August 2015 | QANTAS 2 1

Da

mia

n B

en

ne

tt

QNews.Page 26 The world’s wildest rides Page 32 An expert’s guide to Miami Page 36 Where to ski in Japan

Page 24

Good tasteNeil Perry and his master sommelier, Sebastian Crowther,

head a team of 16 experts selecting what you drink on Qantas.

ED IT ED BY A K A S H A RO R A A N D D I W E BS TE R

QNews.

2 2 QANTAS | August 2015

Ala

n J

oy

ce

ph

oto

gra

ph

y b

y S

te

ve

n C

he

e

From the CEO

Last month marked 20 years since Qantas went from being a government-run corporation to being fully privatised and listed on the stock exchange. It’s timely to refect on what’s changed in that time – and what hasn’t.

THE decision to privatise

Qantas in 1995 was part

of a bigger picture of reform

across the global aviation

industry – but Australia was

at the forefront. When I moved

to Australia the following

year, it felt like an exciting

place to work in aviation for

exactly that reason.

The privatisation was bold

and had its critics. But you’d

have to say it was the right

decision because it enabled

Qantas to modernise. It was

also timely if you look at the

way the world – and the way

people travel – has changed

since then.

There are more airlines

ofering more destinations and

the price of travel has fallen.

Many of those airlines didn’t

even exist 20 years ago or were

small at the time.

The Asia-Pacifc region has

become the biggest in the world

in terms of passenger numbers

and digital technology has

transformed how we all plan

and book our travel.

Privitisation made

Qantas more nimble in how

we responded to these changes.

And the past few years have

shown the importance of that

ability to evolve.

So where does the 20th

anniversary fnd us?

Today our feet is the

youngest it has been in two

decades. We’ve revolutionised

our service and how we get

feedback from our customers

so we can keep improving.

We’re exploring new technology

(from the Apple Watch to virtual

reality) and we’ve re-shaped

our route network around global

hubs, from London and Dubai

to Dallas and Santiago. In

1995, Qantas carried 16 million

passengers; now the Qantas

Group carries almost 50 million.

What hasn’t changed is

our role as the national carrier,

whether it’s connecting regional

communities, promoting

tourism or being there to bring

Australians home in times

of crisis.

Two decades on, Qantas is

more diverse, innovative and

agile than we were in 1995.

But other things about Qantas

are timeless: our commitment

to the highest standards of

safety and service, to bringing

people together across Australia

and around the world, and

to championing the best of

Australia wherever we fy.

For me, that’s the perfect

combination for the future.

Thanks for fying with us.

Our brand-new Qantas magazine iPad app

is now available FREE from the App Store.

(Our Android app is coming soon.)

New content constantly added

Every article at your fingertips

Download one article at a time and share with ease

If you’ve never downloaded our app before, search

for “Qantas Magazine: For The Best Travel Information

and Inspiration” at the App Store. Are you an existing

subscriber to our old iPad app? You’ll need to search for

this new app and download it onto your device as we’ll

no longer be updating the old app.

Download our new app

Direct approach

SINGAPORE’S annual National

Day celebrations are always

a big event. This year, the

August 9 festivities have

added signifcance because

the city-state is celebrating

50 years of independence.

Highlights include the National

Day Parade – it’s set to re-enact

segments of vibrant Singaporean

street ceremonies of the early

1970s – and an aerial display

by the Republic of Singapore

Air Force. And, of course,

freworks will light up the night

sky around Singapore’s famous

Marina Bay. The good news

for WA-based travellers?

With Qantas having again

commenced services between

Perth and the island state,

a chilli-crab dinner is almost

as close as your own kitchen.

Want to know where to stay

in Singapore? See our story

on the historic Fullerton Hotel

on page 52.

Alan Joyce

CEO, Qantas

QNews.

2 4 QANTAS | August 2015

N E I L P E R R Y

Owner, Rockpool

“I love eating at the bar at Café Di Stasio

in Melbourne (31 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda),

especially the fried crumbed lamb cutlets.

They usually have a Pio Cesare by the glass,

which sets me up for a few more snacks and

a great bottle of Barolo of the wine list.”

S E B A S T I A N C R O W T H E R

Master sommelier, Rockpool

“In Sydney, if I’m drinking in the later hours,

I’ll go to The Baxter Inn (Basement, 152-156

Clarence Street) for a really good beer and

whisky selection. It’s a dimly lit room down

a small laneway and some quite secretive

stairs – how I imagine bars would have

looked 40 or 50 years ago. I tend to drink

whiskies from Islay, particularly producers

like Ardbeg and Laphroaig.”

M A X G U R T L E R

Head bartender, Rockpool Bar & Grill

“My favourite bar in the entire world is the

American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London

(Strand). I’m a classic kind of drinker so

I’d have a martini or an old-fashioned and

defnitely a negroni. It’s like stepping onto

a movie set. A lot of fantastic bartenders

have worked there.”

D A N E R E I D

Bar manager, Spice Temple

“I recently went to Rock Bar in Bali

(Jl Karang Mas Sejahtera, Ayana Resort,

Jimbaran). It’s right on the water, the stars

were out and it was beautiful. They made

a great martini for me – I watched eagle-

eyed. It was stirred correctly, presented

correctly and tasted fantastic.”

R YA N G AV I N

Bar manager, Rockpool Bar & Grill

“My favourite bar experience was at

a place called The Dead Rabbit Grocery

and Grog in New York (30 Water Street).

The bartenders there were very attentive

and creative. I drink everything but I’m

quite partial to a really dry gin martini.”

L O U E L L A M AT H E W S

Sommelier, Rockpool Bar & Grill

“I love Bar Mirinda in Barcelona (Carrer

d’en Xuclà, 7). It’s a family-run place and

all the locals go there. They do the best gin

and tonic I have ever had in my life. It’s

served in a bowl bigger than a chardonnay

glass with bits of cucumber.”

Y U K I H I R O S E

Sommelier, Rockpool Bar & Grill

“I really like Sydney wine bar Monopole

(71A Macleay Street, Potts Point). The wine

list is full of exciting wines you’re not going

to see anywhere else. When I open the list my

eyes always go to the riesling. Something like

a Meyer-Fonné riesling from Alsace, France.”

Did you know?Qantas is the third-biggest wine buyer in the country,

behind Woolworths and Coles.

IMAGINE selecting every drink that is

served on fights and in Qantas lounges?

As they say, it’s a tough job but somebody

has to do it… So who does do it? A newly

announced panel of 16 sommeliers and

mixologists from Neil Perry’s Rockpool

Group is responsible for choosing the wines

and champagnes, developing new cocktail

recipes and showcasing the best of Australia.

Last month, the panel met up to taste some

1200 wines over four days. As they know

the world’s best drops, we fgured they

must also know the world’s best bars.

Here are their favourites. (You’re welcome.)

From left to right: Ryan Gavin, Neil Perry,

Yuki Hirose, Sebastian Crowther, Louella

Mathews, Max Gurtler and Dane Reid

Raising the barFour days and 1200 wines sounds like the world’s best party

but it was serious business for this group of experts.

PH OTO GR A PH Y BY DA M I A N B E N N E T T

H I G H S P I R I T S

QNews.

2 6 QANTAS | August 2015

Wild ridesKarla Courtney buckles

up for an adventure on the world’s best thrillers.

R O B E R T H O O DQantas Customer

Service Supervisor

“I’m always searching for the

best cofee the world has to ofer.

While the US doesn’t compare with Australia in

the accessibility of great cofee, there is a spot that I visit

whenever I’m there. Cafecito

Organico (cafecitoorganico.myshopify.com)

is located in The Lab, Orange

County, and it does a brilliant cofee

that’s crafed with care. It’s a little

slice of heaven for an admitted cofee snob. Tucked away in a mall devoted to edgy fashion, it serves cofee

that aims to improve farmers’

livelihoods in Central America

and Africa as well as enhancing

biodiversity. So it’s cofee with

a (delicious) conscience.”

K I D S C L U B

F R E Q U E N T F L Y E R

Transformers The Ride: 3DUniversal Studios (Orlando, Florida;

Hollywood, California; Singapore)

universalstudios.com

The mechanics involve you sitting

in a vehicle that jolts around

between different screens up

to 18m tall, projecting highly

realistic 3D characters in your

face. Similar to the Amazing

Adventures of Spider-Man

3D, Transformers gets extra

intensity points for its realistic

battle with a giant Decepticon.

X2Six Flags Magic Mountain

(Valencia, California)

sixflags.com

Classified as a “fourth

dimension” roller coaster –

and the first of its kind – the X2

features seats that spin 360

degrees independent of the

direction and movement of the

track. As you travel 122km/h,

you’ll be turning so much you

can say goodbye to any concept

of direction. And lunch.

Millennium ForceCedar Point (Sandusky, Ohio)

cedarpoint.com

This has won the Golden

Ticket Award (aka the Academy

Awards for rides) for Best Steel

Roller Coaster nine times since

it opened in 2000. Millennium

Force doesn’t hold the fastest

or tallest records anymore but

it’s a textbook roller-coaster

experience with all the speed,

drops and loops a thrillseeker

could ask for.

Want to know the world’s

fastest roller coaster? Find

the answer – and more – at

travelinsider.qantas.com.au

Journey to the Center of the EarthTokyo DisneySea (Tokyo)

tokyodisneyresort.jp/en

This immersive, intense

themed ride is hopefully the

closest thing you’ll experience

to travelling through the centre

of a volcano. Even though it

was built back in 2001, it’s

still widely regarded as one

of Disney’s best attractions

and is among the most

impressive special-effects

rides in the world.

Kingda KaSix Flags Great Adventure &

Safari (Jackson, New Jersey)

sixflags.com

Don’t bother talking about

roller coasters if you don’t pay

homage to the epic Kingda

Ka. Currently the tallest roller

coaster in the world, it’s one of

two “strata coasters”, which

means it includes a drop of

more than 120m. The speed?

Get ready for zero to 206km/h

in 3.5 seconds. As per its

description, this is “not

recommended for wimps”.

At 139m, Kingda Ka

is the world’s tallest

roller coaster

QNews.

2 8 QANTAS | August 2015

New view Three hotels that do luxury

in very diferent ways.

C H E C K - I N

One tip: beware the kookaburra that lurks

outside the dining room. It has a taste for

prosciutto. If it steals your lunch, only one

of you will be laughing.

A N A N TA R A S I A M B A N G K O K

siam-bangkok.anantara.com

It might be in the heart of central Bangkok’s

Ratchaprasong district but the traditional

Thai architecture and glorious gardens of

Anantara Siam Bangkok give it a monastery-

like sense of serenity. The hotel’s light

and spacious lobby with soaring columns

and beautiful hand-painted ceilings feels

more like a museum but wait until you reach

your room. Decorated with large, Asian-

inspired paintings and vibrantly coloured

silk sheets, it’s the perfect way to experience

a piece of old-style Bangkok. There are eight

onsite bars and restaurants. The Spice

Market, designed to look like a Thai spice

shop, is a hot favourite with locals.

E S P E R A N Z A R E S O R T,

L O S C A B O S , M E X I C O

esperanza.aubergeresorts.com

Located on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja

peninsula – where rocky clifs meet ocean

waves – the revamped Esperanza is home

to “casitas” (Mexican-style apartments)

with terraces and hammocks, and villas with

plunge pools. But it’s the resort’s suites that

we’re madly in love with. Each features

a single wall that retracts to reveal a private

terrace complete with infnity-edge hot tub

and uninterrupted views of the Sea of

Cortez. The resort’s split-level ink-blue pool

is another draw. Spend a few hours here

soaking up the sun before heading to the

clifside restaurant, Cocina del Mar.

P R E T T Y B E A C H H O U S E , N S W

prettybeachhouse.com

Pretty Beach House is back in business.

Destroyed in a devastating 2012 fre, the

luxury lodge on the NSW Central Coast

has been artfully rebuilt to make the most

of its breathtaking and culturally signifcant

hilltop possie. Made up of three freestanding

pavilions and a penthouse, this is of-the-

scale luxury just a 90-minute drive north

of Sydney. Despite the name, don’t expect

duck-egg-blue interiors and white-painted

foorboards. With mudbrick walls, massive

reclaimed timber beams and deer-hide

throws, this is more mountain lodge than

beach weekender. The all-inclusive tarif

features a menu designed by Stefano

Manfredi (he’s also behind a hip selection

of vinyl and in-room turntables) as well

as champagne, wines and a well-stocked

serve-yourself bar. Rug up for a pre-dinner

Welcome to Country Indigenous smoking

ceremony, held just outside the main house.

Pretty Beach House, on the edge

of Bouddi National Park (left); the

lobby at Anantara Siam Bangkok

Esperanza Resort, at the tip of the Baja peninsula, offers plenty of privacy across its six hectares