Looking for a deal on a tour? How soon can you leave? Senior editor Norie Quintos, the magazine’s resident tour expert, says, “Now is a good time to find bargains on summer tours because some outfitters still have openings for their May and June departures, which typically are not as popular as departures later in the summer.” We queried outfitters from our Tours of a Lifetime list to see what discounts they had to offer, and here is the best of the lot. And check out Norie's other tips on how to stretch your dollar when booking tours.
CLASSIC TOURS
- Micato Safaris—"An extravagant safari with an emphasis on activities for tots and teens," says Traveler's contributing editor Margaret Loftus—has crafted a special offer exclusively for Traveler readers who book the "Family to Family Safari, Kenya and Tanzania" [download brochure] featured in our current Tours of a Lifetime issue. When travelers book the safari before May 30, each child on safari will receive Micato Safaris' children's safari backpack, complete with safari-themed games, wildlife viewing checklists, and African kids' toys. Especially cool, we think, is the fact that kids also have the chance to become pen pals with children living in Kenya before they travel—meaning they can share stories, customs, drawings, and plans for their upcoming adventure. To book the offer, mention code MSNG508. Travel must be completed by December 31, 2009.
- Check out G.A.P. Adventures's specials page for discounts up to 20 percent off a dozen of their global offerings.
- Maris Freighter & Specialty Cruises lists monthly news and special discounts on their website's "News & Specials" link on the left column of the screen. Click on "June 2008," to find the "Along the Americas' Coasts" voyage to South America, which is highlighted in the current issue of Traveler. "This is the cruise for passengers who have the time—and temperament—to sail long voyages," writes Loftus.
Check out Deals on Active and Cultural Tours after the jump.
ACTIVE TOURS
- Adventures Within Reach offers a $50 discount per person on their Kilimanjaro
treks in November and almost half off
their Porini tented camps in Kenya if
booked by May 15. "Not your run-of-the-mill Kilimanjaro trek," says
Loftus, "this ambitious itinerary warms up climbers with a four-day
hike on Mount Meru in Arusha National Park."
- Bio Bio Expeditions Worldwide is running a new campaign for the "Futaleufu River Rafting and Multisport Vacations" as an incentive to get a group signed up their "Fill a raft and go for free" promotion (i.e. sign up a boatload of six paddlers, and the seventh goes for free). Bio Bio Expeditions is encouraging more tourism to the Futaleufu River in an effort to prove the area is a "viable recreational spot worthy of permanent protection against environmental threats."
- Ciclismo Clasico is awarding $250 air credit per person on all published European cycling tours departing in 2008 for those who reserve by May 16. The "diorama of Mediterranean country life" unfolds as you bike its captivating landscape.
- Save $500 per person when you reserve Boundless Journeys’ "Mongolia: Land of the Nomads" tour, held August 24 to September 7, for those who book by July 15. Discounted price: $3,595.
- Join ROW Adventures' Family Magic Rafting trips on Idaho's Salmon River for $100 off the youth rate, or take $100 off their five-day trip on the Owyhee (starting May 19) or their four-day Bruneau River wilderness whitewater rafting trips (departing June 13).
CULTURAL TOURS
- Intrepid Travel has added 11 new Nepal trips, and is offering ten percent off all new Nepal adventures booked by June 30.
- Culture Xplorers is slashing $300 off ($150 per person) their Lake Titicaca extension for the annual Peru Virgen del Carmen departure (featured in Traveler's Tours of a Lifetime issue in 2006) for bookings made before June 1. Additionally, they're offering the same deal—$300 (or $150 per person) discount—for their Mexico City extension for their "Oaxaca Up Close: Living the Day of the Dead" program (featured in the current issue) through June 30. "A spate of civil unrest put Oaxaca on the no-go list in recent years but now that tensions have defused, the annual Day of the Dead celebration promises to be vibrant as ever," Loftus writes.
Photo: Andrew Parkinson/ Lonely Planet Images
Broadreach and Academic Treks, which offer educational summer adventures abroad for teenagers ages 13-19, are currently offering free airfare up to $1000 on a selection of scuba, sailing, marine biology and language immersion programs. College credit is available on several trips. Check out www.gobroadreach.com and www.academictreks.com to learn more. Mention code FA08 when enrolling to receive this promotion.
Posted by: Missy Cook | May 14, 2008 at 02:18 PM