For me, 2020 is a bit of a write off for travel. As you may have seen, I’ve had the pleasure of exploring all kinds of local walks and various parts of the UK so far this year. Thankfully I even visited Spain back in February and i’m so glad I did! Not so sure what’s in store for the rest of the year though. So this has me in a planning mood.

What next?

Well, I need your help actually. I’d like to plan something epic. With all the cancellations occurring, this is leaving me with unused annual leave, refunds and a desire to go somewhere adventurous when this is all done with. I’d love to go somewhere I’ve never been before and definitely outside of Europe.

I’ll likely end up travelling solo because it’s a struggle to find somebody able to come with me whether it be for financial reasons or work issues. So I want your recommendations on good group tour providers!

I’ve previously travelled with G Adventures, Intro Travel and Wanderlands Travel and i’m looking for a similar style trip. These group trips are a fantastic way of meeting new people and you get to enjoy the experience, culture and sights whilst having someone to share it with.

It is likely not going to be until September 2021 that I take this trip. This gives me time to save, plan and HOPEFULLY for the virus to be well on it’s way.

So with that in mind, I do have a few destinations that I’ve been contemplating and a couple of tours I’ve come across whilst researching. If anyone has any experience of these places or companies, i’d love to hear about it!
China – Top of my list for years. Always been fascinated with Chinese culture and there are so many things I want to see here. I’d also love to head over to Hong Kong, Chengdu and Shanghai.
Peru – I want to walk the Inca Trail. With my fascination with hiking and history I think this would be a rewarding challenge for me. I was originally going to do this in September of this year but I couldn’t get the time off work. Now that I have it, even if coronavirus goes away, I can’t get my passport renewed in time! It expires in December and I believe you need 6 months left to venture out of Europe. Please let me know if this is incorrect.
Japan – So many reasons for me wanting to visit Japan. I want to see all the pop culture, video games, Pokemon, cherry blossoms, temples, Mount Fuji and Hiroshima. I’d originally planned years ago to head here for my 30th but with it being the Olympics, I figured it would be super busy so i’d postpone it. Now it looks like the Olympics have been postponed but now isn’t the time to visit anyway!

Whilst I’ve travelled with G Adventures before and the trip was well organised and I met amazing people, I wouldn’t travel with them again. There was so many hidden costs in comparison to other companies I’ve travelled with before. I spent way more money than I would normally in Asia and I found myself frustrated at the situations we kept finding ourselves in with money to fork out left, right and centre. Therefore i’d love recommendations of tours with companies that are perhaps a little less known.

So far I’ve stumbled upon the following tour operators that look interesting:

The Bucket List Company – Look’s good for Peru. Have you come across this company before?

The Dragon Trip – There is a Japan tour on here that I would kill to do but I want to take my boyfriend with me so i’m still debating this one. Anyone ever travelled with them?

Anyone recommend an operator for China? I want a tour that covers Beijing and Chengdu if possible.

And that is basically where my head is at the moment. Itching to go on a new adventure! So where will it be?