The World Awaits: travel tales to inspire your wanderlust

Let's take you completely off the beaten track and to the ends of the Earth.Jenny Gray is the force behind Intrepid Travel’s women-only expeditions, which it runs in seven countries including Saudi Arabia. Jenny chats about travelling as a woman in the kingdom, exploring its deserts and meeting its people, merging two of the hottest trends in tourism at the moment - women-only travel and Saudi Arabia, intrepid.comAnd Antarctica and the Arctic are two of the last frontiers on the planet. Veteran journalist Andrew Conway takes us into these incredibly fragile places, explaining  what you can expect in each, how they differ, and how we travellers can help ensure their survival for future generations https://www.auroraexpeditions.com.au/ship/greg-mortimer/Send us a textSupport the showVisit us at https://theworldawaits.au

Welcome to our Summer Series for 24/25. We're kicking off with our islands edition, and we're taking you to Indonesia and Italy!Let's go to a remote tropical island in the Indonesian archipelago, where young Aussie couple, Jess and Dan Baldock have built Alamayah, a luxury boutique retreat. Designed by Jess and built by Dan along with the people of Sumba, the tiny, six-suite retreat has been a cultural experience, as the couple learned the local language and culture in the process, embedding Alamayah into the community, all the while raising their own young family on the island, alamayah.com  Would you cycle for more than 210 kilometres in 30+ degree heat around southern Sardinia? For host Kirstie Bedford it was a dream come true. Kirstie spent a week biking the hills of the Italian island, all in the name of fun. She rode through an abandoned medieval village, biked through a Blue Zone, climbed hills to scour some of the Mediterranean's most beautiful beaches, and drank wine with locals to celebrate what Italians do best – live life to the fullest. Listen for Kirstie's vote for the prettiest Italian town and how you can follow in her bike tracks, utracks.com And you can read Kirstie's latest story about her trip here: https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/australian-geographic-adventure/destinations/2024/12/pedalling-for-pasta-a-week-of-cycling-around-southern-sardinia/Send us a textSupport the showVisit us at https://theworldawaits.au

Fly up the pointy end of the plane with air mile loyalty specialist, Adele Eliseo of  The Champagne Mile.  “Points collection is less about flying and more about where you can maximise your points on the ground," says  Adele, "In almost every area where we spend money there’s a way to get points, so start by analysing your spending and where you could collect points.” And she walks the talk, having flown her entire family business class around the world, thechampagnemile.com.auAlso, the summer travel scams you need to watch out for according to booking.com, and with Christmas mere seconds away, we've got gift suggestions for the jetsetter in your life. Buy experiences at redballoon.com.auSearch hardtofind.com.au & buyfromthebush.com.au Bluetooth luggage tags: tile.com & apple.comBuy a goat unwrapped.oxfam.org.auDestination-inspired candles glasshousefragrances.comSend us a textSupport the showVisit us at https://theworldawaits.au

Southern USA rings with the sweet sounds of blues, soul and R&B – this week, we’re designing the perfect musical roadtrip through the southern states with iconic rock journalist Glenn A Baker.“Memphis really is the centre of the journey,” says Glenn, who suggests starting in New Orleans and driving through four or five states – with even a river cruise in the mix – to find the places of legend. We're talking the crossroads where Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil in exchange for fame, the studio where Rolling Stone Keith Richards sat on the toilet and wrote the lyrics to Wild Horses, whether Elvis really was afraid of flying and the Tallahatchie Bridge, to name just a few sights on his dream US roadtrip, follow him here: facebook.com/officialglennabaker   He’s even built us a soundtrack to drive by. So get a big convertible, plug in the playlist, and step on the gas. Also, we’ve got Wicked fever as Belle checks out the new movie and the Novotel Melbourne Central and its Wicked packages. Also, the World’s 50 Best Bars list is out, and three of them are here in Australia, and what do you do with your left-over foreign currency? ALL.com says Australians are sitting on more than one billion dollars in unspent foreign currency! If you have spare cash, you could donate it to the good people at UNICEF via this currency exchange outlet, travelmoneyoz.com/donate-foreign-coin   For more, see;www.hardiegrantgift.com.au/books/ultimate-island-escapes-australia-9781741178821www.theworlds50best.com/bars/index.htmlnovotel.accor.com/a/en/offers/apac-wicked-the-movie.html novotel.accor.com/a/en/offers/novotel-family.html We also asked Glenn A Baker for his mix tape for a US roadtrip through the musical south. Here's what he gave us:Elvis Presley - That’s All Right Mama/Good Rockin’ TonightJerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire/Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going OnRoy Orbison - Only The LonelyLittle Richard - Tutti Frutti/Long Tall SallyB.B. King - The Thrill Is GoneBooker T & MGs - Green Onions/Soul Limbo/Time Is TightCarla  Thomas - Gee WhizRufus Thomas - Walking The DogOtis Redding - I Can’t Turn You LoosePercy Sledge - When A Man Loves A WomanSam & Dave - Hold On I’m Coming/Soul ManWilson Pickett - In The Midnight Hour/Land of 1000 DancesAretha Franklin - I Never Loved A ManThe Mar Kays - Soul FingerEddie Floyd - Knock On WoodHank Williams - Move It On OverJimmie Rodgers - Blue YodelSend us a textSupport the showVisit us at https://theworldawaits.au