Is it possible to attend a Grand Prix overseas at a reasonable price?

We follow Formula 1 and have seen the movie, so the only way I’ll be able to get my partner to join me on a real holiday is to make a Grand Prix event the focus. Can you suggest a reasonably priced package deal which includes race admission, transport to the track, hotel accommodation and flights from Melbourne?
B. Mason, Melbourne, Vic

Trackside for the Belgium Grand Prix.Credit: Getty Images

Take a deep breath, the words “reasonably priced” and “F1″ are mutually exclusive. One of the cheapest packages for the 2026 events is from Finesse Travel for the Belgium F1 Grand Prix in July. Including five nights’ hotel accommodation, transfers to the race circuit, a weekend general admission ticket and flights from Manchester, Birmingham, Heathrow or Stansted, the cost is £1299 ($2710) a person.

Other operators with F1 packages include Grand Prix Tours and F1 Experiences, and you can expect to pay from $3000 to $5000 a person. You could pay $18,000 or more for two if you select a package that gives you premium seats with trackside views on the main straight at Barcelona, a walk down the starting grid, a paddock tour and admission to insider talk sessions which might feature an F1 team executive, a media personality or the FIA’s F1 safety car driver. None of these packages include flights from Australia, you need to book that separately.

We are planning a week or two driving in Northern Italy next April, leaving from and returning to Venice Airport. We’d love to experience a Fiat 500. How and where can we hire one from that area?
D. Parker, Geelong West, Vic

A Fiat 500 is a great choice for Italy’s narrow streets.

Venice’s Marco Polo Airport would be the best place to pick up and return your hire car. If you’re staying in Venice before your self-drive tour, from Venice’s Santa Lucia train station the airport bus takes just over 30 minutes, or you can take a taxi. Several operators including Hertz and Budget have cars for hire from Santa Lucia, but it’s a major hassle starting your drive from there – the airport is easier.

You could also pick up your hire car from Venice Mestre Metro Railway station, which is closer to the airport but since you’ll be flying out from Marco Polo Airport it makes sense to pick up and return from there. You get what you pay for when it comes to hire-car operators. In Europe, I prefer Sixt. They’re not the cheapest, but their vehicles are in great condition, and they play fair for the most part. A Fiat 500 is a great choice.

After a 19-day Egypt & Jordan tour finishing in Amman, followed by a 26-day Stans tour starting in Istanbul, we have a gap of eight to nine days. Being a bit older, some recharge time is needed, any suggestions for a low-key location? Maybe within a one to two-hour flight radius before heading for Istanbul? G. Miller, Bendigo, Vic

Paphos Harbour, Cyprus.Credit: iStock

From Amman the only place you can reach on a two-hour flight where you could expect to have a relaxing break, is Cyprus. The island packs a huge amount into its compact area, including some of the Mediterranean’s most amazing ancient sites, spectacular beaches and a cuisine that combines the multicultural influences of the Levant and Greece. You might base yourselves in Paphos, the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite. Located on the island’s south-west coast, the entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, well furnished with excellent archaeological museums as well as a strip of cafes overlooking beaches and backstreets lined with medieval architecture.

Cyprus also repays wider exploration, with the walking trails and painted churches in the Troodos Mountains and the dramatic coastline of the Akamas Peninsula among the standouts. Paphos also has an international airport from where you could make a one-stop flight to Istanbul to join your next tour. Another alternative would be Athens, a slightly longer flight from Amman, but for a relaxing stay, you would need to head either for the Peloponnese or out to one of the islands. Hydra would be a good fit, accessible via a short ferry ride from Athens.

We are planning a trip to Iceland in April 2026 and plan to drive around the island. Do I need to hire a 4WD, or would an AWD or 2WD, vehicle be sufficient? Also, do you have a recommendation for a local hire-car company?
T. Jones, Hobart, Tas

That’s an adventurous trip, and a two-wheel drive is not up to the potential challenges you might face. A two-wheel drive would be fine if you were to stick to the Ring Road (Route 1) and other well-maintained main roads, but you could well encounter snow and ice on the roads in April, especially in the north-east, making driving hazardous in a two-wheel drive vehicle. A four-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive vehicle might be overkill, but it gives you peace of mind, knowing that you’re safer and won’t be stranded if the weather turns sour.

Also, it gives you freedom to explore more remote places along gravel coastal roads such as the Westfjords and the amazing landscapes of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in the island’s west. Lava Car Rentals gets top marks, and for advance bookings in April the prices for four-wheel/all-wheel drives are about par with most other parts of Europe. Essential websites include road.is, which has the latest information on road conditions, while vedur.is has the Icelandic Met Office’s latest weather data. Note that F roads leading to the Highlands are closed in April. Vehicles take a beating on Iceland’s rough roads, check you’re getting a recent model before you lock in your car-hire.

Travel advice is general; readers should consider their personal circumstances