Ever heard of cultural cross-training? Probably not, because we just made it up. Two reasons – the world desperately needs more jargon. But more importantly, there just happens to be some exceptionally cool fit’n'fun holiday ideas across Asia. You can cycle for sushi, run for a rendang or even climb for a chilli on our sweaty hotel stays. Check in and check it out… Read more »

We like our Yokoisms here at Hotel.com.au. In 1964 Yoko Ono asked her audience to ‘Cut off my clothes!’ and strip her bare in a performance piece. Asian artists and art can range from wild and exotic to serene and soft. So why not jump on one of our Asian art inspired holidays, where you’re guaranteed to see more than just modernism and Matisse… Read more »

The great thing about holidays is that you let go of the career you and unleash the real you - or even experiment with another existence. It’s our job to help you escape the mundane 9 to 5 life (or is that 7 to 7 these days?). And what better way than playing royal of the jungle, superhero, intrepid archaeologist, iron chef or tea tycoon on one of our life-swapping Asian hotel experiences?

Play Tarzan and Jane on a Phuket half-day safari tour, riding an elephant in the Chalong highlands. You’ll get to meet and feed Siam Safari’s elephants—including the young ones—and learn to speak jumbo, gawk at monkeys and devour a delicous Thai buffet lunch. The jungle jaunt takes a more laidback pace at Baan Sukothai Hotel, with its poolside bar where you can to muse over coconut cocktails and impress attractive strangers with your elephantisms.

Leap tall buildings, traffic jams and jostling commuters in a single bound on one of the Peninsula Hong Kong’s own twin-engine Aerospatiale Squirrel ‘copters, which you can hire for a trip to the airport, casino metropolis Macau and general island hopping. But even if you’re not the red cape and lycra airborne superdude, you can lap up the best of Peninsula luxury starting with the views over eye-catching Victoria Harbour, Afternoon Tea at the ‘be seen’ Lobby and even a specially tailored spa experience at the hotel’s ESPA.

Live out your Lara and Indiana fantasies with a visit to the 7000 strong life size Terracotta Warrior Army and Horses of Xi’an, China and a tour around its extensive museum – filled with enough spectacular treasures to make even the best travelled archaeologists drool. Back at the Bell Tower Hotel you can gush about your treasure trek over a meal at one of the onsite restaurants, including French, Sichuan and Italian cuisine.

You’ll be fishing for compliments after your own Japan chef experience with sushi making classes and a visit to the Tsukiji fish markets. Learn how to choose the best fish in the hustle and bustle of the world’s largest fish market full of exotic shellfish and anything ocean. Then its back to a famous sushi restaurant for a lesson in the art of sushi making, which of course, you get to eat. Primed for nothing but the best in delicacies, The Park Hotel Tokyo’s range of gourmet French and Japanese world-class restaurants are the only places deserving of your presence, accompanied by the nightly jazz band.

How do you have your tea sir? Any way you damn well please when you play a grand tea tycoon staying at the Lakehouse Cameron Highlands resort of Malaysia. Soak up the old world charm of Tudor styling, sit back in a deck chair with an iced tea and gaze over the lush green fields of your tea plantation. Then perhaps a game of golf or even a tea bath at the Spa Village? Tealicious.

Time to hit the refresh button on life? From ancient Chinese rituals to spicy shopping adventures, our hotel beauty experiences and wardrobe-bursting shopping sprees are the only way to give your body, mind and soul the extreme makeover they deserve — you can even have your papaya mud cake and eat it too.

Stay at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Hong Kong, and indulge in their sedatingly seductive Ayurveda and traditional Chinese ‘Sleep Ritual’ aromatherapy and massage treatments. You can even treat your tummy to a pre-nap refreshment of soya milk, oats and nutmeg. Once your senses return to orbit, head to the hotel’s M bar for oriental tapas and exquisite views.

You’ll be tasty enough to eat after a six sense spa experience at the Earth Spa at Evason Hideaway in Hua Hin, Thaliand. Using ingredients from the local garden, therapists apply exfoliants, masques, and wraps using coconut husks, papaya, kaffir lime and sesame seeds and leave you to drift into tropical bliss within your private mud-brick cave. Emerge refreshed with senses heightened and we challenge you to wipe that goofy smile off your face as you feast on exotic fruits and vegetables from the same garden.

Want to know where the Singapore locals shop for bargains? Jump on a Singapore Shop and Eat Heartlands Trail Tour, and your guide will reveal the best places for antiques, clothes and arts. The tour takes you to bohemian Holland Village to wander the malls, before fueling up on a spicy laksa and then to non-traditional shops to pick out something uniquely impressive for the folks back home. Kick off your shoes back at Novotel Clarke Quay, and plan your next day’s shopping adventure to nearby world famous Orchard Road.

Experience a living, breathing fashion parade along the 2.6km stretch of Japan’s largest shopping street—Osaka’s Tenjimbashi-suji. If you’ve ever wanted fluoro orange hi-tops, knee high socks and insane bargains on just about anything, everything from ‘2 dollar shops’ up to the finest credit card chomping boutiques are located at nearby Shinsaibashi street. The extreme makeover shopper hits a new level here – pigtails, nail polish… and that’s just the guys! After all the hustle and bustle, chill out at the nearby Toko City Umeda Osaka Hotel, where comfort comes at a reasonable price – and you’ll have more money to spend on those must have pearl coathangers.

They say you have to be in it to win it.  From cheering on your horse at the track to watching breathlessly as the roulette wheel come to a stop, there’s nowhere quite as exciting to take a dance with Lady Luck than Asia’s gambling hotspots.

And they’re off! For some edge of your seat excitement, gallop to the Member’s enclosure of the world famous Hong Kong Jockey Club.  Enjoy an exclusive tour, which includes excellent seats, buffet lunch or dinner and a tour of the parade ring and winning post.  Celebrate your victory in the lap of luxury across the road at the Cosmo Hotel Hong Kong .

With gambling a no-no in many Asian countries, you can always play it safe at Casino Lisboa  in the heart of casino capital, Macau.  Within the marble and mosaic walls sits the largest casino in Macau, the famous Crazy Paris show, and a wide variety of table games.  Soak up the electric atmosphere at one of the many bars with a “winners are grinners” twinkle in your eye, and a sparkle in your Moet glass, before drifting off under your blanket of cash at the site’s Hotel Lisboa.

Japan’s renowned Pachinko parlours are video game arcades for big kids — full of flashing lights, crazy sounds, and over-the-top mayhem.  Feel your senses overwhelmed and pockets brimming over from the slot machines at the Green Peas Pachinko parlour in Shinjuku district of Tokyo. Tumble back in a dizzy haze to the 3-star Hotel Rose Garden in the heart of Shinjuku.

Tux-up at the elite casino within the Jeju Oriental Hotel on Jeju Island, South Korea. Try your luck at Baccarat, Daisai and Roulette.  Return to your Royal Suite to swirl around in your whirlpool bath.

Get high from the thrill of games and altitude at Casino Tara outside the city centre of Kathmandu, Nepal where you’ll find mountains of games, shows and musical entertainment. Located at the Hyatt Regency Kathmandu, guests can also use the jogging track, meditation centre and tennis courts.