West Australians bring a taste of Sicily to Darwin

Darwin boutique hotel The Leea has unveiled Lido, a renovated open-air poolside dining hub where the vibe aims to see the Top End meet coastal Sicily. 

The venue consists of three areas: The Garden, Poolside Deck and Indoor Caffè in the heart of Darwin’s CBD.

On the Lido Deck, guests can sip limoncellos and negronis in palm-filled gardens and enjoy dishes starring locally sourced produce.

Designed to share over a spritz or signature cocktail, Lido's antipasti e cicchetti dishes include burrata filled with creamy stracciatella, Humpty Doo figs, walnut crumble and vincotto; crispy calamari fritti tossed in semolina, lemon, parsley, Calabrian chilli salt and herb aioli; and arancini bolognese, a nostalgic nod to the classic Sicilian dish.

 At Lido’s helm is executive chef Samantha Bennett, an award-winning chef and Darwin local who brings an innate knowledge of the Territory's produce to her menus. 

Lido's menu was overseen by Prendiville Group director of food Russell Blaikie, who said the menu was designed to celebrate the Territory's unique produce and relaxed dining culture.

"Lido has been shaped by Darwin's laid-back energy and the Territory's tropical produce, which brings a flavour profile that feels unique to the city," he said. 

"The menu’s dishes have been lightened to match Darwin's climate. Lido's menu is accessible, vibrant and full of bold flavour, fresh herbs and citrus acidity that bring every dish to life - think pickled Humpty Doo mango paired with fresh local snapper. 

"Lido takes the Italian aperitivo ritual of social grazing, drink in hand, and fuses it with the Territory's easy-going nature, offering guests an NT take on a beloved hospitality tradition."

Lido and The Leea mark the first move into the Darwin market by family-run Prendiville Group, who bring decades of boutique hospitality to the Top End and are the team behind more than 20 destination-led venues including Samphire Rottnest and Tigerfish in Cottesloe in Western Australia. They also operate Sandalford Wines.   

The opening of Lido marks the completion of the first stage of The Leea's 18-month transformation of the former Travelodge. 

Lido will officially open to the public on Monday, October 12.

Check out: The Leea : A tranquil hotel in the centre of Darwin.

Images: Jillian McHugh

Stay off our mountain: Warnings for adventurous tourists

Tourists heading for Japan should make sure they have appropriate travel insurance, particularly if they have climbing its most famous mountain on their travel agenda. 

Japan authorities are preparing tougher controls on off-season Mount Fuji climbing, including imposing a potential helicopter rescue charge for hikers who get into trouble outside the mountain’s official climbing season.

Yamanashi Prefecture, which manages the popular northern route, plans to introduce the measures from September 2027 as authorities respond to a rise in climbers attempting the mountain when conditions can be significantly more challenging.

Under the proposed rules, anyone heading above Mount Fuji’s sixth station - at almost 2,400 metres - between early September and July would have to submit a climbing plan in advance. The document would include listing the intended route and equipment being carried, news hub Travel Mole reports.

Hikers rescued by helicopter during the off-season could also receive a bill for the operation. 

Japanese media group NHK reported Yamanashi is considering a charge based on helicopter fuel costs, estimated at around ¥8,000 ($95) for every five minutes of flight time. The final fee has not yet been set.

Neighbouring Shizuoka Prefecture, which oversees routes on the mountain's southern side, is also preparing penalties for climbers who fail to register their plans during the off-season.

Authorities also plan to use barricades and sensors to restrict access and alert people attempting to climb when the mountain is officially closed.

Yamanashi Governor Kotaro Nagasaki urged the public to avoid off-season climbs, saying the measures are intended to make people reconsider what winter conditions on Mount Fuji can involve.

Mount Fuji’s official climbing season runs from July to early September, when approximately 200,000 people attempt to reach the 3,776-metre summit each year.

Outside that window, climbing is already strongly discouraged because of snow, ice, severe weather and the absence of normal mountain services.

Yamanashi has recorded 21 climbing accidents and four deaths during the seven years through 2025. In April 2025, a Chinese university student was reportedly rescued twice within several days after attempting to climb from the Shizuoka side.

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi set for opening

One of the great modern travel destinations: Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will open to the public before the end of the year. 

December 11 has been earmarked for the new major attraction to the UAE capital’s Saadiyat Cultural District. 

Travellers can now book visits through the museum’s official website, travel news hub Travel Mole reports. 

Admission will be around $26. 

The museum is located on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, alongside Louvre Abu Dhabi and other major cultural projects including the Zayed National Museum and Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi.

Designed by the late architect Frank Gehry, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will focus on modern and contemporary art, particularly work from the 1960s to the present.

The collection spans painting, sculpture, photography, installation, moving image and new media. 

Various galleries will explore themes including abstraction, popular culture, land, language and storytelling, with works by artists including Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, alongside artists from the Arab world, Africa and Asia.

The building itself is expected to be a major attraction. Covering 80,000 square meters, it includes 30 galleries, 11,600 square meters of interior exhibition space and 23,000 square meters of outdoor exhibition areas. 

Ten giant sculptural cones, reaching up to 88 meters, provide shade and natural ventilation.

New French venue for Redfern hotspot

Exciting news for Sydney gourmets with a new French bistro set to open in the hip Wunderlich Lane precinct on the border of Redfern and Surry Hills.

Baptiste Bistro, from the team behind The Apollo, Olympus and Cho Cho San, will open its doors in November.

The 80-seat French restaurant completes a trio of Apollo Group's venues at the precinct after the recent announcement of rooftop izakaya Tenjo.

Designed as a neighbourhood bistro for Redfern, Baptiste will bring an all-day French dining experience to Baptist Street, home of the hip EVE Hotel.

The new venue will be open seven days a week from 7am until late with happy hour offered twice daily. First from from 4–5pm and then 10–11pm.



The kitchen brigade will be led by Luke Papalia from Olympus, who has had stints at Pilu at Freshwater and Norma’s Deli.

The menu will be focused on French bistro classics like fresh goat’s cheese with chive oil and herbs; onion and olive tart, ham and cornichons; and Niçoise, Caesar and Lyonnaise salads.

Rôtisserie chicken will sit at the heart of the menu alongside steak frites, poached marron, and tuna steak au poivre, all served with pommes allumettes. Which is very unFrench. Bring on the frites.

An oyster station at the bar will offer fresh oysters alongside crudités, while the dessert menu stays firmly within French bistro territory, with crème caramel, profiteroles and rhum baba among the offerings.

The beverage program will see wines from classic and new-wave cult producers from France and Australia, aged bottles from the group’s cellar, and a daily selection of wines by the glass.

“We didn't want to open a restaurant that read as brand new, but a bistro that felt like it had been on the corner for years,” says owner and operator Jonathan Barthelmess.

See www.baptiste.com.au

Images: Nikki To.

French wine production to plummet in 2026

French wine production for the 2026 vintage is forecast to fall to almost 34 million hectolitres, putting the harvest 17% below its recent average after drought and heatwaves hit vineyards across the country.

The French Ministry of Agriculture estimates production of almost 34 million hectolitres for 2026, industry news hub drinks business reports.

Based on current estimates output is expected to fall 6% compared with 2025 and sit 17% below the 2021 to 2025 average. 

The ministry attributed the decline both to a reduction in productive vineyard areas and lower yields caused by the adverse weather, particularly drought and summer heatwaves.

The national figure masks considerable regional variation, however, with some wine regions suffering substantial reductions and others recording modest improvements following poor yields in 2025.

Repeated heatwaves and drought had caused widespread damage, with the average national temperature reaching 24.9°C in July, above the previous records cited for 2003 and 1976. 

Some 65% of France experienced what the ministry described as “unprecedented drought”, with water restrictions imposed in 95 departments and 79 classified as being in “crisis” at the height of summer.

In response, agriculture minister Annie Genevard announced an support plan worth more than €1 billion on September 4, intended both to compensate farmers for losses and help agricultural production recover.

The package includes an estimated €520m through France’s national solidarity compensation scheme, more than €300m in property tax relief on undeveloped land and €30m through the agricultural disaster scheme for uninsurable losses, including damage to vines and other perennial crops.

A further €235m agricultural recovery fund has been established to support farms facing difficulties financing inputs and recovering from the summer’s wildfires.

The latest production estimate comes as the French deliberately reduce vineyard area in response to declining consumption and wider difficulties facing the sector.

France is confronting two different pressures at once: structural oversupply in parts of the wine industry and increasingly unpredictable yields in the vineyards that remain.

Image: Silvia Arellano, Scop.io  

Hong Kong aims to further boost tourism numbers

Hong Kong is already a global tourism hotspot but attracting more visitors remains a major focus.

Enhancing the city's appeal as a destination for tourism and major sports and cultural events is a strong part of the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, as announced by Hong Kong's chief executive John Lee earlier this month.

Lee unveiled measures to support the integrated development of culture, sports and tourism which will help develop Hong Kong as an East-meets-West Centre for international cultural exchange.

These included enriching the supply of high-quality tourism products, while bolstering infrastructure and ancillary facilities as well as deepening engagement with markets in the Chinese mainland and around the world."Hong Kong is blessed with a unique cultural vision, shaped by both Chinese and foreign influences," Lee said.

"We will continue to engage and collaborate with mainland and overseas culture, arts and creative sectors to consolidate Hong Kong's role as a hub for the exchange, collaboration and promotion of culture, arts and creativity.

"We will also host international cultural and arts exhibitions and performances to attract visitors to Hong Kong."

To support Hong Kong's film industry and promote "Film + Tourism", a Support Unit for Non‑local Film Productions will be set up to provide one‑stop services for mainland and overseas film crews filming in Hong Kong, aiming to attract the production of more quality films to promote Hong Kong.

Lee noted that the Kai Tak Sports Park has substantially expanded Hong Kong's capacity to host international events, with more than 170 sessions of international and local sports and cultural entertainment mega events having been held so far, attracting over 2.6 million spectators.

Hong Kong's Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Rosanna Law, highlighted the growing trend of multi-destination tourism.

Law said that Hong Kong welcomed around 36.67 million visitor arrivals in the first eight months of 2026, representing a year-on-year increase of about 11%.

"The proportion of overseas visitors travelling onwards to the Chinese mainland via Hong Kong has continued to rise, exceeding 20% in the first half of 2026," she said.