A cancelled flight to Europe should have cost us a fortune, but it didn’t

Full credit

Due to the Middle-East conflict, Emirates cancelled our Sydney-Dubai-Amsterdam, flight to a Viking river cruise from Amsterdam, with the cost of alternative flights exorbitant. Emirates provided a full refund of airfare, lounge pass, and points without fuss while Viking provided a 12-month full credit. Legally, both could have declined as the cruise wasn’t cancelled. Thank you, Viking, thank you, Emirates. Roll on, 2027.
Ken Millard, Normanhurst, NSW

Missile missive

I was recently in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for two weeks and caught up in the disruptions. Just as I was arriving at Dubai Airport late on March 7 for my 2am flight (after missile alerts that morning) I got the inevitable message from Emirates advising my flight was cancelled, moving me to the 10.15am flight the next day. At DXB, I was greeted by a lovely Australian woman on their staff who arranged a hotel for the night and transfers to and from the accommodation. Kudos to Emirates who are doing all they can to support their clients at this difficult time.
Jonathan Perrin, North Narrabeen, NSW

Letter of the week: Lime cordiale

As a fellow devotee of the classic British film The Third Man, Anthony Dennis’ article brought back some happy memories of Vienna where it is set. In 2010, we were stranded in the Austrian capital for a week – yes, there could be worse places – by the Iceland volcano eruption that brought air travel in Europe to a halt. Our generous hosts had a coffee-table book, Harry Lime’s Vienna [a reference to the villainous Orson Welles character in the film] and it inspired us to spend some enjoyable days tracking down locations that featured in the movie. My definite favourite was the doorway in which Holly Martin, played by Joseph Cotten, sees, for the first time, a brief glimpse at night of a furtive Lime for the first time and which I re-enacted for a photo. The actual doorway is at Schreyvogelgasse 8, and is beautifully preserved.
Chris Hunt, Sunshine Beach, Qld

Vivacious Valencia

The reference to Valencia, Spain, in your underrated European cities story, reminded me of my last visit to that lovely city. I stayed at a quaint and cute hotel, La Reina Victoria, straight out of a Somerset Maugham novel, with its two-person elevator that shuddered and clanked to my floor, the narrow corridors and comfortable rooms. I also remember the young Spanish barman who stole my heart, as he was the spitting image of Jake Gyllenhaal, (and me old enough to be his grandmother). Barcelona is loud, brash and fun at times, whereas Valencia is a beautiful lady with much to see and do.
Llieda Wild, Eastwood, NSW

Mind your French

One of the writers of your story errs in claiming French speakers call Lake Geneva “Lac Leman”. The Genevoise, themselves francophone, refer to “lac de Geneve”. It is the French who use Lac Leman; after all, 50 per cent of this beautiful body of water lies in France.
Peter Price, Southbank, Vic

So Frenchie, so nice

Lee Tulloch’s article on ritzy hotels reminded me of last April in Paris with my wife in a wheelchair. Every museum and attraction was free, often providing dedicated staff and separate lifts and ramps for access. Strangers helped navigate roads and gutters and lifted her (in a wheelchair) into restaurants. Once when we were huddled under an awning in the freezing rain, a driver from a famous hotel stopped his van and ran across the street to give us an umbrella. I’ll never forget the generosity and kindness of the French.
David Tonkin, Woollahra, NSW

Weekends away

Your readers have been known to recommend the benefits of using a travel agent because they have the expertise to help you if you have a problem. After I used a credit with American Express’s travel division to book flights recently, and then wanted to change the date of my return flight, Singapore Airlines said I needed to contact Amex. If I proceeded directly with the airline, I would be slugged $150, on top of any change fee and fare difference. I happened to call Amex Travel on a Saturday morning, only to be told it was closed on weekends. Fortunately, my need was not urgent, but if it had been (due, for example, to a war in the Middle East, or a family crisis back home) I would have had to wait almost 48 hours for assistance from my travel agent.
Ross Duncan, Potts Point NSW

The two of us

Sydney v Melbourne – which is best? Neither is better than the other. Both have special places and special sights and ways of doing things that make them unique. Why this stupid “better than” comparison? Why can’t we just revel in the fact that we have so much variety in our two major cities?
Marjie Williamson, Blaxland, NSW

Buff stuff

I read with interest Riley Wilson’s “Seven wonders” article on Tasmania’s North-West Coast. She references the West Coast Wilderness Railway experience but omits to mention that, due to the seven-kilometre section that’s the steepest “steam haul” in the Southern Hemisphere, this is a cog railway; that is a rack and pinion system. This has to make it an even more special tourist attraction in a state that already has so much to see and enjoy.
Margaret Valcich, Tolmie, Victoria

Brolly good

NSW has a poor rail network, but world-class staff. I live regionally and use NSW trains to get into Sydney for concerts and the like. On one return trip I left my umbrella on the floor of the train. The umbrella was expensive and held precious memories. When I arrived home I was half-heartedly filling in the online lost property form when my phone rang. It was Goulburn Station saying that the crew of the train had given them my umbrella and seat number. The station staff had tracked me down to return my property. What perfect customer service. Perhaps Qantas and its losers of luggage could learn something from a regional NSW service.
Stephen Carroll, Crookwell, NSW

Worst of British

My sister, born in Australia to English parents, booked her family’s “trip of a lifetime” to the UK last year. Discovering in January she required a British passport to enter the UK, she began the application process, including payment. She was told that our father’s birth certificate was inadequate (even though it was used to obtain his British passport, Australian citizenship and undertake his national service). In despair and with inadequate time, she has changed their travel plans to Europe and forfeited the lifelong ambition to discover her parents’ birthplace and heritage.
Ruth Brown, Mentone, Vic

Give it a spin

Further to Australia-related sightings overseas (Traveller Letters, March 21), in the town of Kokura, on the north coast of Kyushu in Japan, is a coffee shop named Second Fitzroy. The vibe is very Melbourne, even down to the vinyl records playing.
Paul Blamire, Noosa Heads, Qld

Gotta laugh

In 2001 at a European Band Festival in Balzano Italy, we were surprised to watch a band called The Kookaburras perform. They were Swiss.
Neil Craddock, Wollongong, NSW

Happy customer

After arriving home from a Qantas flight from Queenstown, New Zealand to Sydney, I realised that I did not have my Kindle – I’d either left it at Queenstown Airport, or on the plane. The next morning, I left a voice message with lost property at Qantas, with all my details, and they said they would contact me within 48 hours if it was found. I emailed lost property in Queenstown Airport, again with all details, and they came back quickly saying that they would contact me after 48 hours. That same evening, Christine from Qantas rang me to say that they had found my Kindle and gave me a number I would need to collect it, which I did. I also received an email from Queenstown after 48 hours to let me know that they hadn’t found it. So, great customer service from both Qantas and Queenstown.
Jenny Everett, Hunters Hill, NSW

Just the ticket

Now aged 94 (and a bit) I don’t get around much any more. However, by reading Traveller every week, I can, in my mind, go to the most exotic and faraway places in the whole world. And as a bonus, there’s no packing, no waiting around at airports and schlepping luggage filled with stuff you never wear. Keep up the good work, Traveller, so we stay-at-home folk can enjoy the world with you at no expense. It’s my ticket to everywhere and anywhere.
Myra Fisher, Brighton East, Vic

Putting the “ouch” in voucher

Michael Gebicki’s article on vouchers for flight delays, brought to mind a flight I had last year from London City Airport to Amsterdam on KLM. It was announced that our flight had been delayed by 2.5 hours and passengers were instructed to approach ground staff regarding meal vouchers for the delay. A few minutes later an email from KLM arrived saying the flight would be delayed one hour and 55 minutes. I could track our inbound aircraft on Flightradar24.com and see that it was impossible our plane would arrive in time to enable this turnaround, but ground staff were adamant that as our flight delay was less than two hours they no longer had to provide meal vouchers. Sure enough, the time we actually took off was two hours and 45 mins after our departure time. I’ve since wondered how honest airlines have to be about expected delays, especially when they feel they might be able to save a few dollars by deliberately understating the delay.
Kent Prior, Macquarie, ACT

Prices hiked

It is wonderful to see walking tours growing in popularity, but why do operators calculate costs on a per-person basis? We do the walking, the accommodation is not always per person and a transfer or two may be required, but that is not per person. The only individual element should be the meals. So, an advertised four day (with only three nights accommodation) guided Tasmanian walking tour costs $3350 a person, which equals $6700 for a couple, or $5850 with a single supplement. That’s simply not realistic.
Stephen Capper, Bellevue Hill, NSW

Doom and loom

Regarding Lee Tulloch’s holiday horrors column, the worst I came across was travelling to Canberra many years ago and staying in a motel where the room was literally completely carpeted: floor, walls and ceiling. We left the next morning.
Marie Nash, Balwyn, NSW

Curtain pall

Lee Tulloch’s column on worst hotels brought back memories. Years ago my brother and I entered what looked like a great hotel in Indianapolis in the US with the rooms dirt cheap. After the receptionist showed us the beautiful bar where we could spend time in the evening we said, yes, of course, we would take a room which we wouldn’t need to see it. It was the last time I made that mistake. The shower curtain that divided the toilet from the sleeping area was about 15 cm off the ground and, of course, everyone loves a shower that is directly over the toilet. Luckily, we are brothers.
Philip Dowle, Wickham, NSW

Tip of the week: Clear winner

One of my favourite places when we visited Croatia was Korcula, an historic island and town in the Adriatic Sea. It was tranquil, the water was clear and clean, and the island had a magical atmosphere. It’s only about a day trip away from Dubrovnik if you don’t have time to venture too far, but it also felt like you could spend weeks there. Stay at Aminess Korcula Heritage Hotel and eat dinner at Filippi – I had one of my favourite seaside meals there. Swim at Lumbarda because the beaches are cute. Take a sunset boat trip. Korcula felt serene, gorgeous and genuine.
Gary Levine, North Bondi, NSW

Caveat emptor

In response to the letter “Force farce” (Traveller Letters, March 14), insurers cannot cover war and never have done so. In 99.9 per cent of all policies – not just travel insurance – there are clear exclusions for war or a war-related event, and the insurers are under no obligation to refund cover if the buyer cancels. Like any contract you take out, it has clear terms and conditions. If you choose to buy insurance without reading them, or buy regardless, then buyer beware.
Victoria Watts, Tarragindi, Qld

Courts of appeal

Ordering cabin food in advance for flights leaving Japan is unnecessary as airport departure lounge food is the same as most train stations. The variety is extensive, with food courts offering sit-down, high-quality and inexpensive meals which can also be taken onto aircraft. Most meals are about ¥1120 ($10) and cold beers (for example) are about ¥225 ($2) for 500 mls. Most first-time travellers are unaware of the food options available.
Robert Paull, Nerang, Qld

Road worrier

Thank you, Brian Johnston for the Italian driving reminder in your story on travel’s tricky bits. A recent Sicily circumnavigation came with Formula 1 speeds, queues of tail-gating cars, happily apoplectic drivers, speed limits that changed inexplicably from 130 km to 10 km, and back again, tollgates that required telescopic arms to deposit payment, which was then mysteriously rejected (cue honking). Then there were the historic town footpaths, sorry, streets, spangled with prohibited traffic zone signs and finally, a hysterical GPS with an aversion to city navigation. Simpler to go with the flow. No fines in the mail as yet. Bellissima, Sicilia.
Alison Stewart, Riverview, NSW

Gimme a (station) break

I empathise with Jenny Hewett’s review of Amsterdam’s Central Station regarding it lacking information about trains. Unusually, the station doesn’t seem to have a big departures board displaying all the information, though each platform does have individual ones along the below track concourse. Worried about our train to Hamburg, we asked and were told it was cancelled. Great, but where was that stated? We were told to go outside to the ticket office about 50 metres down the side. By the time we got there many other passengers were doing the same, with the staff urgently telling people to rush back as the Hamburg train was now leaving in a short while.
Tony Sullivan, Islington. NSW

Turn on the tap

I’ve just returned from Japan and my biggest tip would be adding a Suica card to your Apple Wallet. It made getting around Japan so much easier. I could tap my iPhone or Apple Watch at train gates, buses, vending machines and at some convenience stores without buying a physical ticket. It worked even when my phone battery was low, and I could check balances and top it up instantly within my Apple Wallet. It saved so much time and I avoided the ticket machines and lines. With one tap, I moved through the stations effortlessly.
Belinda Hayman, Laurieton NSW

The Letter of the Week writer wins three Hardie Grant travel books. See hardiegrant.com

The Tip of the Week writer wins a set of three Lonely Planet travel books. See shop.lonelyplanet.com