Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

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WHAT’S NEW
revamp, with a new entrance and the
incorporation of an interactive Sciencentre.
The free Museum of Brisbane,
scheduled to open in October 2003, is
housed in the historic City Hall and is
designed to capture the history and
essence of Brisbane. It will include a
small theater showing a short film
about the city and will relate the stories,
events, and ideas that have shaped
the city as well as giving practical
information for visitors.
Brisbane’s new Cultural Industries
Precinct at Kelvin Grove, still under
construction at press time, is the new
home to the innovative La Boite Theatre
(www.laboite.com.au). La Boite
was due to move into a new 400-seat
theater-in-the-round in late 2003.
QUEENSLAND Queensland
Rail’s (& 13 22 32) fast new Tilt
Train links Brisbane and Cairns, cutting
the journey by about 7 hours.
The 160kmph (99 mph) “business
class” trip takes 25 hours.
When you get to Cairns, you’ll find
a city transformed by a major redevelopment
of the Esplanade, which
includes a massive new saltwater
swimming lagoon. Nearby is the new
Reef Fleet Terminal from which the
Great Barrier Reef boats leave.
There are also new artificial lagoons
in Airlie Beach and Townsville, resolving
the problem of where to swim in
stinger season.
Two of a planned six Great Walks
of Queensland will open in June
2004, in the Whitsundays and Fraser
Island. The Queensland Parks and
Wildlife Service (& 07/4946 7022;
www.env.qld.gov.au) is planning
tracks that will highlight some of
Queensland’s most valuable parks and
forests in World Heritage areas.
THE TOP END From early 2004,
the opening of the long-awaited Alice
Springs–Darwin railway line will give
the Top End its first rail link. Great
Southern Railway’s The Ghan (& 13
21 47 in Australia; www.trainways.
com.au) will run one weekly return
journey between the two cities, leaving
Alice Springs on Mondays and
arriving in Darwin about 24 hours
later.
PERTH & WESTERN AUSTRALIA
The Mining Hall of Fame (& 08/
9026 2700; www.mininghall.com), in
the Outback gold town of Kalgoorlie,
continues to expand, with new attractions,
including a Chinese garden and
more galleries opening in late 2003.
MELBOURNE The new place to
hang out is Federation Square, which
is on target to attract an estimated 6
million visitors a year. The architecture
is weird: a kind of post-industrial
cubic look with a wonky square paved
with stones. There are plenty of cafes,
restaurants, and art spaces around.
One eatery to look out for is the
Chocolate Buddha (& 03/9654
5688), a Japanese-inspired noodle
place that’s well worth a visit.
The latest hotel of note is the
Ramada Melbourne (p. 536), a new
four-star hotel opposite Flinders Street
Railway Station. It’s cozy, friendly, and
has great offers—especially on the
weekends.
TASMANIA Long linked by air,
Sydney and Tasmania were brought
together by the start of a high-speed
car ferry link in January 2004. The
Spirit of Tasmania III is operated by
TT-Line, who also run car ferries from
Melbourne to Tasmania. The ferry
departs at 3pm from Sydney on Tuesday,
Friday, and Sunday, and arrives in
Devonport at 11:30am the next day.
Then it loads up and ships out back to
Sydney again. Prices for the 20-hour
journey range from A$230 to A$500
(US$150–US$325) per person oneway.
Cars will be transported free for
45 weeks of the year.