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Simplyher - Share with friends
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If joining a tour group isn’t your cup of tea, check out these boutique travel
agencies that offer everything from off-the-beaten-track trips to spa getaways.
By LIM TSIAO HUI |
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* atrium eco travel
8A UPPER CROSS STREET, TEL: 6325-3251,
WWW.ATRIUMECOTRAVEL.COM.
OPEN MON-FRI, 9.30AM-6PM; SAT, 10AM-1PM.
WHAT They organise private tours for travellers who eschew group tours, yet want something more reassuring than the free-and-easy option. It takes only two to go. For a fee of $50 to $200, staff will research a customised itinerary for you, without obligation. The fee is refunded upon booking. It also offers over 70 fixed itineraries but they can tweak it if you want to stay at a certain hotel, or visit a certain place.
HOW IT WORKS You decide when, where and how you want to travel. The consultants will make recommendations, develop your itinerary, and make arrangements from flight to accommodation to local tour guides, saving you from having to pore over maps and guidebooks.
HOW MUCH From $1,145 a person for a four-day Central Java package to $3,150 for a 10-day package to Yunnan, China.
WHY WE LOVE THEM They take pains to incorporate history and culture into their trips. Their Vietnam cultural trip takes you to all three World Heritage sites: Halong, Hue and Hoi An. They also offer unusual destinations that larger agents don’t, like Uzbekistan, Morocco, Libya and Jordan.
SERVICE They go the extra mile. One customer wanted to go to Cuba, which they didn’t offer. So managing director Andy Yeo sought the help of his Canadian friend, who helped Andy organise his trip.
MUST BOOK Nine-day Cultural Tour of Uzbekistan ($1,780, excluding airfare). The oasis city on the Silk Road has a rich cultural and architectural heritage. Check out the mud brick houses, stroll along the Silk Road bazaar, camel-trek across the desert, experience a traditional bathhouse and enjoy dinner with a traditional Uzbek song and dance. |
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* eco adventures
17A MADRAS STREET, TEL: 6538-4441, WWW.ADVENTURES.COM.SG.
OPEN MON-FRI, 10AM-7PM; SAT, 10AM-2PM.
WHAT They package adventure and nature tours upon request. Started in 1998, the company brings serious trekkers up to the Himalayas, besides offering both hard (trekking, diving and rafting) and soft adventures to 25 destinations, including Thailand, Mongolia and Alaska.
HOW IT WORKS They specialise in Southeast Asia, Bhutan, Tibet, Pakistan and Borneo trips but have contacts with international agencies that bring people to far-fl ung destinations. So you could end up with a group of travellers from around the world.
HOW MUCH A 21-day mountain-biking adventure from Lhasa to Kathmandu, to the Mount Everest Base Camp costs $4,187 (excluding airfare) per person.
WHY WE LOVE THEM Their unconventional options to ordinary destinations. A trip to Thailand will see you cycling through vineyards, learning Thai cooking or trying Thai meditation. They’re also environmentally and culturally sensitive: travellers to Nepal stay in solarenergised tea houses along the Annapurna trail.
SERVICE They take special requests and will customise a package for you. Founder Timothy Tan will even regale you with travel tales and tips.
MUST BOOK The three-day Thai Cooking and Homestay in Bangkok ($380, excluding airfare) is a cultural exchange experience for the family. Or for something further afield, consider the
11-day Jomsom Teahouse Trek ($1,899 per person) to Nepal. |
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