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Travel Deal of the Day, Part Two – August 24, 2012
Enjoy the Travel Deal of the Day, PART TWO! Brought to you by The Student Globe Trotter!
Happy travels!
Moroccan Excursion + Flight – Elite Tour and Travel Club (trading as Encounters Travel) Source: LivingSocial
Lights, Camera, Action in Scene-Stealing Morocco
Encounters Travel • Marrakech, Morocco
Escape Kit
- A Ten-Day Moroccan Excursion for One Guest Based on Double Occupancy ($2,170, $2,276, or $2,397 Based on Departure Date)*
- Round-Trip International Flights from JFK International Airport to Marrakech International Airport
- All Hotel Accommodations Indicated on Itinerary
- Eight Breakfasts and Eight Dinners
- All Transport and Transfers Including 4WD Desert Jeep Safari and 24-Hour Airport Arrival-and-Departure Services
- Local English-Speaking Tour Guides
- Entrance Fees to Select Monuments, Parks, and Sites
- Departure Dates: November 23 and December 7, 2012, January 4, January 18, February 15, and March 8, 2013 ($2,170); March 15, 2013 ($2,276); or December 21, 2012 ($2,397)
You’ve admired the beauty of Morocco through the iconic lenses of film’s greatest directors and cinematographers. Get ready to start rolling your own camera with this week’s Escape from Encounters Travel. You’ll star in a ten-day guided excursion (length of trip includes flight time) for one person based on double occupancy from Marrakech through the stunning Atlas Mountains and Sahara Desert ($2,170, $2,276, or $2,397 based on departure date).*
Lights, camera, action on a package that includes round-trip flights between JFK and Marrakech international airports and an exciting itinerary that provides for all hotel accommodations, eight breakfasts and eight dinners, all transports and transfers including a 4WD desert jeep safari and 24-hour airport arrival-and-departure services, English-speaking tour guides, and entrance fees to all stated monuments and attractions.
After your first evening in Marrakech, move your set on-location to the iconic Koutoubia Mosque and spend the afternoon exploring the bustling streets surrounding Jemaa el Fna Square.
Drive past the paths of acting legends with a tour through the highest pass of North Africa at Mount Toubkal. Take an epic tour of the dramatic landscape of Ouarzazate where iconic Academy Award-winning films were shot. Then experience star-quality treatment during an overnight in Ouarzazate at the Hotel Kenzi Azghor.
Later, cross-cut fairy-tale chic with wild wonderment with a jaunt along the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs before arriving in Boulmane followed by romps amid natural wonders like the Dades Canyon, boasting incredible desert views that fade into the distance outside your Saghro Hotel window.
Far from the city lights, you’ll want to maximize your stargazing potential with a night spent in a traditional Berber camp after a day touring Todra Gorge. Ride through the desert in your 4WD safari jeep, and if you wish, for a truly authentic experience take a camel ride at sunset for an additional fee.
Continue to add sparkle to your sojourn by venturing into Rissani––the birthplace of the Alaouite Dynasty and Morocco’s current royal family—before topping off your visit with a stay in the Palais Asmaa Hotel.
After circling back to Marrakech through the Draa Valley and bounding over the Tizi N’tichka col, capture a final free day in Marrakech, where you’ll hunt for souvenirs in the city’s bustling bazaars, take an aerial shot of your surroundings on a spectacular hot air balloon flight, or bond with your castmates on a quad-bike ride through the desert.
Cut and print: With an epic Escape like this, you’ll have a highlight reel of life-changing moments to watch again and again for years to come.
For additional information, view the Encounters Travel full itinerary.
*Departure dates: November 23 and December 7, 2012, January 4, January 18, February 15, and March 8, 2013 ($2,170); March 15, 2013 ($2,276); or December 21, 2012 ($2,397)
Travel Deal of the Day, Part One – August 17, 2012
Enjoy the Travel Deal of the Day, PART ONE! Brought to you by The Student Globe Trotter! More deals to come!
Happy travels!
Waterfront Stay and Vineyard Tour with Airfare – Cape Town, South Africa Source: Groupon
Greater Cape Town: Wine Country and the Atlantic Beaches
Nine-Day, Seven-Night Cape Town Waterfront and Vineyard Package from Aquila Private Game Reserve with Roundtrip Airfare, Most Meals, and Tours (Link to Company Website)
What You Get
Nine-day, seven-night South African vineyard and safari tour with airfare. Travel with a Friend package (two Groupons required).
- Option 1: $3,468, 8/28–9/10 departures (a $6,699 value)
- Option 2: $2,799, 9/11–10/31 departures (a $6,499 value)
- Option 3: $2,999, 11/1–11/26 departures (a $6,613 value)
- Option 4: $3,513, 11/27–12/10 departures (a $6,813 value)
- Option 5: $4,041, 12/11–12/31 departures (a $7,113 value)
Book by: for 8/28-9/10 departures book by 8/27/12 or two weeks prior to departure (whichever comes first), for 9/11-10/31 departures book by 10/12/12 or two weeks prior to departure (whichever comes first), and for all over departure dates book by 10/12/12.
Included in all options:
- Round-trip airfare from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) to Cape Town International Airport (CPT)
- Accommodations
- Guides
- Most meals
- Ground transportation
- Two 4×4 jeep safari tours
- Two horseback-riding safaris
- Wine tour and tasting
South Africa embodies diversity in every sense of the word: though English is now South Africa’s most widely spoken language, the government recognizes 11 official languages, and there are scores of additional dialects linked to sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Asia. Over the course of a short drive, you might pass through wildly disparate landscapes reminiscent of Basque wine country, the Australian outback, and the Rocky Mountains. Great white sharks stalk prey near the shores and giraffes graze on its savannas.
The region surrounding Cape Town captures this diversity in particular, and it’s the setting for this seven-night adventure. View the full itinerary here.
Day 1: Arrival
You’ll depart from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), stop briefly in Johannesburg, and continue onto Cape Town International Airport (CPT).
Days 2–4: Waterfront Village – Cape Town
The Waterfront Village is situated amid the scenic V&A Waterfront Marina in the heart of Cape Town, right at the base of Table Mountain. You can take a dip in the hotel’s swimming pools, or venture out to explore the nearby waterways, which are lined with restaurants and shops. You’ll stay in a one-bedroom apartment and, each morning, dine on an included breakfast at the nearby One and Only Hotel.
Days 5–6: Aquila Private Game Reserve
Aquila Private Game Reserve, located about two hours from Cape Town, encompasses 7 square miles of southern Karoo Highlands. It’s covered with dramatic peaks, valleys, and a menagerie of big game. On a stop here, you will get to see lions, elephants, giraffes, and many more species during game drives; you’ll also travel by horseback and four-by-four safaris.
The standard luxury chalets here feature thatched roofs, wood interiors, and natural-stone accents. Chalets stand close to the main house, which has two large swimming pools, a cigar bar and lounge, and a buffet-style dining area, where you’ll enjoy three included meals per day.
Days 7–8: Spier Hotel – Stellenbosch
Spier Hotel sits in the heart of Stellenbosch, South Africa’s famed wine region just outside Cape Town. Spier Winery produces an array of award-winning wines, including pinotage, South Africa’s signature varietal. The hotel and winery value sustainability; they have recycled-wood furniture in the tasting room and a magnificent chandelier made from 334 recycled Spier wine bottles.
Contemporary South African art can hangs from the walls in both the standard rooms and the farm-to-table fine-dining restaurant, where you’ll partake in the included daily lunch.
Day 9: Departure
In the morning, you’ll be transported back to CPT. After a brief pit stop in Johannesburg, it’s onward to IAD.
Read the Fine Print for important info on travel dates and other restrictions.
Travel Photo – August 14, 2012
Lake Volta – Ghana by jrozwado on Flickr.
Travel Deal of the Day – August 14, 2012
Travel Deal of the Day, brought to you by The Student Globe Trotter!
Enjoy and happy travels!
8-Day Kenyan Safari + Flights Source: LivingSocial
Savanna Safari Through Captivating Kenya
Gate 1 Travel • Nairobi, Kenya
Escape Kit
- An Eight-Day Kenyan Safari ($2,299 to $2,699 per Person Depending on Departure Date) Including:
- Round-Trip Flights from New York City to Nairobi
- Round-Trip Ground Transportation via Safari Van Driven by English-Speaking Guide
- Five Nights of Three- and Four-Star, Double-Occupancy Accommodations with Five Breakfasts, Three Lunches, and Three Dinners
- Airline Taxes, Fuel Surcharges, and National Park Fees Included
Considering the diverse geography and enchanting people, it’s no wonder that Kenya became a top travel destination—but the country’s awe-inspiring wildlife is what really draws visitors in droves. If you’re on the hunt for the safari of a lifetime, this week’s Escape is a natural fit.
Take off on an eight-day journey through Kenya ($2,299 to $2,699 per person depending on departure date*), courtesy of Gate 1 Travel. The package includes round-trip flights from New York City to Nairobi as well as round-trip ground transportation in a safari van driven by an English-speaking guide. You’ll spend five nights in three- and four-star, double-occupancy accommodations** and receive five breakfasts, three lunches, and three dinners along the way. Also covered are airline taxes, fuel surcharges, and national park fees.
After your overnight flight, arrive in Nairobi and transfer to the Jacaranda Hotel. The following morning, you’ll join the herd (a maximum of 24 people in four vans) and head out into the Great Rift Valley en route to your camp at the Malewa Wildlife Lodge. The lodge is set in the heart of the Kigio Wildlife Conservancy, which supports a transplanted population of nearly 30 endangered Rothschild’s giraffes.
You’ll spend the afternoon on a game drive through the 3,500-acre park—also home to buffalo, gazelles, hyenas, and hippos—before visiting a native community to learn traditional basket-weaving techniques. Round out the day with a guided nature walk, and get schooled on wildlife tracking and medicinal plants.
In store for day four is the legendary Masai Mara National Reserve in southwestern Kenya, where you’ll spend two nights at the Keerokok Lodge. Each year from July through October, millions of wildebeest and other hoofed mammals cross these perilous grasslands on The Great Migration.
“Classic Kenya, archetypal Africa. It includes a world-famous savanna teeming with predators and prey,” says National Geographic. “In residence are lions, cheetahs, elephants, antelopes, black rhinos, and other supporting-cast animals.”
Though outnumbered, the big cats are the true monarchs of the Maasai Mara, fittingly called the Kingdom of Lions. Other than a short break to graze on lunch back at the lodge, you’ll spend all of day five on the prowl for the “big five” with game drives through the stunning savanna. Return to camp that evening and bask in the beauty of the sun setting over the African horizon.
Make your way back to Nairobi on day six to spend an afternoon at the Karen Blixen Museum and Giraffe Center, where you’ll feed the animals and learn about conservation efforts before spending the evening at leisure. The following day, transfer to the airport for your flight home.
Nairobi may be the cultural capital, but the savanna is where you’ll find the pride of Kenya. Get out on the grasslands with this week’s unforgettable Escape.
For additional information, view the Gate 1 Travel full itinerary.
*Departure dates: January 18, March 15, and May 31 ($2,299 per person); February 15 and 22, April 12, and May 3 ($2,399); May 17 ($2,499); and June 7 ($2,699)
**Prices based on double occupancy. For single-occupancy travel, pay an additional $500 upon booking.
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