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Post by Admin on Jul 26, 2018 9:59:52 GMT
Anybody going on a 2019 holiday? Share your plans with fellow members.
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Post by sylvana on Aug 11, 2018 22:17:55 GMT
TT Wonders of Italy 9th June then 2 weeks with family in the UK š
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Post by chech on Aug 12, 2018 12:08:27 GMT
After having booked everything for 2017/2018 way back in Dec 2016, it's weird to have nothing planned for 2019 except for more storm chasing in the late spring. I'd like to go somewhere in February, September/October (Tibet, maybe?) and over Christmas maybe.
Suggestions?
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Post by sylvana on Aug 12, 2018 22:06:33 GMT
Iām racking my brain to come up with somewhere you havenāt beenš. Did I recall that you wanted to leave the rest of Europe until later in life? Hmm Timbuktu!!! š
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Post by bet on Aug 13, 2018 5:40:54 GMT
After having booked everything for 2017/2018 way back in Dec 2016, it's weird to have nothing planned for 2019 except for more storm chasing in the late spring. I'd like to go somewhere in February, September/October (Tibet, maybe?) and over Christmas maybe.
Suggestions?
What about India or Sri Lanka??
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Post by bet on Aug 13, 2018 5:42:42 GMT
Iām planning on Peru and Easter Island, plus home to NZ
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Post by chech on Aug 13, 2018 21:07:01 GMT
Well, there's a few spots I still want to see...India might be a good one for February with AC now having direct flights to Delhi. Other places on my list are Mongolia, Galapagos, Western Australia, Morocco...and there are several areas of India that are possible. And maybe it's time to look at spots in Europe I've missed.
And I was going to consider Antarctica...but I think I'll by a car instead...LOL
Peru and Easter Island are awesome! Both are worth the money easily. Just watch your wallet in Lima.
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Post by bet on Aug 14, 2018 6:12:56 GMT
I just loved India, but thereās so much to see and so much ground to cover.
I did Mongolia in 2009 as part of the Trans Siberian railway. Had a 3 night ger camp stay in the countryside it was hard going as no running water so no shower or toilet just a long drop plus it was winter and was absolutely freezing but the scenery was well worth it. I wanted to experience a Mongolian and Russian winter and Iām glad I did but not something I plan to do again. These days some of the Ger camps are more tourist friendly with western toilets etc. Ulaanbaatar itself is nothing special and is another place where you need to keep an eye on your purse.
I cant wait to see Peru and Easter Island, Iāve put it off for years and had it planned for this year so hopefully nothing gets in the way next year. I looked at including the Galapagos but canāt afford that as well.
For now Iām looking forward to going to Vietnam and Cambodia next week. The last year Iāve been making trips to Thailand for dental work of all things. I know these type of holidays are big business these days but you hear lots of horror stories as well. I did my research and Iāve been really impressed, top notch treatment, English spoken and so much cheaper than back home plus of course you can have a cheap holiday on the side. Hence the reason why Iām doing SE Asia this year.
Planning is all part of the fun and excitement of travel. I wish I had the time and $$ to travel like you do.
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Post by chech on Aug 14, 2018 11:18:45 GMT
LOL....I've been experiencing Russians winters for 50 years.
Vietnam and Cambodia are amazing! Nice way to give back.
Who are you going with?
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Post by bet on Aug 15, 2018 10:06:43 GMT
I donāt know how you do it with the long cold winters.
Iām going with Intrepid, same crowd I went with to India. I really like their small groups, local and authentic travel style.
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Post by chech on Aug 15, 2018 11:20:15 GMT
I don't know how people handle the heat. We've been getting above 27Āŗ with humidex into the 30s fairly routinely for the last month and I just want to hibernate in my cold basement! (Our summer average temp is around 18Āŗ...or used to be). In winter, it's never too cold to keep me indoors. As I like to say, in the cold I can always put on more clothes....but in the heat, I can only *legally* take off so much.
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Post by chech on Aug 15, 2018 11:34:13 GMT
I was just looking at Intrepid. One trip I like in Africa is the Basix one where you are camping. Have you don't any Basix tours?
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Post by bet on Aug 15, 2018 14:42:44 GMT
Not yet, so far all my tours have been their āOriginalā style. Iām looking at doing their Road to Zanzibar tour which is camping and their āBasicā style. I donāt mind basic but I know they of course attract a younger crowd and donāt know if Iāll be stuck with 21 year olds. They have a few under the canvas āComfortā tours as well.
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Post by bet on Aug 15, 2018 14:56:42 GMT
Your summers are like our winters here in Brisbane, I love the year round warmth and sunshine but come summer I canāt stand the humidity.
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Post by solaria on Aug 15, 2018 21:23:45 GMT
We have been thinking of a Western Canada plus Alaska tour for a few years now, and then last night I received an email from Globus offering just that for next year! So the 'Gods' have spoken We just need to decide better month to go. Best thing is that Air New Zealand flies direct to Vancouver!
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Post by chech on Aug 16, 2018 16:24:20 GMT
We have been thinking of a Western Canada plus Alaska tour for a few years now, and then last night I received an email from Globus offering just that for next year! So the 'Gods' have spoken We just need to decide better month to go. Best thing is that Air New Zealand flies direct to Vancouver!
That's a nice flight. I picked a bulkhead window seat in economy that was right next to the big exit door and had all the room I needed plus I could get up whenever I wanted without having to bother the other 2. It's usually around row 29-33 on the big planes.
I'd go in late summer, after Labour Day. It's the best weather and the kids are gone back to school.
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Post by chech on Aug 16, 2018 16:26:09 GMT
Not yet, so far all my tours have been their āOriginalā style. Iām looking at doing their Road to Zanzibar tour which is camping and their āBasicā style. I donāt mind basic but I know they of course attract a younger crowd and donāt know if Iāll be stuck with 21 year olds. They have a few under the canvas āComfortā tours as well.
And I see they go to Tibet.
That tour lists no meals are provided. Was it like that for you in India?
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Post by marielouise on Aug 17, 2018 0:28:45 GMT
We have been thinking of a Western Canada plus Alaska tour for a few years now, and then last night I received an email from Globus offering just that for next year! So the 'Gods' have spoken We just need to decide better month to go. Best thing is that Air New Zealand flies direct to Vancouver!
That's a nice flight. I picked a bulkhead window seat in economy that was right next to the big exit door and had all the room I needed plus I could get up whenever I wanted without having to bother the other 2. It's usually around row 29-33 on the big planes.
I'd go in late summer, after Labour Day. It's the best weather and the kids are gone back to school.
June or early July might be nice too. June tends to be our rainiest month in Calgary but not always. Usually our summers are very dry and it the sun is very strong because of the 1000 m elevation. Right now it is very hot and we are getting the smoke from British Columbia wildfires for the last week, it is really bad, hard to breathe and the visibility is really bad. Last year it happened mid July.
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Post by bet on Aug 17, 2018 2:51:16 GMT
Itās unusual thatās thereās no meals included. I had a mix of breakfast/lunches/ dinners included but not many. Intrepid does cater to the more independent traveller.
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Post by chech on Aug 17, 2018 11:26:52 GMT
Itās unusual thatās thereās no meals included. I had a mix of breakfast/lunches/ dinners included but not many. Intrepid does cater to the more independent traveller.
I like that. With Eldertreks, all meals are included which means if I skip a meal, I'm flushing money down the loo. The only thing about a place like Tibet is that the restaurants are not going to be Subway or McDonalds. I would hope they'd bring you directly to good spots and then let you order what you want. That's what our guide did in Israel.
It is unusual that there are no breakfasts included either.
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Post by bet on Aug 17, 2018 20:07:57 GMT
I donāt know why no meals are included, it might be a bit like my India trip where you stayed at small family run places with only a handful of guests so you choose your own breakfast and dinner. I did a short Intrepid tour to northern Thailand earlier in the year and I thought some of the breakfasts could have easily been included but we had some great lunches and dinners at a homestay. My upcoming trip is 18 days and has 14 breakfasts 3 lunches and 2 dinners included, which is quite generous for Intrepid, thereās an overnight train which explains why thereās not breakfast daily. Iām quite a fussy eater so I donāt mind having limited meals included but do like breakfast to be.
Being Tibet it might be a bit like Mongolia as on our nomad family stay, we had a couple of options for meals, they cooked them and we paid the family, that way the family benefits directly.
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Post by bet on Aug 17, 2018 20:17:19 GMT
A bit of copy and paste of the Trip Notes, incase you havenāt read them.
In Tibet, there aren't many choices of western food. You'll easily find Chinese cuisine or Nepalese food in Lhasa, and of course Tibetan noodles, momo, Yak butter tea, Tibet milk tea or Yak burger are not to be missed. Once outside of Lhasa, we don't often have options on where to eat in smaller towns or on the long driving days. In these cases, your tour leader will take you to restaurants which have been rated well by past travellers. The variety of food will still be limited due to the fact that the region is underdeveloped, but it'll cater for most dietary requirement, including vegans and vegetarians.
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Post by chech on Aug 18, 2018 11:58:54 GMT
Ahhh..I didn't see the Trip Tips. I can survive on noodles and rice no problem. I've tried the butter teas and I still gag at the thought of it...LOL
I'll probably have some protein bars with me too.
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Post by bet on Aug 19, 2018 20:20:00 GMT
Iām sure Tibet is one of those places where itās worth forgoing some creature comforts, either that a good reason to go on a diet.
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Post by lainie on Aug 20, 2018 19:50:31 GMT
I admire all of you adventurous people that travel to out of the way places. We are not that way inclined although I love reading your tour tales about these trips. We are just doing TT Britain and Ireland Panorama then having two weeks in London next year in July.
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Post by solaria on Aug 20, 2018 20:34:10 GMT
I admire all of you adventurous people that travel to out of the way places. We are not that way inclined although I love reading your tour tales about these trips. We are just doing TT Britain and Ireland Panorama then having two weeks in London next year in July. There are tours to cater for all tastes. We don't do the intrepid tours either. We did the Panorama tour in 2012 and it was a great tour. I'm sure you'll get a lot out of it. Just had 8 days in London recently and would recommend the London Passes. Great for getting in to the major sites without long waits in queues.
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taskaz
Junior Member
Posts: 46
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Post by taskaz on Nov 1, 2018 3:23:11 GMT
We weren't planning a trip for 2019 but (oops) have just booked a small group tour of Devon and Cornwall for May with great reviews and what seems like a fabulous price, 3 days in London, then Globus' Normandy, Brittany and Chateaux Country. As we have only done tours with Trafalgar it will be interesting to see if we notice any particular difference. The Globus tour seemed to include more of what we wanted and less of what we didn't plus Globus has a fantastic deal at the moment where they give you a credit for airfares by taking it off the tour price, leaving you free to book your own flights to suit. With a little price matching we got 20% off the Globus tour. That was without the usual past traveller discount that we get with Trafalgar too and it made the cost very attractive. Throw in Early bird airfares and we are much pleased It will be 3 weeks including flights to and fro which is just right for us. Hope everyone else's plans are going well.
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Post by solaria on Nov 1, 2018 23:01:12 GMT
still looking at Canada/Alaska but that might be put off until 2020? Local travel agency have advertised an Israel & Jordan esp. Petra tour in May next year. I am keen as I have always wanted to go to Israel but Eddie is a bit diffident. I will not push it at the moment as I am on a waiting list for an urgent hysterectomy. When I'm over that I will get more proactive as it may be my one and only chance to go there. I was originally going to go after my teacher training back when I was 20 but I met Eddie and we got married instead - I said he now 'owes' me the trip I missed back then šā”
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taskaz
Junior Member
Posts: 46
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Post by taskaz on Nov 2, 2018 2:37:46 GMT
I have had Petra on a backburner bucket list for a few years solaria. It looks absolutely fascinating to me. I really hope you get there
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Pauline
Full Member
Normandy, Brittany & the Loire Valley, WW1 Battlefields and Northern Spain in Sep 2023 with Insight
Posts: 210
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Post by Pauline on Nov 2, 2018 5:31:29 GMT
I"m heading to Poland in July with Insight, on their Highlights of Poland and then doing their Russia, Warsaw and the Baltic States tour. The Poland tour finishes in Warsaw on the day that the Russia tour starts, so I'm really happy about that and thankfully, both the tours are now definite departures.
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