I was all buckled in my aisle seat and about to get cosy with Wicked when the pilot came over the intercom on Emirates A380 ...

Picture: Jenny Hewett I had sailed into the Bandas a day earlier on-board the Ombak Putih , a 42m, 12-cabin, pimped-up traditional wooden phinisi, or boat, commandeered by ocean adventurers SeaTrek.

Jenny Hewett is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer who has lived in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and loves nothing more than being among nature and wildlife.

Picture: Jenny Hewett. I would never dream of forking out the nearly A$7,000 for the one-way first-class ticket, but I discovered a little trick.

Jenny Hewett is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer who has lived in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and loves nothing more than being among nature and wildlife.

Jenny Hewett is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer who has lived in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and loves nothing more than being among nature and wildlife.

Jenny Hewett is a freelance lifestyle journalist, food and travel writer, and former section editor of Time Out Dubai. Her work has been featured in Conde Nast Traveller, news.com.au, Qantas Mag ...

IT LOOKS like a pristine island, but what Jenny Hewett found here is unimaginable. Because here money really does ‘grow on trees’, leading to mayhem. An underwater world rich with pristine ...