Penny Watson

Travel writer

Penny Watson is a travel writer currently based in Bali.

Luxury holidays

The London hotel so fabulous, you could live in the loos

Built in the 1800s, this iconic hotel remains as stylish as ever, and a place to see London at its most vivacious.

Penny Watson

Savvy traveller

I take an overnight flight every six months. Here’s what I’ve learnt

This flight is a killer. It’s not long enough for a decent sleep, it’s not short enough to stay awake.

Penny Watson

Milawa offers the simple life city dwellers dream about.

Opinion
My happy place

We found a dream escape during COVID. Five years on, we keep going back

After eight months of inner-city lockdown, home-schooling and curfews, an escape to rural Victoria was a breath of fresh country air.

Penny Watson

Tanzania

I took my teen son on a safari. Here’s the gory truth

The smells of the African bush can be just as powerful as the sights – wild, untampered with and fresh from nature’s butchery.

Penny Watson

Tokyo

The lively, bohemian Tokyo neighbourhood that’s off the beaten track

It might be walking distance from high-rise, high-octane Shibuya, but off-the-beaten-track Tomigaya is a bohemian pocket where entrepreneurial spirit thrives.

Penny Watson

Cruises

The floating boutique hotel offering a luxe new way to see Laos

“If the cruise is as luxurious as the Mekong is long, I’ll come,” says the author’s mother.

Penny Watson

Magnifying mirrors in hotel bathrooms reveal every pore.

Opinion
Travel tips

What women do, and don’t, want in a hotel room

The items offered in hotel rooms could do with a rethink. A woman’s eye, even.

Penny Watson

Beach and island holidays

Indonesia’s answer to the Maldives is one of the best-kept island secrets

Belitung Island, with its Maldives vibes, pristine environment, eco-resort offerings and sunken bounty, may be one of the world’s best island secrets.

Penny Watson

Adventure holidays

Stunning Japanese hike is like stepping into an (animated) movie

This is a forest preserved in time, a world where dragonflies flit, minuscule flowers bloom and giant tree roots hide the would-be tiny houses of forest creatures.