A group named The Travel Writers’ Life has posted an article on “Strange Tours,” which you may find amusing/interesting and worthwhile to delve into.
Many of their selections are unusual simply because of the location, i.e. riding a Harley through Australia. We see Harley tours all over the U.S., so, again, location is the key to many of these ideas. Tours through vineyards, growing grounds, plantations, factories, etc. are also held around the world so if your budget keeps you close to home, we’re sure you will be able to find an interesting site within some miles of your home.
If none of the following “speak” to you, pick up Patricia Schultz’s 1,000 Places to See Before You Die (second edition: Completely Revised and Updated with Over 200 New Entries)
Following is a selection of listings from The Travel Writer’s Life, along with our comments and some tours we have taken around the world. (Prices vary, of course, depending on length of the tour, transportation needs, season):
Harvest Tours
Join a harvest tour during prime picking season and learn about agriculture and botany from knowledgable guides on spice plantations, wine growing, tea making, coffee, etc., just about anywhere in the world.
Harley Davidson Motorcycle Winery Tour
www.kaboodle.com/reviews/harley-davidson-motorcycle-winery-tour
This does not seem strange to us; we live in California and frequently see Harley riders cruises between vineyards. We know a group of men who did travel via ship with their motorcycles to various ports. This particular tour is in Australia and that would be stunning.
Chocolate Tours
One of our family favorites: Visit a Chocolate Factory anywhere in the world. Hop on the old town trolley in Boston and tour some historic American chocolate sites, including the first chocolate factory in the U.S., and the origin of Tollhouse cookies and hot fudge sundaes. Or stop by the Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory in San Francisco’s Ghirardelli Square near Fisherman’s Wharf . . . plus you’re near internationally noted seafoods restaurants all along the Wharf. Find chocolate factories in Hobart, Australia; Zurich, Switzerland (including the Lindt Chocolate Shop); try a beer and chocolate tasting tour in Dunedin, New Zealand . . .
C’est Cheese Tours
www.cheesetours.com
From Paris, France through Burgundy and the Cote d’Or to Beaune. Learn all about the history of cheese-making, experience local markets, taste regional wines. Locations: Paris and Burgundy, France
Ethiopia Coffee Harvest Tour
www.adventureassociates.net/adventures/c_coffeeethiopia.html
Enjoy indigenous ceremonies and coffee tasting as you tour coffee farmers’ coops through Ethiopia. You’ll also tour the walled city of Oromia and see and partake in harvesting, washing, drying, and coffee pulping processes.
Chilean Wine Harvest Tour
Over seven days, you’ll participate in harvesting, wine-making, and lots of “taste testing” in seven of Chile’s top wineries. Horseback through orchards, historical sites, visit wine shops of Santiago
Location: From Santiago de Chile through the wine country
www.santiagoadventures.com/Chile_Wine_Tours/Chile_Wine_Harvest.htm
Mystical Tours
Celtic Mystical Journeys
www.celticmysticaljourneys.com/england2007.htm
See crop circles, druid stones, mysterious structures, and more over 12 days through England, Scotland, and Northern France.
Crop Circle Tour in England
www.wellwithin1.com/cropcir.htm
Take a four-day tour through the crop circles of England.
Dark Deeds, Monks, and Great Castles Tour
www.invernesstours.com/s04-dark-deeds-monks-castles.html
In one day, you’ll explore castles, medieval cities, cathedrals, battlefields, Benedictine chants, and tales of the “real” Macbeth in Scotland.
Ghost Tours
Night-time Ghost Tours take you through haunted houses, hotels, and other buildings around the world. Find out who’s haunting them, and see where the haunters were buried. Such tours include creepy stories about abductions, conspiracies, mysteries, etc. Samples:
Voodoo Tour
New Orleans Cemetery and Voodoo Tour
Follow the ghosts of the numerous characters of New Orleans’ mysterious past! Tour one of the city’s most haunted cemeteries, St Louis Cemetery No. 1 and visit the tomb of the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans, Marie Laveau. Your guide will explain the unique above-ground burial custom and will give you an in-depth overview of the fascinating evolution of voodoo.
Bermuda Triangle Shipwreck & Glassbottom Snorkel
www.fantasea.bm/Glassbottom_Sightseeing.htm
Snorkel through the Bermuda Triangle… or cruise through it in glass-bottom boat… and see for yourself the remains of ships in the treacherous “wreck capitol of the Atlantic.” You’ll visit a reef site and a shipwreck, and sip a “Bermuda Rum Swizzle” or a free soft drink on the way home.
Egyptian Meditation Tour
www.sharm-club.com/meditation.htm
Outdoor Experiences
Bering Sea Commercial Crab Fishing Tour
www.cfishadventures.com/?pageid=26
Board a commercial fishing vessel and watch real crab fishermen at work on the Bering Sea from the comfort of a heated viewing platform. See and touch the 17 American Writers & Artists Inc. catch of the day, as it’s held in tanks on the boat, then watch as it’s released back out into the ocean.
Flora, Fauna, and Natural Phenomena Tours
Night Vision Penguin Tour
www.visitmelbourne.com/displayobject.cfm/objectid.00004BD3-6F1E-1D92-
960B80C476A90000/
Phillip Island, Australia, is home to the world’s smallest penguin species, the Little Penguin, or Fairy Penguin. And if you opt for the “Ultimate Penguin Experience” tour, you’ll be able to view the penguins at sunset, and then by night with night vision goggles. Phillip Island, Australia.
Active Volcano Tours
Volcano Tours: Hawaii, Arenal (Costa Rica), Pacaya Volcano (Guatemala)
With tour difficulty levels ranging from easy to “expedition” level, amateur volcanologists, geologists, and nature-lovers alike will enjoy exploring an erupting volcano. You can find daily volcano tours of varying difficulty around the world.
Bat Watching Riverboat Cruise
www.lonestarriverboat.com/tours.html
Float through Austin, Texas, on the Lonestar Riverboat. At sunset, 1.5 million Mexican free-tail bats flap out from under the Congress Avenue Bridge, blackening the sky. Location: Austin, Texas. Similar tours are also available in New Mexico, Central and South America.
Rainforest Canopy Zip Line Tour
Costa Rica features dozens of active adventure tours. Clip into your harness, and glide through the trees of the Costa Rican rainforest by zip-line. There, you’ll see and hear birds and other exotic wildlife of the rainforest while you zip from tree to tree.
Carpet Weaving Tour
www.infohub.com/vacation_packages/6697.html
Visit a nomadic Turkish village with a population of 100 and learn traditional carpet weaving techniques. Experience village life, and spend some time at the beach, too. These are incredible tours. If you have the funds, consider buying a hand-woven Turkish carpet during this visit.
Craft and Folk Art Tours
Generally small group tours organized to buy and practice arts, Craft World and Folk Art Tours are featured in cities around the world from Oaxaca, Mexico, to South Africa to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
Chinatown
Major cities around the world have a wonderful, colorful Chinatown portion of their city. We have been to San Francisco’s Chinatown hundreds of times, but we still enjoy visting Chinatown in New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Vancouver . . . Chinatown is fabulous for picking up small attractive gifts for everyone in the family and not breaking your budget.
Tours and Cruises
Irish Folklore Tour
www.irishfolkloretours.com
Irish musician and folklore professor Mick Moloney takes you on a tour through the back roads of Ireland. You’ll meet artists, artisans, musicians, dancers, storytellers, and more. Choose from different itineraries that’ll take you through days of music and folklore across Ireland and Scotland.
Amsterdam Red Light District
The tour takes you to the area that’s synonymous with Amsterdam, the Wallen (Red Light District), passing monuments and entering narrow old streets such as the well-known Zeedijk street. In the past it was one of the most dangerous streets in Amsterdam, where sailors could be found searching for local amusement. Nowadays, instead of the shady bars of yester year you’ll find lively and welcoming Dutch pubs and restaurants. The walk includes a visit to the Prostitute Information Center, where you will be offered a free drink and can chat with a former prostitute who will explain the system and answer any questions you might have.
The Catacombs of Paris
Paris is known for the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and the Louvre, but in the City of Lights a darker reality lurks in the infamous Catacombs of Paris.
Buy your tickets at a little booth and then descend into the dark, dripping tunnels of the Paris Sewer. Walk on grates as raw sewage runs through the tunnel below your feet. See displays of sewer maintenance equipment, and read about the history of waste control in the French capital city.
Sumo Wrestler Tour
Spend the day touring Tokyo, Edo-Tokyo Museum, and learning about Sumo Cultures. See daily rituals of sumo wrestlers… from what they eat to how they stretch and practice to techniques they use in the ring. In Ryogoku, you’ll also see where the traditional sport of sumo wrestling is presented at the Ryogoku Kokugikan sumo arena, and learn more about this traditional sport at the Sumo Museum. See where sumo wrestlers live and train, and visit the sumo shop for Japanese souvenirs with a difference.
Battlefield Tours
Battlefield Tours have been established for battlefields around the world, some in large groups, others more intimate with personal guides. Normandy, Hong Kong, France, Istanbul, Gallipoli, Germany.
Pirate Tours
Take a pirate tour of Nassau, Portugal, or the French Quarter in New Orleans and hear stories about buried treasure and famous pirates. The New Orleans walking tour includes pirate history and stories about the real pirates of the Caribbean. As you follow your knowledgeable guide through the French Quarter, learn about the famous Lafitte Brothers, French pirates who came to New Orleans in the early 19th century. Visit their blacksmith shop – one of the city’s oldest surviving buildings – as well as other interesting landmarks such as Pirate’s Alley and the site of the Spanish colonial prison where both brothers were jailed.
Shipwreck Tours
Dive to view ship wrecks in locations around the world: Florida, Cayman Islands, Australia, Aruba, South Africa . . .
Water, Water Everywhere . . .
Underwater Tours
Journey under the sea and get a whole panorama of underwater life, often without getting wet in your guided Underwater Tour. Options include glass-encased semi-submersible vessel, snorkel gear, full dive gear . . . you’ll see salmon, starfish, sea cucumbers, moon jellyfish, and, in most tropical waters, exotically colored fish darting between coral reefs. Of course, if you’re near water, you’ll also see bird life around the shore. Locations are just about anywhere in the world. One of our favorites was Roratonga, where we went swimming with bat rays and pink reef sharks.
Cruise Ships
Check out Family Cruises
for a host of “on-the-water” activities for you and your kids. You can find cruises for scrabble players, video gamers, adventurers, Who-Done-It-Cruises, competitions for dancing or costumes, fully-clothed travellers and barely clothed travellers on oceans and seas anywhere in the world. You can bring along your scrapbooking projects or start a new one. Learn to dance from experts and notable performers. Choose from cruises in Alaska, the Bahamas, Mexico, the Caribbean, and other, destinations.