Danielle Norton

Freelance writer

Australia

Danielle is a freelance travel, lifestyle and content writer. Her work has been published in Escape, Jetstar Magazine, Pacific Island Living Magazine, Island Spirit, The Age/Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Traveller, International Traveller, Kidspot, Essential Kids, Weekendnotes, Good Food and Delicious Magazine.

Danielle is also a copywriter and has worked with numerous brands and small organisations to write stories, websites, grants and business documents.

Danielle teaches literature, literacy and cooking to secondary school students.
She has an Arts degree in Literature, Anthropology and Philosophy, a Diploma in Education and a post graduate certificate in Children's Literature.

In 2016, Danielle published a cookbook; 'Cooking with a Broken Heart'.

e:[email protected]

Portfolio
Broadsheet
03/07/2024
Eat, Drink, Do and Stay: A Pocket Guide to Fiji

Fiji is one of Australia's most popular destinations. This year, if you're lucky enough to check in for an island getaway, we have some tips for you to get the most out of your time off. In partnership with Sheraton Fiji Golf & Beach Resort, we've put together a guide to what you need to eat, drink and do during your retreat.

Escape
12/19/2023
The best things to eat and drink in Tasmania

Launceston and Hobart are magnets for those who appreciate fine food, wine and spirits. This is what topped my list on a recent trip to Australia's southern island.

Travel Stories

escape
03/30/2023
10 reasons to ditch beaches for trees when visiting the Gold Coast.

The GC has sun, surf and sand, but beyond the quintessential coastal holiday lies a bountiful hinterland. It's five degrees cooler and whether you're taking a day trip or making a week of it, the hills are filled with characters and experiences just as intoxicating as the rollercoasters and breaks on the coast.

Explore Travel
08/18/2022
Tesla hire in Cairns proves to be a dream ride | Explore Travel

Heads turn as the shining red Tesla pulls into the circular drive of the Sea Temple at Palm Cove, our accommodation for a week-long family holiday. Zac, from Cairns Luxury Car Hire, has delivered our car and is about to run us through the functions of the first electric vehicle (EV) available for hire in the region.

escape.com.au
12/06/2021
Mövenpick Hotel Melbourne On Spencer | Hotel review | escape.com.au

There are few occasions that aren't made better by Swiss chocolate. The Movenpick group incorporates this universal knowledge into each of their hotels, and their newest offering in Melbourne is no exception. Every afternoon a long grazing table in the lobby is laden with luscious treats for Chocolate Hour.

escape.com.au
08/19/2021
This vanilla slice is seriously worth a road trip

The confection of light, fluffy custard encased in thin leaves of crisp pastry with a fine layer of icing makes this the vanilla slice to beat. Bridgewater in central Victoria is one of the myriad reasons the Bendigo region was named a UNESCO city of Gastronomy in 2019. Take Bridgewater Bakehouse.

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
The People Behind the Plate: Head Chef, Joel Alderdice

Joel moved to Badger Creek with his mum when he was 10 years old so the move back here is a move back home for him and he's back to exploring the bush walks of the region on his days off.

Traveller
02/01/2020
It's time to bypass the beach to discover Thailand's rich and diverse culture

Helmet perched jauntily on my head, I squint into the sun and hope for the best. I am about to tackle Bangkok by bike. As I round a corner into the first narrow lane, I lose my balance, drifting perilously close to an open coal barbecue, a brush with disaster that leaves me hooting with laughter.

Holidays With Kids
11/01/2019
Action-packed Bali with teenagers

We pump up the adrenaline to uncover the action-packed side to beautiful Bali. Keep teenagers entertained with quad bikes, water parks, surf lessons & more

Newcastle Herald
03/21/2020
Canberra: a love story

When the winter weather comes blowing into Canberra, it's easy for couples to get warm and cosy on a romantic getaway in the capital. Late-morning lie-ins, champagne breakfasts, gorgeous galleries and boutique hotels welcome lovers with open arms. As the evening falls, Canberra offers fireside nightcaps and oysters - and the night, of course, is just what you make it.

The Canberra Times
12/26/2019
Trying on the cubby-house craze for size

Danielle Norton tries Tiny Away, 2020's take on downsizing your weekend in the country. With big dreams about living small, my daughter and I headed to a Tiny Away home at Gherang on the fringes of the Otway National Park, 35 kilometres west of Geelong.

Avalon Inbound Outbound
12/01/2019
Great Expectations

A new chef at the Lancemore Mansion and Spa

Jetstar Magazine
10/01/2019
Go Wild

Adventures in and around Hobart with kids

escape
10/09/2019
Mum's 7 rules for visiting Bali with kids

The last time I took my kids on an international holiday a stranger approached me at the airport, gently squeezed my arm and said, "I hope you get a chance to have a break. You deserve it." She'd been on our plane and witnessed my struggles with the more anxious of my twins.

The Upsider
09/13/2019
Sumptuous Sheets And Blooming Gardens: Melbourne's Cosy Country Retreat

Is there anything more delightful than a flowering garden on a spring morning? How about your very own cosy miner's cottage set amongst 1,700 sustainably-grown heritage rose bushes on a micro flower farm? Sandy McKinley has designed her property, Acre of Roses, to be a true retreat from the busyness that infiltrates the lives of city slickers.

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
The People Behind the Plate : Head Chef, David Ball

He's really enjoying the drive through the region and watching the vines changing colour, "the amazing yellows and reds," as the Summer transitions to Autumn. David has friends who have worked in the region who've given him lots of tips so he's looking forward to exploring and foraging for mushrooms in the near future.

International traveller magazine
09/01/2019
11 reasons to visit Bali Zoo

Bali Zoo, home to over 500 animals of more than 60 species, is set amidst 10 hectares of cooling, verdant tropical gardens. We've come up with 11 reasons why you should visit on your next trip to our nation's favourite holiday destination.

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
The People Behind the Plate: Kitchen Manager, Caroline Gray

Caroline remembers helping her mum create dinner parties from the Women's Weekly Dinner Party Cookbook. She also reminisces with fondness about her Nana cooking a lamb roast in the electric frying pan. Caroline's best friend's family owned an Italian restaurant in Lygon St, Carlton, and lived above it.

The Upsider
07/16/2019
'Mysterious And Seriously Cool': Inside Melbourne's Latest Luxury Hotel

Melbourne's newest luxury hotel, Shadowplay by Peppers, is yet another drawcard for the Southbank precinct. Edwin, the stylish wine bar and restaurant located adjacent to reception on the ground floor, adds a new destination for food and wine buffs living in or visiting one of Melbourne's most sought after residential and recreational areas.

escape
03/21/2023
I found the best Portuguese tart on the Gold Coast

A short walk from the beachy edge of Tallebudgera Creek sits the Custard Canteen and the most sensational Portugese Tarts I've ever eaten. Bin chickens (ibis) stalk around, waiting for delicious morsels to drop from punters' paper trays onto the ground but they're not often in luck.

escape
03/22/2023
The bolognese toastie that blew my mind

When Monica Lim started making toasties at the Palm Beach markets she couldn't have foreseen what a cult following she would eventually have. She just made the types of toasties she wanted to eat and the punters loved them.

escape
07/18/2019
This hotel bed was so good I bought it

From the moment I set eyes on it, I knew we were destined to be together. The room around it was plush and palatial; floor to ceiling sheer curtains covered windows that looked out onto garden framed by magnificent eucalypts and rolling hills, the fireplace was set and the sofa plumped and ready to envelop me, but it was the well dressed bed that attracted my gaze.

delicious.com.au
10 best private dining rooms in Melbourne for a group booking

Melbourne is a fabulous city for dining and special events. Windowless private dining rooms around the top end of town have been popular for business lunches for decades - but for light, bright parties, keep these beauties in mind for your...

International traveller magazine
05/15/2019
Hotel review: The Mulia, Nusa Dua, Bali

It's one of Bali's most luxurious beach resorts, complete with butler service and a Sunday brunch that's the stuff of legends. So what's it really like to stay at the Mulia in Nusa Dua? Danielle Norton checks in.

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
The People Behind the Plate: Chef Paul Cooper

He loves the flavours that emerge during the season and the vibrant colours. "If you think of the autumnal colours and beautiful pale oranges and light browns, it's just such a wonderful time. You still get some warm days and cold nights.

Good Food
05/16/2019
Seven of the best hot and new(ish) Hobart bars

Once upon a time, drinking holes in Hobart pretty much served only Cascade beer and cool climate wines. Tasmania is now a haven for distillers. There are 37 registered distilleries producing gin, whisky and even apple-based spirits. To meet the demands of a new generation of spirit lovers, a range of elegant and interesting bars are popping up in the capital.

Pacific Island Living
01/30/2019
Freestyle Fishing in the Solomons - Pacific Island Living

January 30, 2019 I'm spending the day fishing with a tour guide and Julius Kera, owner of the Agnes Gateway Hotel and an elder of the Munda community. Floating peacefully on the brilliant blue, gin-clear ocean in a banana boat, we watch a frigatebird soaring through the air, chasing a seagull with a fish in its mouth.

Australian Traveller
04/24/2019
Hotel review: Islington Hotel, Hobart

Danielle Norton Boasting a world-class art collection and wow-factor mountain views, the Islington Hotel is one of Hobart's most elegant - and surprising - boutique stays. The Islington Hotel 321 Davey St, South Hobart, TAS, 7000 Hobart's Islington Hotel, secluded behind high gates, gives the impression that it is an exclusive private home.

Pacific Island Living
01/30/2019
History and Heritage - Pacific Island Living

Danielle Norton checks into Honiara's Heritage Park Hotel and is understandably impressed, this central, clean and modern hotel ticks all the boxes. January 30, 2019 Rebecca Murphy January 30, 2019 The History In previous times, the Heritage Park Hotel was the site of the Governor's residence and the grandeur befitting a person such as this still exists in its modern reincarnation.

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
People Behind the Plate series: Head Chef, Maurizio Esposito

"My first food memory is making gnocchi with my mum at home. I was always in the kitchen with mum. I also have memories of my Nonna in Calabria, always with food, always a little sauce pot going with her little sugos and all of her interesting little things."

Visit Yarra Valley & Dandenong Ranges
The People Behind the Plate: Chef Himanshu Sharda

Yarra Ranges Tourism acknowledge's the Wurrundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the traditional custodians of the lands and waters of the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges on which we live, work and play. We pay our deepest respect to Elders past, present and emerging.

Hurtigruten
Hurtigruten Digital Magazine Issue 02 Northern Lights - Meet

Meet She grew up in Norway, living beneath the northern lights. Asta Lassesen, CEO of Hurtigruten Expeditions, tells of their everyday magic. INTERVIEW & WORDS DANIELLE NORTON, JUSTINE COSTIGAN In far northern Norway from late November to mid-January, the shortening winter days announce the beginning of Mørketid (polar night).

Hurtigruten
Hurtigruten Digital Magazine Issue 02 Northern Lights - Taste

Taste Preparing menus that warm and revive guests after exploring, is all in a day's work for chef Renate Røsten. WORDS DANIELLE NORTON When she was a child, Renate Røsten's father would regale her with tales about his time as a sailor, working in ship kitchens.

delicious.com.au
Treat the puparazzi in your life to this pawfect retreat

Ruff day? The Langham has opened its doors to our furry friends and we couldn't be more excited about a staycation in the heart of Melbourne, writes Danielle Norton. Last year's lockdowns led to a huge spike in pet ownership and now we all want to take our pandemic puppies with us when we holiday.

Our Family Travels
02/04/2019
Why I'll be taking my children to the Solomon Islands

As a travel writer, I spend a lot of time away from my kids, exploring different corners of the world. Sometimes, I breathe in, relax and thank the heavens above that I'm there alone. There are times when I know that a certain destination is a place I will definitely return to with my family.

International traveller magazine
Hotel Review: The Sarojin, Khao Lak, Thailand

If you're looking for an abode to call your own during your stay in Thailand, it can seem a little more than overwhelming. Thankfully Danielle Norton has done the "hard" work for us, reviewing a 'calm' hotel that doesn't accept guests under 10 years of age. The Sarojin, Khao Lak, Phang Nga Province, Thailand.

Australian Traveller
09/06/2018
13 Things You Have To Do In Cape Tribulation

From spending the night in a rare exotic fruit orchard and tasting Davidson plum ice-cream to ziplining through the forest and horse riding on the beach, here's what not to miss when you visit Tropical North Queensland's Cape Tribulation. Cape Tribulation is a significant UNESCO World Heritage-listed site where the Daintree Rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef.

Holidays With Kids
04/01/2018
Where the Forest Meets the Sea

A story about a journey to Cape tribulation, inspired by Jeannie baker's book, Where the Forest Meets the Sea.

Island Spirit
01/01/2018
The Wind, the beach, the ocean.

Danielle Norton finds those three things and tranquility when she sets sail on a day cruise on Havannah Harbour, where the water's as clear as a summer sky and alive with marine life.

Kidspot
04/06/2018
The wonderland for kids only a train ride from Melbourne

Penguins, pancakes and flying foxes ... what's not to love? At Melbourne's Southern Cross Station, my kids and I stock up on Bean Boozled jelly beans from the Sugar Shack on the platform. We are excited to be going on our first rail journey to Warrnambool, on the south west coast of Victoria.

Officeworks
Everything You Need to Know About NAPLAN

NAPLAN is a term that's thrown around school classrooms like tennis balls at recess. Teachers mumble it, kids worry about it, and education departments emphasise its relevance and importance. But do you know exactly what NAPLAN testing involves, who does it and why it gets so much airtime in schools?

Wedding books
Love Tales

Editing, proofreading and writing.

Feature stories

Career Profile Stories for The Age/Sydney Morning Herald

The Sydney Morning Herald
07/10/2021
The women who are forging a new path as first-generation farmers

Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Agriculture in Australia is a male-dominated industry. Women are either born or marry into the lifestyle. It wasn't until 1994 that women were able to tick the "farmer" occupation box on the Australian census.

Unimelb
The transformative power of scholarships - meet the Alameins

When brothers Ali, Mohammad and Hussain Alamein fled Iraq as children in the 1990s, they couldn't have imagined the success they would find thanks to a scholarship. L-R: Mohammad, Hussain and Ali Alamein Article 26 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to education.

The Sydney Morning Herald
01/30/2019
Career switch to pet project sparks success and fulfilment

It was the purchase of her first labradoodle puppy, Flash, that set her on this remarkable journey of love and caring for the community. Flash's breeder directed Ms Rimes to Delta Society; a charity that facilitates volunteers (and their specially trained dogs) visiting hospitals and healthcare facilities.

The Age
02/01/2018
Turning passion into pure potential

Justin Bonavia was studying criminal justice at RMIT and working part time in the Juvenile Detention Centre at Parkville as a youth worker when he first started to think about the positive impact that adventurous outdoor activities had on young people.

NewsComAu
07/16/2018
Only a few years ago Chris was stuck couch surfing in London

EIGHT years ago, Chris Tabone was a 29-year-old backpacker on a pilgrimage to see the sights of Europe, like so many young Australians before him. After travelling solo for nine months, he ran out of money and was sleeping on a friend's couch in London.

The Age
05/20/2020
In the midst of a pandemic, teenagers became critical members of society

Opinion Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Around the country, a swathe of teenage workers have been quietly going about their business as shelf stackers and cashiers at the nation's supermarkets. In better, pre-coronavirus times, parents encouraged them to find after-school jobs; to help them develop financial independence, self-esteem and personal maturity.

whimn
09/06/2019
'I Was Injured In Public And Everyone Looked Away'

At dusk on a dreary afternoon, I pulled into a parking space at a shopping centre and, in a moment of unbridled stupidity, tiredness and distraction, I shut my heavy car door on my own fingers. Trapped, and unable to wrench them out, I had to twist my body around and open the door handle to release them.

Essential Kids
01/24/2019
Why I let my teenager skip our family holiday this year

This year, for the first time, my teenager wasn't excited about our annual family holiday. I, on the other hand, was thrilled to be taking my three children to one of my favourite places; Tasmania.

Essential Kids
04/08/2019
Should boys and girls be able to share rooms at school camp?

Recently, my children have been very interested in gender diversity, equality and LGBTIQ issues. Now that school camp is on the horizon, the issue of gender equality is being explored even further in relation to the strong friendships that exist between children of different genders.

Kidspot
12/22/2017
The truth about why some babies are easier than others

Did one of your children sleep like a dream and never fuss, and the other needed constant reassurance? This is the reason why. We all know someone who has an 'easy' baby. Their child sleeps at the right times, is always happy, comfortable and adaptable in new surroundings, and generally enjoys their life.

Copywriting

Weekendnotes Reviews - Films, Restaurants, Events, Hotels

Weekendnotes
The Albert, Mosman

I'm a freelance travel, lifestyle and content writer based in Melbourne. If you need the right words, I have them. Feel free to connect with me or have a look at my site https://www.clippings.me/users/daniellenorton for examples of my published work Heading to Sydney any time soon?

Weekendnotes
Promhills Cabins Eco Glamping Tents

I'm a freelance travel, lifestyle and content writer based in Melbourne. If you need the right words, I have them. Feel free to connect with me or have a look at my site https://www.clippings.me/users/daniellenorton for examples of my published work Angela and Sean Taylor, owners of Promhills Cabins and Eco tents, moved to South Gippsland from Sydney in 2007.

Weekendnotes
The Whiskery

Meet Russ and Lorelle, owners of The Whiskery, the Bellarine Peninsula's newest, and only, gin and whiskey distillery.

Weekendnotes
09/08/2017
Aussie Escapades

"You can't climb a mountain with downhill thoughts".

Weekendnotes
08/03/2017
Film review: Call Me By Your Name

I wait in the long line snaking its way one large city block up Little Bourke St. It is dinner time and torture to stand here waiting, while the tantalising smells of Chinatown waft past. What I wouldn't give for a hot plate of fried noodles right now!

Weekendnotes
Sovereign Hill

" Spare the rod and spoil the child", says the stern round schoolteacher, bonnet pulled tightly, framing her face. A teenager enters the school house and is asked her age. " 16! You should be married by now", the mistress pronounces. The poor child doesn't know what to say or where to look.

Delicious

Best Cellar Doors in Queensland