SHE’s an avid user of Wi Fi when SHE’s on the road: with an Ipad and an Iphone, accessing Wi Fi is the only way to roam internationally. Cafes, restaurants, bars, fast food outlets – there are plenty of places advertising ‘free Wi Fi’ (and of course any number of Apps helping you find these locations). And hooray to these businesses, aren’t you clever? The offer of free Wi Fi also means there’ll be some spending going on while you’re there. Ah yep…that’s rocket science isn’t it?!
More often than not hotels will charge for Wi Fi. SHE just doesn’t get it. Why not offer complimentary access in the bar or restaurant? No? Prefer the extra revenue you’ll think you’ll earn from us? $12 an hour/$25 a day – no thanks. So off SHE goes, with the laptop, Ipad, Iphone to the cafe around the corner: to catch up on emails, maybe a Skype call home, browse the internet, research the next stop. And this is thirsty work…SHE’ll order a coffee, maybe skip breakfast in the hotel and have it here…there could be a spend of $10 or a $100. So, in fact, SHE has paid for the luxury of Wi Fi access, SHE’s just done it happily.
A recent Luxury Travel Magazine article quotes a survey that found “71 per cent of hotel guests say having Wi-Fi in their rooms influences where they stay”. And “free Wi-Fi was the most desired amenity for hotel guests”. Hello…hotel people…are you listening?
To the General Managers and owners of hotels who just can’t bring themselves to offer free Wi Fi – SHE thinks you have an opportunity here. In these uncertain times why not give yourself a competitive edge, and maybe increase your food and beverage revenue while you’re there. The smart hotels will give us what we’ll soon demand: free Wi Fi included in your hotel rate or we’ll vote with our feet.
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SHE loves eating out – and eating at great restaurants is a real treat. Unfortunately it’s not always possible to enjoy a top notch restaurant without a hefty price tag. SHE was delighted to discover the Bar and Grill at Rockpool in Melbourne’s Crown Casino complex. More specifically – the Bar within the restaurant. Unlike the very grownup restaurant, bookings aren’t accepted in the Bar – the secret is arriving early. SHE was given a recommendation to arrive around 6pm, apparently this is the key to snapping up one of the 10 or so tables. And that advice was spot on. At a little after 6pm on a Friday night, SHE was amongst the first to arrive and be shown to a table.
SHE thinks Rockpool is the kind of place you could settle into very easily: comfortable leather chairs, muted lighting, excellent service every step of the way. Choosing a bar table doesn’t mean compromising on the service or indeed the menu. Order from the full restaurant menu or choose from the more compact bar menu; the choice is yours. No matter where you sit or dine here, no-one’s looking down their noses at you. On a Friday night after a long week, a burger and a few wines were definitely in order.
And what a burger it is: Wagyu beef with bacon, gruyere cheese, and zuni pickle; at $24 it was an absolute bargain. A side of crispy, moreish onion rings were the perfect accompaniment. SHE and her buddy enjoyed a very reasonably priced bottle of Pinot Grigio from King Valley in Victoria – surprisingly affordable and very easy to drink. SHE loved the helpful advice of our waiter Hamish – SHE overheard him offer the diners at the next table the option to choose different burgers (either the fish or wagyu and have them cut in half to share). A nice touch for a restaurant that easily commands $55+ for a fine piece of steak. And when our burgers arrived, the waiter suggested the best way to eat it was to cut it in half and pick it up with our hands. Permission to forget the knife and fork… priceless!
If you’re watching the dollars or want to impress someone with your inside knowledge, SHE thinks this is really one of Melbourne’s great options. And SHE thanks the talented Neil Perry, and the wonderful staff, for making Rockpool accessible to everyone – no matter what your budget.
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It’s 32 days to Christmas! Bring on the Fat Guy in the Red Suit – SHE loves a bit of festive spirit! And of course once all the planning and celebration of that major event is over, we face a new dilemma – where to spend New Year’s Eve. SHE remembers the years spent trawling from party to party, in and out of taxis, hoping desperately to be at the ‘best’ party at the stroke of midnight. Is it a hassle to go to the city, too many people, how about that mate’s party – hmmm, don’t know about the guest list! Maybe SHE’ll stay home – oh yeah…great way to bring in the New Year! Maybe it’s all too hard…
All this was to change toward the end of 2009. SHE talked one of her mates into venturing ‘overseas’ to that wonderful island of ours – Tasmania. More specifically, Hobart, in what was definitely one of the best 5 days of post Christmas celebrations SHE remembers. SHE had heard much about what goes on in and around Constitution Dock at this time of year. There is of course that very famous race – The Rolex Sydney to Hobart – that brings a party atmosphere (and some very wonky sailors) all the way from Sydney! Getting up close and personal with a maxi yacht (jeez…they really do mean ‘maxi’!) is pretty amazing. And SHE watched the winner claim line honors on a balmy night, perched on a table overlooking the waterfront at Tassie’s famous Taste Festival. Oh yeah…that was a tick off the bucket list! And this was the 28th December – so much more fun to be had before the big night arrived!
Hobart’s a pretty self contained city – and the perfect party precinct for New Year’s Eve. Leave the car at home – SHE walked everywhere, from the bars and cafes of Salamanca Place, to the waterfront that came alive with two sets of fireworks displays (and one awesome display by Mother Nature around 10pm – thunder, lightning – really, very very frightening!). No taxis, no hassles, no designated driver issues – fantastic! And SHE felt really safe – people of all ages mingled without any dramas. 
New Year’s Eve is just around the corner – would you like to spend it ‘overseas’ in the beautiful city of Hobart? SHE’ll be greeting the fleet from the Sydney to Hobart, working our way through over 70 stalls at the Taste Festival (with free entry – yes FREE! that means a visit every day!), and to cap it all off, SHE’ll party into 2011 to a band belting out the favourites from the 80′s. All this and no shortage of fabulous food and Tassie beverages!
SHE is jealously guarding a number of apartments and studios at The Old Woolstore Hotel arriving 27 December, departing 2 January (a minimum stay applies). These last few rooms (almost as hard to come by as line honours in that race!) will be snapped up quickly so don’t think about it for too long – get amongst a party you’ll remember for years to come! Drop us a line if you’d like more info.
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And don’t we ladies love our handbags! Clearly we can never have enough of them – in different colours, shapes, sizes and just because it looks fabulous! SHE gets a litte frustrated though when SHE’s travelling and changes handbags – that crucial item always seems to get left in the ‘other bag’. Really inconvenient.
SHE’s found this wonderful company based in Western Australia – SHE loves the West! And SHE does love supporting women in business.
Bragbags Beachbag Organiser
How about this for organised…the clever ladies from Bragbags have some great solutions for helping us all get our lives in order. Checkout their bag organisers – so many options from versions to fit in your day to day handbag or this neat option for your beach bag. How great will that be for the coming summer holidays?
So now no more rustling around in that bag to find your favourite lip gloss or your sunnies. Let’s get organised – and in such a stylish way! There are plenty of other cool options on their site – SHE also loves some of their overnight/travel options.
Now it really can be said that SHE can’t ever have too many handbags! Good work Bragbags!
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SHE’s an avid user of Wi Fi when SHE’s on the road: with an Ipad and an Iphone, accessing Wi Fi is the only way to roam internationally. Cafes, restaurants, bars, fast food outlets – there are plenty of places advertising ‘free Wi Fi’ (and of course any number of Apps helping you find these locations). And hooray to these businesses, aren’t you clever? The offer of free Wi Fi also means there’ll be some spending going on while you’re there. Ah yep…that’s rocket science isn’t it?!
