The biggest question with a bucket-list adventure is not just where, but how. Most of these trips come in two shapes, an expedition cruise or a land trip, and choosing the right one changes everything. Here is how I help clients decide.
The ship is your hotel, and it carries you to places you could not otherwise reach. This is usually the best way to do the Galápagos, Alaska, and Antarctica, where the wildlife and scenery are remote and coastal. You unpack once, wake somewhere new each day, and let expert guides handle the logistics. The trade-offs: a set itinerary, life aboard a ship, and, in places like the Drake Passage, the possibility of rough seas.
Here you move between places on your own itinerary, by car, small plane, train, or on foot. This is the way to do Iceland (the Ring Road), Machu Picchu (trek or train), and an African safari (game-drive lodges). You get more flexibility and a more active, immersive trip, in exchange for more moving parts and more planning.
Many of the best trips combine the two, an Alaska cruise with a Denali land tour, or the Galápagos paired with the Andes and the Amazon. It is often the richest way to go.
It comes down to the destination, your comfort level and mobility, how much flexibility you want, and your time. I match you to the right format and the right ship, lodge, or operator through my trusted partners on the ground, so the how is as good as the where.
The trek, Cusco and the Sacred Valley, the altitude, and doing it on foot or by luxury train.
Read the guide →Expedition cruises vs island hotels, the wildlife and snorkeling, when to go, and how it’s planned.
Read the guide →Cruising the Inside Passage, a Denali land tour, glaciers and wildlife, and the Northern Lights.
Read the guide →