Discover some of the best new escorted touring product for 2023

| December 23, 2022, 13:38

Inspire your clients with our round-up of new escorted tours and product for 2023

Operators have been busy getting their brochures ready for 2023, and there’s a host of new product to sell – from foodie adventures in Latin America and cultural tours in Pompeii to dog-sledding in Norway and exploring the coast and mountains of Oman. We’ve sought out some of the best options and broken them down by region to help inspire you and your clients for the year ahead.

Europe

Those looking for a short-haul hop are spoilt for choice: G Adventures has introduced 10 closer-to-home itineraries in Italy, Greece, Croatia, Morocco and beyond – including a six-day Hiking Southern Iceland trip taking in the ice caves, canyons, black-sand beaches and waterfalls of the country’s south.

Shearings, meanwhile, has launched 16 coach tours in its 2023 Europe brochure. Among the highlights are a Dutch Bulbfields and Amsterdam tour and an Enchanting Rome, Pompeii and Sorrento by Express Coach trip.

Guests will sled their way through valleys, mountains and glaciers

Leger Holidays’ 14 new itineraries include Paris, Lake Geneva and Lake Garda, while the Behind The Front Lines trip takes guests to the battlefields of Belgium and France, including the Last Post Ceremony in Ypres.

Back in the Nordics, Regent Holidays has two new private tours in Svalbard, including a five-night Dog Sledding Adventure on which guests will sled their way through valleys, mountains and glaciers in the company of an expert.

Accommodation is in trapper-style cabins, where guests will get the chance to get involved in everything from chopping wood for the oven to melting snow for drinking water.

Victoria Falls

North and South America

Over in the US, Trafalgar’s new nine-day National Parks & Native Trails of the Dakotas trip will visit the Native American reservations of Pine Ridge, Rosebud, Standing Rock and Fort Berthold; while Insight Vacations’ Spectacular National Parks of the East Coast itinerary will explore Shenandoah, the Great Smoky Mountains, Mammoth Caves and beyond.

Across the border in Mexico, Newmarket Holidays has added the Mayan Adventure and Caribbean Island tour, which combines ancient Mayan sites such as Chichén Itzá with a stay on the car-free Caribbean island of Holbox, where cerulean waters lap sugar-white sand.

Meanwhile in Peru, Explore is launching a foodie tour that includes pisco-tasting and ceviche-making in Lima, a tour of the ‘picantería’ restaurants in Arequipa, a visit to a potato producer in the Sacred Valley and lunch at a ‘closed-door’ restaurant in a local family’s house.

It’s one of several new gastronomy tours from the operator; others take guests on culinary adventures through Italy, Portugal, Vietnam, Morocco and Georgia.

Middle East and Africa

For a cultural trip that fuses Arabian culture with extraordinary landscapes, look to Wild Frontiers’ new Northern Oman: Wadis, Mountains & Coasts itinerary.

The nine-day tour takes guests from Muscat to the Hajar Mountains via glittering oases, historic forts, traditional villages and colourful markets, with customers spending a night in the Wahiba Sands desert – home to some of the world’s best stargazing.

Clients wanting to get even more adventurous might be swayed by Exodus’s new eight-day Saudi Explorer: Across the Arabian Peninsula trip, which visits the Unesco World Heritage Sites of Hegra, known for its well-preserved Nabataean tombs; Jubbah, which is home to millennia-old rock art; and the historic centre of Jeddah, whose port has been at the centre of trade since the seventh century.

And following on from the success of its safari trips last year, Newmarket Holidays has added the On Safari in Victoria Falls itinerary for 2023, with a range of land and river experiences in Zambezi National Park and along the Zambezi and Chobe rivers.

Camel

Asia

Over in Asia, Cox & Kings has launched the India and Pakistan: Splendours of the Mughal Empire trip to mark 75 years since the creation of the two modern states.

Guests will visit the Mughal capitals of Delhi, Agra, Fatehpur Sikri and Lahore, with highlights including the changing of the guard ceremony on the Attari-Wagah border, a chance to visit Lahore’s Royal Fort and a trip to an artisanal pottery workshop.

But those seeking somewhere truly unique should look to Intrepid Travel’s new 11-day Hike the Trans Bhutan Trail. This ancient, 250-mile pilgrimage route reopened for the first time in 60 years in September, coinciding with the reopening of Bhutan’s border after two-and-a-half years.

Customers can expect forested valleys, remote lakes and centuries-old monasteries for a backdrop as they traverse this mystical Himalayan kingdom, learning more about Bhutanese culture and getting a true taste of this fascinating country on a tour they’ll remember for ever.

Don’t miss

Just You is introducing women-only solo holidays for 2023. The Just Women collection will feature trips to Italy, Spain, Croatia and Greece, including an eight-day Highlights of Tuscany trip and a Walking the Camino de Santiago itinerary for active types seeking a challenge.

Intrepid has added more Premium tours for travellers seeking higher-end, sustainable adventures, while Riviera is introducing ‘Signature’ trips – 40 upgraded itineraries that include up to three enhanced experiences, from flying in a seaplane over Vancouver to making argan oil in Morocco.

Cosmos has launched Independence by Globus, offering city stays and tours that combine the benefits of a local guide with enough solo time for clients to do their own thing.

Best of the rest

Inntravel has launched two winter walking tours: Snowy Bavaria and Slovenia for Non-Skiers. The latter will take customers past lakes, mountains and villages, with activities including a torch-lit stroll by Lake Bohinj and a visit to a cheesemaker.

Direct animal-lovers to Wildlife Worldwide’s new trips, which include a three-night Wild Devon in Summer break and the four-night Shiant’s Spectacular Puffins, where guests will stay on a former fishing vessel, with puffins, minke whales and dolphins for company.

Ramblers has introduced several trips, including Snowshoeing in the Bulgarian Mountains and a 17-night South Island Discovery tour taking in the best of New Zealand – from Milford Sound’s mirror fjords to the icefields of the Franz Josef Glacier.

Sample product

G Adventures’ six-day Hiking Southern Iceland trip starts at £2,099, including some meals, accommodation and transport. Departures from June to September 2023.
gadventures.com

Trafalgar’s nine-day National Parks & Native Trails of the Dakotas trip costs from £2,411, including accommodation, most meals, transport and private UK airport transfers. Departures from May to July 2023.
trafalgar.com

Cox & Kings’ 16-day India and Pakistan: Splendours of the Mughal Empire leads in at £4,295, including flights, excursions and accommodation. Departures in February and November 2023.
coxandkings.co.uk

PICTURES: Zwawol/Dreamstime.com; Shutterstock/Ir Stone, Vadim Petrakov