Debrief of my trip to Australia

End of this very long trip that took me to Sweden and Australia and, as usual, a few lessons learned, things that worked out well and sometimes choices I might make differently.

You’ll find a summary of these Australian vacations at the bottom of the page.

The choice of the destination

This year my main destination was Melbourne. 15 months earlier I had been to Sydney and Brisbane, and I really wanted to see Melbourne, but the city’s climate, further south, was not optimal in September, whereas it was much better in December.

To this was added Sydney simply because it was my arrival city, and Adelaide because I had the opportunity to fit an extra city into my itinerary.

What can I say? Sydney and Melbourne are really interesting cities, and above all very pleasant to live in, with, as far as I’m concerned, a preference for the second, perhaps a little more European.

I’m not going to say they’re as culturally rich as many European capitals, but the National Gallery of New South Wales and the National Gallery of Victoria are well worth a visit.

And then there’s simply the atmosphere of Melbourne, really conducive to relaxing and letting go.

I’m not so keen on Adelaide, but I was kind of expecting it. A pleasant little town that can be visited quickly but there’s no need to spend more than 48 hours there.

A final word on the climate in Melbourne in winter: while it’s nicer in December than in September, it’s still not the best time of year, and as some locals have told me, I’ve sometimes seen all 4 seasons in a single day! But on the whole, the weather was fine without being too hot, which is the most important thing for a visit.

Flights

I found an excellent fare on Lufthansa/ANA from Gothenburg, which was perfect because this was an airline I really wanted to discover. Really very good, even if the management of the cancellation of a flight in Sydney could have been accompanied by much better communication. I’m not criticizing the cancellation, which was inevitable given the context, but rather the way it was handled.

IMG_3882
Business Class cabin ANA B787

I also had a bit of a scare on Lufthansa when I left Gothenburg for Frankfurt, due to the terrible weather conditions that caused the German airports to close, but in the end everything went smoothly, even though I wasn’t feeling too confident on the eve of my departure. Once again, airlines are not responsible for bad weather, but for the way they handle it.

For domestic flights, I still prefer Virgin Australia’s Economy X product, given the prohibitive prices charged by Qantas.

As for my intra-European flights with Air France…I’m still worried about their medium-haul product.

But if in the end everything went well (not without a few scares), I can only urge you to be extra careful in terms of safety margins when you’re self-connecting… on long trips like this, delays can quickly add up to days, with all the impact this can have on the rest of your trip, with bookings having to be postponed, cancelled or even lost for good.

Hotels

Two great discoveries in Gothenburg with Draken and Jacy’z and more mixed impressions in Australia.

IMG_4081
Jacy’z pool club in Gothenburg.

Excellent memories of the Ritz-Carlton Melbourne and the Moxy Sydney Airport, much duller at the W Sydney and, above all, the W Melbourne and the Intercontinental Adelaide. But what I will remember and what confirms the impression of my previous stay is the penny-pinching in the application of the loyalty programs, quite similar to what can be found in the USA.

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The swimming pool at the Ritz Carlton Melbourne

Special praise also goes to the Scandic Landvetter, with a superb view of the runways and a Jacuzzi overlooking the runways.

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The Jacuzzi at Scandic Landvetter

Restaurants

No surprise there: I always eat very well in Gothenburg and Scandinavia in general, and the Australian culinary scene is as good as it is varied.

IMG_1478
Dinner at Saga in Gothenburg

On this vacation I ate well (apart from once or twice when it was more average) at price ranges from street food to gourmet and varying styles of food.

IMG_3255
Dinner at Freyja’s in Melbourne

If I had to pick just three? Saga, a Scandinavian-Singaporean restaurant in Gothenburg, Freyja a Scandinavian in Melbourne and Aalia a Middle Eastern in Sydney.

Bottom line

Apart from a few practical considerations that led me to revise a small part of my program for weather reasons, and caused me a few major scares (the risk of traveling in winter…), it was an excellent vacation, and although in retrospect there are always things to improve and do differently, no choice proved truly disappointing.

You can copy and paste the itinerary and do the same without any fear.

The articles about this vacation in Australia

#TypePost
1DiaryPreparing a trip to Australia
2LoungeAir France lounge Roissy 2G
3FlightParis-Goteborg, Air France, Business Class (Embraer 190)
4HotelDraken, Gothenburg
5RestaurantKuruya, Gothenburg
6RestaurantSaga, Gothenburg
7HotelScandic Landvetter Airport
8LoungeSAS Lounge-Gothenburg (already tested many times, no review)
9FlightGothenburg-Munich, Lufthansa, Business Class (A320)
10LoungeLufthansa Senator Lounge Munich T2 Doors H
11FlightMunich-Tokyo Haneda, ANA, Business Class (B787)
12LoungeAna Lounge, Tokyo Haneda, T2
13FlightTokyo Haneda-Sydney, ANA, Business Class (B787)
14HotelMoxy Sydney Airport, Sydney
15LoungeVirgin Australia Lounge Sydney Domestic T2
16FlightSydney-Adelaide, Virgin Australia, Business Class (B737)
17HotelIntercontinental Adelaide
18RestaurantDaughter In Law, Adelaide
19DiaryVisiting Adelaide
20LoungeVirgin Australia lounge, Adelaide, Domestic
21FlightAdelaide-Melbourne, Virgin Australia, Economy X
22HotelRitz Carlton Melbourne
23RestaurantEntrecote, Melbourne
24RestaurantDelhi Streets, Melbourne
25RestaurantBincho Boss, Melbourne
26HotelW Melbourne
27RestaurantCapitano Carlton, Melbourne
28RestaurantRed Spice Road, Melbourne
29RestaurantYakikami, Melbourne
30RestaurantFreyja, Melbourne
31DiaryVisiting Melbourne
32LoungeVirgin Australia lounge, domestic, Melbourne
33FlightMelbourne-Sydney, Virgin Australia, Economy X
34HotelW Sydney
35RestaurantManta, Sydney
36RestaurantAalia, Sydney
37DiaryVisit Sydney: the Art Gallery of New South Wales
38LoungeAir New Zealand lounge, Sydney T1
39LoungeThe House, Sydney T1
40FlightSydney-Tokyo Haneda, ANA, Business Class (B787)
41LoungeAna Lounge, Tokyo Haneda, T2 (already tested on the outward journey, no review)
42FlightTokyo Haneda-Frankfurt, ANA, Business Class (B787)
43LoungeLufthansa Senator Lounge, Frankfurt, T1 Gates A
44FlightFrankfurt-Gothenburg, Lufthansa, Business Class (A321)
45HotelJacy’z, Gothenburg
46LoungeThe Lounge, Goteborg Landvetter
47FlightGothenburg-Paris, Air France, Business Class (Embraer 190)
48DiaryDebriefing my vacation in Australia
Bertrand Duperrin
Bertrand Duperrinhttp://www.duperrin.com
Compulsive traveler, present in the French #avgeek community since the late 2000s and passionate about (long) travel since his youth, Bertrand Duperrin co-founded Travel Guys with Olivier Delestre in March 2015.
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