Oceania

Travel through Oceania by country:

Australia, Indonesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu

Travel through Oceania by popular city:

Auckland, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Wellington

Travel through Oceania by popular things to do:

Cook Islands, Sydney Opera House

Travel through Oceania with our writers:

In the Corner of the World, Work and Play in Queensland

One for the Road: LP Cities

by Erik Olsen on

I hope to get my hands on this fine
new book out from Lonely Planet so I can review it for our readers, but in the meantime, y’all might be interested just
to know about it. Yes, Lonely Planet, ye of the ever useful, sometimes too heavy, guides to everywhere, has assembled an
all-new coffee-table sized compendium called The Cities Book, that
takes a close and visually-pleasing look at the world’s 200 best cities.

Of course, one man’s
"best" is another’s "worst" (i.e. Bangkok), but you can usually trust the sensibilities of the LP
folks, and it is they who have put this thing together…along with the help of dutiful readers who contributed
comments based on their own whims and experiences. One thing: it ain’t cheap ($50). But that’s probably because they
have filled the book with many vivid photos from their extensive photo catalog. You know you want it. Well, you CAN
register to get your hands on a free copy over
at the Guardian…but you’ll have to do so lickety-split, the deadline is March 30.

Rough Guides World Party Competition

by Adrienne Wilson on

Are you an aspiring
travel writer by day and raving party animal by night? Do you enjoy frequenting the world’s biggest festivals,
streaking down cobble-stone paths covered in mud, running with the bulls, making love at the Love Parade or taking one
tequila shot after another in Nawlins’ during Mardi Gras? If you’ve been there and done that I’m sure you’ve got some
wild stories to prove it, unless what goes on at Burning Man stays at Burning Man. Don’t be shy – sharing your tales
and lesser of the incriminating photos of your adventures at some of the world’s biggest fetes, fiestas, or parties
could land you and a pal in good old New Orleans for Mardi Gras in 2007. Rough Guides is looking for the 411 from travel writing party goers all
over for their new book Rough Guide World Party: The Global Festival
Guide. Wouldn’t it be something if your wild tale made the cut? Get going, start writing and check out the
rules. Call for entries closes May 31, 2006.

Did I mention photos? Yes you’ll need to send in four digi
photos as well. Not that they don’t take your word for it. They just want to see your P.U.I. (photography under the
influence) skills.

Last Day WWP

by Erik Olsen on

I posted a few days ago about the
beginning of the World Wide Pano project, one
of my favorite panoramic photography events of the year…of which there are some four….one each equinox and
solstice. Well today is the last day to shoot ffor the event. So if you want to participate and haven’t got out there
yet, well, go.

Each event has a particular theme, which can be interpreted by photographers however they
wish. This year’s theme is Borders. I’ve got my own pano shot and am building it now, and I’m rather giddily excited to
see what others come up with. Needless to say,  if I’d really had a nice travel budget I could have done a whole
assortment of cool things, but being that I work a full time job, well, t’wasn’t in the cards.

Anyway, this
is an immensely cool project and I hope you check it out, if not contribute. I’ll post again when the current theme
goes live with all the new photos from around the world.

RoadJunky Friends Network

by Adrienne Wilson on

Chances are in the
process of some of your wildest trip planning schemes one of your close, conservative family members or friends
probably frowned upon your wacky notion of running that marathon in Cameroon or biking the entire length of the U.S.,
but deep in your heart you knew better than to think your idea was too far-fetched to be achieved. You knew 
thousands of people felt the way you do and it was only a matter of finding them. Rallying up your couch-potato pals
back home in Montana should no longer be one of your headaches in adventure planning with friends. Heck, let them stay
home. Bring them an oversized pencil souvenir back. Now you can rely on the assistance of another networking engine to find like minded individuals,
your better map-toting half, and even someone to practice the local tongue with you (language folks, language) at RoadJunky.
Use it if you’re bored, procrastinating on
some grueling corporate project, or in dire need of a buddy to accompany you on your crusade through the Congo to
protect say, the chimps. You’re not alone.

Australia for Cheap?

by Erik Olsen on

A couple of buddies of mine just got back from a few weeks in Australia. Man, I wish I could have joined them.
They were diving the Great Barrier Reef while I was stuck in the grind. Sad. It was also pretty expensive  when I
was looking into flights and it just didn’t seem possible to swing a seven day trip for some $2000, the cost I came up
with looking for fares. But I was pleased to learn that there are deals to be had. TravelPost tells us that a new
deal from Quantas, the Quantas Air Pass,
provides for  roundtrip transportation from a U.S. city and three flights within Australia once you’re
there. That is sweet. You could do Sydney, Melbourne and Cairnes and have some cashola left over to gnosh on some of
the excellent Aussie roo meat.

Turns out the passes are only good for up to 21 day stretches, so you’re not
going to be able to circumnavigate the continent.  this is an ideal option for travelers who want to get the most
out of the country in a relatively short amount of time. If you jump on it now, the passes will run from $999 if you
start your trip in San Francisco and stopping in Sydney, Brisbane or Melbourne first. Jump like a roo on this
one.