Jetsettersblog

Goway Travel published its Asia 2012 brochure, a travel planner featuring 25 countries and 225 model itineraries, including 12 adventure ideas, 14 boutique cruises, 10 rail ideas, 22 luxury ideas and 365 hotels. Programs range from adventure to seven-star luxury.

“This year we’re introducing Russia to our Asian line up, featuring a Moscow-to-St. Petersburg cruise, along with some new Korea World Expo tours; eco jungle lodges in Northern Thailand; three newly selected Stays of Distinction in Shanghai, Ubud and Taipei; and more group touring options than ever before,” said Diane Molzan, general manager, Asia.

The selection includes a two-day Pushkar Extension in India from $149 per person, a Cebu and Chocolate Hills program in the Philippines from $239 per person, an 11-day Boutique River Cruise in Myanmar for $3,185 per person, and two new Nepal treks in the Annapurna and Everest regions. The company is continuing popular programs in South East Asia, India, Nepal, Thailand and China. For more information, call 888-469-2988.

Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT), a direct-to-consumer tour operator owned by the Grand Circle Corp., is offering Americans over 50 the chance to visit Burma on OAT’s new 16-day adventure — Burma: Land of Golden Temples & Floating Gardens that will operate from January to May and August to December. “The destination seems to hold special appeal to our women travelers, with scores of women, both married and single, fully booking our early 2012 departures,” said Harriet R. Lewis, vice chair of Overseas Adventure Travel. “Women want to connect with local people and cultures, and the Burmese people are so warm and open that connections are easy to make.”

“We want people to come to Burma,” said the National League for Democracy, the opposition party that had urged foreigners to stay away since 1996. Following the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent 15 of the past 20 years under house arrest, Burma has been cited as a top travel destination this year by Conde Nast Traveler, the New York Times and other travel sources.

OAT’s 16-day Burma: Land of Golden Temples & Floating Gardens explores Rangoon, Bagan, Mandalay, Kalaw and Inle Lake in small groups of 10 to 16 travelers. The adventure begins at $2,995 (or $200 per day) and includes all accommodations (two nights in Bangkok, Thailand; two in Rangoon; two in Bagan; three in Mandalay; two in Kalaw; and three nights near Inle Lake); 31 meals (including dinner at a family’s home); 17 small group activities; services of a resident OAT guide; all land transportation and six internal flights; a 5 percent Frequent Traveler credit towards your next OAT adventure; porterage for one bag per traveler; and more. To accommodate OAT’s growing number of solo travelers, the single supplement fee is waived on this and all OAT Land adventures in 2012 for savings of $645.

Adventure highlights include visiting Rangoon’s gold-clad Shwedagon Paya, the most sacred site in Burma; journeying by boat along the Irrawaddy River and on Inle Lake to witness villages on stilts; viewing thousands of ancient pagodas on the plains of Bagan; and meeting with members of an indigenous hill tribe. In addition to the base trip, OAT offers travelers a pre-trip option to Vientiane and Luang Prabang, Laos, for six nights for $1,395, and a post-trip option, six nights in Phnom Penh and Angkor Wat, Cambodia, for $1,295.

OAT can make all air arrangements for travelers, starting at $1,200 from San Francisco or Los Angeles. Additionally, OAT now offers its new True Choice program that enables travelers to build their preferred travel itineraries, including choice of airline, routing between home city and destination, upgrades to business or premium economy class, and the ability to “break away” before or after the trip or to combine OAT adventures.

OAT offers several programs that add to the value of its adventures. The Good Buy Discount saves travelers up to 10 percent of their trip cost, depending on date of departure. The Vacation Ambassador program awards travelers up to $100 per traveler referral. For those who wish to travel privately, in their own small group of eight or more, OAT offers these private departures for an additional fee of $600 per person. OAT also offers a lowest price guarantee so that should OAT reduce the cost of its base itinerary on any of its adventures any time after purchase, it will refund travelers the difference in price. For more information, call 800-955-1925.

‘The Lady’, starring Michelle Yeoh as Aung San Suu Kyi, opened in cinemas across the UK last week. Set between 1988 and 1999 the love story follows pro democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi as she became drawn into Burmese politics and put under house arrest by Burma’s military rulers, separating her from her English husband, Dr Michael Aris.

The timely release of the film, just over one year after the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, highlights the challenges that this extraordinary country has faced in recent years. Following her release, Aung San Suu Kyi has lifted the tourism boycott once placed on the country, encouraging tour operators to use privately owned hotels, flights or other services, therefore minimising contact with the government. For those who have been inspired by this story and are intrigued to see Burma for themselves, Explore run a variety of tours to Burma in line with Aung San Suu Kyi’s requests.

Explore’s 14 day Burma Highlights tour takes-in many of the country’s highlights. The tour takes customers to the gold-encrusted pagodas in Rangoon, visits the floating gardens of Inle Lake, explores the history and culture of Mandalay and discovers the one-thousand-year-old temples and stupas at the Plain of Bagan. Costing from £1,853 per person, the tour includes return flights; 13 nights’ hotel accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis; two other meals; transport and the services of a tour leader and driver.

New for this year, Explore have launched Burma in Depth, a 21 day tour taking customers beyond the classic highlights. With an opportunity to learn about Mon Culture, the tour explores Burma’s ancient temples and tribes, travels to the fabled city of Mandalay and visits the floating gardens, stilt villages and leg-rowers of Inle Lake. Costing from £2,660 per person, the tour includes flights; 20 nights’ hotel accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis; one other meal; transport and the services of a tour leader.

For people looking for something more active, Explore has a new and unique 16 day Cycle Burma trip on offer. Cycling between the major highlights of Bagan, Inle Lake, Mandalay and Rangoon, this tour provides the opportunity for customers to truly immerse themselves in the local culture, passing from village to village. Graded moderate, 510km is covered on generally flat and quiet roads. Costing from £2,397 per person, the tour includes return flights; 13 nights’ hotel accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis; mountain bike hire and the services of a tour leader and support vehicle.

For families with children aged seven and over, Explore’s new Adventures in Burma tour takes in The Golden Land’s highlights. The 16 day tour visits Rangoon and Inle Lake, visits a giant’s pagoda and bell in Mandalay and explores the Shan highlands where it discovers old British hill stations and meets local tribe people along the way. Costing from £2,291 per adult and £2,091 per child, the tour includes return flights; 13 nights’ hotel accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis; one other meal; transport and the services of a tour leader; driver and some local guides.

Ashley Toft, Managing Director for Explore, commented, “Explore were one of the first tour operators to return to Burma following the relaxation of the boycott. We act appropriately and responsibly to guarantee that the Burmese people benefit from our customers. By using privately owned facilities and minimising our contact with the government we can ensure that Aung San Suu Kyi’s requests are being followed”.

For more information visit www.explore.co.uk  or call 0844 499 0901.

Khiri Travel’s private jet tour of the cultural and natural attractions of central Myanmar is for high-end clients. The four-day, three-night trip from Bangkok uses a six-seat Cessna Citation CJ3 private jet. For a six-person group, the whole trip is $8,500 per person, including visa on arrival, transfers, deluxe accommodation and most meals.

The flight lands in Bagan where guests take guided bicycle rides among the remote temples of Bagan, many of which are nearly 1,000 years old. The Bagan experience includes a boat ride on the Irrawaddy River for sundowners on a sandbank. Guests then fly in the private jet to Heho near Inle Lake in central Myanmar’s Shan hill country. Visitors enter a mature hardwood forest which is now an elephant and wildlife sanctuary with villagers taking ownership of the conservation process. Guests ride (and wash) elephants with local mahouts and villagers.

The trip then visits Inle Lake where guests ride a boat to see the floating gardens and the “pagoda forest” of Indein. On the water, guests see colorful markets frequented by traditional Shan and Pa-O tribes in costume. This is followed by lunch in a local house. Throughout the boat trip there are chances to see the leg rowers of Inle Lake. The trip includes a bicycle ride on the east bank of Inle Lake through Shan and Intha villages. Visitors stop and chat with villagers and monks in a local monastery. Lunch is served on a tranquil rice barge in the middle of Inle Lake. Guests then fly back to Bangkok on the private jet.

Khiri Travel is offering the trip to central Myanmar between May 1 and Sept. 30. If four passengers travel, the fee is $11,350 per person. If two passengers go, the fee is $22,000 per person. For more information, email Myanmar@khiri.com

Asia Transpacific Journeys is pushing further into Myanmar with new tour products in the wake of political changes in the country leading to an opening of the country to the outside world. The tour operator is introducing two new trips to the Southeast Asian country, and continuing to offer its signature tour, which it has run for more than 20 years.

“A new era of openness and optimism is dawning in Burma, akin to what Europe experienced at the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989,” said Marilyn Downing Staff, founder of Asia Transpacific Journeys, who pioneered trips to Burma in the 1980s. “Nobel Peace Prize-winner Aunt San Suu Kyi announced she will run for a seat in parliament, which is a great indicator of Burma’s monumental change.”

According to Asia Transpacific, Myanmar’s traditional culture remains almost untouched by modern influences, with temples, crumbling pagodas and pristine islands for clients to discover. Burma — Land of the Golden Pagoda has been the operator’s signature tour to Myanmar for 20 years, providing an in-depth immersion into the remote and exotic land. Burma and Bhutan combines Asia’s two most isolated countries with an emphasis on ancient traditions and current transformations. On Burma’s Frontiers will be introduced for late 2012, with an itinerary that visits remote destinations and tribal villages and includes a luxurious cruise on a remote section of the Irrawaddy River. For more information, call 800-642-2742.

Small group tour specialist Odysseys Unlimited introduced a new tour called Mysteries of Myanmar: Burmese Heritage Revealed. Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has been sealed off from the world for 50 years. Odysseys Unlimited guests will have dinner with a Burmese family, spend time with Buddhist monks, visit with local artisans in their studios, go to local markets, travel by pony-cart through the ancient plains of Bagan, meet with people from different ethnic groups and tribes and have lunch with an Intha family, the Tibeto-Burman ethnic group living around Inle Lake.

“Myanmar is a respite for travelers who want to get away from modern American influences and immerse themselves in ancient Burmese traditions,” said Bruce Epstein, president of Odysseys Unlimited. “And now, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s historic visit in late 2011, along with the release from house arrest of activist and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese government is showing signs of being both more welcoming to outsiders and also more open to change. It’s an historic time to visit this fascinating country.”

Mysteries of Myanmar includes visits to Yangon (Rangoon, home of the Shwedagon Pagoda whose gold-leafed dome sparkles with 4,531 diamonds, crowned by a single 76-carat diamond; and Bagan (Pagan), whose 2,000 pagodas, temples, and monasteries quietly distill the essence of Myanmar’s Buddhist culture. They also visit the peaceful hill station of Kalaw, once a hill station for Burma’s British overlords; and absorb the quiet beauty of Inle Lake, whose shores and islands host 17 villages on stilts inhabited mostly by the native Intha people.

Priced from $3,995, including air and land, Odysseys Unlimited’s 15-day Mysteries of Myanmar has four scheduled departures — Oct. 23 and Nov. 6, 13, and 27. Included in the price is roundtrip air from the U.S. and all flights within the itinerary; 12 nights’ accommodations in superior first class and first class hotels; most meals; extensive sightseeing including all entrance fees; services of an experienced Odysseys Unlimited tour director; luggage handling; and gratuities for local guides, dining room servers and airport/hotel porters. A two-night/three-day post-tour extension to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat is available, priced at $795. Odysseys Unlimited offers value-priced, experience-rich small group tours with 12 to 24 guests, guaranteed.

Abercrombie & Kent celebrates its 50th Anniversary in 2012 and is launching four photography trips with acclaimed photo-journalist Jon Nicholson to mark the occasion.

Jon will be leading tours to Burma, Bhutan, Jodhpur and Varanasi where he will equip aspiring photographers with the technical expertise and understanding of context and composition to capture life as it really is in these spectacular locations.

Jon is one of several experts leading a trip with Abercrombie & Kent in 2012, as part of a new programme of journeys designed for travellers who are looking for a more unusual, insightful and inspiring travel experience.

Jon Nicholson, Photographer and Journalist
Jon has been a professional photographer for over 26 years and is the official photographer for the London Olympic Games in 2012. Jon has worked with major magazines such as The National Geographic and Condé Nast Traveller and continues to work for UN agencies including UNICEF and UNFPA to record challenging issues around the world.

With Jon’s guidance, each group will embark on a photographic journey that will equip them with a sound technical foundation to build on.

The group will also learn how to interact with their subjects and get under the countries skin in a way few ever experience.

Burma 1st – 13th March 2012

From the magnificent pagodas dotting Bagan’s sprawling planes to the skilful techniques used by the local fisherman on Inle Lake, Myanmar is alluring in its simplicity and unassuming beauty.

Visit the mystical former Royal City of Mrauk U
Cruise the Ayeyarwady River

Capture rural Burmese life and its old-world charm
Bhutan 26th March – 8th April 2012

Traverse the striking mountain kingdom, capturing the tranquillity of remote and ancient dzongs, exploring rural regions and understanding the significance of the country’s religious festivals.

Capture the colours of the Paro Festival

Experience the hospitality of the Bhutanese by staying in local guest houses

Visit local rural communities and tiny hamlets scattered among the paddy fields

Jodhpur 8th April – 14th April 2012

The bustling blue city of Jodhpur that sits on the desert’s edge has a vibrant character that Jon is well-acquainted with after extensive travelling in India.

Capture the ‘blue city’ of Jodhpur and its mighty 15th Century Fort

Explore the temples in the village of Osian

Visit the desert Bishnois tribes

Varanasi 1st – 3rd October 2012

There is more to Varanasi than the river and with Jon’s contacts you may find yourself capturing the life inside an ashram or watching a traditional wrestling match.

Become familiar with the traditions that surround India’s holiest river

Wander the narrow lanes and busting markets in the heart of the city

Justin Wateridge, Managing Director of Abercrombie & Kent, said “Jon’s enthusiasm and curiosity to seek out the unusual and Abercrombie & Kent’s ability to open closed doors is a perfect combination”. Annabel Tremaine, who recently travelled in Bhutan with Jon, added “I had expected to have a few hints and tips during our trip – I hadn’t anticipated that I would be taking part in a professional photographic workshop with the most wonderful source of material available. The camera was the catalyst for exploring the country with eyes wide open – we had great fun and saw so much more of the real Bhutan as a result”.

The opening of Myanmar received a tourism boost when General Tours World Traveler decided to reintroduce the country as part of its 2012 program when Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest last year.

“At the time, we were guardedly optimistic that this would be the first step in improving relations between the U.S. and Burma,” said General Tours President Bob Drumm. With tentative but clear steps toward political and economic reforms over the past year and an historic first visit by a U.S. Secretary of State since 1955, General Tours is noting a steady increase in interest and bookings for its new Visions of Burma trip.

The package includes extensive sightseeing in Yangon, showcasing Burma’s splendid Colonial architecture. By special arrangement, General Tours’ guests also join city residents in the daily ritual of offering a meal to Buddhist monks. Travelers experience traditional Burmese hospitality when they spend time with a family in their lakeside home at Inle Lake.

Burma’s deep Buddhist traditions are explored during a meeting with a monk at a temple monastery in the scenic Sagaing Hills. General Tours guests also get to participate in the joyful Noviciation Ceremony, which all boys undergo when they become a Buddhist monk. And with a limit of 16 guests, General Tours has been able to incorporate a variety of memorable dining experiences, including lunch at a Buddhist monastery and an al fresco candle-lit dinner surrounded by the ancient temples of Bagan.

The Oct. 13 departure of this 10-day Burma trip features the Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival at Inle Lake, when a procession of hundreds of boats and gilded royal barges transport revered images of Buddha from one lakeside village to the next. With plenty of dance, music and revelry, this festival is capped off with boat races featuring the skilled leg-rowing Intha fishermen

Through Dec. 30, 2011, General Tours is offering $1,000 per couple savings on all 70 of its Small Group Journeys and Privately Guided Tours when guests book and pay in full for travel anytime in 2012. Clients can combine this limited-time discount with the company’s Family & Friends offer for additional savings of $50 to $150 per person when three or more guests travel together. Travel agents who are members of General Tours Rewards earn a $100 bonus per booking when their clients take advantage of these pay-in-full savings. For more information, call 800-221-2216.

New diplomatic openings and domestic political liberalization are opening one of Asia’s most intriguing countries as Myanmar readies to more fully open its doors to visitors. The recent hosting by Myanmar of the first-ever Travel Leaders’ Symposium on Sustainable Tourism offered an opportunity for over 100 travel industry representatives from the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) and around the globe to gather, share their experiences and learn more about Myanmar.

Myanmar is experiencing rapid growth in arrivals as the country is now opening up politically and economically. According to the latest figures from the Myanmar Directorate for Hotels and Tourism, Myanmar received from January to October this year 302,236 air travelers, which is almost as much as for the whole year of 2010, when the two international airports in Yangon and Mandalay welcomed 310,688 foreign travelers.

An additional 350,000 travelers arrived overland to Myanmar from January to October 2011. According to data from the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), Myanmar is projected to be among the world’s fastest-growing markets, with tourism increasing by 25 percent for 2011. For more information, call 011 66 2612 4150-1, email mtf@mekongtourism.org or visit www.mekongtourism.org or www.myanmar-tourism.com

Leading Asia specialist, Travel Indochina, has launched its brand new Small Group Journeys brochure for 2012/2013, featuring 70 unique itineraries and 1,000 departures to destinations across Asia including the latest addition of Burma and various new Specialist Collection Journeys to Sri Lanka, Mongolia and Bhutan.

Created by an award-winning designer, Travel Indochina’s new-look brochure is the company’s best and most user-friendly yet. It offers a simple way of digesting Travel Indochina’s great range of quality escorted small group tours, including the largest diversity of holidays to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos of any UK tour operator, together with a large variety of journeys to Thailand, China and Tibet, India, and Japan – for groups of up to 16 people.

The new catalogue perfectly enables the specialist tour operator to share its experience of the “real” Asia with interested customers. Every journey page now features top “Insider Experiences” detailing unique encounters that are exclusively available to guests of Travel Indochina, such as the opportunity to avoid the crowds at Angkor Wat by entering the temple through a lesser-used entrance.

In addition, most journey pages highlight Travel Indochina’s fantastic array of online travel videos to give customers a real taste of Asia. Each online video enables the expert operator to share information on their destinations, top Insider Experiences and unique style of travel whilst providing a great opportunity for interested travellers to hear from – and be inspired by – expert Western tour leaders and professional local guides, as well as past clients.

New for 2012, travellers can enjoy some very special experiences on Travel Indochina’s new 9-day and 13-day tours to Burma, which will operate every month from January 2012 onwards. Whilst covering the highlights of this unspoilt destination, guests of Travel Indochina can take a horse and carriage ride through the Bagan plains at sunset, share lunch with the resident nuns at a local nunnery in Mandalay, and meet the locals at a little-visited village on the banks of the Irrawaddy river.

Further good news is that journeys to Indochina and beyond can be booked in conjunction with Vietnam Airlines, which is launching the UK’s first ever non-stop flights to Vietnam from 9th December 2011. This new service will shave up to seven hours off the flight time and offer convenient onward connections to Cambodia, Laos and Burma.

Lesley Wright at Travel Indochina comments: “We are delighted to announce the launch of our new Small Group Journeys brochure, which we believe is our best ever design. The content really highlights the breadth and depth of our company’s offering, whilst also developing our philosophy of sharing the experience through our “Insider Experiences”, which delve deeper into the destinations and provide our customers with insights and experiences that many travellers miss. We very much hope our new revamped brochure will inspire them to share the real Asia with us in 2012 and beyond.”