Ras Al Jinz is a beach and wildlife centre that is at the far eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula and is an important protected site for the Green Turtle species to lay their eggs. What these turtles go through in their migrations and nesting techniques to secure the next generation is truly mind-blowing, and in seeing the small hatchlings making their way back to the ocean at such a small size next to the giant mothers is actually quite emotional . . .
. . . but the problem with this experience is how it is managed, which feels like all the bad aspects of mass tourism. You’re grouped with fellow tourists all at the same time around 9pm (there were around 5 groups of 25 when I visited) all walk the 20mins to the beach together; all wait right near each other to approach a turtle; all stumble around in the dark not quite knowing where you are going for around 30mins; and then all walk back 20mins to the visitor centre. The format wouldn’t be so bad if the guides had a bit of passion because tourists understand the restrictions of no light and the need to not disturb the turtles, but they all tend to have that more-bothered-about-their-mobile-phone-and-guests-are-a-bit-of-a-nuisance attitude that is unfortunately all too common in the Middle East
Don’t get me wrong, it’s quite funny as you collectively laugh at how silly the whole thing is. And, you do get to see glimpses of the turtles digging themselves in, laying eggs and hatchlings at this time of year. But its just not worth the long drive there. Your time could be far better spent in the wonderful red deserts or mountains of Oman
If determined to go, I would advise staying at the Turtle Guest House rather than the Turtle Reserve. 30% of the price, nice enough and they also organise your tour for you
The islands in the north of Palawan between El Nido are some of the most stereotypically idyllic tropical beach paradises you can imagine – hundreds of islands surrounded by perfect white sand, gorgeous clear turquoise water, tropical reefs, and only occasionally sprinkled with tiny villages along the shoreline. Whilst there are many places around the world, and even in the Philippines, that can offer trips through very similar settings, it is the ease of access to these trips (multiple trips leave every day), reasonable price (think less than US$1k for 6 days vs minimum x4 for an equivalent liveaboard), and focus on interacting respectfully (and genuinely) with the local communities that makes the Palawan experience stand out. A must if visiting Palawan . . . and almost a must if visiting the Philippines
Top tips:
- Go with Tao Philippines. Whilst there are around 10 companies offering these type of trips, Tao are the pioneers, have the scale, and everyone I’ve spoken to has raved about them. Put it this way – I can see they consistently have 9+/10 ratings
- Expect it to be fairly basic. The Tao Philippines site gives you a pretty good idea of what to expect and tries to manage the expectation (www.taophilippines.com) – basically don’t come if you’re a princess, but in summary:
- The boat – you’re on a large Philippine-style bangka boat for the day – plenty of areas to lounge around on. Nothing private. Up to 25 on the boat (we had 24 and didn’t at all feel crowded at any stage)
- Sleeping – you sleep in village bamboo huts by night. Think a 3m / 3m (10ft x 10ft) bamboo platform on stilts, with a roof covering by two bamboo sides leaving an entrance and exit either end, a thin single mattress surrounded by mosquito nets. Goes without saying – no aircon
- Food – surprisingly good
- Showers – cold water, shared bathrooms
- Electronics – half the evening stops have charging (helps to bring a powerbank), none have wifi, cell coverage is patchy depending on network
- Expect a backpacker vibe. For anyone who has travelled through South East Asia, you know what I mean. Chilled out, not expecting 5 star (or 3 or 4 star!), probably doing this as part of a bigger trip, respectful, up for fun. Age is only one of many factors that reflect the vibe, but typically the age range is 18-45
- What do you do? Expect a lot of sailing through tropical paradise, snorkelling, chilling out on distant beaches or beaches you’ll be sleeping on
- November was PERFECT. Not too hot, very little rain, very few mosquitos, and fewer fellow tourists at this time of year
- 3 days / 2 nights or 6 days / 5 nights? It completely depends on your appetite for chill, how much time you have and which route you are doing. I booked 3 days / 2 nights (from Coron to El Nido), knowing I could change my mind and extend on the 3rd day, which I didn’t do. After meeting up with my group on their 6th and final night, and after discussing with many who have also done the 6 days, I would summarise as:
- 3 days / 2 nights – I left thinking I’d had a wonderful time, fantastic group and it was one of the highlights of the Philippines. I’d “done it” and didn’t need another 3 days of the same tropical island experience, and was able to use the remaining 3 days for scuba diving in the same islands, sleep in a nice hotel (it feels soooo good after sleeping a little rough) and generally explore other areas
- 6 days / 5 nights – you get the full chill experience, get to stay at “The Farm” (which was the best place to stay) and experience the highlight of the trip which was the final day in the Bacuit Archipelago
- If going El Nido to Coron, go for the 3 days / 2 nights. If Coron to El Nido, go for the 6 days / 5 nights
What a surprisingly wonderful experience the Duoro Valley offers! I must admit that, like many others, I hadn’t heard of it before making the trip to Portugal and had mainly thought of the Algarve and Lisbon area when thinking of Portugal. . How wrong I was – the Duoro’s combination of vineyards, steep dramatic slopes and river views is one I can’t think of anywhere else in the world, let alone Portugal. When you add into the mix that there is the more unusual Port wine to sample along with the normal table wine, then you have a real gem of an experience and, in my opinion, the highlight of Portugal
I say this trip is supercharged because it doesn’t leave much time for chilling out. But, if you’re like most of us and only have a limited amount of vacation, then this is a fantastic weekend to weekend trip that takes in the world famous sites of Jerusalem, Petra and Wadi rum; while providing time for some fun experiences like floating in the Dead Sea, scuba diving in the Red Sea, driving through sparse deserts and a party in Tel Aviv
You’ll need energy for these 7 days, but you’ll be rewarded as, in my opinion, its one of the world’s best week long trips in the world
I was hesitating in going in winter as I’d seen low temperatures. Don’t. The winter helped with reduced crowds, not needing to book far ahead and not getting exhausted by the heat. Perfect trip for a week-long winter break
No wonder they filmed The Martian, Star Wars, Dune and Prometheus here – Wadi Rum has an otherworldly feel to it and driving around in 4x4s with the wind in your face watching the sandstone cliffs and red desert pass you by really gives a sci-fi feeling of adventure. Expect to find yourselves regularly stopping to gawp at the latest stunning vista throughout the day
I’m sure there is a bunch of things that can take multiple days up, but we had half a day plus staying over night in one of the Martian tent, and that felt like the right amount of time. Especially as we had time for both the sunset and the stunning first light. A must if in this part of the world
We’ve all seen the famous Treasury building that sits within Petra – yes, the one from Indiana Jones – but the Treasury is only one small piece of a vast network of ancient buildings that sit within a labyrinth of dramatic red stone canyons, and all surrounded by equally dramatic mountains and deserts. To combine a visit to one of the Wonders of the World with an exploration of the broader area makes this a truly unforgettable experience
I’ve written below some tips for how to get the most out of a visit to Petra, but my #1 tip is to get local guide to walk with you from Little Petra through the back entrance of the mountains, via the Monastery, and to the main Treasury / Siq (the famous bit). You won’t be disappointed as the views are world-class and the crowds less keen to stray so far from the Treasury. We visited in winter, which naturally thinned the crowds, but the site is so vast that even in the busy periods you will be able to get away
My girlfriend and I went on a 6month trip around Latin America (excluding Brazil). Started in the far South in the Tierra del Fuego in Argentina and, broadly, made our way up the west coast to the Yucatan Peninsular of Mexico. Best large scale trip I’ve done, and wanted to share the overall itinerary and tips here to hopefully help those who are considering something similar
A few high level points:
- Other than the flights there and the first hotel, there were only three things we booked in advance: the Inca Trail (which we knew we needed to for permits); plus for Patagonia a trip through Torres del Paine National Park and a ferry through the fjords (as we were going at peak season and only a couple of weeks after we landed). Everything else, we booked when in Latin America and, in our opinion, that is the best way to do it – gives you the freedom to relax in the places you find that you love and be super flexible to do what you want to do
- Total costs – my girlfriend and I went in our 30s, with no kids and on sabbaticals from work. We’re not poor, but certainly not mega wealthy. We didn’t stay in super expensive hotels (other than for the occasional splurge), flew economy and used a bit of common sense for timings of certain expensive items, but never held back on doing the things we wanted to do. Some examples of big ticket items: US$5k for a week diving in the remote Wolf & Darwin Islands in the Galapagos; US$1.2k for 4 days in Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia; US$800 for a helicopter trip to see the El Mirador Mayan ruins in the Guatemalan jungle; US$700 for the Inca Trail. Total cost of the whole trip was US$34k each. This included all flights, transport, hotels, activities, food, drink, guides, screwing things up, credit card fees – the lot. Expensive, but so are most Experiences of a Lifetime
- It’s not about trying to “do everything” – in a place as large as Latin America, you couldn’t even if you tried – so don’t think of things as a big tick box exercise. Brazil, for example, we knew we couldn’t do justice whilst also trying to enjoy all the other amazing places we’d heard of, so left it for next time
- In the similar vain, make sure you give yourself big chunks of time to chill out. Not only to recharge the batteries, but also because most places are enjoyed when you spend time to soak up the feel for the place. There were some places . . . like Lake Atitlan in Guatemala, Buenos Aires in Argentina, Isla Mujeres in Mexico, Bocas del Toro in Panama . . . where I could have spent weeks there just because the general vibe of the place was so wonderful
- Safety – we weren’t robbed, but many people do either having a bag stolen or, unpleasantly, get robbed face to face. Other than a couple of cities, we generally felt super safe the places we went and tried to just apply common sense to reduce our risks
- Learn a bit of Spanish before you go – the app DuoLingo was great for getting us to a basic level that made a lot of difference. But also don’t be afraid to pull out google for simultaneous conversation translations to really be able to have a conversation with someone – some long trips became some of our highlights just from being able to properly talk with the driver / locals. I particularly remember a long taxi ride in Colombia where we went back and forward for 2 hours with the driver on everything from his home town to politics to football to his favourite movies to his family problems- never could have done that without Spanish or google. In a similar vein, and using the right level of common sense, don’t turn down an invite for drinks / dinner / house visit with locals. There are some truly unforgettable natural and cultural spots to see, but similarly an evening with a local family will be something likely to be just as unforgettable
- Whenever checking out a place or must-do-site, its easy to get templed / churched / ancient site / beached out. Always do a very basic bit of research to see if there is a more out of the ordinary way to experience it – by bike / drinking tour / kayaking / helicopter / whatever. Thats what we tried to do, and I hope it reflected in some of the cool stuff listed below
This below 9 day itinerary is a good combination of some of the best things about mainland Ecuador – the old town of Quito; stepping back in time to a Lord of the Rings-style adventure around the Quliatoa Loop; a major challenge in summiting Cotopaxi; and getting to meet a range of local people along the way
Obviously, for many people Ecuador is all about the Galapagos Islands (see Island hoping through the main Galapagos Islands and Scuba diving at Wolf and Darwin Islands in the Galapagos for tips on these wonderful experiences). But it also has some world-class experiences to be found on the mainland
If you’re in Ecuador and keen for a challenge that doesn’t need a huge amount of preparation, climbing Cotopaxi is a great option. 1,000m / 3,280ft of elevation to climb up the volcano and glacier; 10 hours mainly in the dark with head torches, crampons, ropes and ice axes; -15˚C / 5˚F; and dealing with the altitude challenges of a volcano that reaches 5897m / 19,347ft. Yep, that’ll do it
Some train for months for this, but if you’re fit, already partially acclimatised and determined, you can do this. You’ll be rewarded (hopefully!) with world-class view across the valleys as far as Quito, an otherworldly experience through the glaciers and crater and, of course, a deserved feeling of accomplishment
There are a bunch of fun things to do when saying for one or two nights in San Pedro de Atacama. In particular, you’ll want to visit the otherworldly Lunar Valley to see those gorgeous changes from reds and yellows to purples and pinks as the sun sets. I’d also highly recommend taking advantage one evening of the best star gazing in the world by visiting one of the observatories
(You also must must must Take a 4WD tour from San Pedro de Atacama to the Bolivian Salt Flats so check out this entry for more details)
But it was San Pedro de Atacama itself that was the highlight for me. It will just feel so different from anywhere you’ve been before that you’ll be kept happily entertained just wandering through the rock hard clay streets with their single floor adobe buildings and seeing the otherworldly red surroundings of volcanoes in the distance, all while appreciating the subtle adaptations the place has to make to survive in what is the driest place in the world (outside of the Poles). If you have the time, its a great place to chill out, sample some of the surprisingly good restaurants and also to learn a bit about the pre-Spanish culture
