About Briar
Briar Jensen is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer. Her blog covers travel tips, reviews, insights and inspiration, travel accessories and gadgets.
Follow me
- Follow Briar's Travel Beat on WordPress.com
Subscribe
-
Recent Posts
Top Posts & Pages
-
Instagram - BriarsTravelBeat
Love this sculpture called Waitukei, by Lyonel Grant in the Government Gardens @rotoruanz depicting the melding of Maori and European cultures. The male and female figures took over two years to craft from bronze. @purenewzealand @escapesnaps #rotoruanzMud volcanoes, sulphur pools, boiling water, bubbling mud and spitting lakes @hellsgatenz in @rotoruanz has it all. It’s not surprising it is named #hellsgate and it’s important to stay on the path. However, you can experience the ‘health-giving’ mud and healing waters at their Mud Spa. #rotoruanz #geothermal #astw_inc @escapesnapsWhen you fly to White Island, New Zealand with @volcanicairnz for an extra $100 you can include a stop on Mt Tarawera too. This mountain was split open in the 1886 eruption, leaving gaping wounds in the harsh, dry mountain top. Barren and beautiful, it is pretty windy up there! @rotoruanz #rotoruanz #mttaraweraWhite Island, off shore from New Zealand’s North Island, is an active volcano (apparently there were 183 earthquakes recorded in a 24 hour period last week) that you can visit by air or sea. Today I flew out to #whiteislandnz from #rotoruanz with @volcanicairnz in a helicopter. We landed on the island and spent about an hour wandering around the stark sulphur encrusted landscape and steaming crater lake. What an incredible trip, and remarkable topography. #activevolcano @rotoruanz @purenewzealand @escapesnaps #astw_incZip lining guides have a knack of pushing your boundaries. Here I am before the gorgeous girls at @rotoruacanopytours had me plunging backwards off this platform to zip backwards through the forest! (I look way calmer than I felt.) What I love about this tour is the conservation aspect. Between zipping through the trees they teach you about the forest and the native birds, along with their pest eradication program. An exhilarating and educational few hours. @escapesnaps @rotoruanz @purenewzealandWhat is this? Looks a bit like a flying saucer from a Sci-fi movie. But it is one of many art installations st @treewalknz in #rotoruanz Nightlights light up the redwoods for a magical experience in the forest after dark. If you don’t like heights, it’s a good time to visit, as you can’t see how high the suspended walkways are above the ground! @rotoruanz @escapesnaps #treewalknz- My Tweets
Category Archives: Accommodation
Tai Chi with the locals in Bangkok
Apparently, tai chi is all about internal energy flow, but the only energy I’m channelling is nervous energy. How much of a goose (or perhaps that should be crane?) am I making of myself? But I don’t care. I feel … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Bangkok, Thailand, Travel
Tagged Lumpini Park, Sofitel So Bangkok, Tai Chi
8 Comments
Postcard of the week – Outback recycling
I love this shot of a battered XXXX Gold beer can attached to a fence in the middle of the Australian outback. I hope someone enjoyed consuming its icy-cold contents before it was re-purposed to dangle like an earring on … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Adventure, Australia, Northern Territory, Outback, Postcards, Road Trips, Travel
Tagged accommodation, Kings Creek Station, outback, Quad biking, XXXX Gold
Leave a comment
Free accommodation on Sydney’s Pittwater
Fancy a weekend getaway in the bush free of charge, staying at a historic property overlooking Pittwater’s Morning Bay? Spend your free time watching the local wildlife, hiking through Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, kayaking the bays or just relaxing in … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Australia, Sydney, Travel, Volunteering
Tagged bush regeneration, Pittwater, voluntourism, YHA
2 Comments
Last weekend for Bondi sculpture walk
Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi, finishes this Sunday 9th November. So it’s your last chance to see the exhibits, the work of 109 artists. We visited the exhibition this week, together with some friends from New Zealand. As my girlfriend … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Attractions, Australia, New South Wales, Sydney, Travel News & Events
Tagged Bondi, Sculpture by the sea
2 Comments
Teen-friendly family accommodation on the Gold Coast
Finding accommodation that suits a family with teens can often be challenging. You want to give them some freedom and a room of their own, especially if they are older, but you also want to have them close and know … Continue reading
Au naturel is best – please don’t wrap hotel soap
Ok, I’ll be upfront, this post is a rant about a first world problem, so if you don’t care if hotel soap comes wrapped, sometimes multiple times, then you might want to switch off now. I just don’t see why … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Hotels, Travel
Tagged accommodation, environmental initiatives, hotel amenities, hotel soap, soap
4 Comments
Fairy Tale Castles – German Fairy Tale Route
Ever dreamt of sleeping like a princess – in Sleeping Beauty’s castle? Fancy letting down your hair in Rapunzel’s tower? What about a romantic weekend at Snow White’s palace? Or perhaps you just want to stay in a real palace, … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Germany, Travel
Tagged accommodation, castles, Fairy tale castles, Fairy tale route, travel
3 Comments
