Revel in wild places – Audley Travel’s thrilling trips for 2023

Overnight experiences

• Wolf-focused indigenous experience in British Columbia, Canada 

A new, exclusive tour in Canada, this forms a part of its focus on Indigenous Canadian culture.

One to make the heart skip a beat: this three-day private experience is wolf-focused, with two nights camping in the traditional territory of the Tlatlasikwala First Nation in British Columbia. Clients travel with their indigenous guides, looking for sea (or coastal) wolves by boat and on land. Smaller than their grey wolf cousins and with noticeably red-tinted coats, these wolves are only found between the coastlines and islands of Southwestern Alaska and Vancouver Island and have adapted to a diet of around 90 per cent seafood.

Visitors can fall asleep, or wake, to the sound of howls between pack members, spot their tracks across the beaches, and wait patiently for them to slip out from the dense forest to forage along the beaches. The experience, designed to be intimate with room for only six guests and two guides, is exclusively available through Audley Travel and can be booked on selected dates in May through to August 2023 as part of a tailormade trip to Canada. 

A nine-day tailormade trip to Canada, including two nights on the wolf tour as well as two nights in Port Hardy and three nights in Vancouver costs from £5,280 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/canada

Visit unique artisan enclave Kyoto-by-the-Sea, Japan 

Audley is introducing a stay at one of the rarest villages in the world in Kyoto-by-the-Sea, a hub of the world’s top artisans nestled between the mountains and the sea. Ine is made up of 230 funaya boathouses built along the bay with 20 converted into unique accommodation for visitors. Clients stay for a minimum of two nights and the experience has been carefully designed to ensure they engage with the community, thereby contributing to the local economy. 

Tours focus on Amanohashidate and include taking in the view of the iconic sea bridge from the top of Kasamatsu Park and visiting Motoise Kono Shrine (said to be where sake was first offered to the gods). Clients take a sea taxi around Ine, learning about the history of the village and its innovative sustainable fishing process, including how to prepare traditional sashimi and choose a walking or e-bike tour to explore the local area. 

On the final day, clients take a full day tour of Kyotango with a private guide visiting Nippon Genshosha, where they meet three top notch swordsmiths, Tamiya Raden to learn about exquisite kimonos made with mother of pearl woven into the fabric, and a visit to Takeno Sake Brewery to sample one of the world’s most exceptional sakes. 

A 12-day tailormade trip to Japan, including two nights in Kyoto-by-the-Sea as well as time in Kyoto, Kanazawa and Tokyo costs from £6,400 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/japan

Elephants in Thailand 

Beholding happy, well treated elephants brings joy to the heart and new this year is The Bush Camp in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Sister property to Elephant Hills in Khao Sak, The Bush Camp overlooks the Ping River and offers accommodation in a tented camp powered by solar panels. Audley’s clients stay for one night, visiting the free roaming and chain-free elephant park to feed and interact with the animals, watch the morning elephant wash and learn about how the camp cares for the animals. The itinerary also includes cultural interaction experiences, for example learning about the daily life of the local Karen village families working in the camp, seeing how the mahouts interact with the elephant, sampling local cooking and helping local families make paper from elephant dung. 

A 15-day tailormade trip to Thailand, including a night at The Bush Camp as well as time in Bangkok, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Pai and Khao Yai National Park costs from £4,950 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/thailand 

Luxury cruise in Laos 

Setting sail from August 2023, travellers will be able to cruise the upper Mekong River in style on Heritage Line’s Anouvong – a new luxury, boutique ship that takes clients to the most beautiful, remote areas of Laos. Excursions include kayaking on the Nam Ou River, meeting a local ‘medicine man’ at Pak Ou Caves and taking a short trek through the jungle with an expert guide sharing insights into the flora and nature of the area. Clients visit local villages and towns, see an organic garden and its vegetable harvest, visit the country’s most sustainably managed elephant sanctuary and enjoy the views from a hill top temple. 

A 12-day tailormade trip to Laos including seven nights on-board the Anouvong costs from £6,895 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/laos

And if you are looking for spots with strong environmental and social purpose credentials:

Avana Retreat, Vietnam 

The 36 private villas have been inspired by the traditional ethnic stilt houses of the region and are on a jungle hillside, surrounded by rice terraces in remote northern Vietnam. Activities at the property include cultural excursions to meet indigenous tribes and see tribal performances, children’s craft activities making ‘Treasure from Trash’, as well as adventurous experiences including kayaking, jeep rides and jungle treks.

The property serves food made from ingredients either sourced locally or grown within the property and the hotel supports the community with the majority of the staff employed from the surrounding villages.

A 14-day tailormade trip to Vietnam and Laos including two nights at the Avana Retreat costs from £4,185 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/vietnam

Tswala, South Africa 

Opening in 2023, Loapi is a new safari camp with six sustainably designed and environmentally sensitive individual tents surrounded by open savannah grasslands. Clients enjoy personal service from a dedicated butler and all meals are prepared by a private chef in the interactive kitchen. Each group is guaranteed a private safari vehicle, guide and tracker.

A nine-day tailormade trip to South Africa, including three nights on a fully inclusive basis at Loapi costs from £10,599 per person (based on two travelling) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/south-africa

Montemar Eco Luxury Villas, Galapagos 

Montemar offers two eco-luxury, fully sustainable villas on 43-acres of private land on the island of Santa Cruz, Galapagos. The land is part of The Galapagos Giant Tortoises Territory, which covers the animals’ natural migration path and guests can often see them roaming the grounds. The site also offers an organic coffee plantation and plenty of activities for guests as well as the sight of wild horses roaming.  The property produces most of its energy, harvests rainwater, supplies from its own organic farm, and has the lowest environmental footprint on the islands and the land has been reclaimed to recover native and endemic vegetation that sustain the Giant Tortoises.

A nine-day tailormade trip to the Galapagos, including five nights at Montemar costs from £8,500 per person (based on two sharing) and includes flights, transfers, accommodation and excursions.

• For more information visit: audleytravel.com/the-galapagos-islands

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