Catriona Rowntree looks back on her all-time favourite Getaway locations
As Australia’s most iconic travel program, Getaway, celebrates its 30th season, presenter Catriona Rowntree is looking back on her time on the show.
Her dream to share people’s stories started when she was just 14, when she was inspired by the passion her friend’s dad, Brian White, had for his job.
She never thought that dream would include becoming a presenter on the program, which she joined in 1996.
“In one sense you feel nothing but gratitude for the life that it’s given you,” she told 9Entertainment. “Also to be able to be the conduit, to share other people’s stories, different religions, different cuisines, different cultures, with people that may never have the opportunity to experience what you have, and equally to inspire others to maybe take your advice.”
Rowntree continued, “It’s humbling to know that we’ve been supported for this long, literally through thick and thin, and you can imagine I say that with all my heart from the year that we’ve experienced, so we just feel incredibly grateful.”
To celebrate 30 seasons, Getaway will be airing a special 30th anniversary episode at 5.30pm on Saturday, May 22. As part of the episode, Getaway will also be reminiscing on some of its celebrity appearances, including Catriona’s interview with former US president Donald Trump before he had even considered joining the presidential race.
Speaking to Trump about his hotel and tourism empire, Catriona has been reluctant to talk about meeting him in more recent years because people didn’t want to hear any positive anecdotes.
“I met him under the best circumstances where I was going to interview him about an award that one of his hotels had won. We shared an interest in travel and tourism, we discovered a shared interest in feng shui, which I had learned about on my travels through Asia, and that he applied to the hotels that he created,” she said.
"He was as charming to me as he was to my sound operator, he was generous with his time, and the person that was later depicted was not the person that I met.
"However, I found that a lot of people didn't like me telling that story because I didn't have anything negative to say, and so I stopped telling the story. I sensed that people were only interested if I was going to say something derogatory and that wasn't my experience."
Another memorable moment that will be appearing in the special episode is her time with business magnate Richard Branson and his family at their home on Necker Island.
“"We're both Cancerians, I think we're a day different with our birthdays, and we just clicked straight away, and definitely and he was very generous with his time and unbelievably kind," she recalled.
Though Catriona’s experiences with people have been mostly positive, her animal encounters while on the show have left her feeling everything from fear to awe.
"Definitely one of the most extraordinary surreal experiences was swimming through jellyfish lake in Palau, where the jellyfish have lost their sting because they have no predators. The jellyfish are through your hair, between your legs, you're smothered in jellyfish and you are totally discombobulated by the experience,” she said.
"I'm up for anything because both I and my bosses quickly realised that people found it funny when I showed my fear, so how I react is how most people react, but on TV I think people try to be too cool for school and that doesn't work.”
But, it’s this vulnerability that made her so endearing to viewers, and what really warms her heart about her time on Getaway has been how the show has become a part of viewers’ lives.
"And sometimes I'll meet people and they'll say that 'Our family puts a picnic blanket down in front of the tele and you take us around the world' — just tiny little comments like that mean the world to me."