qanda-with-guides
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History of Maria Island with Stef Gebbie
For The Maria Island Walk guide Stef Gebbie, any day on Maria Island is a good day, but winter walks are particularly special. During winter, the group gets to stay at Bernacchi House for two nights (compared to just one night during summer). Bernacchi House. Image: The Maria Island Walk...
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The Science of Killer Whale Sightings with Jennah Tucker
Naturaliste Charters has observed an increase in predation sightings year after year. While the exact reasons for this rise remain unclear, guide Jennah Tucker explains that it provides invaluable learning opportunities. "We're seeing predations more often, and because of this, we are learning more about the behaviours of this population...
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Learning About the Environment with Ben Brown
For General Manager Operations of The Maria Island Walk, Ben Brown, environmental stewardship has always been a top priority. "Sustainability and conservation have been at the heart of The Maria Island Walk since inception, and our recent partnership with ERC Australia is another step we're taking to ensure we continue...
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Learning about Native Fish with Kym Manning
Deep in the Murray River channel between Kingston and Moorook in South Australia’s Riverland, lies a fish hotel that weighs a whopping 10 tonnes, understood to be the biggest man-made structure found in the basin. “I assembled it in my front yard,” Murray River Trails guide and fishing enthusiast, Kym...
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Exploring Australia's Top End with Sab Lord of Lords Kakadu & Arnhemland Safaris
In the realm of wildlife guiding, few names resonate as deeply as Sab Lord of Lords Kakadu & Arnhemland Safaris. With over three decades of experience under his belt, Sab stands as an experienced and highly respected figure, intimately connected to the heart of Australia's natural beauty. As the 2024...
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Electric Mountain Bike Adventures with Renae Blackshaw
Interest in cycling tourism has undergone a sharp increase in recent years, and touring companies like Australian Coastal Safaris are leading the way. "A day out on our electric mountain bikes is memorable and rewarding," says Renae Blackshaw who, together with Australian Coastal Safaris founder David Doudle, launched the e-bike...
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At the Helm of the Alison Maree with Paul Cross
Naturaliste Charters owners Paul and Alison Cross have always felt connected to their home ground in Western Australia's South West, and in 2009 they purchased Naturaliste Charters with the aim of offering guests an opportunity to experience the awe-inspiring whales of the region while maintaining a strong commitment to responsible...
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The Wonder of Wellness with Sarah Hayes
Responsible nature-based tourism helps keep the environment clean, supports wild animals in their natural habitat, and involves local communities. For Sarah Hayes, it also provides a unique opportunity to educate visitors on the benefits of connecting with nature. "We evolved in nature but, because modern-day living is technical, disconnected and...
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Recounting the History of Australia’s Indian Ocean Islands with Chris Carr
When Chris Carr recounts a story, everyone listens. There's something about the way he begins, his tone of voice, and the location he chooses. "I tell my stories throughout the tour. If I'm near a location where one of the events took place, I'll start there. Other times I'll talk...
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In Search of Tasmania’s Endemics with Elise Tardieu
Elise Tardieu knows a thing or two about Tasmania's rich ecology, history and culture, and loves to share her knowledge with Premier Travel Tasmania guests. "I switched from teaching to guiding nearly 18 years ago and haven't looked back," she says. Originally from France, Elise was drawn to Australia's largest...
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Nursing Bats Back to Health with Jenny Mclean
Jenny Mclean has extensive knowledge about bats and has dedicated the last two decades of her life to their wellbeing and conservation. "We started Tolga Bat Hospital in 1990, and now we're the largest bat rehabilitation and tourism facility in Australia, caring for up to 1,000 bats each year," she...
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Researching the Whales of WA with Jennah Tucker
Marine biologist Jennah Tucker has been in and around water since growing up in Broome, and has long been passionate about whales. "The Humpbacks come up to the Kimberley each winter to breed and calf, so I've always had Humpbacks in my backyard," she says. "And I started working in...
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Embracing the Unexpected with Leigh Dalton
Leigh Dalton loves the great outdoors, so to take guests around his backyard is a dream come true. "A great destination makes for great holidays, and as a guide I am able to enhance a place with cultural stories, history and point out rock art and other features that people...
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River Therapy with Cathy Schier
There's something special about the symphony of nature's whispers. The crunch of feet on the leaf litter. Birdsong in the distance. Rustling in the reeds. Although there's plenty to talk about, there's also a right time to talk. "It's not about filling the gaps," explains Murray River Trails guide Cathy...
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An East Gippsland Education with Hayley Forster
All Echidna Walkabout tours focus quite heavily on wildlife spotting so, for Hayley Forster, joining the guiding team was a natural fit. "I majored in Wildlife and Conservation Biology in my Environmental Science degree, and am very passionate about Victorian wildlife and ensuring that our native forests stay put," she...
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Storyteller Series: Georgia Currant from The Maria Island Walk
There are so many wombats on Maria Island, "they're a tripping hazard", Georgia Currant jokes. The young guide has spent countless family holidays on the isle off the east coast of Tasmania, so she's got firsthand experience. In keeping, she makes a point of introducing people to the particularly docile...
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Storyteller Series: David Doudle from Australian Coastal Safaris
To spend time with Australian Coastal Safaris' David Doudle is to get a window into the fourth-generation farmer's enchantingly free-range childhood. David grew up on a sheep and grain farm on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula, by the cliffy edges of the Great Australian Bight. Spare time was spent exploring rock...
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Storyteller Series: James Boettcher from FNQ Nature Tours
When James Boettcher was a kid, he thought everyone swung through the trees, slid down rapids and fashioned fish traps from spiky rainforest vines. Growing up in Cairns, the World Heritage-listed Daintree Rainforest was at his fingertips. After finishing high school, he spotted an advertisement in a newspaper about guiding....
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Storyteller Series: Tony Sharley from Murray River Trails
Growing up in the Riverland town of Renmark, Tony Sharley saw first-hand the dramatic effects of the Murray River in flood when he was a student in high school - he even did a geography project on it. An environmental science degree followed, and a career as a field biologist...
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Storyteller Series: Roger Smith from Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours
Roger Smith remembers clearly, when he was a child, seeing a mob of kangaroos hop into a grove of trees in the middle of a paddock. "I thought I'd sneak out straight across the paddock," he says. "And if they ran away, I'd see them. But when I got there,...
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Storyteller Series: Lisa Preston from Indian Ocean Experiences
Lisa Preston first went to Christmas Island on holiday in 1996. Her visit happened to be right in the middle of one of the world's greatest natural spectacles: the red crab migration, in which millions of crabs march toward the ocean to spawn. "It was just this crazy thing going...
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Storyteller Series: Craig Wickham from Exceptional Kangaroo Island
When Craig Wickham spots a goanna scuttling across the road, he doesn't tell his guests to get out of the way. Instead, he invites them into the bush to see where it has come from. He knows that more often than not, the reptile is slinking away from a termite...
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Storyteller Series: Andrew Ellis from Pacific Whale Foundation Eco-Adventures Australia
Since he was a 15-year-old crewing on a tug boat on Sydney Harbour, Andrew Ellis has spent his career on the water. He ended up in tourism, working on floating restaurants and cruise ships. Then, 32 years ago, he took a catamaran from Sydney to Hervey Bay with the idea...
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Storyteller Series: Daniel Schoedler from Premier Travel Tasmania
When travel agent Daniel Schoedler flew from Switzerland to Tasmania for a trade show in 2015, it didn't take long for the Apple Isle to make an impression. "I was invited on a seven-day tour and I was fascinated from the first minute," he says. "You get into Hobart and...
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Storyteller Series: Paul Cross from Naturaliste Charters
Paul Cross has travelled more than 52 countries, but if you ask him to pick the most beautiful place in the world, it's his ocean-lapped backyard every time. Growing up near Bunbury, south of Perth, Paul and his brothers spent every spare minute fishing, surfing and diving along the Western...