The
handsome Hayman waiter assured the table of a
brilliant coffee, adding, for effect, that there
was a "barrister" behind the bar.
Had
the wigged one tired of Brisbane's George Street
and decided to swap Supreme Court Criminals for
cappuccinos? Could a lad of the law make a good
latte?
As
we pictured the garrulous grinder, the waiter,
a guilty grin across his face, admitted he had
meant barista but that shouldn't stop anyone from
going to Hayman for coffee.
The
Hayman Island experience begins aboard the resort's
luxury vessel where the superlatives flow as freely
as the champagne.
"Glistening
waters, lush gardens, reflective pools, fringed
palms, gentle waterfalls, gracefulness" the
Hayman brochure promises.
A
$24 million refurbishment later, Hayman isn't
lying.
Apart
from her picture-postcard pool, 16th century fireplace
and 20 carat gold ceiling, it's easy to see why
the rich and famous choose Hayman as their hideaway.
Rod Stewart, it is reported, once knocked on the
doors of a number of unsuspecting guests in a
bid to make up enough players for a soccer match.
Voted
as one of the world's top five accommodation places
by Conde Nast Magazine, Hayman stepped up another
notch in November 2003 when she opened her luxury
beach villas. Before that guests had to suffice
with diving off their balconies straight into
the pool.
While
a bean-grinding barrister may seem out of place
at Hayman, over at Club Med Lindeman Island, it
would hardly rate a mention.
Island
Air Taxis operate a picturesque plane journey
between Whitsunday Airport and Lindeman Island
over the aqua patchwork which is the Whitsundays.
Once
on Lindeman Island, one is not a guest but a "gentils
membres" and you are most likely to be served
coffee by the same person who made your bed that
morning and taught you the trapeze that afternoon.
Club
Med's circus school is one of the island's unique
attractions, where guests can learn to fly with
the greatest of ease while attached to a safety
line, 10m above a trampoline.
Opened in 1997, guests can learn positions such
as the bird nest, plunge, splits, pull-over, knee
hang and layout.
If
the trapeze is not your cup of tea, perhaps hanging
in a hammock on the deck of your luxury Balinese
style bungalow at Pepper's Palm Bay at Long Island
is more your style.
Staff,
who are largely ex-Hayman, provide five-star service
at this eco-friendly resort which had a $3.5 million
refurbishment last year and whose next plans are
to move into spa treatments and outdoor bathrooms.
Not
that your luxury loo doesn't already offer a fantastic
view over the Coral Sea. The 21 cabins, many with
cathedral shaped ceilings to capture the breeze,
face the setting sun.
Island
hop to Daydream Island Resort and Spa aboard the
super sleek Whitsunday All Over catamaran, to
arguably the best day spa in Australia.
Daydream
has an outdoor aquarium where $70,000 worth of
sand and 1,000 litres of water in a tidal system
turn every six hours into an open air reef. The
lagoon is like a mini Barrier Reef with between
1,500 and 2,000 individual coral species and 50
different species of fish.
While
at Airlie Beach, for absolute waterfront luxury,
consider the Coral Sea Resort, where the aqua
marine waves lap your balcony equipped with spas
and hammocks. In fact, with a waterfront pool
and restaurant where Caesar salad is served with
scallops, you'd never need leave were it not for
the Whitsunday waters beckoning.
One
of the best ways to truly experience the Whitsundays
is aboard one of the Sydney to Hobart maxi yachts,
retired to bluer pastures.
Sailing
Whitsunday offers trips aboard these grand
ladies, setting off from Shute harbour and taking
tourists to secluded bays. Here tourists can simply
sunbake, snorkel or dive into the delicious Barrier
Reef before sailing home to the setting sun with
the smug feeling of knowing they've done the Whitsunday
waltz.
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