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Buy This: Lifetime Access to Virgin Australia Lounges

From time to time, we come across airline offers that truly intrigue and shock, and last week Virgin Australia's announcement was no different. Not 6 months from a complete company re-brand, Sir Richard Branson's Australian brainchild is now offering customers lifetime access to any of their lounges.

What do you need to do to have this distinction? Only $9,750 AUD! If you are over 60 years old, no worries, an obvious discount is in order and the price drops to $6,750 AUD.

For those willing to part with this type of cash, access is granted to all Virgin Australia Lounges across the country and reciprocal access to Air New Zealand Koru Lounges. When in Sydney, the prestigious membership allows curb-side check-in and a specially dedicated entrance to the terminal and lounge. Virgin will also throw in some culinary products from their celebrity chef, Luke Mangan, and skin care products from Grown.

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While Obama's In Oz, Travolta Pops Up On Qantas

The never-ending saga of Qantas and the rebuilding of a reputation continues and today the process got a boost. While Barack Obama was touring Oz, John Travolta made a surprise appearance on a flight from Sydney to Melbourne. He wasn't a passenger but he was in the business class cabin of the B767.

We know that the Saturday Night Fever star is a world ambassador for the flying kangaroo and actually has a retired Boeing 707 parked in his driveway. We also know that he has been featured as a captain in the in-flight safety announcement. Now, he turns up to present the most frequent flyers with Qantas' top status, Platinum One. Unfortunately, this was a one-off presentation; he was just in town for a 91st birthday bash Qantas decided to throw for the elite status flyers.

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Inside the Qantas Business Lounge at Sydney Airport

Last time we were at Sydney Airport, we took you inside the Qantas First Lounge, with its living plant wall, Neil Perry restaurant, and Payot spa. You didn’t think it was the only Qantas lounge at the airport, though, did you? Oh no—the airline seems to love its airport lounges almost as much as we love visiting them. That’s why, when we were passing through recently, we dropped by Qantas’ Business Class Lounge to spend a few hours working, wine-tasting and washing up before our big hop across the Pacific.

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The Rise of the Airport Super-Lounge: Virgin Planning a Doozy in Sydney

The best part of visiting Australia might just be found at the airport, that is if the folks at Virgin get their dreams to come true. Virgin Atlantic is thinking about building their first clubhouse down under, and it won’t just be one of their traditional airport lounges. Not only would it be their newest, but it could be the best, with new technology and extra space needed, as it will be available for flyers aboard V Australia and Virgin Blue as well.

The Virgin Group is already working on a new place to score a Virgin Redhead before your flight for all three of its airlines in Los Angeles, so these super combo lounges might just be part of their future plans for their company and passenger comfort. Right now they’re committing to finishing things at LAX, but it sounds like the blueprints to their latest clubhouse might be sent to Sydney at some point in 2011.

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Inside the Qantas First Lounge at Sydney Airport

As we continue our Airport Lounges Series, we bring you an inside look at Qantas’s much ballyhooed First Class Lounge at the Sydney Airport.

Not only is the luxury oasis a sprawling complex of comfort with two deluxe snack bars, a restaurant helmed by one of Australia’s most famous chefs, and a spa with complimentary treatments designed to ease the stress of long-haul air travel, but the place is also just plain cool to hang out in thanks to its design by Australia’s golden boy designer, Marc Newson, who’s also responsible for the streamlined look of Qantas’ new A380’s.

On our way back from Sydney to Los Angeles last week, we got the chance to go inside the First Lounge and take a look around. Then we made ourselves comfortable, tried out a spa treatment, ordered practically everything on the restaurant menu, tasted all the Australian wines, and played around on the lounge’s free wifi. Yeah, we were a little early. So what? We did it all for you, and we’ve even got a photo gallery to prove it, as well as a video walk-through.

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Australia May Love Bloggers But Sydney Airport Does Not

We've already come to praise Tourism Australia's blogger initiative, and Australia's other efforts to get more people visiting Down Under, like low air fares, MySpace pages, Island Reef Jobs, etc.

However, their loyal readers might end up waiting until they get back to hear about the trip. With Sydney Airport's WiFi provided by Telstra at a whopping $14/hour, and competitor Optus at $13.20, that free promotion might not be worth it. It's nice that the airport looked to inspire competition among its ISPs, but that should be driving prices down.

Taking Tourism Australia up on their offer? Let us know how the WiFi beams.

Related Stories:
· Everyone Wants You To Go To Australia But Are You Really Gonna Go? [Jaunted]
· Australia Loves Bloggers, Invites Them Down Under [Jaunted]
· Airport WiFi Map [Jaunted]

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Speed From Canberra To Sydney (Some Day)

Australian planners have been worrying about Sydney and its need for another airport at some stage in the next decade or two. Some think they can give up worrying now because there's quite a tidy solution: building a high speed rail link from Canberra and its existing airport.

Although it seems crazy at the moment to imagine flying to Sydney via Canberra, the thought is that a fast train could make the trip in just 50 minutes, turning little capital Canberra into an outlying suburb of Sydney. There's talk of extending such a rail link down to Melbourne too.

The only tiny problem is the expected cost of up to A$59 billion (almost $40b), but at least it would be cheaper than alternative plans that involve building entirely new airports. All this could revolutionize the way we travel around south-east Oz, but don't hold your breath, because this exciting newness could be ten or twenty years away.

Related Stories:
· Sydney to Canberra in 50 Minutes [The Age]
· Australia Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: Tilly Dog]

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Airport Photo Shoot: Wolverine, Overloaded

We're going to enjoy this vacation, or else! Hugh Jackman pushes a nearly toppling luggage cart at Sydney International Airport on a family vacation to Cambodia.

Baggage limits and fees are nothing new to international travelers, but let's hope the Jackmans are better one-bag packers the next time they head Stateside: Now that airlines like United have seen the market tolerance for baggage fees as represented by the extra revenue they're bringing in--in United's case, an expected $700 million for the year--there's no slowing down.

And when Southwest's no-fee approach becomes unsustainable? Well... We'll see!

Related Stories:
· United Expects $700M from Baggage, Flier Fees [Newsday]
· Southwest Airlines May Profit from Its Rivals' Fees [Dallas Morning News]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Faded Youth Blog]

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Airport Photo Shoot: Samantha Ronson Goes Down Under

It's hard to be separated from the one you love! But Samantha Ronson carries that burden along with her luggage in a recent swing to Sydney.

The DJ gave maybe-girlfriend Lindsay Lohan, currently shooting scenes for her recurring role on "Ugly Betty" in New York, a shout-out on her blog, mentioning how she was thinking of "someone I am missing who I must say posted a very good blog while I was flying."

Aww, technology! Put that in your Louis Vuitton and tote it.

Related Stories:
· Sydney Airport Is Swingin' [Jaunted]
· Australia's Grotesque Anti-Smoking Ads: Collect 'Em All! [Jaunted]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Faded Youth Blog]