10 signature trips from the winning companies of the Wanderlust Reader Travel Awards 2017
Wanderlust’s readers picked these 10 tour operators as the best in the world. Those tour operators picked their greatest signature trips. Here are their inspiring adventures…
1: China – Ride some new rails
Hurtle through China’s lesser-seen southwest on Bamboo Travel’s South China Explorer trip, as a new train route takes you from the vast gorges and old market towns of Yunnan to the villages and rice terraces of Guizhou. Finish by drifting along the Li River amid towering karst peaks.
Who:Bamboo Travel
When: Year round
How long: 17 nights
How much: From £3,495 (incl flights)
2: Indonesia – Island-hopping ancient sites
Sail an off-radar archipelago on Selective Asia’s Essential Nusa Tenggara tour. From the ice-blue crater lakes of Flores, a phinisi boat carries you to Komodo, home to its native dragons, before pushing on to Sumba, an island of old villages and megalithic tombs.
Who:Selective Asia
When: Year round
How long: 13 days
How much: From £4,136 (excl flights)
3: Jordan – Combine classic sites with natural drama
See the fruits of Jordan’s conservation push on Holiday Architects’ Jordan’s Natural Beauty tour, spying the canyons of Dana Nature Reserve and the verdant hills of Aljoun Forest Reserve, as well as big hitters like ancient Petra and Wadi Rum.
Who: Holiday Architects
When: Selected dates from Mar-Nov 2017
How long: 13 days
How much: From £2,535 (incl flights)
4: Peru – Bring Incan history to life
Delve into Peru’s past on Llama Travel’s Incas and Conquistadors of Peru tour. Devour fine food in the capital, Lima, before wandering ancient Incan territory, heading down from colonial Cusco into the Sacred Valley and completing the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
Who: Llama Travel
When: Selected dates from Mar-Nov 2017
How long: 14 days
How much: From £2,029 (incl flights)
5: Canada – Drive across widescreen vistas
It’s just you, the road and Canada’s wilds on a Hidden Gems of the Rockies self-drive with Audley Travel. See the liquid wonders of Waterton Lakes NP, spy moose, elk and bears in Kootenay NP, and end in the lush Banff NP, hiking to its bubbling Ink Pots springs or kayaking its mirrored waters.
Who:Audley Travel
When: Jun-Sep
How long: 11 days
How much: From £1,995 (incl flights)
6: Iran – Explore Persian treasures
Leave your preconceptions behind on Wild Frontiers’ Iran Unveiled 2017 tour. See the country at its best, from the ruins of Persepolis to the mosques of Esfahan, accompanied by a dose of local hospitality.
Who: Wild Frontiers
When: 30 Apr; 14 & 26 May; 10 & 24 Sep; 8 & 22 Oct 2017
How long: 15 days
How much: From £3,595 (excl flights)
7: Chile – Get the complete picture
Squeeze in icy peaks, spurting geysers and chic cities on Wexas’ Highlights of Chile trip. Explore the city of Santiago before zipping through Chile’s diverse wilds to soak up Atacama sands, El Tatio’s spurting geysers and the mighty glaciers of Torres del Paine NP. Epic.
Who:Wexas
When: Year round
How long: 13 days
How much: From £4,725 (incl flights)
8: The Balkans – Hit the heights in the Dinaric Alps
Bag Eastern Europe’s best summits on KE Adventure Travel’s High Peaks of the Balkans. Trek and climb rises in Kosovo (Gjeravica), Montenegro (Zla Kolata) and Albania (Korab), then toast your feats with a glass of raki in the latter’s capital, Tirana.
When: 12 Aug & 9 Sep 2017
How long: 8 days
How much: From £1,495 (incl flights)
9: Laos & Cambodia – Explore the Indochina duo
Get under the skin of Laos and Cambodia on HF Holidays’ Indochina Revealed trip. Lap up laidback Luang Prabang and drift the 4,000 riverine islands of Laos, then cross into rural Cambodia for floating villages, mountain treks and Angkor Wat.
Who: HF Holidays
When: 18 Nov 2017
How long: 16 nights
How much: From £3,339 (incl flights)
10: Iceland – Rev round Road 1
Catch lava fields, Midnight Sun and hot springs on Discover the World’s Iceland Ring Road Special. Tick off Golden Circle sights before going off -grid to spy whales in Akureyri, calving glaciers in Jökulsárlón and fishing villages in the eastern fjords.
When: 16 & 30 Jun; 4 & 18 Aug 2017
How long: 10 nights
How much: From £2,026 (incl flights)
Main image: Kelimutu volcano, Flores, Indonesia (Dreamstime)
