Ease yourself back into the daily grind with a rundown of all the latest destination news. Or, you can join the rest of us drowning ourselves in caffeine in between power naps.

Trees for Tourism initiative gives back to Noosa

Event organisers have joined forces with Tourism Noosa, Noosa Council and Noosa & District Landcare to officially launch the Trees for Tourism Garden.

The garden is in recognition of Trees for Tourism – an initiative of Tourism Noosa in conjunction with Noosa & District Landcare, supporting tree planting for land rehabilitation, carbon emission reduction and the protection and enhancement of koala habitat.

At the launch,  a cheque for $13,151 was presented to Phil Moran, general manager of Noosa & District Landcare, comprising of monies raised from the Noosa Triathlon and the Noosa Food & Wine Festival and monies donated from Tourism Noosa members and visitors.

Joining the official launch of the Trees for Tourism Garden was representatives from Noosa Council, Tourism Noosa, Noosa District & Landcare, IRONMAN (Organisers of the Noosa Triathlon and Runaway Noosa) and the Noosa Food & Wine Festival.

Entries close 16 August to WIN a trip to Hong Kong

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is celebrating the third year of the Hong Kong Specialist Club and is offering two lucky Aussie travel industry consultants the chance to win a place on the Hong Kong 2019 Global Famil from 15 to 19 October 2019.

For a chance to participate in this exclusive, fully-hosted 5 days/4 nights’ famil, travel trade professionals must register and complete the three Hong Kong Specialist Club educational modules online by Friday, 16 August 2019.

To complete the Hong Kong Specialist Club online educational training programme and for a chance to win a place on the Hong Kong 2019 Global Famil visit go here.

Balmoral beach welcomes Mudgee wine and food festival

Balmoral Beach will once again play home to the Mudgee Wine & Food Festival on Sunday 11 August, welcoming some of the region’s most popular wineries and producers to the city. Still the longest-running regional wine and food festival in Sydney, activities will run from 11am-5pm, launching the official 40th Mudgee Wine + Food Festival program and the 2019 Mudgee Region magazine.

Transforming the entire foreshore of Balmoral Beach, festival-goers can sip on wines by Craigmoor Wines, De Beaurepaire Wines, Moothi Estate, Robert Stein Winery and First Ridge Estate to name a few, while enjoying hero local producers like High Valley Cheese Co., Lomondo Olive Oil, Milnes of Mudgee and Rylstone Olive Press.

Additionally, Mudgee Region Tourism will also surprise one lucky attendee with the ultimate short-break escape to Mudgee valued at over $2,000, including return flights, accommodation and activities.

German state of Saxony welcomes the latest location for UNESCO World Heritage Site

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee has included the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge in German) in the UNESCO World Heritage List at its latest committee meeting, a huge coup for the southern state of Saxony.

Not only has mining been happening in the region since the 12th century, but it is also a significant source of technological and scientific innovation that helped shape modern mining developments.

Recognising the cross-border area with Czech Republic as a World Heritage Site celebrates and honours the shared cultural significance of mining in both countries.

In 2019, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee admitted 29 sites to the World Heritage list. There are now currently 1,121 cultural and natural sites in 167 countries on the UNESCO World Heritage list, 46 of which are entirely or partly in Germany.

Great Barrier Reef first: Whitsundays public artwork competition

Today marks a first for the Great Barrier Reef with the completion of the Whitsunday Public Artwork Project. Four of the six sculptures, purposely designed for the project, have been installed in three locations across the Whitsundays.

Following the effects of Tropical Cyclone Debbie Tourism Minister Kate Jones announced the Queensland Government and Federal Government’s $7 million Tourism Recovery Fund to assist the Whitsundays tourism industry. Part of this funding was granted for the extensive research, feasibility, development and installation of the Whitsundays Reef Recovery and Public Art Project.

Six Australian artists were chosen to have their sculptures submerged and on display in various key locations throughout the marine park in a bid to provide a new experience for guests travelling to the Whitsundays and to help the marine tourism industry recover after Tropical Cyclone Debbie.

Works from New South Wales artist Col Henry, local artists Adriaan Vanderlugt, Cairns-based artist Brian Robinson and Whitsundays Arts-Based Collective, made up of 3 artists Jessa Lloyd, Caitlin Reilly and Kate Ford are featured.

Trip.com offers $50 off Macau tours and tickets

James Bond visited Macau in the movies The Man with the Golden Gun and Skyfall, and now travellers have an adrenalin-filled adventure for less in this city that never sleeps.

Trip.com is taking $50 off tours and tickets in Macau, including attractions, shows and transport such as ferry transits when travellers book on its website or mobile app by searching under ‘Things To Do’.

The sale is on from 13 August until 10 September 2019 for travel 13 August to 1 November 2019, with no blackout periods.

Empire State Building unveils new second-floor observatory experience 

The Empire State Building (ESB) has announced the second phase of its top-to-bottom reimagined Observatory Experience. The $165 million project presents the only museum in New York City that is open seven days a week from 8am to 2am.

Located on the second floor of the international icon, the 10,000-square-foot galleries invite guests on a journey from the building’s construction to its current place in pop culture. Named the most Instagrammed U.S. landmark in a study conducted by Sony Mobile, the new galleries feature immersive and interactive exhibits that fulfil the desire of today’s modern traveller to share authentic experiences – all as they make their way to the one-of-a-kind views from the 86th Floor Observatory.

Led by experienced designer Thinc, with team members IDEO, Squint Opera, Beneville Studios, Diversified., Intersection, Kubik Maltbie, Otis Elevator Company and Tenguerian Model, phase two follows the first phase, a brand-new Observatory entrance at 20 West 34th Street which was completed in August of 2018.

Destination NSW celebrates ‘All Kinds of Natural’ with new ad campaign for Eurobodalla

What is Eurobodalla? That’s the first question Destination NSW asked when it set about putting this little known place on the map as part of a new joint initiative aimed at driving tourism to the region.

The organisation soon discovered Eurobodalla was one of the best-kept secrets on the South Coast of NSW and one of the last natural bastions that truly reminds you of the way holidays used to be.

Now, Destination NSW wants to urge more Australians to discover this special place for themselves, working with Eurobodalla Shire Council and creative agency JimJam to develop the overall strategy and produce the content for a compelling and fully integrated campaign.

‘All Kinds of Natural’ aims to unleash the natural spirit within visitors; something that often gets buried beneath the daily grind of our demanding urban lives.