Peppers welcomes Rundells Alpine Lodge, Mount Hotham

It's getting cold outside and we're getting super keen for a bit of snow action! So it's perfect timing to get word on the latest addition to the network of boutique Peppers Retreats and Lodges in Australia with the acquisition of Rundells Alpine Lodge in Victoria's Mt Hotham ski fields ... and a special offer to celebrate!  To be known as Peppers Rundells Alpine Lodge, it will be the first Peppers property to be located in an Australian ski region. 

Peppers Rundells Alpine Lodge is located above the snowline at 1565m altitude in the heart of the Victorian Alps surrounded by the Alpine National Park and centrally positioned just 10 minutes from both Mount Hotham Airport and Mount Hotham Ski Resort.  It is also easily accessible via Australia's newest touring route, The Great Alpine Road.

The lodge also boasts one of the best restaurants on the Great Alpine Road, Graze, where guests can indulge in fine cuisine created with the freshest of regional ingredients and presented with European alpine influences.

Pack your ski boots and book yourselves in for a Victorian High Country Experience with a Two Night Snow Getaway Package from $430 per person* which includes accommodation in a King Room, degustation dinner in Graze restaurant, breakfast daily, private access to the spa and sauna and wireless internet valid from 29 June to 5 September 2012!

Wonderstruck by Wanaka - New Zealand

Melissa Reynolds has just returned from a short break in New Zealand and was blown away by the natural beauty and indulgent pleasures of the stunning South Island. Here she shares with us a little of her journey (and a special offer too!):

Last week I was lucky enough to head over the ditch to a place of incredible beauty only three hours' plane ride away. It was to a lakeside village of such incredible charm and good looks that I wondered if anyone ever left willingly. I'm talking about Wanaka, near Queenstown in the South Island of New Zealand.

The ski fields of Treble Cone and Cardrona are just 40 minutes away but as the season doesn't start until later in the year I had to find other attractions to fill my days. Of which there are many. There are vineyards, gorgeous walking trails, bike riding, boating and fishing on the lake, picnics to be had with fantastic local food and fabulous restaurants and cafes. Should weather turn inclement there are quirky cinemas (like the Paradiso which comes complete with mismatched sofas and a Morris Minor you can watch movies from!), Puzzling World, Warbirds and Wheels Museum, the Transport and Toy Museum and much more.

The Wyndham Vacation Resorts Wanaka makes a smart and comfortable home away from home, walking distance from the town centre. Our one bedroom apartment came complete with kitchen, lounge room, dining area and balcony. The hot tub outside was a crowd pleaser with couples wanting to ease any aching muscles from a day's biking, hiking or wine tasting - those vineyards can be exhausting you know.

At this time of year you're never too far from an open fireplace and a glass of local pinot and the Wyndham Wanaka's own Rafter's Restaurant has all that and more. Head Chef Stefan Link serves up local specialties with panache so if you're worn out from a day of exploring you need venture no further than upstairs. We also had a delicious dinner in town at Botswana Butchery (+64 3443 6745), you can guess that steak is their specialty and Trout (+64 3443 2600) where of course fish was the order of the day. For brekky, coffee and cake drop into Relish or Ritual, both cute timber walled coffee shops filled with rugged up patrons, works of art for sale and a general feeling of bonhomie. 

I could go on and on about what there is to do but all you really need to know is that this place is. It's beautiful. It's romantic. It's charming ... and frankly, I need to go back as soon as possible!

Wyndham Vacation Resorts Wanaka have a special rate available from now until October 31 2012 for a studio room plus one two course meal at Rafter's Restaurant from just NZ$129* per room, per night. *Guests must book and stay between these dates. Subject to availability.  To book your romantic escape at Wyndham Wanaka and for full terms and conditions call +64 3443 0025 or email Reception.Wanaka@wyn.com and mention this deal.  

Stay and play with Sofitel's 'Resort Experience' offer

Everyone loves a freebie, right? Stay for three consecutive nights at one of the stunning Sofitel properties across Asia and the Pacific this season, and they will give you a USD100 hotel credit to make your stay even more enjoyable. Nice!

It's called the Resort Experience offer - a credit that can be spent on any number of hotel services, including divine day spa treatments, cocktails by the pool or afternoon drinks at the hotel bar, room service or gourmet restaurant dining.

Sofitel has an extensive selection of 18 different 'dream' resort destinations to choose from including Queenstown, Fiji and French Polynesia through to Manila and Macau.  Various resort addresses are also available across China, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia.

Featured resorts include:

Sofitel Krabi Phokeethra Golf & Spa resort - from AUD118 per night

Sofitel Centara Grand Hua Hin - from AUD154 per night

Sofitel Philippine Plaza - from AUD201 per night

Sofitel Shanghai Sheshan - from AUD128 per night

Sofitel Fiji Resort & Spa - from AUD293per night

Sofitel Queenstown Hotel & Spa - from AUD341 per night

Sofitel Moorea Ia Ora Beach Resort - from AUD451 per night

Sofitel Bora Bora Marara Beach Resort & Private Island - from AUD362 per night 

Sofitel's 'Resort Experience' offer is valid for bookings until the 28th of October and for stays from the 1st of September until the 31st of October 2011, at participating resorts. So get in quick to start planning your own romantic escape. We're calling this one 'cocktail credit' ...

The 'Surrealism Mini Break' from GoMA and Hilton Brisbane

‘Surrealism: The Poetry of Dreams’ is a landmark major exhibition from the Musée national d'art moderne, Centre Pompidou, Paris, now showing exclusively at GoMA at Brisbane until 2 October 2011. The exhibition explores the historical overview of Surrealism, charting its evolution from Dada experiments in painting, photography and film, featuring works from Salvador Dali (pictured), Pablo Picasso, Giorgio De Chirico and Max Ernst; to the readymade objects of Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray’s photographs. 

'Surrealism: The Poetry of Dreams' is an opportunity to see important art works that rarely leave Paris, in an exhibition that will provide a fascinating and comprehensive overview of this important artistic movement. And what better way to heighten the overall experience then staying on overnight in Brisbane and enjoying everything this beautiful city has to offer? 

Hilton Brisbane has partnered with the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art to give you the opportunity to see ‘Surrealism: The Poetry of Dreams’ whilst enjoying the comforts the hotel has to offer. The ‘Surrealism Minibreak’ - includes deluxe accommodation for two – featuring a sparkling new bathroom, breakfast the following morning and two tickets to the exhibition, all this from $299 per room per night, twin share*

To make your reservation phone 1300 445 866 and quote PR44SM or visit their website here.