Hike society I

I read both Amy Hillier and Barbara Ryan’s letters (Traveller Letters,August 26 andSeptember 8) regarding the Camino pilgrimages versus Australian walks. I am a long-distance walker and over the last 25 years have done many walks in Australia and in Spain,including four different Caminos since 2015.

My issues with Australian walks are that they are too short,with airfares too high to travel interstate to embark on some of the more famous walks. And unless you are a very experienced bushwalker with all the survival gear and communications,it is foolhardy to set out unguided on most Australian hiking tracks.
Susie Timbs,Berry,NSW

Hike society II

I’m not sure thatBarbara Ryan’s statement that “for most” walking the Camino is a Christian privilege really applies anymore. Few Spaniards we met seemed to donate to the little churches along the way,with many saying they would not attend the touristy pilgrim’s mass in Santiago de Compostela Cathedral and most,during the week of Spain’s national day,were out for an adventure with family,friends and dogs and just enjoying time away from the usual.
Tony Sullivan,Adamstown Heights,NSW

Locker shocker

Ryanair evokes strong opinions,both positive and negative. On a recent trip from Karlsruhe,Germany,to Stansted,England we bought overhead locker space as our backpacks were a little larger than Ryanair’s limits for bags to store underneath the seat in front. On boarding,and placing our bags overhead,we were forcefully directed to nevertheless place them under the seat in front. When I protested that I had paid for locker space,I was told lockers were for trolley bags. So Ryanair extracted a payment for a service it had no intention of providing.
Ronald Watts,Charlestown,NSW

Power of one

I totally agree with your columnist,Lee Tulloch (Traveller,September 9),having recently returned from an organised trip to Switzerland travelling solo. I did meet wonderful fellow travellers on the tour who made me feel I was not alone,but they also gave me space to be on my own if I wished. During my time on the tour away from the group I loved the freedom I had to wander the beautiful cities,chatting with locals on public transport and getting directions when needed. There was always someone to take my photo and I didn’t disturb anyone when I woke at 2 am to phone home. Don’t let being on your own stop you from discovering the world.
Pauline Harvey,Bathurst,NSW

Empty feeling

Ben Groundwater’s piece on Japanese sake (Traveller,September 10) is accompanied by an image of the much photographed empty sake barrels,which are symbolic,and meant to create a smooth path to the gods,on the walk to Meiji Shrine,in Tokyo,however,incorrectly captioned Kyoto.
Anne Rogers,Melbourne,Vic
EDITOR’S NOTEThe online version of the story to which our reader refers has been corrected. Apologies for the error.

Permit me to explain

Ross MacPherson is mistaken in referring to an International Driver’s Licence (Traveller Letters,September 9). There is no such thing. There is an International Driver Permit,which is a translation of some of the details of your Australian driver licence into some other languages. It must be used in conjunction with your Australian licence. It may not be asked for,but the Australian government’s Smart Traveller site says it should be carried at all times.
Michael Nicholls,Travancore,Vic

Tip of the week:Downwardly mobile

I’m just back from the beautiful Palau,a Pacific Ocean country,north-west of Papua New Guinea. With its Rock Islands,a natural wonder of the world,and its pristine waters,Palau is now readily accessible with a recently established direct flight from Brisbane with Air Niugini.

However,you need to be aware that there is no mobile roaming with Australia. You can get SIM cards,but a problem arises when you want to pay a significant credit card bill such as the hotel,expensive excursion or in my case a flight upgrade. Minor payments are no problem,but with two-factor security,credit card companies often send an SMS with a code to send back for verification and in Palau,with no roaming,you don’t get the SMS so it can be a bit of an issue. This is not uncommon across the Pacific as two-factor security is becoming more common to contain scamming. Reduce your chance of this happening by letting your credit company know of your travel destinations.
John Hibbard,Westleigh,NSW

Qantas kicks a goal

Apropos to Ben Groundwater’s column (Traveller,September 10),on airline lounge letdowns,full compliments to Qantas on their excellent lounge setup in Hong Kong. My son and I were there recently and there were only about half a dozen other people there,unlike the Cathay Pacific business lounges.

During our time there,we had at least four staff ask us about drinks and the provision of cooked meals,and to top it off the extra large screen was showing the exciting Carlton versus Sydney AFL elimination final. We had a most enjoyable couple of hours,relaxed and in considerable comfort.
Paul Mulqueen,Melbourne,Vic

Driving lessons

Motoring in Italy (Traveller Letters,September 15) is simple once you get the hang of how to interpret the road signs. For example,that number in a red circle is the minimum speed you are required to drive at. And the sign with one red car next to a black car means you are allowed to overtake as long as you are going faster than the car you are passing. And the two white lines down the middle of the road – that’s the motor scooter lane. All other signs can be similarly interpreted. We got the hang of this early on and from then on it was fine.
Steve Davidson,Warrawee,NSW

Route work

Your correspondent,in lauding her recent road trip from Melbourne to the Red Centre (Traveller Letters,September 15),opines that her key tip for outback driving is to use Google Maps with caution as it doesn’t identify unpaved roads. But she adds that they were caught out without reception on encountering a dirt road. I would suggest the key tip is to take advantage of Google Maps’ facility to pre-download appropriate maps for this very eventuality.
Peter Price,Southbank,Vic

Park yourself there

We have just returned from our fourth trip to Southern Africa,and whilst there is no doubt that both high-end and mid-range safari camps (Traveller,September 17) offer amazing experiences,I was surprised that your story failed to mention that national park rest camps offer a fabulous and cheaper option. We have stayed at both Kruger National Park in South Africa,and Etosha National Park in Namibia,where it is easy and safe to self-drive on the excellent road systems,and stay in clean and comfortable accommodation. The camps allow for self-catering,as well as having very good,reasonably priced restaurants - often with beautiful views. In both national parks,we saw vast numbers of game up close – a standout being the rest camp at Okaukuejo in Etosha,with a wonderful floodlit waterhole just metres from the accommodation,teeming with elephant,giraffe,antelope and black rhino.
Bruce McClure,Middle Park,Vic

Testing times

To add to your “Irish Eyes Unsmiling” letter (Traveller Letters,September 15),in Northern Ireland,if over 80,when you get to the hire car desk as well as the appropriate documents,a staff member is required to take you on a test run. Best of Irish luck with that one.
Tom Wilson,Kariong,NSW

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