British & Irish Lions Legend Jim Telfer Recreates Famous Everest Speech To Fire Up UK Fans

British & Irish Lions coaching legend Jim Telfer has recreated his famous 1997 players pre-match gee-up meeting in an online video that provides a rallying cry for the men of Great Britain and Ireland to travel to Australia for the 2013 British & Irish Lions Tour.

The video is a tongue-in-cheek parody of the original "Mount Everest" motivational speech, which has become a part of the rich Lions folklore. The recreation sees Telfer preparing the men of Great Britain and Ireland for the battle that faces them in overcoming their greatest challenge - convincing their wives and girlfriends for permission to travel to Australia and follow the 2013 Tour.

"The British & Irish Lions Tour is the absolute pinnacle for players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. There are no excuses to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I'm urging every UK man to climb their Everest and support our team," Jim Telfer said.

While the video takes a lighthearted approach, The British & Irish Lions Tour is sure to be an incredible experience for players and fans alike and shouldn't be missed, according to Jim Telfer, who represented The British & Irish Lions both as a player and a coach.

As well as giving rugby union fans the opportunity to be part of sporting history, the event is also a stimulus for Australian tourism, with 20,000 fans from the UK alone visiting Australia for the 2001 Tour. Organisers anticipate a  similar level of support for 2013.

"British & Irish Lions fans are some of the most avid in the world, and we await the "Sea of Red" to invade our shores later this year. With nine games, including three Test matches, played throughout Australia, this will be a great boost for tourism and a wonderful opportunity to showcase the best of our country to as many as 20,000 travelling fans," said Andrew McEvoy, Managing Director, Tourism Australia.

"We have had a lot of fun making this video and hope rugby fans in the UK and Ireland will take it in the spirit it is meant, sharing it widely and encouraging as many of their male rugby friends to dig out their rugby jerseys and book their trip Down Under. A Lions Tour is special and you can't underestimate the impact the support of the fans has on a players' performance. 

Nothing will encourage the team more than running out to a sea of red Lions supporters, and we urge you to follow Jim Telfer's words of wisdom and come out to Australia with us," said Charlie McEwen, British & Irish Lions Director of Sales and Marketing.

The British & Irish Lions will play nine matches during the six-week Tour of Australia (5 June - 6 July), including three Test matches against the Qantas Wallabies and games against all five Australian Super 15 Rugby teams. The three Test matches will occur in Brisbane (22 June), Melbourne (29 June) and Sydney (6 July), with the Tour also including matches in Perth, Canberra and Newcastle.

This project is a joint initiative between Tourism Australia and The British & Irish Lions.

• Video - The video can be viewed on our YouTube channel
• Images - Behind the scenes images can be accessed and downloaded on our VNR site

More information about The British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia 2013 is available at - http://www.lionstour.com

Match Schedule

• Wednesday 5th June v Western Force - Patersons Stadium, Perth

• Saturday 8th June v Queensland Reds - Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

• Tuesday 11th June v NSW-QLD Combined Country - Hunter Stadium, Newcastle

• Saturday 15th June v NSW Waratahs - Allianz Stadium, Sydney

• Tuesday 18th June v ACT Brumbies - Canberra Stadium, Canberra

• Saturday 22nd June v Qantas Wallabies - Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

• Tuesday 25th June v Melbourne Rebels - AAMI Park, Melbourne

• Saturday 29nd June v Qantas Wallabies - Etihad Stadium, Melbourne

• Saturday 6th July v Qantas Wallabies - ANZ Stadium, Sydney

Tool Announce Australian (&NZ) Tour 2013

Tool have announced an Australian arena tour which will kick off in Melbourne on 27th April at Rod Laver Arena. Australians are set to see a lot of Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan in 2013 with his other 2 bands

A Perfect Circle and Puscifer hitting out shores later this month for Soundwave and a tour respectively.

Tool will take time out from recording their fifth studio album to make the trip Down Under. The new album now has a 2014 expected release day after Keenan recently ruled out the album would be released this year.

The last time Tool visited Australia was for the Big Day Out tour in 2011 when they headlined the festival alongside Rammstein. They haven’t played their own Australian headline tour since 2002.
No word yet on when tickets will go on sale but be assured Music Feeds will get you the details as soon as they come to hand.

UPDATE: Ticketing details have been announced! Members of Frontier Touring’s website will have access to a pre-sale from next Thursday, 14th February at 12pm AEDT until noon the following day.
General release tickets will go on sale from 9am local time on Tuesday, 19th February.

Tool Australian Tour 2013 Dates

Saturday, 27th April
Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne

Tuesday, 30th April
AEC Arena, Adelaide

Friday, 3rd May
Allphones Arena, Sydney

Monday, 6th May
Entertainment Centre, Brisbane

Wednesday, 8th May
Vector Arena, Auckland

Australia Tops US ‘Dream Destination’ List

Is topping a list of ‘dream destinations’ a good thing? On the one hand, you’d appear as an idyllic destination, a place to which people would ideally love to travel. On the other hand, you’d appear as an idyllic destination, a place to which people couldn’t travel.

Regardless of its perception, or misperception, as a pipe-dream destination, the country’s position at the top of a list of dream vacation spots for clients of US travel agents would still bring a smile to the faces of Australian tourism authorities.

According to a survey conducted by North America’s largest travel agency franchisor – Travel Leaders Group – of its owners, managers and agents, Australia was chosen as the destination clients would most love to visit – if money were no object.

With agents allowed to choose up to three destinations each, Australia garnered 47 percent of votes, followed by Bora Bora (26 percent), world cruising (20 percent), Tahiti and Italy (17 percent each). 

Other dream destinations of note included Antarctica (12th place), which earned 9.5 percent of votes, and the Galapagos Islands (13th place), which scored just over six percent of votes.  

The disparity between realistic and (sometimes) unattainable, but desired, destinations is evidenced by France’s position on the list. A constant among US travellers’ top five international vacation spots, the European nation ranks a relatively lowly 16th position on the dream destination list, with just 3.5 percent of votes.

(Source: eTravelblackboard)

Ellen DeGeneres Taking Talk Show to Australia in March

Spunky talk show host Ellen DeGeneres will take The Ellen DeGeneres Show to Melbourne and Sydney this March to film several segments that will air to her global audience in April

Oprah’s “Ultimate Australian Adventure” may not have initially driven tourists Down Under in the high numbers predicted by Tourism Australia (the situation has since improved), but it appears that her travels did inspire another US television personality to visit the country.

Spunky talk show host Ellen DeGeneres will take The Ellen DeGeneres Show to Melbourne and Sydney this March to film several segments that will air to her global audience in April.

The visit, announced by the 13-time Emmy Award winner during the taping of her January 11segment, will be co-sponsored by Australian vitamin company Swisse Wellness and Qantas Airways. Swisse will launch 15 of its most popular products in Walgreens stores across the US next month as part of its global expansion initiative.

“Ellen represents our healthy and happy culture and celebrates life every day – key pillars of our wonderful Australian company,” said Swisse Wellness CEO Radek Sali in a company statement.

“There is no doubt bringing Ellen to Australia and signing Australia’s own Nicole Kidman as the global face of our brand will go down in history as watershed moments for our company. It is a benchmark way to launch our brand globally.”

Kidman, who also appeared on the show that day, urged Ellen to add the outback town of Kununurra, Western Australia – where Kidman’s film Australia was shot – to her list of destinations.

Though Ellen fans will not accompany her on the trip, the 400-person studio audience present during the segment’s taping received an airline ticket from Qantas for travel to Sydney or Melbourne anytime in the next 12 months, with six nights’ accommodation at a four-star hotel included. (Turns out Ellen’s birthday is on Australia Day and she felt everyone deserved a gift.)

Despite being married to Australian actress Portia de Rossi since 2008, Ellen has never visited Australia.

Aussies Choosing Melbourne Over Sydney

More travellers may have been booking hotels in Sydney over the Christmas holidays, but ultimately Melbourne is the preferred holiday destination among Australians.

According to the latest Roy Morgan Holiday Tracking Survey, 22 percent of Australians said they want to take a holiday in Melbourne over the next two years, ahead of Sydney with only 12 percent.

The Gold Coast came in second favourite amongst Australian travellers, winning 18 percent with its surf and sun while the Sunshine Coast was favoured among 12 percent.

Roy Morgan international director of tourism, travel and leisure Jane Ianniello said Melbourne’s appeal has increased over the past decade, particularly among Australians under 30.

“The shopping, dining, nightlife, and special events all appeal to this younger age group,” Ms Ianniello explained.

How To... Keep Your Belongings Safe Whilst Travelling

When it comes to travelling, one of the most important tasks is to keep yourself and your belongings safe.

It’s something that you need to be aware of at all times and can make even the simplest trip stressful.

Here are a few tips on how to keep your cool, and your wallet, on your next trip:

Low

• Keep cash and credit cards as well as photocopies of important documents in different places
• Wear all bags on the opposite shoulder to the one facing the road to decrease the chance of someone snatching the bag as they are driving
• Be aware of your surroundings – if it looks unsafe, leave
• Lock the doors and windows of your hotel room

Moderate

• For long trips ensure that you have a spare credit card that you can activate if your original gets lost or stolen
• Be careful about taking money out of ATMs, if possible do it near banks or hotels where security will be a little better, or buy everything on card
• Put locks on your handbags
• Close the blinds at your hotel so outsiders don’t know if you’re there or not

Extreme

• Take down serial numbers of all electronic goods that you are travelling with
• Stash credit cards inside your shoes
• Sew extra pockets on the inside of your pants
• Hide valuables around the hotel room i.e. under the bed
• Put something big, like a chair, or fragile, like glass, at your front door when you go to sleep so that you can hear if someone tries to break in. Be careful with this one if you are a sleepwalker and be aware that this may not be the safest option in the event of a fire

What not to do

• Don’t use waist or neck wallets, not only are they uncomfortable, but they also put a huge target on your belly
• Don’t put your wallet or passport in your pocket; they’re called ‘pick pockets’ for a reason!
• Don’t look too ‘expensive’ or ‘touristy’ when walking around foreign streets
• Don’t leave valuables lying around your hotel room, at the very least put them under some clothes

Sydney Most Popular Australian Destination Over the Holidays

Sorry Melbourne, but according to leading travel and lifestyle site lastminute.com.au, Sydney was Australia’s most popular destination in terms of hotels bookings over the Christmas and New Year break.

Melbourne was however the second most popular with Queensland’s Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Brisbane, rounding off the top five.

Capital cities had the highest number of holiday bookings throughout the country, with the exception of Brisbane which was third after the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.

lastminute.com.au General Manager, Kirsty Labruniy is encouraging Australians to venture out into their own backyard and take advantage of a weekend getaway whilst the sun is still shining and the crowds subside, especially in late January and February.

Labruniy suggests that being quick on deals and taking a holiday over two destinations, if rooms are sold out for a part of your holiday plans, can help with having a last minute summer escape.

Alternatively, try a city break and do something that you have always wanted to do like see a movie in an outdoor cinema.

For ideas on beating the January blues, here are the top destinations booked over the Christmas and New Year break through lastminute.com.au:

New South Wales 

• Sydney
• Byron Bay
• Coffs Harbour
• South Coast
• Central Coast

Victoria 

• Melbourne
• Apollo Bay
• Torquay
• Lakes Entrance
• Cowes

Queensland 

• Gold Coast
• Sunshine Coast
• Brisbane
• Cairns
• Fraser Coast

South Australia 

• Adelaide
• Port Lincoln
• Mount Gambier
• Victor Harbor
• Rowland Flat

Western Australia

• Perth
• Margaret River
• Albany
• Broome
• Bunbury

Tasmania

• Hobart
• Launceston & Tamar Valley
• Strahan
• Cradle Mountain
• Port Arthur

(Source: e-Travel Blackboard)