Food Worldwide Adventures
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FOOD WORLDWIDE ADVENTURES 2018 ASIA / INDIA & SRI LANKA / EUROPE / THE MIDDLE EAST & MOROCCO / THE AMERICAS Welcome To the Intrepid way of travel One of the perks of working at Intrepid is, of course, the travel. I’m often asked to help choose just one trip from the one thousand that we offer, and while I try not to play favourites I have to admit I’ve got a soft spot for our Real Food Adventures. There’s something great about discovering a culture through its local cuisine, whether that might be eating banh mi by the road in Hanoi or sitting down for dinner with a Bedouin family in Morocco. I’ve met many incredible people in my travels and it never ceases to amaze me how something as simple as sharing a meal can really bring us together. I believe we have a responsibility as one of the world’s largest providers of adventure travel experiences to give back to the places we visit and the locals we meet. That’s why our commitment to responsible travel is so important to me. It goes without saying that by eating in local restaurants, buying things from street-side sellers and using local guides, our trips help support local economies and many of our itineraries incorporate visits to community projects. We’re always looking for ways to improve, from carbon offsetting our trips and putting a stop to orphanage visits to simply recycling around the office. It’s crucial that we all play our part in making this a better world. True to form we’re straying a little ‘off-menu’ in 2018. Some of the new trips we’re most excited about include a pair of culinary journeys through Iran and Jordan, a second serve of our wildly popular South Korea food adventure (who can resist that crispy fried chicken?), a well-seasoned tasting trip through southern India and a farmstay at a far-flung coffee plantation in Peru. In the past year I’ve been lucky enough to eat my way across northern Spain and Portugal, learning about proper Catalan cooking in Barcelona, sampling some world-class wines in the Douro Valley and getting away from the office for a peaceful farm stay in the Alentejo region. I’m looking forward to showing family and friends the new cooking skills I’ve picked up, and maybe even wowing them with a Basque feast. I hope you find plenty of mouth-watering inspiration in these pages and enjoy your next food adventure with us. James Thornton CEO Real life food experiences These are real-world experiences with a foodie twist: one part culture, one part adventure and three parts delicious. From bite-sized trips to gastronomic odysseys, we’ll get you munching, crunching, sipping and slurping just like the locals. Our Real Food Adventures abound with cooking classes, guided tours and insider info, so you can count on returning home with more than just memories. 2 North America Why Intrepid? Eat, stay and live local We design our trips from the ground up, which means using an experienced local leader and – wherever possible – small, locally run accommodation. The best bit? You’re getting an authentic experience while also contributing to the local economy. Just the right balance We’ve made sure our food trips provide free time between activities, allowing you to digest a destination either with your group or on your own. We’ve also left plenty of mealtimes free of organised activities, giving you flexibility to explore on your own. Travel made easy We’ll deal with the logistics of travel – organising itineraries, transport and accommodation – so you can focus on the fun stuff. Why spend hours agonising over every detail of your trip when you can leave it to the experts? Small groups... An average group size of 10 We take small-group travel literally. Numbers will vary depending on where and how you’re travelling, but the average size of a tour is about ten people. We’ve found this is the perfect number to make new friends, without feeling like just another face in the crowd. Fewer people means greater mobility Travelling in small groups means a better experience. Leaders can accommodate individual tastes and special interests, can take requests and suggestions, and the group can be spontaneous. You don’t have to have pre-booked meals or order off set menus. You might spend a morning on a guided tour of a local market before cooking a delicious local dish with your group for lunch before heading off on your own, confident your leader will be there every step of the way with suggestions and recommendations. Food Worlwide Adventures 3 The original Intrepid style Look out for these symbols Much like a secret family recipe, we believe some traditions are well worth keeping. That’s why we travel in our Original style on each of our Real Food Adventure trips. PHYSICAL RATING Heres’ everything you need to know about our favourite travel style. Each of our trips has a physical rating, so you can tell how physically exerting a trip is and how fit you’ll need to be to enjoy it. As a guide: Easy and relaxing Bring your walking shoes An average level of fitness required Action packed, physically demanding Full-on active adventure Original for the more agile traveller These are our classic small group adventures and the foundation for the whole Intrepid range. We call these trips Original because they are the same style of trip as the first ones we led way back in the ‘80s (you don’t mess with a winning formula). Our Original style trips are built from local know-how and have an off-the- beaten-track vibe. Our passengers love them because they’re the opposite of the typical big bus group tour: think small, fun and adventurous. Check out our best-selling trips. INCLUSIONS Each trip comes packed with an expert local leader to show you the way, some meals and a balance between included activities and classic ‘you’ time These itineraries also run in for exploring. Your trip leader can help arrange optional extras on the road and the opposite direction. make sure you’re getting exactly what you want out of your trip. ACCOMMODATION Where we stay ensures we provide our travellers with unique local experiences A combination of two or while also benefiting the community too. In most locations we stay in simple more of our adventures. tourist-class hotels, plus on many trips you’ll also get to experience something a little different, like a homestay at a far-flung coffee plantation in Peru. TRANSPORT Exciting new additions to our current range of itineraries. We use all manner of transport, including a mixture of local and private options. You might find yourself jumping on a tuk tuk in Thailand or riding a camel in Morocco. No matter the mode, it’s all about minimising our environmental impact and making getting around part of the adventure. 4 Food Worlwide Adventures What makes a Real Food Adventure? They say great minds travel alike. If you want to eat at mouth- watering street food stalls, cook up a storm with regional chefs, and buy the freshest ingredients from souqs, markets and everywhere in between, chances are you’re not alone. A passionate and knowledgeable food leader Cooking classes and demonstrations Street food tours Home-cooked meals and authentic local restaurants Visits to artisan producers and vibrant food markets Beverage tasting: from mezcal to Malbec Plenty of included meals Travelling with like-minded food enthusiasts All of the activities and attractions of a regular Intrepid trip Meet our local leaders Our local leaders know their regions better than anyone. Whether it’s helping you order off the menu in Hanoi or introducing you to the best masala in Madurai, they’re enthusiastic purveyors of grassroots experiences and your connection to the local community. Massimo Mabilia, Italy Soon Hombuayai, Thailand “Massimo was incredible - he actually made “Soon’s enthusiasm throughout the trip ensured the trip. He was organized, well-versed and we were always excited for our next destination. communicated thoroughly with the group. She was ready with jokes, local insights and great He gave us options and let us make the tour recommendations in each location we visited. our own without making us feel like we were I cannot say enough thank you’s to Soon!!” on a tight timeline.” ~ Ashleigh Whelan, Thailand Real Food Adventure ~ Pamela Delanuez, Italy Real Food Adventure Food Worlwide Adventures 5 Responsible travel The world’s an amazing place and we do what we can to keep it that way. Travel should benefit the places it touches, and we’ve made a commitment to be a responsible business and live this promise every single day. This is why we were the first travel company to ban elephant riding on our tours and why we’re leading the way on child protection initiatives, such as ending orphanage visits. We’re also doing our bit for the environment by offsetting the carbon produced on each of our trips, and making our offices carbon neutral. It’s all part of our commitment to building a brighter, more sustainable future. THE INTREPID FOUNDATION Responsible travel is a big reason we do the things we do. It’s why, way back in 2002, we set up The Intrepid Foundation. Its purpose was pretty simple: to empower travellers to make a difference and to help communities in the places we visit. Since it began, we’ve raised over AUD 5 m for 53 grassroots projects in 25 countries around the world, covering 100 per cent of the administrative costs and doubling your donation, dollar for dollar*.