Immerse yourself in Japanese culture and society ● visit major sites and monuments and special places out of the way ● Ryokan and temple stays ● strong culinary aspect - fun and educational cooking class ● travel via famed Bullet Train

Glitzy Riyadh ● Oasis towns ● Beautiful Shammar Mountain region ● Desert landscapes ● fascinating cultural immersion ● Historic forts & Mosques ● spectacular Wadi Al-Disah ● Nabatean ruins at Madain Saleh ● Historic Jeddah

Explore Hanoi's Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Temple of Literature, then climb through Ninh Binh's karst countryside to Hang Mua's panoramic overlook ● Cruise Lan Ha Bay overnight past limestone karsts ● Wander lantern-lit Hoi An and the 1,500-year-old Cham ruins of My Son ● Cruise Hue's Perfume River by sampan to the Imperial City's Forbidden Purple City ● Descend into the Cu Chi tunnels and tour Ho Chi Minh City's Reunification Palace and War Remnants Museum ● Drift through the Mekong Delta's floating markets by boat at dawn

'Imperial cities', Meknes, Fes, Marrakech ● Volubilis, Morocco's only Roman site ● Atlas Mountain vistas and charming villages ● Merzouga dunes - Sahara experience ● Dramatic Todra Gorge ● Relaxed seaside town of Essaouira

Cosmopolitan Yerevan: City tour ● Armenian Christian sites ● Spectacular views of Mt Ararat (weather permitting) ● Tbilisi: City Tour & Mtskhetai, ancient capital ● Travelling the Georgian Military Highway to the high Caucasus ● Legacies: Russian, Arab, Mongol, early Christian and many more!

Rila Monastery's mountain sanctuary ● four days exploring Istanbul's Byzantine and Ottoman heritage ● Georgian supra feast with qvevri wines and polyphonic song ● overland Caucasus journey crossing into Armenia ● Geghard Monastery carved into mountain cliffs ● Khor Virap beneath Mount Ararat's biblical peaks.

Guided Amazon adventure ● Guided colonial Quito tour ● Otavalo Valley-cultural centre ● Famed 'Avenue of Volcanos' ● Overnight at historic hacienda ● Cotopaxi Forest Reserve

Explore ancient Mesopotamia ● Visit the legendary city of Babylon ● Discover the awe-inspiring Ziggurat of Ur ● Wander through Baghdad's historic streets ● Visit the sacred city of Najaf ● Uncover UNESCO sites and Iraq's pivotal role in shaping world history.

Bucharest: "The Little Paris of the East" ● The "painted monasteries" of Bucovina ● Bran Castle, mythical home of Dracula ● Famous Valley of the Roses ● Unsurpassed frescoes of Rila Monastery ● Sofia: City tour