London Olympics: 10 Top Tips

London will host the Olympic Games from July 27 to August 12 this year – with the Paralympics to follow – and it is never too early to start planning for the sporting  trip of a lifetime. 

The United Kingdom capital will become the first city to host the modern Olympics three times, following on from 1908 and 1948. After some intense refurbishments to public building and monuments, road upgrades and improvements to public transport, the city is ready to welcome the world to one of the greatest sporting shows on earth.  

These are my top 10 tips to ensure your Olympic visit goes swimmingly:  

Six great city breaks

There are plenty of options if you are looking for a gourmet weekend away in one of Australia’s cities. Here are six of my favourite getaways:

Hadleys Grand Mercure - Hobart
The Tasmanian capital has undergone a metamorphosis over the past decade with an explosion of stylish restaurants, wine bars, delicatessens, patisseries and coffee shops – but visitors are also impressed by the many historic buildings and its rich colonial heritage. One of them is the Hadleys Hotel Grand Mercure. Located in the heart of Hobart city centre, this is Tasmania’s oldest continuously operating boutique hotel and was constructed by convict labour in 1834. This National Trust-listed heritage building has just 71 refurbished and restored rooms, and an on-site restaurant. You can’t be closer to the action as you are surrounded by historic pubs and are just a five-minute walk to the waterfront and lively Salamanca Place. Hobart’s many gourmet attractions are all close by with several boutique wineries within a short drive. The hotel staff are wonderfully helpful and there is a delightful vibe from staying in a place with so much history.
Hadleys Hotel Grand Mercure, 34 Murray Street, Hobart. (03) 6237 2999. www.grandmercurehadleyshotel.com.au.

Coonawarra - Worth The Trip

It's one of Australia’s most isolated, but also most rewarding, wine regions. Coonawarra is midway between Melbourne and Adelaide – roughly a five-hour drive from either – or 45 minutes from Mount Gambier’s pocket-sized airport.

Coonawarra is a place of pilgrimage for wine lovers from around the world – drawn by the magnificent cabernets and shirazes produced locally as a result of the region’s unique terra rossa land which has red-brown topsoil sitting on a white limestone base.

A thin cigar-shaped strip of red soil that runs from the hamlet of Penola in the south along the Riddoch Highway to tiny Coonawarra township in the north this small area produces some of Australia’s very best reds (and some pretty good chardonnays and rieslings) and the winemakers, grape growers and marketers are all immensely proud of their little strip of red dirt – flat as it is.

Lord Howe Island

It is a sub-tropical island that is a World Heritage site and has been described as the most beautiful in the Pacific. It lies 600 kilometres east of the Australian mainland and is an increasingly popular destination for Sydneysiders looking to get away from it all.
Welcome to Lord Howe Island and its satellites, the remnants of an ancient volcano whose shape protects a coral reef and lagoon that attract an amazing range of marine life.
Lord Howe is home to several million Kentia palms, petrels, shearwaters, terns and a wide range of bird life and has just 350 permanent residents. With visitors limited to 400 at any one time, peace and quiet is assured.
There is no mobile phone signal, no fast-food outlets, no high-rise buildings and no power cables. Instead, the clear, clean sea lures visitors to swim, surf, snorkel, dive, fish or paddle, year-round.

Best of the Best 2009

Amazingly, it's already 2010, so here are my personal awards for outstanding contributions to food, wine and travel over the past 12 months:
Winery of the year: Stella Bella in Margaret River produces a range of excellent wines at sensible price points – and never makes a dud. The 2007 Chardonnay, 2007 Shiraz and 2007 Sangiovese Cabernet blend are all outstanding.
Best innovation: Kinkawooka Shellfish from Boston Bay in South Australia launched Australia’s first French-style petit bouchot mussels, small intensely flavoured mussels like those from Brittany. They are sold ready to cook at leading seafood merchants during the season.
Best newcomer: Everybody’s talking about Provenance Restaurant and Luxury Suites in Beechworth, the dining and accommodation offering from chef Michael Ryan, formerly of Myrtleford’s two-hat Range restaurant. The restaurant is superb. Phone (03) 5728 1786. http://www.theprovenance.com.au/.
City stars: Cumulus Inc in Melbourne remains the benchmark for casual dining with smart, intelligent food, while Marque, in Sydney’s Surry Hills, consistently serves up degustation menus that both challenge and delight.

Abu Dhabi

IT’S the fashionable new stopover en route to Europe; buzzing with ultra-luxe hotels and resorts. It’s the venue for international food and wine festivals like Gourmet Abu Dhabi and top international sporting events like the Formula One Grand Prix.