The Best Rail Trails and Bike Paths in Australia

Have you ever imagined yourself on a cycling holiday, but not sure you can keep up the pace day after day, and absolutely certain you don't want to dodge trucks and other traffic while rediscovering your childhood bicycle skills.  Have I got the solution for you!

Lots of old and disused railways which once ran through the countryside are steadily being re-purposed as 'rail trails'. With tracks removed, bridges repaired, or diverted around, and tunnels made safe they make perfect corridors for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. Since trains never handled anything other than gentle gradients they are generally flat and easy to cycle. Their routes are dotted with small towns whose populations are welcoming and, as rail trailers arrive so do small businesses like trail side cafes, boutique accommodation, and bicycle support services giving country Australia a tourism boost.

Cycling the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail - How adventurous are you?

The Brisbane Valley Rail Trail (BVRT) follows an old rail corridor from Yarraman to Ipswich in south-east Queensland. At 161 km, it is Australia's longest rail trail beating the Great Victorian Rail Trail and the Murray to Mountains Rail Trail by almost 30 and 50 kms respectively. Queenslanders like to do things differently however so if you head up to the BVRT for a bit of spring cycling with the idea that the trail will be just like its easy-riding Victorian counterparts only longer, you are in for a shock.

Swooping Magpies: Surviving the Mad Magpie of Toogoolawah!

Talk to an American or a Brit or almost anyone else about Australia and the conversation inevitably comes around to animals. Not the cute ones, like koalas and wombats and baby kangaroos, but the ones out to get you - the deadly ones.  There is no denying this country has its fair share of dangerous creatures. Google 'the most venomous snakes in the world' and there are bound to be a few Australian natives on the list. Then there is the world's most deadly bird, the beautiful but very cranky cassowary; one of the world's most dangerous spiders, the Sydney funnel web; the lovely to look at but deadly to touch blue ringed octopus and the infamous Irukandji jellyfish. The funny thing though is that nobody ever mentions the animal Australia is most afraid of, the creature which sends grown adults into paroxysms of dread with a single flap of its wings, the springtime terror of southern skies - the Australian swooping magpie.

National Trust, English Heritage or Historic Houses - which should you join?

National Trust, English Heritage or Historic Houses - which membership is best? Then there is the National Trust Overseas Visitors Touring Pass, membership of a National Trust Overseas Organisation or the English Heritage Overseas Visitor Pass. Confused yet? Each membership gives you access to different attractions, has different pricing structures and different rules, some of which are clear and some of which are hidden in the fine print and downright sneaky.

Is the London Eye worth it!

Is the London Eye fun? Absolutely! At £30 for a standard ticket in 2019, is the London Eye worth the outrageous price? No!!!  But - my advice is do it anyway. Read on for how much fun it is - as well as a few tips on getting it just a little bit cheaper.  And - whether you should pay even more by adding a skip the line ticket to your purchase. For a 30 minute ride the London Eye works out at a pound a minute. Think of it that way and it doesn't sound so bad.

Avebury Henge: A stone circle to rival Stonehenge

Ancient Britons were an industrious lot. 4,000 years ago, around the same time they were piling up huge stones on the Salisbury Plain to create Stonehenge they were doing more or less the same thing 12 miles (20 kms) to the north to create the stone circles of Avebury Henge. Although a lot less popular than its more famous cousin, Avebury Henge is in many ways more interesting. For one thing you can walk right up to the stones and touch them. For another, once you have paid to park, the site is free - although there is a way to see Stonehenge for free which is almost as good as the paid entrance.

The Best Free Things to do in London

For the sheer cost of entry to its major attractions London must outrank almost every other capital city on the planet. Spend a couple of days visiting attractions like the Tower of London, the View from the Shard, the London Eye and the Royal Observatory at Greenwich and you can easily spend £100 (USD125/AUD180). But don't despair! Like most cities, London has its share of free things to do. You just have to know what they are. To help you along a bit I have put together a list of the best free things to do in London. You will find my favourite attraction at the top of the list.

How to see Stonehenge for free!

Four and a half thousand years ago (give or take a century or two) pre-historic Britons dragged a whole lot of very big stones to a pleasant spot on the Salisbury Plain and built a circle. It is hard to know why they did it, although archaeologists generally believe it had something to do with burials. The stones weighed up to 40 tons so this was a bit more than a casual morning's mucking about. Today the circle is called Stonehenge. It attracts more than one million visitors a year and it charges a hefty £19 for every single one of them EXCEPT for those who know how to visit for free.

The Shard: What it is like at the top of London's tallest building.

At 309.6 m (1016 ft) high The Shard is tall - the tallest building in the European Union. Standing at the bottom looking up you get an idea of just how tall, but it is only once you are perched 72 floors and 244 m (801 ft) above street level and look at up (yes - you read that right 'up' not 'down') that you get the full acrophobia-inducing feeling of just how tall the Shard really is. The observation deck is partially open to the air - enough to be able to look through the steel and glass superstructure and see nothing but sky. I defy anyone to stand there, look up and not succumb to a touch of vertigo.

Turbopass London City Pass - Your passport to London attractions.

London attractions are expensive, very expensive. David and I have travelled together for 35 years visiting many of the world's leading cities. I struggle to remember a single one which surpasses London for the cost of its attractions - except perhaps my home city of Sydney. You have to see the irony in that. But what do you do! We have come half way around the world (22 hours in the air) to get here, we can hardly stand in front of the Tower of London or the London Eye or the Shard, look at each other and say - no its a bit pricey, we won't go in. Luckily we found a solution.  After a bit of internet research we chanced across the London City Pass issued by Turbopass.⃰