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The news images were shocking: large swathes of LA were left reduced to rubble, following 14 separate wildfires that tore through neighbourhoods across from Pacific Palisades to Malibu. A devastating 50,000 acres of land were destroyed, 10,000 people were displaced, and 30 lost their lives as a result of the fires. 

It could have been a scene from the TV show Undercover Boss – Dame Irene Hays, owner and chair of the Hays Travel Group, surprised a Hays Travel fam trip in Sydney, by going incognito at the BridgeClimb Sydney. 

It was Dame Irene’s first visit to Australia in more than 20 years – she attended Australian Tourism Exchange, before linking up with the fam trip group in Sydney.

Looking fresh from a recent £1.6 million refurbishment of all guest rooms and riding high on scooping the AA Award for Small Hotel Group of the Year 2024, Mallory Court is a gem of a countryside hotel.

For the reworking of its 19 guest rooms and suites, the hotel took inspiration from some of the building’s art deco features, deftly combining some countryside inspiration with a nod to the influence of that most stylish of eras.

China is back on travellers’ radars, thanks to the return of Race Across the World.

The latest season takes teams on a 14,000km trek from the Great Wall to southern India, with episode two showcasing a journey to Sanya, China’s southernmost city on Hainan Island. The teams then head inland, exploring less-visited provinces on their way to Shangri-La.

The show has sparked a surge in interest, with China searches up nearly 600% and bookings for China tours 2.5x stronger than last year.