Switzerland Tours

Name:
Martin Charlton

EDUCATION:
Bachelor's Degree in Geography; further studies in Archaeology & Anthropology. Life's real education happens outside the classroom.

LANGUAGE:
English and some French & Spanish.

TOURS LED:
Having led tours for Adventures Abroad for almost 25 years, there are few corners of the globe where Martin’s left a stone unturned: everywhere from North Korea to Nauru, Saudi Arabia to Sudan, Guinea-Bissau to French Guiana. With over 200 tours through over 125 countries under his belt, it might be faster to list the regions where he hasn’t led a tour.

FAVOURITE DESTINATION:
"My love of travel and infectious enthusiasm for different cultures has taken me to over 155 countries. The further off the beaten path, the better. For a favourite place: perhaps South Georgia Island, the Canadian Arctic, or Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic. World's best city = Istanbul!"

ABOUT:
"Don't pack anything that you would be upset to lose, that needs to be ironed, or is encased in glass." - words to live by.

Name:
Jonathan Hodgson

EDUCATION:
BA in Psychology at McGill University; MBA at the University of British Columbia; self-educated passion for history and culture.

LANGUAGE:
English; conversational French; improving Spanish and Russian. And a decent Scottish accent.

TOURS LED:
I have led tours in over 100 countries over the last 14 years of working for Adventures Abroad on all of the continents except for Antarctica.

FAVOURITE DESTINATION:
Where to begin? Each place has something that makes it a special destination. A few that spring to mind: Kaieteur Falls in Guyana; the snow-covered mountains of Ladakh, India; sipping tea in a chaikhana of the old town of Bukhara, Uzbekistan; and watching the changing colours of Uluru (Ayers Rock) at sunset.

ABOUT:
Jonathan has lived much of his life dedicated to the idea that he would rather have a wealth of experiences than a wealth of riches. Having taken up a nomadic lifestyle shortly after finishing his undergraduate degree, he has been on the move on and off over the last 25+ years. The wanderlust has taken him to basing himself in places such as Scotland, Australia and Uzbekistan, and to visiting many more locations around our planet. Now (sort of) settled in Vancouver with his wonderful (and patient) family, he still loves the idea of having the world as his office and always enjoys trying to capture the essence of the locations he travels and tours in with his photography.

Name:
Victor Romagnoli

EDUCATION:
HBA English BA History

LANGUAGE:
Being able to speak several languages has made travelling an enriching experience; the conversations one can so easily slip into with locals - who come from all walks of life - adds greatly to my feel for a place.

TOURS LED:
Over a span of almost 30 years, I have lead tours virtually all over the globe.

FAVOURITE DESTINATION:
Some of my favourite tours just come into being suddenly as a result of a request; someone will ask me to put together an itinerary that will include the highlights of several countries and the next thing you know we have, for example, a tour to Uruguay, Paraguay & Bolivia, or Lesotho, Namibia & Botswana. Sometimes I will be asked to arrange a detailed itinerary to just one region within a country - like a close up look at Sicily or Crete or the Basque Country or Newfoundland. Without the keen curiosity that so many of you travellers have, none of these "spontaneous" tours would come into being. But they do.

ABOUT:
I love the excitement of getting up each morning on a tour and not knowing exactly how a day will unfold. It keeps me on my toes so to speak, and adds a breath of excitement to each day on tour. With almost 30 years of tour leading under my belt, I thank all of you for being a part of this exciting journey.

Name:
Chris Tripodi

EDUCATION:
University for Mathematics. College for Music. But the greatest education I've received has come from Earth while travelling. "Don’t tell me how educated you are, tell me how much you have travelled."

LANGUAGE:
I can ask 'Where is the toilet?' in 57 languages.

COUNTRIES VISITED:
80%. I need a new passport every 20 months.

TOURS LED:
West Africa to South Africa, El Salvador to Argentina, Samoa to Seychelles, Portugal to Romania, Jordan to Japan.

FAVOURITE DESTINATION:
Departures hall.

ABOUT:
I travel because it is the most interesting thing I can think of doing between meals. The magic and the challenge of this job is seeing the world itself as the tour with several smaller journeys along the way. I enjoy that time at the end of one trip, before the start of a new one, where the sadness of leaving one place mixes with the excitement of approaching another.

It's hard to imagine such a small, landlocked European country having such a diverse landscape, rich history and charming cities as Switzerland does. From the soaring and jagged peaks of the Alps, the fertile stretches of land in the plains, to the boxy folds of the Jura mountain region. Everywhere in between this spectacular nature, lies charming cobblestone streets with grand buildings and ornate medieval details.

Switzerland tours are best discovered in two ways, by foot or by train. With a reputation for being organized in every way possible from politics to etiquette, train travel is easy on our Switzerland tours. Since the mid 19th century, railways have connected most of Switzerland. The efficient and scenic rail system, includes the cog railway to the top of Jungfrau Mountain, the Glacier Express route from Zermatt to St Moritz which passes over 291 bridges and through 91 tunnels and many more memorable journeys.

On our Switzerland walking tour, we meander through medieval town centres of Lucerne, Zurich and Bern, as well as the top three scenic mountain walks in Switzerland. Stroll the Engadine Valley in the scenic St. Moritz area in the canton of Graubunden, the land of the mountain goat and Heidi's home. Wander at the foot of the impressive Matterhorn, perhaps the most photographed mountain the world. Along the Bernese Alps, stare in wonder at the impressive Eiger Mountain while walking the alpine trails.

Although now known as a politically neutral land since its federal constitution was enshrined in 1848, modern-day Switzerland has historically been divided among various kingdoms throughout the centuries. The Kings of Burgundy as well as the Holy Roman Empire and even Napoleonic France once ruled over Swiss lands. These outside influences created distinct regions within Switzerland's borders, which is now divided into 26 cantons with four official languages. While German, French and Italian are more widely spoken, a tiny canton in the Southwest named Graubunden, has successfully placed Romansch as the fourth official language despite less than 1% speaking the language as a mother tongue.

It is for the respect of traditions and democratic votes that the language law was passed. Mountainside villages still revel in folklore, cowbells still ring on the historical pastures in the alpine valleys, and alpen horns still blast in the air during street festivals year round. Wandering the medieval arcades of cities such as Bern that dates back to 1191, or Zurich's Benedictine abbeys established in AD 853, or reading the writings of Wordsworth to T.S. Eliot on the shores of Lake Geneva, our Switzerland tours make it easy to be transported back in time.

International fame has reached Switzerland in many forms, by being the head office for organizations such as the UN, for producing some of the world's finest chocolate, and housing and displaying some of world'™s finest collections of art and avant-garde architecture. Perhaps for all the elegance and intrigue the cities of Switzerland can offer, it is natural abundance in beauty is that which allures most travellers in. With postcard perfect peaks and vastly inspiring valley views, it is easy to find a reason to keep Switzerland near the top of a must visit list.