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Meet the Sydney and New South Wales suppliers
by Laura Gelder | 09 July 2020
Destination NSW ran a series of four webinars over June and July and over 100 agents tuned in to each one, ready to learn about the Australian state's iconic attractions and meet some key partners ranging from attractions to destinations, accommodation providers to activity companies.
Here, we round up six of the Sydney and New South Wales suppliers that were featured and what we learnt from the webinars:
Arts Hotel Sydney
This three-and-a-half-star hotel is family-operated and prides itself on its very personal service as well as being great value for an inner-city property in Sydney’s trendy Paddington.
Arts Hotel Sydney's location is at the beating heart of this district - Australia’s first heritage conservation area - on Oxford Street and close to the art galleries, designer boutiques, speciality shops and historic architecture that Paddington is famous for as a centre of fashion. The area has a village atmosphere with lots of great restaurants, pubs and cafés offering outdoor dining. Probably its most famous attraction is Paddington Markets.
The hotel has a tranquil garden courtyard and swimming pool as well as parking on-site and a fleet of bicycles available for guests to use. A free walking tour is available to those who want to get the inside track on the area.
Standard rooms face onto the rear laneway or have a balcony facing onto Oxford Street and come with a queen bed or two single beds while garden rooms are same but face onto the quiet garden courtyard. There are also triple rooms and interconnecting rooms for families. Guests staying four nights or more benefit from a complimentary room upgrade for 4 night stays.
Australian Cruise Group
This cruise operator offers lunch and dinner cruises as well as gala dinners, private charters and one-off events like weddings and conferences and has floated the boats of over six million guests over the last 30 years.
Australian Cruise Group owns, operates and manages five luxury vessels under three brands: Magistic Cruises, Sydney Showboats and Clearview Cruises and offers over 12 daily cruises around Sydney with full in-house catering of the highest calibre.
Its Clearview Glass Boat Cruise lasts three hours and takes in Sydney Harbour with canapés & drinks served on the Sky Deck followed by an eight-course seated degustation menu with premium beers, wines and soft drinks. The Glass Boat Sunset Dinner Cruise aboard Blueroom is shorter, at one hour and 45 minutes, with a three-course seated dinner, and takes in twilight as it boards at 16:45 rather than 19.20.
Sydney Showboat II offers a three-hour Sydney Harbour dinner cruise boarding at 19.00 with a deluxe three-course dinner menu, freshly prepared on board, plus a one-hour live show ‘Voyage of Love’ as it takes in night views of Sydney Harbour and its iconic attractions.
Finally, the Magistic two-hour buffet lunch or dinner cruise takes two hours with premium beers, wines and soft drinks and reserved tables with restaurant-style seating. This cruise boards at 12.00 or 18.45.
BridgeClimb Sydney
A unique Sydney experience which traverses the iconic global landmark that is the Sydney Harbour Bridge, BridgeClimb was voted the number one experience in Australia by TripAdvisor in 2018. Over 4 million people have climbed in its 21 years of operation.
BridgeClimb is an all-weather experience - apart from electrical storms - and open to almost all. Pregnant women can climb up to 24 weeks, as can those 75 years old and over - provided both have a Certificate of Fitness signed by their GP. The minimum age is eight years and the minimum height is 1.2 metres. All climbers must pass a breath test and personal cameras and phones are not allowed.
Included in the price is a complimentary group photo, a certificate (except for the BridgeClimb Sampler) and a Pylon Lookout entry pass allowing access to this unique view point.
There are three different climbs. The original Summit Climb is three hours long to ascend 1,332 steps along the upper arch to the Summit; the Summit Express takes two and a half hours to ascend along the lower arch to the Summit in 1,002 steps, takes fewer stops but requires a higher level of fitness; and the Sampler is a one and a half hour walk along a lower arch to a vantage point halfway to the Summit. Climbs take place at dawn, during the day, at twilight and at night.
Special engagement or wedding climbs can be booked along with special event climbs such as a karaoke-themed climb and one which takes place during the Vivid Sydney festival of light, music and ideas.
Destination Port Stephens
This conveniently located destination offers great beaches, impressive sand dunes, wildlife and a diverse range of activities just two and a half hours north of Sydney, one hour from the Hunter Valley, one hour from Newcastle (half an hour from its airport) and just over an hour from the Central Coast.
There are 26 stunning beaches around Port Stephens and its network of waterways are two and a half times larger than Sydney Harbour. The region is also home to a Marine Park and Moonshadow-TQC Cruises offers dolphin watching year-round as well as humpback whale watching from May to November. Visitors can also take a trip with Dolphin Swim Australia to snorkel among the wild dolphins. Swimmers wear a mask and snorkel and hold on to a rope as it is moving along.
The Worimi Sand Dunes are the largest moving coastal dunes in the Southern Hemisphere, stretching 32km along the Port Stephens Coastline and reaching up to 30 metres high. The Aboriginal community-owned Sand Dune Adventures offers guided quad bike tours - one hour for a standard tour or two and a half for an Aboriginal culture tour. Alternatively, Port Stephens 4WD Tours offers unlimited sandboarding or a Beach and Dune Tour taking in the abandoned Tin City and 4WD Tours RUS offers unlimited sand boarding, sand surfing, Tin City tours and a sunset sandboarding picnic tour.
Tomaree National Park is an area of outstanding natural beauty where hikers can explore many tracks, including the walk to Tomaree Head at 162m high, hire a bike or take a tour to Port Stephens Lighthouse and Fingal Island or Fort Tomaree.
Accommodation in Port Stephens includes hotels, self contained, holiday parks and glamping, including the Hamptons-style Anchorage Port Stephens with its infinity pool; Bannisters Port Stephens with its Rick Stein Restaurant; and Mantra Port Stephens apartments around a lagoon-style pool.
Instyle Chauffeured Limousines
For clients who want to travel in style, Instyle offers a fleet of luxury vehicles for personalised transfers from Sydney’s airport or cruise terminal with meet and greet.
Guests can choose a Mercedes Benz S Class, BMW 7 Series LWB or Audi A8. Or, for a really special experience, a Rolls Royce Phantom, Bentley Flying Spur, Maserati Quattroporte.
The company also has a modern fleet of people movers and coaches and offers half- and full-day city tours, a full-day Blue Mountains tour, a full-day luxury Hunter Valley tour with wine tasting.
Instyle Limousines' primary focus is to provide clients with a personalised meet and greet transfer experience and all chauffeurs are highly professional, knowledgeable and will always go the extra mile to ensure complete client satisfaction.
Lets Go Surfing
Offering surf lessons and tours in Sydney and beyond, family-owned and Eco Tourism-certified Lets Go Surfing offers group and private lessons, local tours on-land and out to sea and lots more.
This surfing school has been at Bondi Beach for 25 years but also has a base in Byron Bay - Australia’s most easterly point. At both bases it offers private lessons for families and individuals aged seven years-plus (even if they can’t swim) as well as group lessons for those aged twelve and over. Guests are provided with soft, safe surfboards, summer or winter wetsuits, UV rash vests, sunblock and zinc. There are changing rooms, outdoor showers and security for personal belongings available.
The popular Surf Experience is a two-hour introduction aimed to help people catch their first wave. For those who can already surf, Lets Go Surfing offers the services of a surf guide for four hours who can find the best local spots and offer tips and advice.
The company also offers lots of immersive tours which combine local sights with watersports. The four-hour Local Tour offers time for surfing, stand-up paddle boarding, sunbathing and sightseeing.The Best Of Tour can be a half- or full-day and has numerous options including a lighthouse walk in Byron Bay or a swim in the famous Icebergs outdoor pool in Bondi, as well as spas sessions, yoga and street tours with time for shopping. And the Discover Tour offers the chance to explore the surf lifesaving club and even hang out with one of the lifesavers.
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