INDIAWITHHEART

Ankita has been a guide with Intrepid Travel for five years, and leads tours from Delhi to Kathmandu. She also has led the newly launched Indian Women’s Expedition.

‘People coming to India always say the Taj Mahal is one of the highlights, and deservedly so, but there are other places that really surprise our guests. One such place is Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. When we visit the royal Amber Fort, there are so many colours and forms of architecture – our guests absolutely love it.

‘A good thing about Intrepid’s tours is that they always include a rural element. Even today the majority of people are engaged in farming and their lives are simple. That is becoming a highlight for guests –walking in the village areas, being greeted by the local people who are so friendly. In Bijaipur, we stay in a 500-year-old castle from the royal family of that area. We do a village tour, and the yellow mustard seeds are growing everywhere and the sunlight bounces off the walls. We visit the homes of local people to see how they live, seeing the cow shelters and people going about their daily chores. It is unexpected for our guests but they say it is so much more meaningful. Our guests also love that Intrepid makes a difference for women, empowering women in tourism – which is very much male-dominated. For instance in Agra – a place where a lot of women cannot go to factories to work due to the gender restrictions, Intrepid brings the loom to their place so they can work at home to make a living for themselves and for their families.

‘Our guests are always surprised and delighted when we visit the holy town of Orchha, home to Raja Ram Temple and the famous Orchha Fort complex on an island on the River Betwa. As for my absolute favourite place, it is Udaipur – the City of Love. Only once you have been there can you fully understand the vibe and beauty of it. The sunsets are quite amazing.’

Baskinbasque

Lola loves the Easy Pace Spain tour as guests stay three nights in three cities – Barcelona, San Sebastián and Madrid. ‘The pace is more relaxed, so guests have more time to absorb the diversity of colours and flavours of each region we visit,’ Lola said. ‘The Prado Museum [in Madrid] is one of the three most important museums in the world. And it has the greatest collection of masterpieces. Guests are enchanted and tell me that we would need a whole week to visit this. Guests also love the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum. This really makes an incredible contrast, from the past [The Prado] to the present. Guests just love it. People also love sampling the Basque traditional of pinxtos in San Sebastián. Similar to tapas, this variety of snack-sized treats each has their own regional flavour and presentation. In the small streets dozens of bars display some 20 different treats, some hot and some cold. Here you really get into the feel of Spain. Guests say it is one of the highlights of the tour.’

Stampedetocanada

‘Nothing really prepares guests for the majesty of the landscapes on a tour that takes in the sights of British Columbia and Alberta. Guests know what to expect on the two-day Rocky Mountaineer journey from Vancouver to Banff but it still blows their minds seeing the mountains and gorges through the glass domes. The rugged peaks around Banff soaring as if to heaven, leave people struggling to find words to describe them. The look of wonder on their faces always makes me smile. They are also awestruck by the scenery on the Columbia Icefield Parkway, which we see from the Ice Explorer vehicle. Guests love the renowned hotels we stay in, including the fairytale-like Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, and they are always pleasantly surprised by the beauty of Butchart Gardens in Victoria on Vancouver Island.’

Beetlemania

Tracey is based in Southern Africa and says that sometimes it is the little things that her guests remember.

‘On the sweaty, dusty road between the red dunes of Sossusvlei and Swakopmund, in the heart of the Namib desert, is the sign for Boesman’s desert camp. ‘Sossuson-foot’ is a desert experience offered by Boesman or Frans. Friendly and animated, Frans shares his stories and knowledge of this ancient and beautiful desert. Hopping from foot to foot, showing how his ancestors hunted for survival, keeps all enthralled. Sharing the wonders of the desert with a smile, he’ll pick up a desert Tenebrionid beetle and explain how in the misty mornings the only source of water for this little guy comes from him doing a headstand on a dune so that the water condensation on his body runs down into his mouth. I love that days later, our travellers are still talking about that experience and it makes me smile.’

Striketherightnote

‘You can go travel on your own but to do this job, you soon learn that it is all about the people. Building relationships with them, and getting to hear their stories. That’s what makes me do this over and over again. Every tour, I see travellers nervously enter the welcome briefing and shyly introduce themselves or make their spouse or friend do all the talking. Fast forward two days later and everyone is laughing together over dinner and spending free time together. It makes it hard to say goodbye when the tour comes to an end! There are guests from my first tour 10 years ago that I still keep in touch with. If I can invite people to come and do one tour with me, it would be the America’s Music Cities tour [that goes to Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans].

One wow factor for the guests on that tour is that when they come to New Orleans, we are staying across the street from the French Quarter so they’re getting to walk and experience it. They’re on the streets with the people who live there, experiencing the city the way that they do. Everybody can bond over a love of music.’

Wowedbyegypt

‘In their mind, everyone has a preconceived view or dream of what Egypt is like before they get there. These generally involve the main sights such as cruising the Nile or standing in front of the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx. However in my 15 years of visiting Egypt with hundreds of Australian travellers it is never the Pyramids that are the highlight. Rather it’s the overwhelming nature of the sheer volume of ancient antiquities. In Egypt there is no filler. Every single day has that wow factor – and often the wow factors happen several times a day. Don’t get me wrong there is something incredible about standing at the base of the Great Pyramid, in the shadow of over 5,000 years of history. However this is something you expect before you go. What you can’t envisage before you arrive and what surprises and touches clients the most are things like their first view of Philae Temple at Aswan. I love seeing the faces of our travellers as they catch their first glimpse of this tranquil oasis in the middle of the Nile – it takes their breath away. As does walking through a forest of 136 giant hieroglyphic trees at Karnak Temple in Luxor. This is literally a giant ancient forest of hieroglyphic trees and every time I walk among them still makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.’

TOUR LEADER: JEREMY EDWARDS

Acornishtale

‘The ancient granite church of St Senara stands proudly in the tiny village of Zennor, on the rugged Cornish coast midway between St Ives and Land’s End. The present church dates from the 12th century but stands on the site of a sixth-century chapel. Within the church sits a medieval chair with an ornate carving on one side that depicts the legend of The Mermaid of Zennor. The legend tells us that the churchwarden’s son, Matthew Trewhella, was a member of the church choir known for his beautiful singing voice. A mermaid named Morveren heard his pure voice from the sea below the church, and one Sunday she came to the church to listen. She was smitten by Matthew and lured him into the sea at Pendour Cove. Matthew was never seen again, but on warm summer evenings you can hear their voices joined in song from beneath the Atlantic waves. Guests love this tale.’

Jude says that her job is to deliver people’s dreams. ‘The most rewarding moment is at the end of a cruise when someone comes up and thanks you for the most amazing two weeks of their life. To see the smiles on their faces but also when they are sad to say goodbye to the crew, fellow passengers and to you, that’s when you know it has truly been a memorable and special time on board.

‘My favourite part of the cruise is seeing the faces of guests as they walk out of the Concert at Palais Lichtenstein in Vienna – one of our Signature Experiences. The look of absolute awe, especially for those guests who were hesitant to go. One gentleman, a New Zealand farmer, said he had no plan on going at all, but came and hugged me after with tears in his eyes and thanked me for making him go.’