What to Expect From a Trip to Amman, Jordan
I am admittedly an amateur in the world of international travel. While Europe is on my doorstep as a resident of the UK, my passport holds no more than 20 passport stamps; those which are there due to family holidays, or visiting friends who have made the leap and moved abroad.
A visit to Jordan therefore seemed so off the cards me, an infrequent traveler, and one of the last places to have crossed my mind as a potential destination for tourism. Though a distant relative of my mother based in Amman, Jordan paved the opportunity for my trip.
Amman, the capital of Jordan, is a modern city with numerous ancient ruins. A gateway for reaching the rest of Jordan, those willing to linger awhile before making for Petra, the Dead Sea or Wadi Rum will find it is one of the easiest cities in which to enjoy the Middle East experience.
read moreEmbrace Local Travel: Take a MicroAdventure in 2016
Usually when we think of “adventure” we think of epic international journeys. Trips which take 2-3 weeks, which see us travel to faraway lands, and which take months and months to plan. Though people often overlook the fact that adventure can be sought much closer to home too.
You don’t have to travel halfway across the world to seek adventure – traveling locally counts as travel too. Hundreds of thousands of travelers and tourists pay huge amounts of money to make it across the globe to visit your tiny corner of the world each year, so why would you not take advantage of your location and explore too? Even if it is technically “home”?
This is what we call a MicroAdventure. It could be local, it could be overnight, it could be for a couple of days. It doesn’t have to be expensive, well planned or far away. It’s about ‘just doing it’ and exploring new places and environments that are close to home.
read moreWalking Holidays in Spain: 3 Places Where Breath-taking Natural Scenery Meets History!
Take a second and imagine. Where can your feet take you? If you happen to be on holidays in Spain, the answer is some of the most amazing places that you could ever hike to!
read moreThings to Do in Iceland: Highlights of Vatnajökull National Park
When it comes to things to do in Iceland, Vatnajökull National Park should be at the very top of everyone’s list. Covering 13% of Iceland’s surface, this is the largest national park in Western Europe, and has a range of outstanding natural wonders which truly capture the interplay between fire and ice.
In this region white glaciers descend to black sands, hot streams erupt from frozen banks of ice, and the park is home to Iceland’s highest mountain, (Hvannadalshnúkur), largest glacier (Vatnajökull), and Europe’s most powerful waterfall (Dettifoss).
The following are the highlights of Vatnajökull National Park. Most sections of the park are completely inaccessible in winter, closed due to bad weather or lack of transportation. Plan for a trip between July and August to have more options and access to locations throughout the park.
read moreOvernight Sleepover at Australia’s National Zoo: Jamala Wildlife Lodge Accommodation Review
My 6am alarm hadn’t yet sounded, though I woke quite abruptly. I could have sworn I was woken by the intense sound of a lion roar. Though that was surely a ridiculous concept. I wasn’t in Africa – I was in a luxury four poster canopy bed in Australia’s national capitol. It must have been a vivid dream.
Though as I began to doze off again I suddenly had the feeling we were being watched. And as I pulled back the curtains I was stunned by what I saw. We were in fact being watched. There was a Giraffe peering in from outside our room.
If you’ve ever dreamed of an intimate experience with African animals, Australia has the lodge for you. While there are a number of zoos that offer overnight sleepovers, Jamala Wildlife Lodge takes the concept to a completely different level.
read moreProposal Destinations for Adventurous Couples
What comes to mind when you think of the perfect wedding proposal? For many couples a romantic wedding proposal includes dinner with a view, a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne and a classic engagement ring from Vashi. But that’s not for everyone!
Some couples prefer to live on the edge, so if you and your significant other are adrenaline seekers, here are 5 alternative adventurous proposal destinations.
read moreMy Sydney Skydive Adventure
We were on a spectacular scenic flight over Australia’s South East Coast, with breathtaking views over the Blue Mountains, Wollongong beach, and Sydney’s iconic skyline which stretched out in the distance. Though it was difficult to enjoy the view with a stomach full of nerves. Difficult to fully appreciate the scenery outside when we knew we were about to become part of it.
Because this wasn’t your average scenic flight. 7 of us were seated on top of each other in a tiny prop plane, each strapped to a beautiful stranger, and as soon as the plane hit 14,000 feet we would be taking the quickest route back down to the ground. Free falling at 200 kph after having jumped from a perfectly good plane.
The air rushes into your face and your heart starts racing. As the adrenalin rush kicks in, you feel like you’re floating on a cushion of air. The silence is amazing, the view is sensational, and as the initial shock of the free fall quickly wears off your fear disappears, replaced with an intense and exhilarating thrill of soaring through the air. This is sky diving.
read moreInside Lascaux Cave France: Ice Age Caves Very Few Can See Today
Following a few unsuccessful attempts to visit the cave of Lascaux, I am at last getting my 40 minutes of Ice Age glory. After all, Lascaux is to art what La Scala is to opera, or Glastonbury to summer music festivals.
Our group of five is met at an ordinary looking gate on the edge of a hill-side car-park, just outside the town of Montignac in the south west of France. We are led in silence to what seems like a top security portal to some underground WW2 bunker. A couple is holding hands, they look at each other and exchange an excited giggle.
Otherwise, the aura of reverence that surrounds our group is so obviously at odds with the decidedly unremarkable entrance we are looking at. I try to imagine the thousands of visitors that once flocked to this very spot since the cave was discovered in September 1940. The same people who came to marvel were the ones who inadvertently were responsible for the destruction of the prehistoric images. And so in 1963 access to the cave was restricted to only a handful of visitors each week, with only a short time inside the cave itself.
Today we are that handful, this is our week.
read moreBecome a True Viking on Iceland’s Laugavegur Trail Hike
Iceland is known as the land of fire and ice, where turbulent volcanic forces meet the icy touch of the Arctic to shape an island that is as desolate as it is beautiful. Blasted tundra, glistening glaciers and pounding waterfalls are among the many wonders vying for space in the Icelandic wilderness, and the best way to explore the extremes of this spellbinding country is to take a long walk into its heart, on the famous Laugavegur trail.
Stretching 55km from Landmannalaugar to Thórsmörk, the Laugavegur trail is the country’s most well-known hiking route. The four-day trek takes you past colourful mountains, warming hot-springs and steep ravines as you wind your way through the landscape of South-East Iceland.
If you are looking to test yourself physically, as well as rewarding yourself with moments of wonder, then Iceland’s Laugavegur is the trek for you.
read moreCanoeing Around the Islands of Phang Nga Bay Thailand
Phang Nga Bay, off the east coast of Phuket Island is definitely one of the most beautiful parts of Thailand. That means there are plenty of tour operators and options for departure points.
We boarded our ship in the village of Ao Por at the far north east of Phuket Island. It was a pretty little village in its own right, complete with traditional fishing boats, and that gorgeous aquamarine water.
The trip out to our canoeing destination was about an hour by boat, but what a trip! Glorious scenery, stunning rock formations and that pretty sea. I wasn’t really sure how canoeing could improve our experience. But I was willing to give it a try!
read more