Hundreds of historic ships sail into Amsterdam
The Sail Amsterdam 2025 event has been officially opened with a flotilla of historic tall ships from all around the world.
Tens of thousands of spectators, either from the shore or aboard accompanying boats, watched the brightly decorated sailing vessels as they passed by.
According to the organisers, it is the largest nautical event in the world and takes place every five years. The parade began at the port of IJmuiden on the North Sea and travelled along the approximately 20-kilometre-long North Sea Canal to Amsterdam.
The event was first held 50 years ago to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the Dutch capital.
For the city's 750th anniversary, the festivities are particularly grand. Organisers expect more than 2 million visitors during the event, which runs until Sunday.
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Perth Now
18 hours ago
- Perth Now
Hundreds of historic ships sail into Amsterdam
Like a scene from an old Dutch master, hundreds of historic ships, sails billowing from tall masts, are sailing into the capital, Amsterdam. The Sail Amsterdam 2025 event has been officially opened with a flotilla of historic tall ships from all around the world. Tens of thousands of spectators, either from the shore or aboard accompanying boats, watched the brightly decorated sailing vessels as they passed by. According to the organisers, it is the largest nautical event in the world and takes place every five years. The parade began at the port of IJmuiden on the North Sea and travelled along the approximately 20-kilometre-long North Sea Canal to Amsterdam. The event was first held 50 years ago to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the Dutch capital. For the city's 750th anniversary, the festivities are particularly grand. Organisers expect more than 2 million visitors during the event, which runs until Sunday.
Herald Sun
05-08-2025
- Herald Sun
Most underrated Australian islands
1/7 Reasons to consider a winter (or summer) break on Norfolk Island, 1450km off the coast of NSW. It's got the climate of Byron Bay, as well as the surf, the swimming and the easygoing, self-sufficient vibe Byron used to have. But none of the crowds or traffic jams. It has one of the world's most southerly coral reefs, and is surrounded by a marine national park known for its diverse life. Pretty much all produce is grown organically on the island, it's great quality, and you'll absolutely taste the difference. It's wild and beautiful, with dramatic sea cliffs, placid bays, brilliant hikes in the national park and breathtaking drives that all magically end up back in the main township of Burnt Pine. Its convict history and ruins are captivating and so significant they are on the World Heritage register. It's a renowned Dark Sky zone. Being so far from any light pollution, the night skies here blaze brighter and more abundantly than you can imagine. The locals, who number around 2200, are super friendly, creative, resilient and resourceful. And they might possibly have the best work-life balance of any people anywhere. 2/7 From the northern city of Townsville it's a quick ferry ride across the Coral Sea to one of the most laid-back and beautiful of all Queensland's islands. Magnetic Island – Maggie to its fans – is a 52sq km slice of unspoilt loveliness, 80 per cent of it protected by national or conservation park and all of it surrounded by the World-Heritage wonders of the Great Barrier Reef. It's a place of simple pleasures: hiking mountain trails where koalas, rock wallabies and colourful birdlife await, and testing out the 23 beaches to find your favourite. Book a 4WD tour along the isolated west coast, chart your own adventure on an electric bike or moped or circumnavigate the island by sea with 360 Magnetic Island. There are only four main settlements, each with distinct vibe and charms. Hotels are scarce but there are plenty of holiday lettings listed at and new glamping tents handy to the restaurants and services of Nelly Bay. Go in winter for warm, sunny days, stinger-free swimming and whales galore just offshore. 3/7 Despite being one of Australia's newest – and most spectacular – national parks, the Houtman Abrolhos remain firmly off the radar of most travellers. This archipelago of 210 islands lies 60-80km west of Geraldton in Western Australia, which itself is more than a four-hour drive north of Perth. The islands' remoteness and isolation define their appeal. Like a mini Galápagos or Madagascar, they are home to unique plants and animals found nowhere else, and the surrounding ocean abounds with marine life, including rare Australian sea lions, dolphins and whales (in September to December). 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The Age
04-08-2025
- The Age
I travelled across the breadth of Europe on trains over six weeks
There's something delightfully atmospheric about waiting on a chilly platform for a sleeper train to distant parts. After a few days exploring Amsterdam and a scenic side-trip to pretty Utrecht (a handy use of the Eurail pass), I find myself at Amsterdam Centraal Station at 10.30pm. European Sleeper is a Belgian-Dutch night train which began service in 2023, and I'm picking it up for the Amsterdam-Berlin leg. I'm ushered aboard by Dylan, a friendly young Dutch attendant. He tells me this sleeper carriage first saw service in 1955, though it's been fully refurbished. I've booked my compartment as a 'single', for sole use, via a reservation on top of the Eurail pass, and the compartment is spacious. There's a bed, an armchair and a tall cabinet containing a washbasin and mirror. Comfortable in my little room, I wake at 5.15am to breakfast: a box containing a bread roll, cheese spread, jam, yoghurt, muesli and orange juice. An hour later, right on time, the train pulls into Berlin Hauptbahnhof. Berlin to Krakow, Poland The online seat reservation for this Polish daytime train, named Galicja, costs only €4: a bargain for the comfortable first-class seats. It doesn't have an assigned seat number, so I spend the day changing seats as new passengers board. This does help me meet interesting people, as the facing seats encourage conversation. I'm delighted to discover there's a dining car, and am soon enjoying a steaming bowl of rye-flour soup with egg and sausage, served in a ceramic bowl with metal cutlery. As we trundle past the green forests of Silesia, who could ask for anything better? Krakow to Budapest, Hungary After a few days enjoying Krakow's historic splendour (and its vodka), I board a Polish sleeper train, Chopin, at Krakow Glowny Station. I've booked a single again and, surprisingly, my compartment has a bathroom complete with washbasin, toilet and shower. These were once sold as deluxe sleepers, but due to uncertain availability they're now the same fare as sleepers without bathrooms; a nice bonus. In a cupboard I find a bottle of water, orange juice and a chocolate wafer bar. Then I head to bed for what I assume will be an uninterrupted sleep. But no. About 1.30am I'm awoken by Czech ticket inspectors. Unable to find my printed reservation, I show them the phone version and they're happy to scan that. Later I discover the train attendant kept hold of my reservation so I wouldn't be woken in the middle of the night. I wake again around 6.30am in Slovakia, and the attendant delivers my breakfast. It's similar to the one on my previous sleeper, with the addition of slabs of dense brown bread. I sip my coffee and admire the lovely scenery as we follow the Danube across the border to Hungary. Budapest to Brasov, Romania At Budapest's spectacularly grand Keleti Station I gain access to its retro-styled Premium Lounge, open to those with a sleeper reservation. Then I walk to my Hungarian sleeper train, the Corona. Built in the 1960s, it's a retro delight with wood-panelled compartments. I'm in a single, with a table, a washbasin and a cupboard containing snacks. It also has a standard electrical outlet and two USB-A slots, the most charging capacity I've had on a sleeper train. There's no air-conditioning, but as we move on this hot day, the open windows cool the interior. This experience is a stark contrast to the sleek high-speed trains of western Europe. However, it feels like true old-school rail travel, with fresh air and lots of rattling. The dining car has tables with red-and-white cloths, blue-upholstered seats, gilt-edged lampshades and curtains. 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Luckily there are only three of us in the compartment: me, an American school bus driver, who saves up for a big holiday every year, and a young Belgian on his university break. We get on well, but it's a hot day and the train is glacially slow. The saving grace is the beautiful Bulgarian countryside, with its green rolling hills and rocky mountainsides. Sofia to Istanbul, Turkey Sofia Central Station is a revelation, its main hall restored to its brutalist-modernist style splendour. On platform five is the Turkish-operated Sofia-Istanbul Express and my compartment is another single. There are two armchairs folding down to a bed, a retractable table, a washbasin and, unexpectedly, a bar fridge. We pull out at 6.45pm and pass through attractive green countryside. About 1am we arrive at the Turkish border station where everyone alights for passport control and luggage scans. It's actually more relaxed than it sounds – it's a balmy night, there are stray cats wandering about and the station's shop is open. In due course I'm back aboard, and falling asleep. In the morning we pass wheat fields and apartment blocks before our arrival at Halkali at the western edge of Istanbul. All that remains is to board a train on the adjacent commuter railway line and travel to the historic heart of the great city. Standing on the platform, at the end of an unforgettable transcontinental rail journey, I take a moment to catch my breath. Loading THE DETAILS RIDE Eurail passes cover a range of time periods. A popular choice is 15 days of travel within two months, costing $US486 ($745) for second-class travel and $US617 for first class. Additional seat reservations are often required.
