Explore’s new Discovery & Wildlife programme for 2020 has four new itineraries, featuring the Silk Road, Iceland, Lebanon and El Salvador.
The 22-day Five Stans of the Silk Road tour features Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
It visits the Unesco-list city of Khiva and the ‘Door to Hell’ – a natural gas cavern that has been burning since 1971.
Prices start from £4,645 including flights, accommodation, some meals and an Explore leader.
Guests on the Highlights of El Salvador holiday can travel with a local biologist to monitor hawksbill turtle, meet the ex-guerrilla community of La Cinquera and visit the ancient site of Joya de Ceren, known as Central America’s Pompeii.
The 20-day tour costs from £1,990 including flights, transfers, B&B accommodation and an Explore leader.
Explore’s Highlights of Lebanon trip starts with a walking tour of Beirut and includes an overnight stay in the grounds of a working monastery in the Qadisha Valley, plus trips to the Roman ruins at Baalbek and 12th century castle at Byblos.
The eight-day holiday cost from £1,599 including flights, transfers, B&B accommodation and an Explore leader.
The Iceland Yurt Adventure features accommodation in a private collection of yurts and includes visits three waterfalls – Skogafoss, Seljalandsfoss and Gullfoss.
The four-day holiday costs from £945, including flights, transfers, B&B accommodation and an Explore leader.
Joe Ponte, Explore managing director said: “Today’s travellers are looking for authentic experiences over fly-and-flop holidays and they’re becoming more adventurous in the destinations they’re choosing to go to, from the Middle East to lesser-travelled Europe.
“We’re seeing huge interest in experiential travel across the board, and our new Discovery and Wildlife programme has been tailored to fit the needs of these travellers and their growing thirst for adventure.”