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Meet Ask AT: Our game-changing new travel tool

We are excited to share with you Ask AT.

We think it is a world first – an Australian-owned, human-powered AI travel tool that will plan your ultimate domestic Aussie holiday for you.

What exactly is Ask AT?

We’ve called it Ask AT because it draws exclusively on AustralianTraveller.com content – more than 150 detailed destination guides, curated trip itineraries, family-friendly tips, outback experiences and hundreds of road trip ideas – to give you personalised recommendations in seconds.

You can prompt Ask AT with any Aussie travel questions you have, and it will give you expert ideas and advice based on real travel insights from 20 years of specialist Australian travel writers.

To give you an idea, here are some questions asked by our users during testing:

“Tell me the best things to do on the Gold Coast for families – where to stay, what to do and nature-based activities"

“Hi, can you suggest some unique luxurious stay at Port Macquarie?"

“Can you design a week away in Margaret River with great food and wine?"

Why it’s different

A car parked on the side of the road next to a pink lake
Ask AT will plan your ultimate domestic Aussie holiday. (Image: Rachel Claire/@fieldnotes__)

We think there are four reasons Australians will fall in love with Ask AT.

1. Ask AT has the answer

Ask AT uses 20 years of expert travel writing to answer your question. In numbers, that is more than:

150+ thorough Aussie destination guides

100+ individually crafted family trips

160+ detailed outback itineraries and experiences

170+ thoroughly explored road trips

Need tips, more detail or itinerary ideas tailored to you? Ask AT.

AI Prompt

2. You can trust it

Because Ask AT draws exclusively from AustralianTraveller.com content written by real travel journalists, the answers are local, vetted and 100% focused on Aussie travel. We even include the reference articles for you to read in the answer.

3. It’s ethical

Unlike other LLMs (ChatGPT, etc.), which are trained using content from other websites without permission or reimbursement, we have spent millions of dollars paying Australian writers for our content, so we are not stealing from Australian writers.

4. It’s Australian

As an Australian company, we are invested in our community, pay taxes in Australia and employ Australians. Again, every other LLM is an international company not contributing to the Australian economy or community. The more success Ask AT has, the more Australian writers we will pay for content, the more Australians we will employ, the more taxes we will pay in Australia.
But most importantly, the more we spend on Ask AT, the better Ask AT will get at helping Aussies find their dream holidays.

That’s a win for all Australians and something we believe you can feel good about supporting.

Who it’s for

Two cars parkers near the beach
Ask AT draws exclusively on AustralianTraveller.com content. (Image: Rachel Claire/@fieldnotes__)

Everyone!

Whether you are a couple chasing a romantic getaway, a solo traveller looking for your next thrilling adventure, a group of friends in need of a weekend away, or a family planning a break for the school holidays, Ask AT is here to help.

How to use it

Ask AT
You can prompt Ask AT with any Aussie travel questions.

It really couldn’t be easier!

Ask AT sits front and centre of our new website.

All you need to do is type in your travel-related question into the prompt box and let it do the hard work for you.

Don’t forget you can clarify any response or ask for more information.

And in our testing, people loved it when they asked Ask AT to turn all those great insights and recommendations into an itinerary.

There are a couple more great features:

  1. You can save all your conversations for easy reference by creating an account using your email. Each time you log in your prompt and answer history will appear on the sidebar.
  2. You can share answers with friends and family by clicking the send icon.

Weekly travel news, experiences
insider tips, offers, and more.

A final request

Happy or unhappy with an answer?

Let us know by giving it a Thumbs Up or a Thumbs Down – we’re dedicated to continually refining our new tool to make it as helpful as possible.

Ready for your next amazing Aussie adventure? Ask AT is here to help.

Want to see more stories from Australian Traveller in your Google search results?

  1. Click here to set Australian Traveller as a preferred source.
  2. Tick the box next to "Australian Traveller". That's it.
Quentin Long
Quentin Long is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Australian Traveller Media. Quentin is a sought-after travel media commentator. He is Australia’s most trusted source for travel news and insights, having held weekly radio segments across the country since 2006, and regularly appearing on Channel 9’s Today and A Current Affair programs from 2010. Don't ask him his favourite travel experience as that's like asking him to choose a favourite child. However he does say that Garma Festival is the one travel experience that changed him the most.
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From fresh seafood to native flavours: discover the best hotel restaurants around Australia

(Credit: Hilton Surfers Paradise Hotel & Residences)

    Dilvin Yasa Dilvin Yasa
    Feeling peckish? These hotel restaurants prove the best weekend escapes are ones planned around noshing in-house.

    Forget club sandwiches and lobby house wine; the folks at Hilton clearly missed the memo that stated that the dining experience should be a business trip afterthought.

    Instead, they’re leading with their core belief that incredible dining should be the cornerstone of every travel experience: the long breakfasts with usually good flat whites, the golden hour cocktails, and the local flavours you’ll talk about long after you’ve returned home.

    The result? We’ll let the following Hilton hotel restaurants do the talking.

    1. Together & Co, Busselton

    Together & Co, Hilton Garden Inn Busselton’s on-site restaurant.
    Sit down to the family-friendly Together & Co.

    Nothing pairs better with the iconic Busselton Jetty and the beaches of Geographe Bay (both mere moments away) than the relaxed coastal charm of Together & Co, Hilton Garden Inn Busselton’s on-site restaurant.

    Offering a relaxed, light-filled and family-friendly atmosphere with an open kitchen, Together & Co somehow appears unfussy on the surface, yet maintains a myopic focus on showcasing the best of local ingredients (regulars swear by the flame-grilled octopus, as well as their perfectly cooked steaks).

    Keen to stay put for a drink? Together & Co Bar offers an extensive wine list, cold beer on tap, a crafted cocktail selection and a bar bites menu.

    2. Cafe Sunrise, Cairns

    Hilton Cairns Cafe Sunrise
    Start the day with breakfast favourites.

    At Hilton Cairns, dining and drinking options are plentiful – even without the Executive Lounge (open to Executive Room and Executive Spa Room guests who can enjoy continental breakfast, light refreshments and a nightly drinks and canape experience).

    Cafe Sunrise starts the day with breakfast favourites, from fluffy pancakes to an omelette station, while Edge Terrace is made for a wind-down cocktail. At Gin Social, shared plates and succulent mains showcase fresh produce, and poolside dining comes with a playful bonus: call the ‘Popsicle Hotline’ for a complimentary fruit ice-block.

    3. The Vine Room, Cairns

    DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Cairns, the vine room
    Enjoy Mediterranean-inspired eats by the pool.

    In DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Cairns, Atrium Restaurant’s breakfast buffet offers more than 100 options, but don’t check out before dining at The Vine Room, a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant and bar pairing Tropical North Queensland produce with southern European flavours. A herby prawn risotto overlooking the Coral Sea? Yes please. Just be sure to leave room for Le Petit Chef, an immersive 3D dinner theatre experience where a tiny animated chef leads a culinary adventure to remember.

    4. PepperBerry Restaurant, Darwin

    Hilton Darwin Pepperberry
    Taste an award-winning menu, shaped by First Nations culture and residents.

    Shaped by First Nations culture and residents from over 100 nationalities, Darwin’s dining scene has more character than most. It’s something to keep in mind as you consider Hilton’s trio of perfectly located properties (and its onsite restaurants).

    At Hilton Darwin, PepperBerry Restaurant is the flagship, an award-winning upscale establishment where modern Australian cuisine is sharpened with native bush spices and superfresh NT produce. The multi-sensory dining experience that is Le Petit Chef is available here too, as is the option to enjoy lighter meals and cocktails at Palm Court Bar & Lounge, a premier spot favoured by locals.

    5. Catch Restaurant, Surfers Paradise

    Hilton Surfers Paradise Hotel & Residences Catch restaurant table spread
    Lean into the Gold Coast lifestyle at Catch Restaurant.

    When you’re staying in a property located in the heart of Surfers Paradise, you’ll want to make sure you’ve got stamina for all the nearby attractions and happily, Hilton Surfers Paradise Hotel & Residences has you covered with some stellar options.

    Start the day with breakfast at Catch Restaurant, the hotel’s signature eatery, which is inspired by the vibrant Gold Coast lifestyle. Make a reservation for dinner (Wednesday to Saturday nights only), where the focus is on sustainably sourced seafood, steaks and pasta.

    Elsewhere, Ms Margot’s Bar & Eats, a coastal-inspired restaurant facing the buzzing Orchid Avenue strip, remains a crowd favourite thanks to its tapas menu (think coconut king prawns and fried honey haloumi bites), flatbreads and signature cocktails, but why not also treat yourself to its High Tea offering?

    6. Saltbush, Alice Springs

    saltbush restaurant alice springs

    Taste native bush flavours at Saltbush.

    Set against a red desert backdrop, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Alice Springs feels like a palm-fringed oasis, but it’s the property’s dining offerings which anchor you firmly in the outback.

    Saltbush, where buffet breakfasts roll into contemporary Australian lunches and dinners incorporating native bush flavours, remains a popular choice. The restaurant’s signature dishes include outback tenderloin koftas, lemon myrtle pannacotta and a classic outback pie made with kangaroo meat.

    7. Hanuman Restaurant, Alice Springs

    Experience a foodie weekend with a flatlay of food from Hanuman.
    Experience award-winning pan-Asian cuisine. (Image: Tourism NT)

    For an upscale dining experience, award-winning Hanuman Restaurant isn’t to be missed.

    Also part of DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Alice Springs and located on the banks of the Todd River, expect a pan-Asian menu combining Thai, Indian and Nonya (Straits Chinese) cuisines. And why not finish up with a post-meal drink or snack at The Deck Bar & Eatery, a relaxed outdoor space where cocktails are served under a canopy of stars?

    Start planning a foodie escape at hilton.com.

    Ask AT: Meet our game-changing new travel tool