weeklyTRAVEL
TRAVEL bites MYANMAR STILL HAS TRAVELLERS FLYING HIGH
NEW HOTEL The Bay of Plenty’s first international five-star hotel has opened in Rotorua. With 130 rooms, Pullman Rotorua is located in the centre of the geothermal city, close to the lakefront and the Government Gardens. The hotel’s Barrel & Co Bar and Grill focuses on locally sourced produce, a premium grill selection, craft beer and a local wine menu showcasing every winegrowing region in Aotearoa.
CRUISING TOGETHER Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand Goop is partnering with Celebrity Cruises to create the first Goop at Sea experience. The 11-night wellness cruise through the Mediterranean on the soon-to-debut Celebrity Apex will depart Barcelona on August 26. Participants have the chance to meet the star and attend sessions focusing on the mind, body and soul. Visit celebritycruises.com/ specialty-cruises/goop-at-sea.
SHOW YOUR SUPPORT The world’s watched as bushfires have tragically wreaked havoc in Australia. Don’t dismiss your travel plans across the ditch entirely though – not all of Australia is affected and the tourism industry needs your support. For safety advice and alerts, see australia.com/en/travel-alerts.html.
62
New Zealand Woman’s Weekly
Contact Travel Bites at travel@bauermedia.co.nz
ook at any travel story or poster promoting tourism in Myanmar and chances are it features one of two iconic images – the shimmering golden stupa of Shwedagon Pagoda or a hot-air balloon drifting over the ancient temples of Bagan at sunrise. While Shwedagon is said to be more than 2000 years old, the Balloons Over Bagan flights recently celebrated their 20th anniversary. Though 20 years might not sound like much, it’s worth remembering that Myanmar, previously Burma, was off limits for decades to visitors, and only in recent years has opened up to international travellers. Cary Crawley, who was the pilot of the inaugural flight of Balloons Over Bagan on December 31, 1999, recalls: “There were eight passengers and eight ground staff, none of whom had ever seen a hot-air balloon before. In fact, the local people were mesmerised by the sight of a hot-air balloon in the sky. Some thought it was a UFO. “We used a tractor to retrieve the balloon from a sugarcane field when it landed. Sometimes, in those early days, the tractor couldn’t reach the fields so we had to use an ox and cart.” More than 17,500 flights later, the award-winning and ecofriendly Balloons Over Bagan, part of Memories Group, operates an average of 12 hot-air balloon flights daily and employs more than 200 ground crew, almost entirely locals.
TEXT: PENNY LEWIS
Balloons over Bagan L
