24 JOURNEYS
Searching for Jungle Cats
As the annual flood waters drain and the dry season of Brazil’ s Amazon Basin approaches, the jungle’ s elusive big cats – including the jaguar – come out to hunt, making for an unparallelled wildlife experience. Stretching across the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, as well as parts of Bolivia and Paraguay, the Pantanal flood plains between June and October offer a unique opportunity to see these mesmerizing animals in their natural environment. Specialist tour operator Bespoke Brazil has recently launched a new itinerary called In Search of the Jaguar, a 10-day tailor-made tour to the Pantanal with a focus on searching for jaguars as well as other wildlife. The tour features six nights in the Pantanal as well as several nights in Rio de Janeiro, an essential destination on any first time trip to Brazil. There are also options to extend the itinerary to the Cuiaba River, another favorite haunt of the jaguar. From GBP3,370( US $ 5,100) per person; www. bespokebrazil. com
A Sunburnt Country
Capture the stunning landscapes of South Australia with a new aerial and landscape photography itinerary from Wilpena Pound Resort and its charter airline Air Wilpena. Covering the spectacular Flinders Ranges and Lake Eyre regions of South Australia, the tour is guided by renowned
Australian photographer Peter Elfes, who will lead a small group of between six and 12 guests. The journey includes accommodation at Wilpena Pound Resort as well as walking and 4x4 tours, and a spectacular flight up to Lake Eyre, with an overnight stop at Marree. Each evening, Peter will give photography workshops and personal consultation to help guests perfect their art. Departures are planned for June 4 and October 22,
2013. From AU $ 4,475 per person( US $ 4,647); www. airwilpena. com. au
Ice Island
Without losing its cool, Greenland has become one of Europe’ s hottest destinations and a new collection of ice-bound adventures from Cox & Kings captures the essence of this unique locale. The largest non-continental island in the world, Greenland is also one of the most sparsely populated, consisting of vast swaths of breathtaking wilderness mixed with a glacial coverage of approximately 84 percent of the island’ s landmass. With very few roads, transport is generally via boat or helicopter, with flights offering the opportunity to glimpse the island’ s stunning topography of magnificent mountainscapes, glaciers and spectacular fjords. The two night Ilulissat itinerary searches for icebergs as large as houses and the calving of glaciers with departures from Reykjavik in Iceland. Alternatively, the three night South Greenland in a Nutshell journey visits the southern towns of Qaqortoq and Narsarsuaq with the opportunity to fly by helicopter over the ice sheet. From GBP1,470 per person; www. coxandkings. co. uk www. jetsetter. hk