Airport Express, has added two more routes on the airport service. From the airport the number 351 bus travels to Bondi Beach and Coogee and the number 352 bus will take you to Glebe.

25 November '98
According to a recent survey in Britain's Daily Telegraph, Australia is the most popular holiday destination for British travellers. In the category, Best Country in the World, Australia came in at number one, with 46% of survey respondents voting for the lucky country. While it wasn't exactly voted worst country in the world, Nigeria came last on the list of best places in the world to visit.

16 November '98
From 1 December, Australians visiting Japan will be issued a 90-day visa on arrival in Japan. Currently Australians are required to have a visa, which is free, prior to arrival in Japan. The Japanese government has requested Australia to reciprocate and drop the visa requirement for Japanese travellers visiting Australia.

9 November '98
If you can figure out when it is to be held, Weipa's sixth annual Naked Running of the Bulls could be one of far north Queensland's more interesting cultural experiences. The annual race is scheduled for the first Sunday after the wet season's first big storm; you'll have to ask a local when this is likely to be. Weipa's Running of the Bulls is similar to the more famous Pamplona Running of the Bulls, only in Weipa you have to take all your clothes off. Weipa is, not surprisingly, a very remote mining community in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

4 November '98
Travellers in Australia who are thinking they can get themselves to Bali over Christmas may have to think again. From the middle of December until the end of January, Ansett, Qantas and Garuda only have a handful of economy class seats to Bali left.

As the few fares that are left are no bargain, if you must fly to Bali during this time you may as well go business class - it will cost you little more, and you'll get first choice of the magazines.

30 October '98
One of Australia's largest travel agencies, Flight Centre, has opened the country's first airport travel agency. The new agency is at the Brisbane International Airport and is located in the international departure lounge. According to research conducted for Flight Centre there are many travellers who leave their travel preparations until the very last minute, sometimes just before they get on the plane.

20 October '98
Health authorities at the Northern Territory Health Service have warned visitors to Litchfield National Park about a new and dangerous strain of scrub typhus. The disease is unique to the Northern Territory and has killed one and infected 10 others since 1990. Symptoms do not appear for at least a week and include fever, headache, muscle pain and tiny lesions on the buttocks, genital area or armpits. The chances of the disease becoming serious or life-threatening diminish greatly when diagnosed early.

19 October '98
The weather this year is creating the ideal environment for Ross River fever, according to an Adelaide University researcher. Heavy rains in the north of South Australia and in western New South Wales are causing mosquitoes to breed in large numbers. The disease is spread when mosquitoes bite animals that have the virus.

Ross River fever (or epidemic polyarthritis) is mostly found in eastern Australia and outbreaks are most likely to occur in January and February. The risk of infection is very low. Symptoms are flu-like (muscle pain, rashes, fever, headache, fatigue) but blood-tests are necessary for positive identification. The best thing to do if you're travelling in eastern Australia is to avoid mosquito bites and seek treatment if you're unwell.

7 October '98
Victoria's gas supplies should be restored by the end of this week after a two-week shutdown. Most industries have been connected and most residents should have gas restored by Thursday this week. The gas shutdown forced most restaurants to offer limited menus and many hotels could only provide visitors with cold showers or a warm bucket of water.

5 October '98
The National Health and Medical Research Council has recommended the introduction of routine vaccination (in children) in far northern Australia against the viral disease, Japanese encephalitis The disease is new to Australia, with the first locally acquired case reported only three years ago in the outer islands of the Torres Straits in far north Queensland. Since 1995, five more locally- acquired cases of Japanese encephalitis have been reported, with one case reported on mainland Australia. This potentially fatal disease is transmitted by mosquitoes. Vaccination against the disease is not necessary for travel to northern Queensland, however travellers should use precautions to avoid all mosquito bites.

5 October '98
As Northern Territory coastal waters warm up, swimmers are warned that box jellyfish season is approaching. Box jellyfish have stinging tentacles which can be several metres long, and a box jellyfish sting can be very dangerous - some victims stop breathing. The jellyfish stay around for most of the summer. Vinegar can be used to douse the stings you should treat them as you would a snake bite.

30 September '98
A gas explosion at Victoria's major gas plant has cut off supplies to more than a million Melbourne homes and many businesses. A number of industries have been forced to stand down workers and many restaurants and hotels have closed or are offering only limited menus until gas supplies are restored. There are no exemptions to the gas shut down, except for hospitals and emergency services. As gas supplies are not expected to be re-connected for at least two weeks, Victorians will be getting used to cold showers and experimental microwave cooking.

28 September '98
Health officials in Sydney have announced Sydney's water is good enough to drink again after a series of on-again off-again water alerts over the past two months.

14 September '98
Sydney's water is still undrinkable due to contamination by giardia and cryptosporidium. Residents and visitors to Sydney will have to continue boiling water until at least 19 September, but authorities are not sure all be will well with the water supply until early next year. Sydney water needs to be boiled for at least one minute before it is safe to drink.

31 April '98
A second water scare in Sydney should be resolved shortly and Sydneysiders may be able to drink tap water by the end of the week. A second contamination of SydneyÆs water with the parasites cryptosporidium and giardia was announced last week and residents have been advised to boil or drink bottled water only. This recent contamination is the second contamination of SydneyÆs water in the past month.

A Federal election will be held in Australia on October 3^rd and voting is compulsory for all Australians over the age of 18. Australians living or travelling overseas can vote in the elections at Australian embassies, consulates and high commissions or they can vote by post.

18 April '98
Qantas will introduce new services to Buenos Aires,
Argentina, later this year. Qantas ceased services to
Buenos Aires in 1975. Qantas will fly to Buenos Aires,
via New Zealand, on Fridays and Sundays from November
20.

12 August '98
Eight digit phone numbers are now operational across all parts of New South Wales and the ACT. Calls on old six digit numbers will not be connected but a recorded message will advise of the changes. The area code for New South Wales and the ACT is 02.

Rail travel in Australia is something you do because you really want to - not because it's fast, reliable or comfortable. But train travel in southern Australia is looking a bit better following the announcement of plans to refurbish the Overland rail service, which runs between Adelaide and Melbourne. On the Overland train all first class seating will be removed from the train to make way for a lounge/dining areas for passengers. Other seating areas are to be upgraded and more communications services will be available for passengers.

A collapsed bridge between Darwin and Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory has closed the Arnhem Highway until further notice. Travellers intending to visit Kakadu will need to drive via Pine Creek, south of Darwin.

5 August '98
Southern right whales have been sighted in the waters around Perth, the Western Australian capital. Whales can be seen from Port Beach and Cottesloe beaches. Whales off Perth's suburban beaches are not an uncommon sight, but this year they are coming in closer to shore than they have in previous years.

28 July '98
The Indonesia Tourist Promotion Office (ITPO) in Sydney has closed owing to the Asian economic crisis and the devaluation of the Indonesian rupiah. ITPO recently closed seven of its international offices. The Indonesian Consulate in Sydney is now responsible for tourism as well as consular inquiries.

In a recent worldwide survey of airline passengers, the two major Australian airlines, Qantas and Ansett Australia, made it into the top ten of the worldÆs best airlines. Passengers were asked to rank 67 international airlines considering their airport services, seating, cabin staff and entertainment. Ansett came second in the survey, while Qantas came sixth. The top ten airlines were: Emirates, Ansett Australia, Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Swissair, Qantas, Eva Air, Thai International, Lauda Air and All Nippon.

22 July '98
Qantas will begin non-stop flights between Brisbane and Denpasar, Bali on 22 August. The weekly flights will leave Brisbane on Saturdays. Earlier this year Ansett Airlines also introduced direct flights between Brisbane and Denpasar.

Scientists in the Northern Territory are fearful Queensland cane toads, possibly the ugliest toad in the world, are spreading into the pristine Kakadu National Park. The toads were introduced into Queensland in 1935 in an attempt to combat sugar-cane beetles that were devastating cane crops. But like other imported animal experiments, this one also failed, causing a real ecological disaster. The toads took to eating native insects and frogs, giving up on the beetles altogether. They have no natural predators, are poisonous and are forever reproducing û females can lay up to 35,000 eggs in a single spawn. Scientists are looking for a biological control to stop the spread of the ugly, fat toad.

15 July '98
One of the largest gatherings of whales in years can been seen off the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia. More than 10 southern right whales are in the Peninsula waters, one hour's drive from the South Australian capital, Adelaide. The best place to view the whales, which will remain in the area until October, is at The Bluff, near Victor Harbor.

Australia and France have agreed to new visa arrangements for short-term travel between the two countries. Australians are no longer required to obtain a visa for travel to France and its territories. French citizens do not require a visa to travel to Australia. Travelers intending to stay more than three months in either country will be required to obtain a visa. The new arrangements mean Australians no longer require any visas for travel to Western Europe.

8 July '98
A new international road cycling race, called 'Tour Down Under', will be held in South Australia in mid-January 1999. The six-day race will be based on the more famous Tour de France and is the first race on the Union Cyclistes Internationale's 1999 schedule of races. With 13 international teams entering the race, it will be the biggest cycling event staged in Australia.

Health authorities in far north Queensland have warned that the current outbreak of dengue fever in the region is particularly virulent and difficult to control. Previous outbreaks of dengue fever in northern Queensland - in Townsville and in the Torres Strait - have been reasonably easy to control, but this outbreak centered around Cairns is now in its eighth month. Authorities have confirmed 207 people have contracted the mosquito-borne disease.

1 July '98
Qantas will be flying Boeing 747s on popular domestic services in Australia. The larger 747s will be used during peak times on flights between Sydney and Cairns and Sydney and Perth. The airline recently introduced 29 additional domestic services and has made improvements to the early morning and evening services from Adelaide to Melbourne.

United Kingdom visitors to AustraliaÆs Great Barrier Reef have been warned of the dangers of diving on the reef after an English tourist drowned recently while taking part in an organised dive. The diver's death is the fifth on the Great Barrier Reef this year. UK travellers have been told to make sure that their instructors are fully qualified and that appropriate safety precautions are in place. Instructors have asked that divers be honest about their health and diving qualifications.

10 June '98
The Victorian and New South Wales ski seasons officially opened on the weekend. NSW snowfields reported good falls over the weekend and more heavy snows are expected this week. As there has not been much rain in Victoria this year, many Victorian ski resorts will rely on snow making machines during the first weeks of the season.

3 June '98
South African rand travellers cheques can now be purchased in both Australia and New Zealand. American Express and a number of South African banks have joined forces to release the rand travellers cheques, which can be used at more than 2500 locations across South Africa. The cheques can also be cashed at banks throughout the world.

Victoria's capital, Melbourne, is home to the world's largest movie screen following the opening of the IMAX Cinema at the Royal Exhibition Buildings in Carlton. The screen is ten times bigger than a normal movie screen and, appropriately, the film 'Everest' has been selected for screening during the cinema's opening season. Film buffs in Melbourne can also look forward to this year's Melbourne International Film Festival. More than 200 Australian and international films will be screened during the festival, which runs from 23 July until 9 August.

27 May '98
An Australian Federal Police post has been established on Thursday Island, in the Torres Strait north of Australia, in an effort to control criminal activity between Australia and Papua New Guinea. The post has been set up to primarily control the movement of illegal drugs from South-East Asia and Papua New Guinea into Australia.

20 May '98
In the new Federal budget announced last week, travellers leaving Australia will have to pay a departure tax of A$30.00 (US$18.70) from 1 January 1999. The new departure tax is an increase of A$3.00 (US$1.87) on the existing tax. Also announced in the budget was a new A$50.00 (US$31.20) holiday fee payable by visitors from countries (including India, China and Vietnam) most likely to abuse visa and entry requirements. The fee comes into effect on 1 July 1998.

Talks between the Northern Territory Tourist Commission and Malaysian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Lauda Air and Emirates may result in more direct flights from Asia to Darwin. The Commission is hoping more travellers will make Darwin their arrival point in Australia, thus increasing tourism spending in the Territory.

13 May '98
A new ferry between Cape Jervis, south of Adelaide, and Penneshaw on Kangaroo Island will start running in September. The new ferry, which does the trip in 40 minutes, will replace an older, smaller ferry currently making the run in an hour.

Ansett AustraliaÆs daily flights to Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur will be suspended from 31 May following a massive drop in the number of Asian tourists visiting Australia. Recently released Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show the number of tourists visiting Australia from every Asian country (except China and Singapore) are in decline. Arrivals from Korea fell by 80.9% during the first quarter of 1998, and Qantas has suspended four weekly flights to South Korea.

6 May '98
Public transport fares will increase by 3% in Melbourne on 1 January 1999. The new fares will include increases to the 2 hour zone one ticket, the daily zone one and the daily zone three tickets. The City Circle tram, which travels around the perimeter of the city along Flinders, Spring, Latrobe and Spencer Streets will remain free of charge.

Commencing on 20 July, Impulse Airlines will operate twice-daily flights from Wollongong, 80km south of Sydney, to Melbourne. The airline will also commence a new daily flight between Wollongong, Sydney and Newcastle, north of Sydney.

29 April '98
Tourism New South Wales has launched an internet site promoting New South Wales as a major tourist destination. The site, www.tourism.nsw.gov.au was launched last week and features 5000 accommodation places, 1700 events, including local and regional festivals, 750 tours and cruises, 500 hire services and 150 further items of general information. The site has been launched as both a lead up to the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and in response to the decline in the number of Asian travellers visiting Australia in recent months.

A two million hectare marine park has been established in the Great Australian Bight, in southern Australia. The new park will the largest marine park in the world after the Great Barrier Reef off the Queensland coast. The park in the Bight will provide a sanctuary for the Southern Right Whale and the Australian sea lion, as well as other local flora and fauna. Despite the national park status, some activities, including mining exploration, will still be allowed.

22 April '98
The Devil Cat fast ferry service between Tasmania and Victoria has finished operating for the summer. The Spirit of Tasmania, the existing ferry service, has scheduled extra services for the next three weeks to cope with extra passenger demand. The future of the Devil Cat services between Tasmania and Victoria is expected to be decided later this year.

The current Asian financial crisis is taking a toll on tourism arrivals in Australia, with more than 17,000 hospitality jobs slashed as Asian visitors remain at home. The decline in the numbers of visitors from Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan has been particularly noticeable. In an interesting turnaround, the number of visitors from mainland China is growing significantly. Chinese visitors to Australia are particularly interested in the gold fields where many Chinese worked during several gold rushes.

A new Australians-only queue at Sydney International airport has been introduced to reduce delays at customs for international travellers. The queues are being tested at the airport over the next month. More than 9,000 international passengers arrive at Sydney airport each day and delays of up to two hours in customs queues are not uncommon.

Ansett Airlines have announced a second service between Sydney and Denpasar each Saturday and a new once a week service between Brisbane and Denpasar.

15 April '98
Thredbo Village in the New South Wales snowfields may be open again this year for the ski season. Last year a landslide in the village destroyed two lodges, killing 18 people. Thredbo has AustraliaÆs longest runs and reportedly the best skiing in the country.

Visitors and residents in the Northern Territory are advised to keep a look out for snakes in urban and rural areas. With the onset of drier weather in the Northern Territory, snakes will be out hunting for food for the cooler months ahead. Parks and Wildlife Commission officers have urged residents not to try to remove snakes or kill them, but to call the Commission who will capture the snakes and release them away from populated areas.

8 April '98
The Queensland Aboriginal community of Pormpuraaw will host AustraliaÆs first crocodile races. The races will be held in June this year at the community, 600km (372mi) north-west of Cairns. The races are for a good cause, raising money for the Royal Flying Doctor service.

Following an attack by a dingo (native dog) on a 13-month-old baby on Fraser Island, Queensland, the Queensland government may cull dingoes on the island. Environmental groups, however, are vehemently opposed to any culling of dingoes there, stating that humans have caused the problem by feeding dingoes, who in turn lose their fear of humans. They say other methods for controlling dingoes, and humans, on Fraser Island need to be investigated.

1 April '98
Plans by the Queensland government to remove wild crocodiles from waterways around Cairns have been met with strong opposition from tourist operators. The crocodile removal plan has been introduced following an increase in the number of crocodile attacks in the area. Tourist operators believe the crocodiles are a tourist attraction.

Flight West Airlines has begun a second air service between Brisbane and Longreach in western Queensland. The airlineÆs operators believe the second service will meet the growing tourist demand for air services to western Queensland.

25 Mar '98
Australian cinema audiences will not have the opportunity to view Martin ScorseseÆs new film, Kundun. The film, about the life of the exiled Dalai Lama, has not been picked up by Australian distributors. The distributors have stated their decision was based on commercial potential, but the Australian Tibet Council believe there is a political motive behind the decision not to screen it in Australia.

18 Mar '98
The 25th anniversary of the Nimbin Aquarius Festival will be celebrated at Nimbin, on the NSW north coast, on 11-21 May. Nimbin was chosen as the site for AustraliaÆs first Aquarius Festival in 1973 because of the mystical influences of the nearby Mt Warning. Thousands of serious peace and harmony seekers are expected in the town during the festival.

Environmentalists in Queensland fear tourist demand for didgeridoos is threatening native forests in far north Queensland. More than 60,000 didgeridoos are sold in Cairns each year, made locally from Grey Box and Darwin Stringybark. Environmentalists believe these natives are already under threat, and the numbers of didgeridoos produced for international tourists should be reduced.

11 Mar '98
The Flight Centre, one of Australia’s largest travel agencies, has set up a new Corporate Traveller Service, offering 24 hour customer service. The service offers bookings, replacement tickets and health services.

Qantas will introduce daily services between India and Australia from 30 March. At present Qantas offers four flights per week to India. Two of the new flights will depart Mumbai on Monday and Tuesday evenings. A third flight from Mumbai will commence in August.

4 Mar '98
Six million tickets to the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney will be allocated to Australians using a $500 million lottery-style ballot launched mid-next year. Tickets will be awarded using a cascading system starting with the most popular events, in a bid by Olympic organisers to reassure people that all Australians have an equal chance to obtain a ticket. It is believed organisers will allocate 70% of the 8.5 million available to Australians.

25 Feb '98
An exhibition of the works of Aboriginal artist Emily Kame Kngwarreye has been launched in Brisbane and will tour throughout various art galleries in Australia up until September. This is the first time a public gallery has nationally toured a black artist’s work. Kngwarreye, who died in 1996, lived in the Utopia community 230km north-east of Alice Springs. Her works reflect her life working and living there, and draw on the meaning and spirit of the land. From the 3000 or so works she produced, the exhibition will include works from the Holmes a Court and Big Yam Dreaming collections.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Mardi Gras. While the first ever Mardi Gras parade, in June 1978, ended in a riot and many arrests, this year the police aren’t just controlling the parade - the gay and lesbian members of the police force will be participating in the parade itself. Rumoured to be showing up and perhaps performing at this year's Mardi Gras are Madonna, Kylie Minogue, Rue Paul and Elton John.

25 Feb '98
Australia's tourism industry is another to be affected by the Asian currency crisis, experiencing a significant drop in visitor numbers from Asia. The tourism industry predicts losses for local business of $3.5 billion dollars, following a huge slump in tourist numbers, particularly from Thailand and Korea. Compounded by the increasing number of Australians taking bargain holidays overseas rather than domestically, the slump could cause a $5 billion current account deficit blowout.

Sydney has introduced a new tourist pass, ‘Great Attractions of Sydney’, which allows foreign tourists to visit the eleven most important tourist sites over a one week. The pass must be purchased before arrival as it is not available in Australia.