Tips on trips: Browse through this collection of travel bargains, frequent travellers’ hints and special deals and plan your next holiday, business trip or getaway with the help of PS News.

Travellers’ Good Buys

   By John Rozentals
Looking towards Table Cape from Cape Town
Looking towards Table Cape from Cape Town.
Bench International’s new 10-day southern African safari includes three nights at the five-star Table Bay hotel in Cape Town, three at the Royal Livingstone — almost on the edge of Victoria Falls — and three at Sun City.
   Prices start at $3195 per person twin-share, including breakfast each day, a half day tour of Cape Town, a full day exploring the Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope and a sundowner cruise on the Zambezi River.
   The deal is valid for sale until November 15, with travel until November 30.
   Phone 1300 195 873 or visit www.benchinternational.com.au

Beyond Travel’s 2013 Eastern European program includes more than 20 fully escorted itineraries, with prices beginning at $765 per person twin-share for an eight-day Baltic Highlights itinerary.
   A more extensive 19-day tour the 19-day is priced from $3870 and takes in Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic and Austria.
   Phone 1300 363 554 or visit www.beyondtravel.com.au
17th-century Canal du Midi in the south of France
Master of your own destiny: gliding along the 17th-
century Canal du Midi in the south of France
Book a 2013 European motor cruiser through Outdoor Travel by January 31 and get a discount of up to 15 per cent.
   Destinations include Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, the south of France, Ireland’s River Shannon, the Norfolk Broads in England, the canals of Bruges in Belgium, Germany’s Mecklenburg Lakes and the Caledonian Canal in the Scottish Highlands.
   Cruisers are available for two to 12 passengers, feature ensuite cabins and fully equipped galleys, and require no experience or licence.
   Phone 1800 331 582 or visit www.outdoortravel.com.au

The Bruny Island Long Weekend provides exactly that — and with distinct touches of opulence thrown in.
   The three-day guided walking tour is priced from $1480 per person twin-share, including luxury tented accommodation, all food and wine, transfer from Hobart by high-speed catamaran, return seaplane trip to Hobart, two qualified guides looking after a maximum eight guests, and all activities.
   Phone 0437 256 270 or visit www.brunyislandlongweekend.com.au
Granite Belt Brewery adding beer to Stanthorpe’s wine offerings
Granite Belt Brewery adding beer to Stanthorpe’s
wine offerings.
Queensland’s premier wine region is now also catering for beer lovers with the launch of a new microbrewery in Stanthorpe.
   The Granite Belt Brewery offers six locally brewed beers on tap — Kolsch, Pilsner, Wheat Beer, India Pale Ale, Irish Red Ale and Porter. Tasting paddles of the full range are also available.
   The brewery adjoins Happy Valley Retreat Restaurant and Bar. Visit www.granitebeltbrewery.com.au

Two photography experts will accompany Toursgallery’s 16-day tour of Japan next May, helping guests make the best of snapping Mt Fuji, traditional ryokans, onsen baths, fabulous Zen gardens, active volcanoes and Kyoto’s Geisha Quarter.
   The small-group experience is priced from $8518 per person twin-share ex Tokyo.
   Phone1300 307 317 or visit www.toursgallery.com
Le Méridien Bali Jimbaran, Bali
Le Méridien Bali Jimbaran on Bali’s south-west coast.
Le Méridien Bali Jimbaran, which is scheduled to open January 31 on Bali’s south-west coast, has a Discovery Offer opening deal priced from US$219 (plus service charge and tax) per room per night.
   The offer is valid to June 30 and includes breakfast daily for two and a daily resort credit of US$25.
   The hotel will feature four dining venues in a three-storey dining and entertainment complex.
   Visit www.lemeridien.com

Stay three nights and pay for two on the Australia Day long weekend at O’Carrollyn’s  eco-cabins at One Mile Beach on Port Stephens.
   That means from $450 per couple in a two-storey jacuzzi cabin and $420 for two adults and two children in a family cabin.
   The resort is a magnet for wildlife such as koalas, kangaroos, possums and ducks.
   Phone 02 4982 2801 or visit www.ocarrollyns.com.au
Mantra on Hindmarsh
Mantra on Hindmarsh.
Mantra and Breakfree are offering deals to coincide with the Adelaide Festival from March 1 to 17 and WOMADelaide music festival from March 8 to 11.
   Rates start from: $194 per night in a studio suite at Mantra on Hindmarsh; $194 per night in a studio room at Mantra on Frome; $155 per night in a studio room at BreakFree Adelaide; and $129 per night in a studio room at BreakFree Directors Studio.
   Visit www.mantra.com.au and www.breakfree.com.au

Take the culinary river cruise of a lifetime and help some mates help a mate. Six celebrity chefs are giving their time to escort two European excursions later this year to raise money for Matt Golinski, a fellow chef who suffered severe burns and tragically lost his home and family in a house fire on the Sunshine Coast on Boxing Day 2011.
   Manu Feildel, Alastair McLeod and Janelle Bloom will host a 19-day cruise through southern France, while George Calombaris, Gary Mehigan and Damian Heads will lead an 18-day cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest. Expect to pay about $10,000 per person twin-share, including return air travel from Australia.
   Phone 1800 373 267 or visit www.cruiseformates.com.au
Pinctada Cable Beach Resort & Spa
Pinctada Cable Beach Resort & Spa.
Enjoy welcome drinks on arrival and save up to 59 per cent when staying two or more nights at the five-star Pinctada Cable Beach Resort & Spa in Broome.
   Rooms are priced from $181 per night, based on twin-share, and feature marble bathroom, polished hardwood floors, king-size bed with fine linen, and a private balcony or courtyard overlooking landscaped gardens or pool.
   Valid to March 31. Visit www.travel.com.au

The Snowy Mountains aren’t just about skiing. There’s plenty of summer action as well, and with Thredbo Alpine Village’s Sizzling Summer Deal it’s available from $169 per night for a family of four on a three-night stay.
   That includes accommodation, breakfast, and three-day Resort Summer Passes which provide unlimited scenic chairlift rides, a round of golf per day, an hour’s tennis per day and entry to the Thredbo Leisure Centre.
   There’s also a 50 per cent discount on the Family Mountain Bike Experience.
Visit www.thredbo.com.au

To find out more about John Rozentals click here.
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