Think a white, sandy Christmas might be better than a white snowy one? All you northern hemisphere people can be guaranteed a very different experience if you decide to celebrate Christmas in Australia, where temperatures can easily reach over the century mark and a swim at the beach is way more likely than a snowball fight.

The nice thing is that it's not even too late, if you decide skipping the drag of family festivities is what you want. There are still plenty of packages available to get you Down Under for a few days around Christmas time, including heaps of lastminute.com travel packages from LAX to Sydney, including airfare and accommodation for a week for around $2,000 for a five-night stay. ]]> amandak 2009-11-20T14:25:26-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/13/102050/64

With the rise of LCC (low cost carrier) airlines and their love affair with new technology, it seems like the airport check-in process is becoming the least time-consuming and easiest portion of catching a flight. There's the touchscreen kiosks, dedicated bag drop counters, and even the ability to check-in and print your boarding pass online.

In Australia however, Qantas is still the gold standard, and luckily they're just as into updating the check-in process as we are. Focusing on cutting check-in time for their domestic passengers in half, Qantas is rehauling their system with the "next generation of check-in."

What that means for you Qantas flyers out there. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-11-13T10:33:23-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/9/3915/94444

The now very-well-known tourist board campaign which recruited Ben Southall for the Best Job in the World—experiencing and blogging about life on the paradise of Hamilton Island in Queensland, Australia—apparently earned the state about $360 million worth of publicity (not bad for a $2.2 million outlay). Now that everyone knows that Queensland is a great place to go thanks to Ben's twitter pictures and blogs, there's one big problem: nobody's going.

Despite the massive interest in Queensland, international tourist numbers dropped by almost 8% over the last year, and almost 14% fewer international business visitors arrived. Of course, the global economic crisis can probably take a fair bit of the blame for that, but Queensland is still worried.]]> amandak 2009-11-13T09:14:26-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/9/2656/91481

Being a country mostly made up of immigrants, Australia is not renowned for having its own incredible foods the way, say, somewhere like Italy is. But that doesn't mean that there aren't some very important Aussie foods to try on your trip Down Under. Okay okay, so everyone's knows (and possibly sticks their nose up at) Vegemite, but you can't deny it when in the country; you've got to try it.

And without further ado, we present the list of The Top Five Aussie Foods To Try Down Under:]]> amandak 2009-11-12T12:29:26-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/9/03121/7132

The flying kangaroo, AKA Qantas, has got problems. As if banning beer on some flights wasn't bad enough, the planes and the pilots have been misbehaving too.

Last week, there was the case of the pilots who forgot to put the landing gear down on their way into Sydney, forcing the pilots to abort the landing and go again later. Those pilots have now been suspended although the lack of landing gear is being put down to a "brief communications breakdown" by Qantas. ]]> amandak 2009-11-09T12:24:24-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/5/132656/644

Tired of the colder temperatures and all the leaves to be raked already? It's spring in Australia! But of course, heading Down Under costs a pretty penny, and for creatives it most likely remains a dream destination. That's where Threadless and STA Travel step in with their "Threadless Loves Travel II" contest. Last year's winner got a trip to Iceland, $2,000 in cash, and slew of other perks. This year they're looking to a warmer destination by giving away an 11-day trip to Australia, new luggage, headphones, a $500 Threadless gift card, and the $2,000 in cash.

So how do you enter and win? Break out your best graphic design, drawing, or photoshopping skills to create a T-shirt inspired by travel. If it wins the most votes, it's Australia here you come. So far only six designs have been submitted, so the odds are good. Here's the design that won last year, for a little inspiration, but we know you can do better with Australia at stake. Submissions are accepted until December 2, so get brainstorming!

Related Stories:
· Threadless Loves Travel II [Threadless]
· Threadless Loves Travel I (Winner) [Threadless]
· Travel Contests coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: winning design for Threadless Loves Travel I]]]> JetSetCD 2009-11-06T10:42:46-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/3/52134/1133

Aussies are definitely not impervious to the charms of a cold can of Fosters; after all, they do have record-breaking pub crawls and boats made of beer cans. But if you're flying on a domestic Qantas flight Down Under, there are a few less beers going round these days.

Citing unruly behavior, mostly from drunken mine workers heading home after a couple of weeks working in the desert, Qantas has banned full strength beer and spirits on all flights within Western Australia. This follows existing bans on sales of spirits on intrastate flights in other parts of Australia.]]> amandak 2009-11-04T09:14:21-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/