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Crown of the Top End, Kakadu National Park is a wonderland of spectacular landscapes, ancient culture and natural history. But at the centre of this national park lies the jewel in that crown.

Yellow Water—Ngurrungurrudjba in the Bininj language—is a tributary billabong of the South Alligator River.

Check out our video of this incredible waterway at sunset:

This broad waterway, contained in the dry season by sloping banks, leaning pandanus and towering speargrass, is a wildlife paradise.

From the huge saltwater crocodiles that slip silently through the shimmer of the still water to the tiny azure kingfishers poised on overhanging branches, there’s so much life here it’s almost too much to take in.

Beyond the glittering surface of Yellow Water, flood plains that stretch out to distant trees and escarpments offer hunting grounds to wading birds and water buffalo. Black necked storks (formerly jabiru) and brolgas, ibis and egrets pace the flats.

And when you think you’ve seen Yellow Water at its best, the reason for the name comes to light as the sun starts its run for the western horizon. The water turns to gold and you’re breath catches at the sight of the sky reflecting in the burnished mirror of the billabong.

Find the best Kakadu accommodation at the best prices here.

Yellow Water Cruise

From our safari-style Yellow Water Villa at Cooinda Lodge, we meet our cruise guides at reception. It’s a short five-minute bus transfer to the jetty at Yellow Water, where we board our boat.

These flat-bottomed launches are perfect for exploring the billabong and the covered roof keeps the hot sun off us, though it’s still sweltering in the still air of the tropical afternoon.

But we’re soon on the move and the breeze brings us back to life.

Our guide talks about Yellow River and its incredible array of wildlife. It’s not long before we see our first crocodile—in fact, even before we boarded, we saw one hanging around the boats. There are hundreds of them here.

Enormous, prehistoric, awe-inspiring.

Some glide along effortlessly, eyeing us from the meniscus of the water. Others, basking on muddy banks, gape their savage jaws, showing the terror of their teeth.

Our guide explains there’s no known reason for the crocodiles to do this; she suggests it’s purely a posturing behaviour. It doesn’t bring us any comfort and we shift in our seats as the guide brings the boat closer to one of these fascinating, voracious reptiles.

Aside from the salties, the birdlife here is extraordinary.

Jacanas, with their unfathomable feet, scuttle across lily pads, night herons hide their heads in search of fish, forest kingfishers flash blue and white in the light, spoonbills and ibis forage from their stilts, and sea eagles do battle for their catch with the harrying and ubiquitous whistling kites.

Every minute feels like an Attenborough moment, but as we watch, we realise this is all quite normal for Yellow Water.

Sunset’s Midas Touch Turns Everything To Gold At Yellow Water

Without warning, the sun had decided to make its way to the horizon. It’s either happened that quickly or—more likely—we’ve been so absorbed by watching the nature around us that we haven’t noticed the sky transform.

Bronzing the horizon, the great orb of the sun cooks its last dish of the day, toasting the clouds and brûléeing the water until it seems to crackle under our bow.

Closer the sun comes to the brink, and brighter orange and gold go the heavens and the water. Islands of pandanus and lotus lilies turn to black silhouettes on the water’s gleaming rink-like surface until, with a final goodbye, the sun burns red.

The sky turns purple, then that impossible twilight blue as our boat moves into position at our harbour. We make our way back to the coach as evening draws in still astounded by the magic of Yellow Water and Kakadu.

When’s The Best Time To Visit Yellow Water?

We visited Kakadu near the end of the Dry Season in the last week of September, which is also Kakadu Bird Week.

This is the time of year when the water levels are at their lowest and the wildlife is concentrated into a much smaller area. This means you’re more likely to see things.

It’s also the best time of year to see the incredible spectacle of migrating magpie geese that fill the waterways and floodplains in their tens of thousands.

Check out our birdwatching experience with the remarkable Luke Paterson of NT Bird Specialists here.

However, you’re sure to have an incredible experience at Yellow Water no matter what time of year you’re here.

As for times of day, the sunset cruise was unbelievable, though there is also a sunrise cruise too, which would mean a nice and cool ride before the day gets too hot.

We highly recommend booking your seat on this cruise as early as possible—especially for the sunset ride—as these experiences fill up fast. And quite rightly so.

We travelled to Kakadu as media guests of Kakadu Tourism and Tourism NT, but our experiences and opinions remain our own.

The post Must-Do in Kakadu: Yellow Water Cruise at Sunset appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

I’ve always been a fan of the window seat on a plane—for a few reasons. But when you’re flying to Hamilton Island Airport, having a view makes all the difference.

From the air, the emerald sight of the Whitsundays archipelago and the shapes of the glimmering Great Barrier Reef from the pearlescent sea raises the pulse of even the most hard-bitten, jaded traveller.

You also get a perspective of Hamilton, girt by white beaches and smothered in natural bushland.

In fact, over 80% of this 7km² island is untouched, which offers a lot of bushwalking opportunities for keen hikers.

The only other way to get around—apart from the shuttle bus that runs the resort circuit—is by electric golf buggy. There are no cars on Hamilton Island. You can hire a buggy for the day for up to four days at a time.

Where To Watch Sunset On Hamilton Island, Qld

The best part of being on an island is that, even though you’re on the east coast, the Hamilton Island sunset is over the water.

There’s nothing quite like watching the brilliant burnished orange orb of the sun dip slowly into the sea. Even more so from one of the best vistas on Hamilton Island.

One Tree Hill on the north of the island is a popular spot for visitors to come and watch the sunset.

Because it’s elevated, you can see for miles around across to other islands and out to sea. As the sun begins to set, the whole sky lights up gold and deep orange.

There’s plenty of space to sit on the grassy slopes of the hill to have a picnic. Alternatively, the little bar here—creatively One Tree Hill Bar—is open from 3.00pm till 7.30pm-ish and serves a whole range of drinks from beers to ready-mix house cocktails.

Grab a table and enjoy the sunset from the little deck.

I’m not entirely sure why it’s called One Tree Hill though. Surrounded by swaying palm trees, firs and other evergreens, the trees here frame the views out to the magnificent sunset beautifully.

Getting To Hamilton Island

There are direct flights to Hamilton Island Airport—the only island airport in the Whitsundays—from Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

You can also arrive by boat to Hamilton Island. Transfers run from Port of Airlie with Cruise Whitsundays and take about an hour.

Where To Stay On Hamilton Island

There are hundreds of places to stay on Hamilton Island. From holiday homes and apartments to beachside hotels to private ultra-luxe spa resorts.

We stayed at the Reef View Hotel, which has over 360 rooms of all types – you can read our full review here.

Our King Coral Sea View Room was huge—big enough for not one but two king-size beds, a reasonable balcony and all the usual comforts of a 4-star hotel.

From the Reef View Hotel, it’s about a 15-minute walk up hill if you don’t have a buggy. Alternatively, the free shuttle bus goes up there too.

The walk back down hill is much easier, and that’s as much to do with gravity as it is the memory of the incredible sunset you’ve just witnessed extinguish into the Coral Sea.

We visited Hamilton Island as media guests but our experiences and opinions remain our own.

The post Where To Watch The Sunset On Hamilton Island, Queensland appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

Potato Head Beach Club is the kind of place you could spend all day – swimming in the pool, walk on the beach, sunset cocktail, dinner. The family crowd in the day slowly merges with the party crowd as the night progresses.

Leaving Mr Romance behind to hold the fort, I had a recent sortie to Bali with a few girlfriends on a kind of blog retreat. The time we spent here at the PHBC was a highlight for sure.

Even the entrance to this place is enchanting. You walk through curved walls of shutters to get in. They call it the ‘Colosseum’ and all the shutters are 18th Century vintage teak collected from across Indonesia.

Once inside it opens up into an enormous beach club. There’s a massive lawn, and there are two bars and two separate restaurants.

Hot tip:

Head there at least an hour or two before sunset to grab the best spots to watch the sun go down over the Indian Ocean.

Our pick of the pozzies was a big daybed for our group to relax, though there are tables if you prefer. You can’t reserve a daybed, just try to time it right or put your name down when you arrive. There’s a minimum spend but if you’re staying for dinner & drinks, it’s not hard to reach.

As in the rest Bali, wine is more expensive than cocktails. We didn’t mind that though – especially as the cocktail menu at Potato Head is pretty impressive. My pick was the Triple Berry Margarita which is long and refreshing.

The prohibition Iced Tea is fun, served in a teapot.

They know the Australian crowd well and the Kookaburra is also a favourite, made with lemongrass infused gin.

The dress code still has a beachy feel, but is encourages a bit of effort at the same time. You can still wear flip-flops but they have a rule on no alcohol branded clothing (Bintang T-shirts are strictly prohibited).

Dinner was delicious. The Beach Club menu is more European whereas the restaurant Lilin features more Indonesian food. There are communal share tables at Lilin, which looks fun. Alternatively, if you manage to score on, you can just eat on your giant daybed like we did!

Potato Head Beach Club is an icon in Bali for a reason, and is one of the best spots to watch the sun go down.

With the views, the styling, the fun and friendly service, and the wealth of choices to eat and drink, it’s easy to see how it’s such a favourite.

Potato Head Beach Club

Open: Every day – 11am-2am.

Good for: families, couples, groups of friends – the early opening, late close caters to everyone’s needs.

Jl. Petitenget 51B,
Seminyak,
Bali 80361
W: ptthead.com

Fb: @pttheadbeachclub
Ig: @pttheadbali

Have you been to Bali recently? Do you have any top tips of where to go for dinner or a drink? Tell us in the comments!

Images by Mrs Romance using an Olympus OM-D E-M10 camera.

The post The best place to watch the sunset in Bali appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.