(Patagonia, Chile)
Organised tours, by the very idea, are not my kind of thing. Remember the ads from Indian tour operators promising a ‘maharaj’ who will cook all your meals while you traipse along with your group of culturally challenged countrymen, through Rome, the Pyrenees, the Adriatic or whatever. Thanks, but no thanks.
And then I recently came upon a selection of tours that National Geographic calls “50 tours of a lifetime”. Cool stuff, actually. After spending an agonizing hour over all the 50 options, here is my ‘Dream 3′ list which are the three tours that I would certainly want to go on before I get too old to.. you know what.
ONE. Wandering across the Chilean Patagonia. ‘Off the beaten Path’, the operator of this trip has been at this sort of thing for some time now. For about 8000 US Dollars, you can wander for 11 days around the famed Patagonia, taking in mountains, fjords and open spaces all the while being in close contact with local gaucho families, sharing their hearth & food.
TWO. New Zealand with the kids. Butterfield & Robinson, the organisers promise that you will Bike past sheep farms and lakes, fruit plains and vineyards, Cruise through icebergs to the foot of a glacier, Join a local guide in a sheep-herding demonstration, Check out the Southern Cross and the Big Dipper – upside-down & Dine on fresh seafood complemented by NZ sauvignon blanc. Can definitely see my sons taking to this.
THREE. Fiji Explorer. Intrepid Travel, the Aussie specialists of cool trips has this fascinating tour to discover the place that is synonymous with Island Paradise. As Intrepid says, “Discover the treasures of this Pacific jewel as we take in the magical Yasawa Islands, cosmopolitan Suva, and experience native hospitality and cuisine in Namatakula“.
I have left out many, many more and some of them sound pretty darn good. Check out the full list here.
Also, if you are keen to find out my personal recommendations for vacation options for 2007, click here.
And for all my posts arranged according to various types of Vacations, click here.
The Newzeland tour sounds really amazing. Another idyllic one is Cambodia and Vietnam.
Thanks for sharing the link.
Madhuri – yes, the Cambodia/Vietnam one almost made it my top 3. almost.