Alison Stewart

Alison Stewart

Sydney writer and author Alison Stewart loves all travel but is particularly attracted to wild places.

Ship passes through the Kiel Canal, Germany.

The world's busiest man-made waterway for ships

Even the Vikings sought to cross the Kiel watershed; the Kiel Canal is now the world's busiest man-made waterway for seagoing ships.

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Beautiful flowering aloes in the Kirstenbosch Gardens.

Cape Town's greatest attraction most tourists miss

Cape Town's Kirstenbosch could well be the world's best botanical garden.

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Where to see South Africa's cutest critters

Check your bags before you leave - these cute critters get in everywhere.

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Alexander Nevsky cathedral and St Mary's Cathedral at sunset in Tallinn, Estonia.

No crowds: Europe's three new travel hotspots

Lovely old Europe, once vibrant, feels dog-tired, swamped by tourists and in need of a good lie down. But not the Baltic States.

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The ancient site where the world was supposed to end

Amid 1780 hectares of ravenous jungle lies the magical Maya city of Palenque.

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An impressive staircase in an Art Nouveau building in Riga.

One of the world's greatest Art Nouveau cities

Ravishing Riga hides a secret within the folds of her ornate civic garments.

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An oil-rich city with dining, hiking and fiords

Stavanger's fishy bounty has been surpassed by oil – and lots of it.

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The Dordogne Valley is filled with fortified towns and castles.

The dazzling 'valley of 1000 castles'

Cycling in the Dordogne is like gliding into an impressionists' masterpiece, especially on an e-bike.

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The Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii), one of Turkey's most superb buildings.

Six of the world's best cruise excursions

The depth and breadth of antiquities you can see on a stop off from a cruise ship is mind-boggling.

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This article contains a photo gallery

The sheer scale of the Great Temple of Abu Simbel is difficult to convey.

An epic engineering feat on Egypt's Nile River

The gems of ancient art that were moved to make way for modernity.

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How and why you should walk the Camino

For some, making a pilgrimage walk is a religious experience. But for others, it represents getting to a better place physically, spiritually and psychologically.

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Island Sky Images supplied by Alice Kay alice.kay@aptouring.com.au tra31cruisesataug17norway

Cruise where German battleship Tirpitz was sunk during World War II

Tromso is famous for the Northern Lights but beneath its waters lies a WWII tomb.

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Into the wild in iSimangaliso, South Africa

We inadvertently invade the personal space of a pod of hippos, which erupt in a cacophony of chugs.

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The garden of the colouful Frida Kahlo museum in Coyoacan, Mexico City.

Is this really the land of the 'bad hombres'? The truth about Mexico

The shape-shifting land of Mexico is not without its challenges, particularly today, but its beauty, culture and other-worldliness will stay with you forever.