Arrivals & Departures Weekly Travel News & Views 17 June 2025

BIG SHORT ADVENTURE

As you read this, I’m at Uluru with 100 readers. More precisely, we are at Yulara, which is the village 25km by road from the great, red rock, where everyone stays. Just to think that once there were motels and camping at the base of the rock. Today, it’s an organised affair, with a range of accommodation at Yulara, from campground to five-star Sails in the Desert (which is where we are for three nights). Just over 240,000 people visited Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in 2024, up just a smidgen on 2023, and nowhere near the 406,821 visitors of 2019, when climbing the rock was banned.

RESILIENT INDIA

The space and spinifex of the Red Centre is far removed from the beginning of my week, in Kolkata, in the east of India. Like you, I have been watching the aftermath of Thursday's tragic Air India crash unfold. I returned from India on Wednesday. After the crash, I immediately received emails from readers, aware I was in India, concerned for my wellbeing, and thank everyone for their kind thoughts. Like you, I'm sure, I am thinking about everyone affected by the crash. Resilient India is first in my thoughts...

100 PER CENT INDIAN

I’ve spent time in Delhi, Jaipur and Agra before flying to Kolkata with IndiGo to river cruise on Uniworld’s Ganges Voyager II, which was purpose-built for this holy river. The owner of the ship, Raj Singh, pioneered river cruising in India and has focused on the Ganges since the mid-2000s. The Ganges Voyager II was built in Kolkata and the crew are all Indian, mostly local, and well-trained. As Raj puts it: “This is 100 per cent locals, and 100 per cent Indian.”

CRUISE & RAIL

As a youngster in Bharatpur, Rajasthan, Raj regularly went boating in what is now known as Keoladeo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and on Band Baretha, a nearby reservoir. He dreamt of sharing his love of India and of its waterways and launched his first river cruise here in 2009. Uniworld permanently charters Ganges Voyager II and couples it up in two packages — a seven-day cruise on the Ganges and the Maharaja’s Express luxury train, and a seven-day cruise and a coach trip round the Golden Triangle, staying in superb Oberoi hotels in Delhi, Jaipur and Agra.

ABBEY ROAD SOUNDS

Cunard cruise line has worked with Abbey Road Studios in London to give guests on Queen Elizabeth an “exclusive Listening Lounge experience”. That’s a series of curated playlists, each hand-picked by the Abbey Road team.

They are full of iconic recordings at Abbey Road Studios — including the Beatles, of course. Set to debut on Queen Elizabeth this northern hemisphere autumn, the 60-minute Listening Lounge experience will be hosted in the Commodore Club, taking listeners on a themed journey through high-quality ANC Bowers & Wilkins headphones.

Ed Sheeran recorded part of his album “÷” on Queen Mary 2.

BRILLIANT BAUL

A highlight of my time on Ganges Voyager II was the music of the Kalachand Halder Baul music group. You can see the musicians with tour manager Vishal Bhaskar at the top of the page.There is a real engagement with the heady mix that is Indian culture on the Uniworld trips. Baul people sing and accompany spiritual songs which are a major component of the cultural heritage of Bengalis. Baul songs can be traced back to the 15th century.

NEW COMBOS

Viking cruises has added 14 new itineraries for its ocean-going ships in 2026 and 2027. They are actually combinations of existing popular voyages and range from 15 to 36 days and include itineraries in the Mediterranean, UK, Ireland and Scandinavia. They are open for booking now. Torstein Hagen, chairman and CEO of Viking, explains: “These new voyages offer even more choices for guests who wish to extend their time abroad with one seamless itinerary.”

My picks are ...

A 15-day Jewels of the Mediterranean, a round-trip from Rome which visits Sicily, Tunisia, Spain and France as well as super places in Italy, like Florence, where the ship stops overnight.

Iceland, Norway and British Isles, which is a 29-day itinerary between Reykjavik and London. The ship sails via Svalbard and Jan Mayen.

Travel agents, 138 747 or viking.com.

ON THE RAILS

Lots of readers are going cruising in Norway, and Railbookers has a nice add-on — a four-day rail trip from Bergen to Flam and Oslo, which is from $1729 per person. It’d be a nice way to get back to Oslo to fly home after a cruise. It includes one overnight stay in all three places, and a ferry ride on Naeroyfjord (the narrowest fjord in the world), and a trip on the Flam Railway, over snow-capped mountains. 1300 938 534 and railbookers.com.au.

CLASSIC & CLASSY

I recently handed out a “worst video award”, so I’ll balance it up with one of the best. Singapore Airlines’ clip is simply informative, engaging and charming. But then, this is Singapore Airlines, so I wouldn’t expect anything else. The various aspects of safety are set in key spots around Singapore, like the Capitol Theatre and Gardens by the Bay.

RICH TAPESTRY

Casey, my faithful suitcase, is somewhere beneath me (dare I say, “emotionally and intellectually”, as he’s out of earshot), on the Singapore Airlines flights home. It wasn’t much more than four hours from Kolkata to Singapore, and the pilot announces a 4½ hour flight time between there and Perth. Aren’t we lucky to be on the doorstep of such a range of cultures and experiences.

OBEROI FANS

... but to continue, Casey is (wait for it) happy. I always feel hesitant when I take him to India. Regular readers will know how truculent, antagonising, irksome and exasperating he can be (again, while he’s out of earshot). But India’s welcome is warm. Each of the three Oberois we stayed at were superb and managed to retain the personal touch. Regular readers might also remember that I’ve said in the past that I think the Oberoi Rajvilas in Jaipur is my favourite hotel in the world — and I hold to that. (More on that and the other two Oberois in a future edition.)

NEVER SAY NO

One last tip from Uniworld’s tour manager, Vishal Bhaskar.

He says Indians are taught never to say no.

Ask: “Is that the way to the Taj Mahal?”

They will answer: “Yes”. (Whether it’s right or wrong.)

So ask: “Which way to the Taj Mahal?”

They will tell you.