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Traveller Awards: Fun Times
From a family-friendly hotel suite in Singapore with a secret tunnel to a boozy day out on a vintage tequila train in Mexico, this list is all about travel that sparks joy and adventure. Read on for our Traveller Awards 2025 winners in the Fun Times category.
Otago Vine, Dunedin, New Zealand
If you enjoy riding a bike, but not the huff and puff that goes with it, Dunedin has a new purpose-built pathway that’s just for you. Called the Te Aka Otakou, or Otago Vine, this walking and cycling track runs for 32 kilometres around the perimeter of Otago Harbour. You can start or finish where you want, do the whole thing or break it into sections. The best bit? The path links art galleries with museums, beaches, cafes, craft breweries and historic sites. They say the complete loop can be done in two to four hours, but with so many distractions six to eight hours is more realistic. Even on an e-bike. See dunedinnz.com/insiders
Steamboat, Colorado
Adventurous, unpretentious and just a little wild, this is an American cowboy town in the state of Colorado where locals don ski boots and Stetsons with equal enthusiasm. The snow is so consistently dreamy it’s been trademarked Champagne Powder and holds the consistency of uncorked champagne spray. But off the slopes you can drive your own dog sled team, saddle up for a trail ride at a working cowboy ranch, learn to ski jump at the Olympic training centre, hike, bike, swim or soak in the river and geothermal hot springs. The January Cowboy Downhill race, in which hooting skiers fly down a slalom course to lasso a person and saddle a horse before the finish, offers a taste of the Type 2 fun Steamboat brims with. See steamboat.com
Scott’s Pizza Tours, New York
Think you’re a pizza fan? You haven’t met Scott Weiner. The 43-year-old self-confessed pizza nerd is a competitive pizza judge, runs pizza-making workshops and holds the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of pizza boxes. His flagship 4.5-hour bus tour starts in Lower Manhattan and visits four pizzerias with Weiner choosing the venues on the day. You won’t know where you’ll end up or what you’ll be eating, but rest assured there will be a variety of styles from some of the city’s best pizza purveyors. Along the way, you’ll learn about the dish’s intriguing history, see how it’s made and sample some exceptional slices of pie. See scottspizzatours.com
Mimaru Hotels, Japan
There’s one thing almost every visitor to Japan, particularly to Tokyo, wants that they are unlikely to get: space. This is a city, after all, with a higher population than Australia – space is at a premium, which means most hotel guests, even those travelling with kids, have to put up with very small rooms. That is, unless they stay at Mimaru. This is a series of apartment hotels throughout Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka that provide families with the space they crave. The rooms have facilities for cooking your own food, washing clothes, dining at a proper table and even – particularly the larger suites – letting the kids sleep in one room while the adults hang out in another. For those visiting Japan with young children, this is luxury. See mimaruhotels.com
Disneyland Paris
When hankering for a serving of Disneyland sans the side order of the US, the French flair of Disneyland Paris beckons, plus the World of Frozen opens next year. Drop any preconceptions this is an ugly stepsister to the OG Anaheim Cinderella (as Elsa says, “Let it go, let it go”), you’ll love familiar and new rides to infinity and beyond, including the Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast (currently closed, reopening in 2026). Disneyland Paris is two parks, the 22 square kilometre footprint split between Walt Disney Studios Park and fairy-tale themed Disneyland Park, a direct 35-minute RER A train from Paris. Come in November when Christmas lights are up and crowds down, and the Ultimate Pass fast-lane access is worth the extra bucks. See disneylandparis.com
Baird Bay Ocean Tours, South Australia
Love an up-close wildlife encounter? Then make the trek out to Baird Bay on South Australia’s remote Eyre Peninsula, where a colony of wild sea lions provides visitors with an unforgettable experience. Wait in the shallow waters and these curious sea creatures will soon make their way over, eager to see who has come to play. Gleefully teasing visitors and each other, the sea lions and also dolphins move effortlessly through the water, gliding, corkscrewing, and porpoising. If you float face down, don’t be surprised if one tries to startle you by zooming past just centimetres beneath your stomach. See bairdbay.com
Shangri-la Singapore
There’s a tunnel in our hotel room at Shangri-La Singapore. An actual tunnel leads from one part of the suite to another, a tunnel that’s just the right size for a small child, and not really big enough for an adult. This is a feature designed purely for kids’ enjoyment, and it’s not the only one. There’s a bunk bed shaped like a submarine, complete with cockpit and steering wheel. There’s a small writing desk by the window with paper and coloured pencils. There’s a treasure chest with a secret code that has to be cracked to reveal the gift inside (the clues are posted in the letterbox at our front door). Downstairs in the restaurant there’s an entire breakfast buffet set at a lower-than-usual height for kids to help themselves. Surely, there are few hotels in the world so well-designed for family stays. See shangri-la.com
Jose Cuervo Express, Mexico
Operating between Guadalajara and Tequila, the Jose Cuervo Express, a bottomless tequila train run by the country’s largest tequila exporter, certainly has the hallmarks of a tourist trap. What is unexpected, however, is the sheer amount of fun packed into this boozy day out. Don your cowboy/girl best, as there are ample photo opps. A Sunset Premium Plus ticket begins with coffee and refreshments, before boarding a shuttle to an agave field set against the majestic Volcan de Tequila. A jimador harvesting demo, tamale brunch and free-flowing Palomas takes you nicely to a tour of the historic distillery, and free time to soak up Tequila’s charm. A cultural show is the perfect warm-up for your VIP ride back to Guadalajara in a restored vintage train. See mundocuervo.com
Ballon Generali Paris
Up, up and away in my beautiful balloon for the very best sights from on high of some of the most fabulous cities on the globe. In Paris, the Ballon Generali de Paris is an experience not to be missed as the helium balloon rises slowly on its cable attached to the ground to a height of 150 metres, with stunning vistas over the city and Seine to the Eiffel Tower and Champs-Elysee. We’ve become used to seeing spectacular drone footage of so many great sites, and this is a magical way of emulating that bird’s-eye view. It’s a trend that’s swelling, with other tethered balloons in places such as Berlin, Budapest, Angkor Wat, Petra, Dubai and Tbilisi. See ballondeparis.com
Valle dell’Erica Resort Thalasso and Spa, Italy
My children barely notice I’ve arrived at the kids club, part of a noisy, pizza-making gaggle. But a small turtle does and that’s because I almost step on him. “Oh, they’re everywhere,” says a worker sensing opportunity, and as pizzas bake, the kids are recruited into an enthusiastic “turtle rescue unit”. The family-owned, five-star resort in Sardinia’s north-west is a nature-based utopia (crowned Europe’s Leading Green Resort thrice) where families unplug and experience life pre iPads. Spanning 28 hectares of private park with 1400 metres of coastline with views to the La Maddalena Archipelago, just heading to one of the seven restaurants is an adventure. Roving electric buggies collect stray guests, but half the fun is getting lost. See hotelvalledellerica.com
Traveller Awards contributors: Kate Allman, Kate Armstrong, Flip Byrnes, Justine Costigan, Jim Darby, Anthony Dennis, Ben Groundwater, Jenny Hewett, Belinda Jackson, Kerry van der Jagt, Julietta Jameson, Trudi Jenkins, Brian Johnston, Ute Junker, Katrina Lobley, Catherine Marshall, Chrissie McClatchie, Rob McFarland, Justin Meneguzzi, Julie Miller, Jane Reddy, Jane Richards, Katherine Scott, Craig Tansley, Lee Tulloch, Sue Williams, Riley Wilson.
