MAXIMUM 18
In case you missed it elsewhere in this issue, from 2017 onward, all of our tours will carry a maximum of 18 participants! Some of our special trips and walking tours might have a smaller maximum complement, but no tour will ever exceed 18.
![Gulfoss waterfall Iceland](https://www.adventures-abroad.com/images/blog/2016/09/gulfoss-waterfall-iceland.jpg)
SUDAN, DJIBOUTI & ETHIOPIA – NEW DATE ADDED
This one is flying off the shelves! For 2017 we will be offering at least three dates for this exciting new trip, including a NEW DATE running 05-21 Jan 2017, tour code SD1.
North Sudan, Djibouti & Ethiopia
SD1 | 17 Days | Details
Departure date: 05 Jan 2017
What A Site: Egypt's Saint Simeon Monastery
With our 30-year anniversary right around the corner, our minds turn nostalgically to our very first tour and one of our favourite sites of all time—Upper Egypt’s Saint Simeon Monastery. Not only is this a unique and fascinating place, the overall experience is further enhanced by our preferred means of accessing it—the venerable ‘Ship of the Desert’—the regal and iconic camel. We are also very pleased to be working with the descendants of the same local family, the Magdis, who have supplied camels to our groups since 1987!
![Saint Simeon Monastery Aswan Egypt](https://www.adventures-abroad.com/images/blog/2016/09/coptic-christian-saint-simeon-monastery-aswan-egypt.jpg)
UPCOMING TOURS
We have some exciting tours coming up, to some of our favourite destinations, including Colombia and Panama, Uganda and Rwanda, Namibia and Botswana, Southern India and Sri Lanka, Italy, and Morocco.
![three toed sloth Panama Central America](https://www.adventures-abroad.com/images/blog/2016/09/three-toed-sloth-panama-central-america.jpg)
COLOMBIA & PANAMA – JANUARY
In the last few years, Colombia has shed it’s former shady reputation, with vast improvements to policing / security and socio-economic conditions and opportunities. These positive changes have enabled us to recently expand our itinerary for this amazingly varied destination, and we have seen a huge bump in travellers’ interest in this unspoiled natural and cultural gem.
MAIN FEATURE – 30th Anniversary!
MAXIMUM GROUP SIZE 18!
As we at Adventures Abroad look forward to 2017, our 31st year of operation, we continue to pride ourselves on our adaptability and the high value we place on the feedback provided by our very special family of travellers. When we launched in 1987, from a home basement office and a 1x1 inch newspaper ad for a tour of Egypt, the concept of small group adventure travel was fresh and exciting.
Tour Leader News
During their Christmas / New Year hiatus, our Tour Leaders had some downtime to consider a series of prying questions about their personal proclivities. In this issue, we feature three of our leaders, simply the best in the business!
![Adventures Abroad tour leader Peter Barathan in Georgia](https://www.adventures-abroad.com/images/blog/2016/03/adventures-abroad-tour-leader-peter-barathan.jpg)
PETER BARATHAN
- What can't you travel without?
I hate to say it but I can't travel without my phone. It's my compass, my camera, my alarm clock, my book, my wallet, my pen and my paper, and anything else I want it to be. Still trying to figure out how to make it my cocktail. - Favourite beach?
Pre-tsunami, I'd say Unawatuna, Sri Lanka, but it hasn't been the same since, so I'll say the beaches of Palawan, Philippines, specifically El Nido beach. - Favourite secret getaway?
Tsoi-Lik Island, Papua New Guinea, a true island paradise. - Favourite food item or cuisine?
Favourite cuisine is easily Malaysian/Singaporean food: Hainanese Chicken Rice, Laksa, Paper Dosa, Char Kway Teow, Satay and Roti Prata. YUM!
WHAT A SITE! The Nubian Pyramids
In northern Sudan we’ll find approximately 255 of what we refer to as the Nubian pyramids, built by the rulers of the Kingdom of Kush. The Kushites have a long history in the area, and struggled with the Egyptians for dominance of the region for hundreds of years.
![Meroe Pyramids Sudan](https://www.adventures-abroad.com/images/blog/2017/03/meroe-pyramids-nubian-sudan.jpg)
These pyramids were built around 800 years after Egypt’s pyramids, and while they’re substantially smaller, it is believed their method of construction and workmanship is similar to those of Ancient Egypt.