Fly in, fly out: rich and famous take a breather
Hobart, The Hermitage and Bondi’s Icebergs are where you’ll catch a glimpse of Australia’s most famous, and infamous, enjoying their summer holidays this year.
Hobart, The Hermitage and Bondi’s Icebergs are where you’ll catch a glimpse of Australia’s most famous, and infamous, enjoying summer this year.
For the first time in nearly two years, private jets and super yachts have been able to come and go as they please since Australia’s international borders opened in February and domestic lockdowns ended.
However, low-key vacations are on the menu with many A-listers choosing to stay close to home. Some high-profile expats have even returned for some R&R away from the glare of international press and demands.
Crown Princess Mary of Denmark is back for a private getaway with her four children and husband Crown Prince Frederik. Their last official family trip home was in 2011.
“The Crown Prince’s family will travel on a private Christmas holiday in Australia to celebrate the holiday with HRH the Crown Princess’ family,” the Danish Royal House said. “It has been five years since the Crown Prince, coupled together with their four children, last visited the Crown Princess’ homeland.”
Mary and Frederik, together with 11-year-old Vincent and his older siblings Prince Christian, Princess Josephine and Princess Isabella, were beaming in a beautiful family photo shared to the Danish Royal House’s official Instagram account on Friday night.
Having returned from sunny Sydney, they were captured with Hobart’s dreary skies in the background, but the family lit up the frame. Mary, dressed in a $1500 paisley Zimmermann dress from the Australian label’s fall 2022 collection, gently placed her hand on Frederik’s knee as the family cosied up for the snap.
The caption, when translated from Danish to English, read: “Merry Christmas from “Down Under” – where we celebrate Christmas in Tasmania. Here there are neither freezing temperatures nor just trees but summer and warm weather.”
Mary, who hails from Tasmania, jetted to Hobart on Thursday on board a domestic Qantas flight from Sydney. As with tradition the Crown Prince couple did not travel together. The Australian understands Mary was met in her old home town by her sister Jane. Mary and Frederik are keen sailors so Constitution Dock may be graced by royalty for the end of next week’s Sydney to Hobart race.
Mary’s best friend and royal bridesmaid, podcast host Amber Petty, joined them in Sydney. The family was also spotted out running in Bondi. Decked out in Lululemon, Mary, 50, blended into the bustling activewear-clad crowd on the jam-packed Bondi-to-Bronte path leading the way for her husband and youngest son, 11-year-old Prince Vincent.
Hollywood came to town with Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban arriving in Sydney this week. The couple made a rare appearance at an exclusive party hosted by Vogue to welcome the magazine’s fashion director – and partner of actor Joel Edgerton – Christine Centenera to the editor-in-chief’s chair. It is understood they will spend Christmas on their sprawling property in regional NSW.
The famous Icebergs pool, and its adjoining (and newly renovated) dining room, will host many popular faces seeking sun and Aperols in the coming days. PE Nation designer Pip Edwards is planning on enjoying some downtime at her favourite haunt.
Merivale boss Justin Hemmes hosted one final Christmas party for the fashion label SIR on Thursday before bringing in the landscape architects to prepare his Vaucluse property for a weekend of eating and drinking with his nearest and dearest.
Double Bay eyebrow queen Kristin Fisher will turn off the hot wax pots on Saturday and make her way, with her children, to Rottnest Island off the WA coast.
Australia’s “richest garbo” Ian Malouf is already at the family’s property at Sydney’s Palm Beach where his 52m superyacht Mischief is anchored nearby. Malouf will head off to the Caribbean just after Christmas to join the family’s 73m vessel Coral Ocean.
Meanwhile others got out of town to beat the Christmas rush. Aussie Home Loans founder John Symond opted for a beach holiday, taking the family to the Maldives. His daughter, fashion boutique owner Deborah Symond O’Neil and her young children, joined in the fun at the $9000-a-night Cheval Blanc Randheli resort. Deborah continued working while on vacation, filming and posting videos to her 41,000 Instagram followers as a part of her partnership with cosmetics empire Estee Lauder.
Channel 9’s main man, Karl Stefanovic, landed on Fiji’s exclusive, $10,000-a-night Kokomo Private Island after wrapping up the year on air for Today last week. His extended family was there before he and wife Jasmine ventured to LA with their daughter and his children from his first marriage. On Thursday the family spent the day at Disneyland meeting Minnie Mouse.
Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes is already in the snow, and will be spending three months in Aspen. The 82-year-old is showing no signs of slowing down, he is regularly seen dominating the tricky black runs near his Beaver Creek property.
Cardboard box magnate Anthony Pratt had Katy Perry perform at a party for his Pratt Industries clients in his penthouse apartment overlooking Central Park in Manhattan recently. He will stay on to celebrate Christmas in the US. Transport magnate Lindsay Fox is at the family property in Hawaii. Retail king Solomon Lew is in Phuket.Max Beck, the Melbourne property guru, is heading on a family skiing vacation to Europe early in the New Year after playing golf and cycling around Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.
Clive Palmer landed in London on Thursday morning Australian time, with his private jet hopping via Port Hedland and then Maldives on the way over. Palmer found time on his travels to clinch what he claims is a $2bn deal to sell his Queensland Nickel business. He also finalised that defamation suit with WA Premier Mark McGowan. While he was in transit it was revealed the WA taxpayers had spent $2 million but recouped $425,700 in costs and $20,000 in damages from Palmer as ordered by the Federal Court when it handed down its verdict earlier this year.
The Queensland billionaire has had a busy time of it of late.
Earlier this week, he hosted a Christmas bash at his Fig Tree Pocket compound on the Brisbane River. Among the invited guests were former attorney-general Christian Porter and current Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate. Performers from The Phantom of the Opera sang for guests.
Several rich listers had a musical theme to their festivities this year. Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar is rumoured to have had US rockers The Killers perform at his Christmas Party in Sydney recently.
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