Expert Insights

September 11, 2013 Exploring Laos Country

Read time -2 minutes The Mekong River stretched out in front of me as the sun set over Vientiane, the incredible capital of Laos. My mind drifted just like the waters of the river, thinking over the week I’d spent exploring a country I’d barely known before leaving London. What little knowledge I had was...

September 11, 2013 The Things We Do for a Decent Cup of Tea

“We all know that tea grows on tropical hills, but why did we decide to visit a tea estate by bike?‘ Aerial view of Sigiriya Rock It all started in Sigiriya, with its incredible rock towering above the plains of central Sri Lanka. The first few days had been quite easy as we pedalled...

September 11, 2013 Exploring The Canadian Rockies

Read time – 2 minutes Pioneer settlers in Banff found the Canadian Rockies to be a wilderness undisturbed by industry, excessive trade or the usual prerogatives of the ‘civilised’ man. Now, the wild stretches of Canada’s first National Park (1885) can still offer that tantalising taste of freedom – if you know where to go....

September 11, 2013 Animals in Focus: Lemur Facts

Read time – 1 minute Endemic to Madagascar and the Comoro Islands off Madagascar’s north-west coast, lemurs have bemused and intrigued naturalists for years. Their range of interesting behaviours, from singing like a whale (the Indri) to sashaying across the sand like a ballet dancer (the Sifaka), have kept these prosimian primates popular with zoologists...

September 11, 2013 Greece’s Best Kept Secret – Discover Evia

Read time – 2 minutes Evia is as far removed as you can get from the bucket and spade, beach and booze, Brits-abroad style package holiday Greece has become synonymous with. The second-largest Greek island (after Crete) is only a short ferry-ride away from Athens, yet feels a million miles removed from the crowds and...

September 11, 2013 Rice & Shine: One Day in Hanoi City, Vietnam

Read time – 4 minutes Daily life in Hanoi begins early – the inhabitants seem to rise with the sun. I too was here early, a day before the start of our itinerary, and determined to discover all I could. Explore Hanoi City You can wander to each of the five distinctive districts with ease,...

September 11, 2013 Hanoi Streetlife

Read time – 1 minute Fragrant wafts of lemongrass, ginger and chilli envelop my nose and tease my taste buds as I wait for my bowl of aromatic pho ga to cool. Sitting outside on a plastic chair of questionable quality and stability, I’m almost too close for comfort to the frenetic mix of scooters,...

September 11, 2013 Self-Guided Cycling in Burgundy

Read time – 2 minutes Ever since his early days working as an Exodus overland driver, Phil Normington has travelled extensively. Perhaps surprisingly, some of his favourite trips have been not so far from home. Over many years working at Exodus, I’ve tried many different styles of holiday – overland expeditions, trekking in the Himalayas,...

September 11, 2013 Weird and Wonderful Wildlife Facts

Read time – 3 minutes Planet Earth is teeming with wildlife; big cats prowl African savannahs, birdsong symphonies ring out from rainforest canopies, whales breach at the ends of the Earth as Mountain gorillas beat their chests from an East African jungle nest…our animal kingdom always astonishes and amazes us. There are millions of different...

September 11, 2013 Tackling Altitude On Everest Trek

Read time – 4 minutes “Chickole, chickole” were going to be the wisest words I would hear on my Everest base camp trek. Meaning “slowly, slowly” our guides Lakpa and Nima would repeat them every time we hoisted our packs on. With every inch the trail snaked higher into the mountains, the closer their words...