Wanderlust in the Time of Coronavirus (A GeoEx eBook)

Wanderlust in the Time of Coronavirus

When Can We Travel Again?

Galápagos, and Peru. “You should book now,” Natalie advised, “especially if you want to go to Costa Rica in the spring, or the Galápagos or Peru in the summer. Believe it or not, space is getting scarce.” Bhutan is another destination where availability may be tight, Natalie noted. “The top properties here are quite small, and this limited supply means that the best places fill up quickly. The good news is that most of GeoEx’s Bhutan group trips for spring 2021—and for fall 2020—still have space.” Managing Director of Global Sales Linda de la Torre added, “Antarctica also is becoming limited for certain peak dates in 2021. And Cuba should be booked soon, since the season there is very short, only running from December–April.” Tina Liadis, Director of Global Sales, provided an Asia round-up: “Japan is booking up fast, especially the always popular spring cherry blossom season. Mongolia is challenging for the prime festival season in July, and Borneo is difficult because of the limited availability of the best wilderness lodges. Otherwise, we are keeping in close contact with our in-country partners and so far have been able to make bookings for our most popular destinations, including Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia. For our Southern Pakistan trips, the December 2020 departure is full and the January 2021 departure has just 2 spaces left; our other Pakistan departures, including our three Hunza Valley group trips, still have secured space.” Edwin d’Haens, Managing Director of Group Departures, added, “We’re also finding that Botswana, Morocco, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia are all drawing considerable interest for 2021 travel.” Finally, Sabrina Middleton, GeoEx’s Director of Client Services and expert on the polar regions, broke down the availabilities on our Arctic and Antarctic expeditions: “The Arctic is proving very popular,” she said. “The June North Pole

trip is sold out for Premium and Suite categories but does have some availability in standard cabins. The April Svalbard and August Greenland and the Canadian High Arctic trips both still have some cabins available. For Antarctica, there’s space available on January–March and November–December cruises. And the popular fly-over-the-Drake trips have very limited availability in January–February and December.” She paused and then added, with a wistful wonder in her voice, “Late December is when the baby penguin chicks begin to hatch! It’s unforgettable!” Already Dreaming of Japan In 2021, I know that I’ll be back in Japan in the spring leading three GeoEx trips to Kyoto and Shikoku. Just thinking about this makes my pulse quicken and my soul soar. The cherry trees will blossom again, the steaming onsens will still warm my bones, and the mountain mists will still transform the Iya Valley into sumi-e ink-and-brush scenes. The vast world in all its wonder awaits! And I think we will explore it with even more reverence, appreciation, attentiveness, and gratitude when we are able to wander widely again. I love being able to communicate with you this way—but I love even more the prospect of meeting you on the road! Let’s keep dreaming and planning! GeoEx’s experts are ready to connect with you—and to make your wanderlust dreams come true!

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