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AUSTRALIA: If there’s one thing social distancing is reminding us, it’s how much Aussies love the great outdoors. Enjoying fresh air and sunshine, the sound of birdsong, the feeling of sand in our toes, the smell of the Australian bush – even if only briefly in these unsettling times – is in our DNA.

Thankfully, despite the vast scale of our island continent, we don’t have to travel far to enjoy lovely walks that lift our spirits. Often there are parks and walking trails right on our doorstep. 

In Newcastle, the city meets the sea, literally. Former steel city, now hip city, it is surrounded by eight wonderful beaches. The golden sands of Newcastle Beach are less than 30 minutes’ walk from the Travelodge Hotel Newcastle.

Twenty minutes’ walk from the hotel is King Edward Park, one of the city’s most beautiful green spaces and a convenient starting point for Memorial Walk, a 450-meter cliff-top walkway with spectacular views. The hotel is also within easy reach of a fantastic promenade that follows the Hunter River all the way to Nobbys Lighthouse and Fort Scratchley, standing guard over the city as it has done for more than two centuries.

In Canberra, the National Capital is known as the Bush Capital – for good reason. Tracts of bush wind like ribbons through the sprawling city, while Lake Burley Griffin is its recreational heart. A short walk from the lake through lovely Telopea Park, Adina Serviced Apartments Canberra Kingston offers spacious, family-friendly accommodation.

Griffin’s original plan for Canberra suggested planting red flowers on Red Hill, and the crimson bottlebrush and rosemary grevillea planted in the early 1920s still burst with colour in Red Hill Nature Reserve. Accessed by road and walking trails, Red Hill offers great views of the city and is an important breeding location for the Gang-gang cockatoo, Canberra’s emblem.

Looking very smart after a multi-million dollar makeover, Travelodge Resort Darwin is an easy walk to the waterfront and to the Botanic Gardens with its wet forest, desert rose display, sensory garden, exotic boabs, and secret moonlight garden. Download an app for free self-guided walking tours.

The resort’s outdoor pool remains open, as does the pool at Perth’s Adina Apartment Hotel Barrack Plaza.

In the heart of Perth’s CBD, the Adina Barrack Plaza offers easy access to the Swan River with its many riverside walking trails. The river is framed by the grassy parkland of Matilda Bay Reserve and Kings Park, offering space to not just exercise but to truly appreciate the great outdoors.

While many of Australia’s parks and reserves remain open during the Coronavirus pandemic, visitors’ centres are closed and visitors must observe social distancing. Check on intrastate travel restrictions and consult the National Parks and Wildlife Service for up to date information.  And visit our TFE Hotels website for the latest travel deals.

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