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Sustainable travel companies

“Voluntourism” has gotten kind of a bad rap.

The idea of going on vacation and doing something for the community you visit is full of good intentions. But in some places, it’s turned into a rather problematic industry. At its most innocuous, it’s little more than a pop-in pencils dropoff to a local school or an hour-long litter patrol. At its most harmful, it can be an exploitative parading out of “in-need” children for an Instagram post. In any case, these don’t do much to help the area once you leave. But for those who want to guarantee that their trip is leaving a legacy of service behind, several ethical travel companies exist to help you fulfill that intention. Here are five companies that will help you travel with a purpose.

1. Andeana Hats

Photo: Laura Grier/Beautiful Day Photography

Any old milliner can sell you a hat made by indigenous women in Peru online. Okay, maybe not anybody, but Andeana Hats, which sells such hats in the Nat Geo catalog and other places, goes a step further, taking a group of women deep into the heart of Peru’s Sacred Valley this fall.

“We want people to respect the origin of their product,” said Andeana co-founder Laura Grier. “It’s a lot of education and hands-on activities that show you where your products come from.”

Those activities include visits to the women of the Quechua community, whose crafts have become so lucrative the men in the village have quit their jobs to become homemakers. The tours give the women an additional source of income beyond weaving, as they make money from weaving classes, homestays, and other cultural experiences, furthering their self-sufficiency.

Other highlights include dinner on a floating restaurant in the Amazon and education in the indigenous plants that go into Glossy Paradise, Andeana’s sister company of skincare products. And yes, your trip includes a bag of those, as well as a nifty hat.

2. Kin Travel

Photo: Kin Travel

Kin founder Brian Jones discovered how going on a safari could be a mold for natural conservation and community improvement. So he developed Kin Travel to curate “journeys” which aim to do both in fascinating destinations. The company’s profits are reinvested in social enterprise organizations in each destination, meaning the money you spend continues to help long after you’ve left.

Experiences include a beach safari to Haiti, where you’ll stay on a 150-acre tent camp on a private beach cove near Labadie. The trip includes visits to mountain villages only reachable by foot, and the proceeds go to help local artisans and sanitation solutions. You can also join a winter safari to Jackson Hole, where you’ll track wolves, bison, bighorn sheep, and elk through Grand Teton National Park. All while staying in a funky seven-room lodge and focusing on ways to close the income gap in one of America’s most economically disproportionate communities. And of course, there’s a safari in Kenya with Cottar’s 1920s Camp, where proceeds benefit beekeeping and schools for girls, among other conservation efforts.

3. Journey

Photo: Journey – Travel With Purpose/Facebook

Journey does not stop believin’ in your ability to do good while you travel. Eschewing the traditional model of group trips, Journey crafts six-to-nine day individual itineraries based on your schedule, incorporating a couple of days of what it calls “sustainable impact” work, following it with a few days of cultural immersion.

Your sustainable impact experience will have you sweating and getting dirty to help improve local conditions, doing everything from building skate parks to helping improve local schools. Journey works with a couple of other nonprofits to achieve these goals: Glasswing to help create infrastructure like parks and public spaces, and Techo to build housing for people living in unsafe conditions.

During the cultural immersion section, you’ll travel to a seldom-seen part of your destination, whether it’s up in the mountains or deep in the jungle to visit remote communities. You’ll do yoga, take workshops from locals in everything from cooking to art, and participate in conversations about how to maximize your impact after the trip is over.

4. Lokal

Photo: Lokal/Facebook

Scouring the Internet looking for sustainable vacations can be exhausting. It’s likely how you came upon this article, actually. Lokal takes the work out of it for you, providing a sort of catalog of do-good travel experiences, curated through local guides, their network of travelers, and the staff’s personal experiences.

Lokal has trips literally all over the world, like a weaving excursion through the Andes, where the local tour operator works to empower local women through their craft and connect them to an international audience. Or traveling through Rwanda with a local NGO that works to address gender violence. And a Costa Rican coffee adventure where you’ll tour and patronize sustainable, organic coffee growers while glamping in the Santos Forest Reserve. Wherever you want to go, Lokal’s main page has a handy world map that’ll help you find a trip where you can help make your destination a better place.

5. Ker & Downey

Photo: Ker & Downey

The stereotype of the jet-setting billionaire flying private to Africa, sleeping in Egyptian cotton sheets after eating gourmet meals in the savannah, and leaving nothing but a nice tip for the guide is highly inaccurate. Or so says Ker & Downey, an ultra-luxury travel company that specializes in trips through Africa that allow its elite clientele to make a difference.

“When you take the time to understand why it is that people seek out the corners of the earth that they do, you find that travel isn’t just about comfortable pillows and fine silverware,” said CEO Lee Kelsall. “People travel to find themselves, to push their boundaries and to create memories that last.”

For most people, a 10-day private jet safari would probably qualify as a “memory that lasts.” But just in case it might get lost in the recesses of wealthy people’s brains, Ker & Downey’s latest offering — which flies its guests in private jets, dipping in on game reserves in South Africa then out to the Seychelles — also gives back. A substantial part of each trip is a donation to the Singita Community Culinary School, where in addition to learning how to cook delicious local meals, you’ll help people forge a career in the culinary arts.


More like this: 7 sustainable volunteer trips you can actually take the family on

The post 5 awesome tour companies that are actually giving back to the community appeared first on Matador Network.

Woman bikes Europe for charity

There’s more to green travel than foregoing single-use plastics. Lauren Pears, a travel blogger from the UK, is showing the world what one can do to take eco-travel to the next level. This extremely passionate and ambitious traveler is biking from London to Istanbul to raise funds for the World Wildlife Fund, as well as awareness for sustainable tourism. Pears began her 1,900-mile journey across Europe on May 22, and estimates that it will take three months to complete.

On her JustGiving page, she explained, “I want to challenge myself with cycling from London to Istanbul — a whopping 3000 kilometres [1,900 miles] — to raise money for the WWF. Cycling has little to no impact on the environment, so I’m hoping my journey will inspire others to travel more ethically, too.”

Photo: Lauren’s Travel Diary/Facebook

Her father accompanied her for the first 10 days of the trip, though she has been cycling completely solo since he left on June 1. She has already cycled from outside London across France and through Switzerland and Germany.

Follow her journey by checking out her blog, Lauren’s Travel Diary, and her Facebook page, which she regularly updates with stories and images. She has already raised over $560 for the World Wildlife Fund, and you can contribute to her cause via her fundraising page.


More like this: 7 US cities that are best explored by bike

The post Woman bikes from London to Istanbul to raise money for wildlife appeared first on Matador Network.

Five rhinos released from zoos

Five eastern black rhinos have made the long journey from captivity in Europe to Akagera National Park in Rwanda. The historic 3,700-mile journey was made in an attempt to increase the rhino population in East Africa. Less than 5,000 wild black rhinos and 1,000 eastern black rhinos remain in Africa due to poaching, and it’s hoped that introducing these five young rhinos into the ecosystem will help boost those numbers.

In the early hours of this morning 5 eastern black #rhinos; Manny, Jasiri, Jasmina, Mandela and Olmoti, landed in #Kigali, Rwanda, and were offloaded onto trucks ready for the last stretch of their journey to from European zoos to #Akagera. #RhinosToRwanda pic.twitter.com/uc220hxvaw

— Akagera (@AkageraPark) 24 juin 2019

The rhinos were born and spent their first few years in zoos in Europe. Jasiri, Jasmina, and Manny were born in Dvur Kralove in Czech Republic, Olmoti comes from Flamingo Land in the United Kingdom, and Mandela is from Ree Park Safari in Denmark. The translocation of these five eastern black rhinos is a beautiful example of collaboration between zoos and conservation organizations to contribute to the health of an endangered species.

At first, Manny, Jasiri, Jasmina, Mandela, and Olmoti will be kept in enclosures made by wooden pokes, then transferred to larger enclosures, and finally released into the northern part of the national park. As they grow accustomed to their new environment, the rhinos will be studied and their progress carefully monitored.

In 2017, 18 eastern black rhinos were successfully translocated from South Africa to Akagera National Park.


More like this: 10 endangered animals to see (and save) before they’re gone

The post Five endangered eastern black rhinos held captive in European zoos released to Rwanda appeared first on Matador Network.

Humor in Philadelphia

We love a good joke here in Philadelphia. When you catch us laughing, keep in mind that we’re probably not laughing with you, but laughing at you, likely for one of these eight things that only people from Philly find funny and that out-of-towners never get.

1. Watching tourists run up the steps of the Art Museum in the middle of summer

Rocky did it and the ‘gram loves a good reenactment. But in 102-degree weather, it’s just plain ridiculous. Get yourself out of the sun and to a water ice stand like the rest of the decent folk around here.

2. People talking about how much they love Philly hip-hop and then asking where Beanie Sigel is from

Philly has produced some of the world’s best rap artists, and yet, somehow, people never seem to know that Philly rappers are from here until we proudly tell them. It’s okay to like rappers and not know where they’re from, but then maybe don’t act like a know-it-all. We will call you out on it…after having a good laugh, of course.

3. The view from the sidewalk of someone biking down a cobblestone street

The same goes for skateboards and segways. Trying to navigate a small vehicle down an uneven surface is no easy task, but by all means, keep giving it a go. It’s ideal for our viewing pleasure.

4. Listening to a first-timer order a cheesesteak

It’s a painful yet entertaining experience to watch someone try to navigate through a cheesesteak order who’s never before had the pleasure. If it’s your first time, order one “wiz wit,” and watch, as if by magic, the fine fellow behind the counter produces a steak layered in cheez whiz and onions. Or, just keep trying to describe it to them and see how long it takes.

5. Our reputation for being rude, self-absorbed, drunks

We’re not going to argue whether or not this is true — we’ve got nothing to prove, we know who we are. Still, it’s always a good laugh to really get into it with someone who has been personally offended by members of our Philadelphia community.

6. The “dogs come first” way of life

Try to tell a Philly dog owner where they can and cannot take their pups and you’re in for a real treat. There is no greater threat to a Philadelphian than those who try to limit their dog’s freedom. Lucky you if you happen to be perched at a sidewalk table in full view of a pet-related argument while it is happening.

7. People feeling weird about saying that they’re going to the gayborhood

They’re not sure if they’re being offensive or if it is just another cheap Philly trick to try to get you to look like a jerk. Fair, one never can tell, but in this case, there’s no need to whisper that you’re looking for a good place to eat in the gayborhood. That’s what it’s actually called. In fact, it’s rude that you’re being weird about it.


More like this: How to confuse someone from Philly

The post The 7 things only people from Philadelphia find funny appeared first on Matador Network.

Sign you began drinking as bartender

Besides Mad Men-era Madison Avenue, there are few places where drinking on the job is as encouraged as the service industry. You might start out as a lightweight at your first server gig, but by the time you leave that job, you’ll be a professional drinker. Here are six telltale signs that you learned to drink in hospitality.

1. You can take a shot, no chaser.

Chasers are for amateurs. You can still grimace as the tequila passes your lips (we’re not psychopaths), but those of us who learned to drink in hospitality never need lime and salt. It’s a matter of practicality more than pride. When you’re sneaking shots mid-shift, you need to be as inconspicuous as possible. A wedge of citrus or an extra glass of soda can be a dead giveaway. And after a while, you forget you ever needed to chase a shot.

2. You appreciate corny cocktails like everyone else.

Cosmopolitans, Miami Vices, cocktails that are bright blue — there is a time and place for them all. Bartenders are not really liquor snobs — while knowledge does make you a more discerning consumer, it’s still fun to party.

3. You know how to pace yourself.

Hospitality professionals know drinking is a marathon, not a sprint. It is about maintaining the buzz, not launching into warp speed by lunch, especially at weddings. Use your experience to educate others on the pleasure of the slow burn.

4. You adapt your drink order to your surroundings.

There is a certain type of person who prides themselves on having a signature drink. Whether it’s dry gin martinis, pints of Guinness, or vodka sodas with three lemons, as soon as they walk in the bar, the bartender knows what to pour them. But if you learned to drink in the service industry, you’re most likely not the predictable kind. Beverage and food pairings exist for a reason — they elevate a meal. It’d be a shame to miss out on a bold red wine with a steak or a bottle of beer with some spicy tacos.

5. You don’t blame it on the tequila.

It’s never the booze’s fault. If you don’t drink tequila because of the power hour of Cuervo shots you had during your sophomore year, it’s time to rethink your drinking habits. Maybe you should forgive tequila and try sipping a nice reposado on a summer night. In hospitality, you learn that it is not what you drink, but how you drink it that really affects the body.

6. You take care of your drinking buddies.

If you’re a drinker, you must accept that we all misjudge our tolerance and end up being vulnerable (and sometimes ridiculous) at some point during our drinking career. Restaurant friends never leave a buddy behind. We will put you in a cab; we will text you the next day. We take care of each other because you never know when you’ll be the one who needs to be taken care of.


More like this: 7 habits that are hard to shake when you leave bartending

The post 6 signs you learned to drink behind the bar appeared first on Matador Network.

How to hike the Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Moher is Ireland’s top tourist attraction, drawing nearly 1.5 million tourists in 2017. But while the majority of visitors take in these stunning bluffs overlooking the wild waters of the North Atlantic in one of two common ways, there is a third, less traveled route you can take. This hike is the highlight of the Wild Atlantic Way and among the most stunningly beautiful natural excursions in all of Europe.

The vast majority of visitors arrive by car at the visitor’s center. Most park there, explore the coast and take pictures, maybe wandering up the trail for a quarter mile or so in either direction, before hopping in the car and moving on. Of those who do opt to hike the Cliffs of Moher trail, most of them park at Doolin and hike south, reaching the visitor’s center and hopping the bus back to Doolin. Your hack to avoid sharing the trail with them, and spend as little time as possible with the tour bus crowd, is to start from Liscannor and hike north. Whether you opt to turn back at the visitor’s center or proceed all the way to Doolin, you’ll be rewarded with stunning views and fewer people. Here are the details.

How to hike Ireland’s top tourist attraction

Photo: kovop58/Shutterstock

The Cliffs of Moher are a section of the Irish coastline that, at their highest point near the visitor’s center, rise 700 feet above the Atlantic Ocean. The cliffs themselves run for about nine miles, though the full hike from one side to the other runs just over 11 miles from Doolin to Liscannor.

Ireland is famously green, and the emerald hue stretches right up to the cliff line, where it gives way to dark rock formations that drop down to the sea. You can hear the waves down below, but don’t be fooled. You are very high up, and falling is not an option. The trail is well-maintained and clear, and you can make it from one end to the other in about five hours if in decent physical condition.

Pack a lunch, bring plenty of water, and wear hiking boots or, at the very least, closed-toed athletic shoes with good grip. The soft, often damp trail is largely flat but does require stepping over some rocks and the occasional slight incline or descent.

The hardest part about the hike is staying focused on where you’re going. Staring at the winding cliff band is an enticing distraction. Add in the occasional cow or horse approaching a fence along the trailside, the humid air and scent of open green fields, not to mention the subtle crashing of waves into the cliffs — and the entirety of your senses is caught up in an exciting but almost overwhelming feeling of acute awareness. You are literally living on the edge.

Part of this is driven by the fact that the Irish don’t tend to follow the US approach to cautious boundary keeping, even when bordered by deadly cliffs. The trail at multiple points runs within a few feet of the edge, and there is no boundary of any kind. Keep a hold of yourself, or you might go tumbling over the side.

Stage one: Hags Head to the visitor’s center

Distance: four miles

Photo: Tyler W. Stipp/Shutterstock

Arrive at the Hags Head trailhead early, preferably before 9:00 AM to give yourself enough time to complete the hike, have a picnic on the rocks, and get back to your car before the sun goes down or your clothes are entirely soaked through with mist — as tends to happen over the course of an active Irish afternoon. Hags Head itself is a beautiful rock formation protruding from the isle into the Atlantic. The best approach is to park at the Kilconnel Car Park, just south of Hags Head. You can also park at the Community Sports Field in Liscannor, but it takes longer to get to the trailhead.

The parking lot here is privately operated and not really advertised. Since most people park at the visitor’s center, it can be easier to find a spot here, but the lot can be tough to find. Follow signs to Hags Head from the town of Liscannor. Before passing the site, look for signs to Car Park. On Google Maps, there is a site for the park called Cliffs of Moher Liscannor Walk, which will lead you to a point just southeast of the Moher Fort Site Telegraph Station. It’s located up a dirt road less than a mile south of the trailhead, adjacent to a private home — presumably the owners of the lot. They ask for a fee of €2 (about $2.25), payable by depositing cash into a receptacle in the parking lot. Once you’ve paid, follow the path up the hill and through a gate to the Cliffs of Moher trailhead. You’ll pass O’Brien’s Tower, an old lookout tower built in the 1830s that looks straight out of a Monty Python film.

In summer, you’re likely to encounter a handful of other hikers on the trail between Hags Head and the visitor’s center, about six miles away. Outside of summer, you’ll pass a few people but will largely be hiking in solitude. Allow two hours to reach the visitor’s center, where you can tour the exhibit and walk down to the coast for a quick lunch.

The Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre has a quick exhibit to walk through, though it tends to be crowded and is closed on public holidays. There’s also a cafe to grab a bite to eat. You can walk a quick trail down to the shore to look up at the cliffs, an excellent way to provide some contrast in your photos.

Visitor’s center to Doolin

Distance: seven miles

Photo: Ocskay Bence/Shutterstock

You can call it good at the visitor’s center and hop the bus down back to Hag’s Head. Or, head another two-and-a-half hours north to Doolin, using the visitor’s center as the almost-halfway point. You have about seven miles to go across similar terrain. The main difference in this leg of the trek is that the trail curves around several small, peninsula-like protrusions along the coast, providing open views back towards the visitor’s center and even further down the coast. You’ll pass by farmland and are likely to see cows and horses.

This leg of the hike takes about three hours. At points, the trail is grass-covered but still easy enough to follow as you’re just walking along or right near the cliff line the entire time. The best way to get back to your starting point is to ride the shuttle bus, which circles between Doolin, the visitor’s center, and Hags Head. It operates a car park in Doolin, but you can join the bus from Doolin and take it south to Hags Head. Both Liscannor and Doolin have hotels and pubs if you opt to stay the night. Driving back to Dublin takes about three hours; Limerick is an hour.


More like this: The 12 best things to do on a road trip around Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way

The post The complete guide to hiking the Cliffs Of Moher appeared first on Matador Network.

The best road trips in Iceland

Iceland’s meteoric rise to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world makes it essential to find new and unique ways to explore the island nation, and nothing allows for more options than road-tripping. Whether you’ve got three days, a week, or two weeks, exploring by car is an incredible way to see the country — from stunning waterfalls and black-sand beaches to glacier-capped volcanoes and seaside villages. Here’s how to get started.

Driving in Iceland

Photo: Lab Photo/Shutterstock

Many visitors stick to the capital city Reykjavik and its neighboring attractions because they believe Iceland is difficult to navigate by car. Actually, it’s extremely well-suited for road travel. Not only does Iceland take great care of its roads, but also not that many people live there, which makes uncrowded driving the norm.

For those on a budget, the upfront cost of a car — starting at US$300 a week, with more for an SUV — can seem like a lot. Yet given that free camping is ubiquitous in Iceland, it can actually be the most inexpensive way of seeing the notoriously pricey country. Plus, as a relatively small landmass, circumnavigation takes only a few days on the famed Ring Road, otherwise known as Iceland’s Route 1.

Driving in Iceland is similar to the US, with some notable exceptions. Most important to keep in mind is the weather, which “changes every five minutes” according to souvenir t-shirts sold in Reykjavik. The t-shirt is correct, and you may find yourself squinting through sleet or snow only to be frantically digging around for sunglasses a moment later. Even quick bouts of rain can change road conditions, so it’s important to stay vigilant, use common sense, and respect the local landscape by not driving around gates or marked signs. And though Iceland does maintain a highly skilled team of search and rescue volunteers in case of emergency, tourists driving where they shouldn’t put a strain on this resource.

Photo: Arsenie Krasnevsky/Shutterstock

One local driving tip that most tourists miss is how Icelanders pass each other. Most roads have one lane going each direction, meaning passing takes you into the oncoming lane. Icelanders signal to the cars behind them that it’s safe to pass by putting on their right-turn indicator. Of course sometimes they are actually just turning right, but because of the extended distances between towns and turn-offs, it’s pretty easy to tell what’s being signaled.

Gas station pumps are typically open 24 hours, and all of them sell pylsur, Iceland’s famous hot dogs (get them with fried onions). Another common roadside sight is hitchhikers, so don’t be alarmed if you spot someone thumbing a ride.

No matter how long you’re staying, or which way you’re going, flying in and out of the Reykjavík–Keflavík Airport is a given. This is the best place to rent a car, which is useful for stopping at the Blue Lagoon hot springs between the airport and Reykjavik; just be sure to reserve your spot well in advance.

Best three-day road trip: the Golden Circle and southern Iceland

Photo: Andrew Mayovskyy/Shutterstock

This is the most heavily trafficked region of Iceland, prized for its natural wonders and proximity to Reykjavik. Don’t expect to see anything that hasn’t been heavily photographed already, but do appreciate that these sites are popular for good reason.

Day one

The Golden Circle refers to a 300-kilometer, or 190-mile, route that goes through Iceland’s most popular natural destinations: Geysir Geothermal Area, Gullfoss Waterfall, and Þingvellir National Park, which is where this journey begins. Head to Route 36 from Route 1 and you’ll be there shortly.

Iceland’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site, Þingvellir — also spelled, and pronounced, Thingvellir — dates back to 930 CE. Meaning “fields of Parliament,” the area is where authorities from throughout Iceland convened once a year. Besides its historical value, this park is also where visitors can see the mid-Atlantic rift where two tectonic plates are pulling apart. It’s possible to SCUBA in the rift, which makes for a great photo op.

Photo: Puripat Lertpunyaroj/Shutterstock

The next stop is Geysir, the name of the largest geyser in the area and the origin of the word. While Geysir geyser is not very active today, a few steps away, the Strokkur geyser reliably shoots water 20 feet into the air every five to 10 minutes. Despite the popularity of this site, there’s not a lot besides the actual geysers, so be sure to keep an eye out for signs letting you know where you are.

In as much time as it takes for Strokkur to recharge, you can drive to Gullfoss, which translates to Golden Falls. This stunning two-tiered waterfall is beautiful from above, where the car park is, but it’s worth it to take the stairs down to feel the power of this iconic waterfall.

Day two

Photo: Guitar photographer/Shutterstock

Keeping along Route 1 — the Ring Road — you will arrive to Seljalandsfoss, a waterfall that can be fully encircled. Walk behind the majestic spray for a great photo op, which you may also find at Skógafoss, the next waterfall on the agenda. In between these two beauties, keep an eye out for Eyjafjallajökull on the left. This is the volcano that erupted in 2010 and prevented air travel over the Atlantic.

If you’ve had enough of driving to waterfalls, try hiking a bit of the Fimmvörðuháls trail, which takes 12 hours to tackle the entire thing. The whole thing features 26 waterfalls, Eyjafjallajökull, and Katla, a volcano that, if it erupts, will have far more devastating consequences than its neighbor.

Local tip: If you have time this day, and it’s summer, stop by the Ghost Museum in Stokkseyri for a real treat.

Day three

Photo: Andrew Mayovskyy/Shutterstock

Head to the Reynisfjara shore near the coastal village of Vik. This is where Iceland’s most famous black-sand beach resides. Being a volcanic island, there are numerous black-sand beaches, but this is the most trafficked. Game of Thrones fans will want to head to the nearby Höfðabrekkuheiði hiking area, where the Fist of the First Men was filmed. Stop by Skaftafell National Park for another beautiful waterfall, Svartifoss, with its trademark stone columns, or pop into an ice cave.

Finish exploring Southern Iceland by walking around or boating on Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon. Here you can witness the glacier calving and those icebergs heading out to see. Their color is unlike any other ice you’ve seen. Spring and summertime visitors should take note of the Arctic Terns nesting here and be careful not to step on their ground nests by sticking to the designated path. Not only is it cruel, but the parents will aggressively attack potential threats to their babies.

Best one-week road trip: the Ring Road

Photo: Nido Huebl/Shutterstock

A week in Iceland allows for many more options, including driving the entirety of the Ring Road. This will be ideal for travelers that want to see the best sights Iceland has to offer while still exploring off the beaten track. Road-trippers can choose to begin their journey by going north or south, but this guide will take the former route.

Day one

Head North along Route 1, during which you will drive through a long tunnel underneath Hvalfjörður and pass through a toll which costs 1000 ISK, or $8. When you reach Borgarnes, be sure to look out for Geirabakarí, which was turned into a Papa John’s for Ben Stiller’s movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Once in Borgarnes, turn onto Route 54 towards the Snæfellsnes peninsula, the most famous sight of which is the monumental Snæfelljökull.

This double whammy of a volcano topped by a glacier is within a national park and has had quite an impact on the world. Readers of Jules Verne’s novel Journey To The Center Of The Earth may recognize this area as the setting of the book. Spend the day exploring the park before heading to nearby Stykkishólmur for a good night’s rest.

Day two

Today involves over five hours of driving up to Iceland’s capital of the North, Akureyri, though if it’s summer, there’s no need to fret about losing daylight. Even so, you’ll want to leave early enough to pause at anything that catches your eye during the ride and get as much time in Akureyri as possible.

Day three

Photo: canadastock/Shutterstock

Take the morning to explore this underappreciated town. The downtown area is fairly walkable, with cute shops, art museums, and darling restaurants to sample. Local fare exclusive to this town is a MacGratsky burger, which is a regular cheeseburger with fries inside of it. This is sold at Nætursalan located downtown right next to the main bus stop. Akureyri is also home to the world’s northernmost Domino’s Pizza.

Continue along the Ring Road to Egilsstaðir, stopping at Mývatn, or “Mosquito Water,” along the way. It’s better than the name suggests. With mud pools, craters, and an overall moon-like feel, it’s easy to see why US astronauts did their training here before going to the actual moon. Check out the lake, which is inside a volcanic crater, and Dimmuborgir, a name which may be familiar to fans of heavy metal. Make sure to look for the Cave of the Yule Lads. There is a lot to see around here, so leave as much time as possible.

Finish the day at Egilsstaðir, which officially brings you into East Iceland, the least-visited region of the country.

Day four

From Egilsstaðir, continue on at a leisurely pace to Hofn. During this drive you’ll be encompassed by mountains on one side and the sea on the other, and it’s truly breathtaking. Upon approaching Hofn, the Vatnajökull glacier will appear on your right, and there are plenty of related activities to be had there. Winter is an especially spectacular time to visit as you can explore the ice caves. Alternatively, late June sees the mouth-watering Lobster Festival.

Days five-seven

Follow the three-day itinerary but in reverse to enjoy Jokulsarlon, the Golden Circle, and the rest of Southern Iceland’s best sights.

Best two-week road trip: the Ring Road and the Westfjords

Photo: Alexey Stiop/Shutterstock

Two weeks driving around Iceland is still not enough time to see everything, but it’s more than most take to explore this wonderful country. When traveling in winter, road conditions can slow traveling time, so it’s better to err on the side of two weeks when planning to visit that season.

The Ring Road component of this itinerary is taken from the one week option, with the addition of touring the Westfjords, another very underrated part of the country. Because it’s not along Route 1, and can take several hours to get to its largest town, many tourists skip it. Plus, it requires either a high level of driving skill and/or a car that can survive long gravel roads and circuitous mountain routes. (Author’s note: I did this in a 20-year-old VW Polo and it was fine.)

Day one

Head from Reykjavik to Snaefellsnes, following the footsteps of the One Week itinerary. Spend the night here before heading into the Westfjords.

Day two

Enjoy the sightseeing on the way to the tiny town of Reykholar. You’ll get here by taking Route 55 to 54 to 60. Búðardalur is a nice place to stop during the three-hour drive. There’s not a wealth of activities in this town, but the views are stunning, and it’s a great entry point to the Westfjords, which feel very distinct from the rest of the country. And if you’re lucky, you might spot the elusive white-tailed eagle, which makes the Westfjords its home.

Day three

Photo: Blue Planet Studio/Shutterstock

Another three-hour drive brings you to a shining jewel of Iceland: the Latrabjarg bird cliffs. This cliffside colony of seabirds, particularly Atlantic puffins, is teeming with life so unaccustomed to humans that they don’t easily flee, making capturing photos here a cinch. However, be careful when seeking birds here as the edges of the cliff are not at all stable and shouldn’t be walked on. It’s best to army crawl close to the cliff edges (not at them, of course) to distribute weight more and lower the risk of tumbling. It’s a long fall.

Continue on to Patreksfjörður, which will take a little over an hour. Come back the way you came on Route 612 before popping over to 62. Here the public pool is a popular spot, and the town itself is lovely for walking around.

Day four

Photo: snapshopped/Shutterstock

This is going to be one of the most spectacular days of the Westfjords segment of the two week road trip. The goal is to get to Isafjörður, the largest city in the region with just over 2,500 residents, but there’s a lot to see along the way. On a map it looks like a huge distance, but without stopping the drive would only take three hours.

Take Route 63 until the first stop, which is the village of Bíldudalur, home of the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum. On the outskirts of town, be sure to keep an eye out for road signs warning drivers of such monsters. The museum is like many Icelandic museums in that it’s expertly crafted and informative.

Next up is Dynjandi, the grand waterfall of the Westfjords. To reach it, head North on Route 60 from 63. Stop here and hike up to the base of the falls — it’s higher up than it seems. The view over the fjord is stunning, especially when the sun is shining on the water. If it’s not, “just wait five minutes for the weather to change” as Icelanders like to say.

Continue on to the final destination of the day, Isafjörður, the capital of the Westfjords. You’ll spend the night and the next day here exploring nearby attractions.

Day five

Photo: Robin Runck/Shutterstock

There’s plenty to do around Isafjörður. Only 15 minutes outside of town is the Arctic Fox Centre, where they sometimes have rescued foxes being prepped for release. Check out guides to the city for more information on what to do while there. If it’s especially clear out, try to spot Greenland to the West.

Day six

Before heading out of the Westfjords, take a day trip to Hornstrandir, a nature reserve with no development on it. The feeling of remoteness is remarkable, and arctic foxes are generally pretty easy to spot.

Day seven

Today is a long day of driving — it takes seven hours to drive to Akureyri via Route 61to 68, which brings you back to Route 1, the Ring Road. Hólmavík makes for a nice stop, with the Museum of Icelandic Witchcraft and Sorcery being the main attraction.

Day eight

Take a day in Akureyri to enjoy Iceland’s second-most populated city. Refer to the One Week itinerary for more detail on what to do, and consult guides to select activities.

Day nine

Photo: nomadkate/Shutterstock

Continue along the Ring Road to Myvatn, which has numerous attractions to explore. It only takes an hour to get here from Akureyri, so make use of the extra time to see everything this unique area has going on.

Day 10

Two hours on the Ring Road will bring you to Egilsstaðir and the Eastfjords, a truly underexplored region of Iceland. There are numerous waterfalls to check out in the area, as well as cultural experiences unique to the East.

Day 11

From Egilsstaðir, continue on at a leisurely pace to Hofn. During this drive you’ll be encompassed by mountains on one side and the sea on the other, and it’s truly breathtaking. Upon approaching Hofn, the Vatnajökull glacier will appear on your right, and there are plenty of related activities to be had there — as noted above.

Days 12-14

On your final three days of this two week road trip through everything Iceland has to offer, check back with the itinerary for the Golden Circle and Southern Iceland.


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Where to Instagram in Vegas

Between the Bellagio fountains, the replica Eiffel Tower, and the faux Venice canals, Las Vegas is an Instagrammer’s paradise — in addition to the iconic “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign and the Elvises on every corner happy to snap a selfie with you for a few bucks. There are so many other wonderfully weird spots that might as well have been designed just for social media. If you’re at the top of your ‘gram game, get deep into the city that locals know and love to see and snap: the lesser-known side of fabulous Las Vegas. These are the most photo-worthy spots in Vegas off the strip.

1. The Neon Museum

Photo: Rosemarie Mosteller/Shutterstock

The Neon Museum is hardly what you could call “off radar” at this point — it’s probably one of the most Instagrammed locations in Las Vegas, on or off the Strip, for good reason. The “Neon Boneyard” is one of the most eerily beautiful locations in Vegas, a collection of restored old neon signs salvaged from the hotels, motels, restaurants, and other shuttered locations that have their place in Sin City history. At dusk, the dramatic natural desert lighting in combination with the backdrop of these vintage signs makes for the most amazing pictures, which is why you’re almost always guaranteed to see a wedding party or fashion shoot happening here.

2. Downtown Las Vegas murals

Photo: Kobby Dagan/Shutterstock

Massive murals that covered whole sides of buildings were already seen around downtown Las Vegas before the Life Is Beautiful music and art festival first launched in 2013, but since then, they have exploded — public art is a huge component of the festival, and each year more than a dozen new murals appear around downtown as a result of the international street artists the festival brings in. Artists like Banksy, Shepard Fairey, D*Face, and more have left their mark, and as a result, downtown Las Vegas is basically a massive outdoor art gallery.

3. Lyft Art Park

Photo: Fremont Street Experience/Facebook

Just to the east of the Fremont Street Experience’s LED canopy is Fremont East, aka the area where the locals hang out when they go downtown. What used to be an empty parking lot right next to the popular restaurant and bar Park on Fremont is now the Lyft Art Park — a park of large sculpture and installations (like a three-story Victorian house art car you can climb into and explore) sponsored by Lyft.

4. The porte-cochère at the Plaza Hotel

Photo: Caron Badkin/Shutterstock

The Plaza Hotel marks the western edge of Fremont Street, and its entrance is appropriately glitzy for those coming fresh off Fremont. The circular porte-cochère looks like a thousand paparazzi flashbulbs all going off simultaneously. For even more camera-ready glam, head up to Oscar’s inside the glass dome perched above the porte-cochère, one of the most beautiful dining rooms in Vegas (and that’s a high bar) with the absolute best view of the Fremont Street Experience.

5. Selfie room at Corduroy

Photo: Corduroy/Facebook

The East Fremont bar Corduroy knows its audience, which is why there is a whole dedicated selfie room called “The Lightbox” inside with perfect photo lighting for you and your friends to stage the perfect Vegas-night-out selfie. (There are actually several highly Instagrammable corners inside Corduroy — again, they know their audience.)

6. New showgirl signs on Las Vegas Boulevard

Photo: Fremont Street Experience

Everyone gets a photo of the famous “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign on the south side of the Strip, but just last year, the City of Las Vegas introduced a brand-new sign featuring images of Vegas’s iconic showgirls at the “gateway to downtown,” the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Main Street. These are so new most people don’t even know they’re there yet, so get that ‘gram up soon.

7. Abbey Road Crossing

Photo: Abbey Road Crossing Las Vegas/Facebook

Right in front of the historic El Cortez Hotel is a replica of the rainbow-colored Abbey Road Crossing in London, made famous by the Beatles on the cover of their 1969 Abbey Road album. Most people miss it walking by, but with the neon lights of the El Cortez in the background, this is a spot that just begs to be photographed.

8. “Big Rig Jig” in the Fergusons courtyard

Photo: Jason Ogulnik/Shutterstock

Head a little further down East Fremont towards Atomic Liquors and keep an eye open for this crazy sculpture originally created for Burning Man. The structure looks like a semi-truck upended and twisted all around on top of itself. It’s located in the courtyard of the historic old Fergusons Motel, which is currently undergoing renovations as a market square, so it’s actually easy to miss despite its size and bizarreness.

9. Peter Pan Motel sign

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While the Peter Pan Motel remains vacant, the sign is still an iconic piece of old Las Vegas. Slowly but surely, some of downtown Las Vegas’ old motels have been getting renovated and reopening as affordable options for the scenester sets, so we can hold out hope that this motel and its glorious sign will see new life yet.

10. Fremont Street East

Photo: Sean Pavone/Shutterstock

Fremont East is experiencing a revival much like other parts of downtown like the Arts District. The welcome sign here is arguably more photogenic than anything on the strip, with the added bonus of actually signifying something born and bred in Vegas instead of New York, Venice, or Hollywood.

11. A Little White Wedding Chapel

Photo: littlenySTOCK/Shutterstock

You can’t go to downtown Las Vegas without peeping at one of the many storied and historic wedding chapels. Las Vegas is the wedding capital of the world, after all. There are several such wedding chapels located on Las Vegas Boulevard, and they all have their own, um, eccentric points of interest, but only A Little White Wedding Chapel has the “Tunnel of Love,” a drive-through wedding “tunnel” where couples can say their nuptials in the chapel’s own pink Cadillac with Elvis officiating. You’ll definitely want a photo of the tunnel’s faux Sistine-ish ceiling.


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Nova Scotia's official Chowder Trail

Nothing brings together the culture and seascapes of Nova Scotia, Canada, like a steaming bowl of seafood chowder. And thanks to Canada’s official Chowder Trail, road-trippers have a guide to taste 58 of Nova Scotia’s best bowls.

For centuries, fishermen have braved frigid North Atlantic waters to harvest a bounty of oysters, lobster, halibut, salmon, and the famous sweet Digby scallops — all of which feature in the province’s cuisine. Seafood is baked into the culture of the peninsula. Nova Scotia itself is even shaped like a lobster claw. Coincidence? Eating chowder here is like eating a piece of the culture, and it’s a culture you want to have more than just a taste of.

The Chowder Trail started in 2016 and takes curious eaters down the coastline of the peninsula and past some of the oldest and most-photographed lighthouses in the Americas. While the views are great, it’s the famous seafood served up nearby that eaters really need to take the path for.

What you got, put in the pot

Photo: Evan’s Fresh Seafoods & Restaurant/Facebook

Chowders date back to the earliest days of European settlement in the area. Before chowder became a culinary staple, it was a humble soup made from leftover clams, potatoes, onions, milk, fish, and whatever else European fisherman could find. The word “chowder” comes from either the french chaudière, the name of a type of cauldron pot, or jowter from the English Cornish language, which referred to someone who sold fish. Original chowders weren’t restricted to seafood, however, and included all different cuts of pork and poultry.

The dish was carried across the Atlantic by first French, and then English, colonists who settled in Newfoundland, Canada, and the northeast coast of North America. The recipe took different iterations depending on where it was made along the coast and what was hauled up in fishermen’s nets. Mussels, scallops, lobster, fish, and whatever came in with the catch that wouldn’t sell was thrown into the cauldron, making it a castaway dish for colonial castaways.

Visitors along the Chowder Trail can try the Acadian tchaude (from chaudière) au poisson, a light fish chowder sometimes made with celery, or indulge in a hearty roux-based seafood or clam chowder. Modern gastronomic takes can include everything from bacon to sherry to chutney.

“Chowder to me has got to be comforting,” explained chef Chris Pyne of Founders House Dining, Taste of Nova Scotia Chowder Cook-off Winner. “After that you can take your own spin. We use the ingredients all around us and elevate them to a way people aren’t used to tasting.”

His chowder features grapefruit chutney and a lobster stock broth thickened with potatoes (a potato veloute).

Yet people weren’t always so friendly to place-by-place adaptations. With all the variation in the early to mid-1900s, chowder started to have a bit of an identity crisis that boiled over when New York chefs started making a clam chowder that used tomato broth instead of milk. In 1939, the Maine legislature debated a bill that banned calling any seafood chowder that used tomatoes “chowder”. It was defeated, but the debate as to what makes a chowder a chowder rages on in passionate chowder circles, and Rhode Island and Long Island styles have joined the mix.

Farther north in Nova Scotia, however, chowder love is taken to a higher, more welcoming level.

“Chowder is pure Nova Scotia — we’re completely surrounded by the sea,” says Pyne.

The Chowder Trail road trip has nearly 60 stops and runs from May to October. Drivers can download a passport, collect stamps, and win prizes — all in the name of chowder. While the road along the trail is long and worth spending time on, you shouldn’t miss these four stops for a taste of the best of the best.

1. Founders House Dining and Drinks in Annapolis Royal

Founders House won Nova Scotia’s chowder cook-off for good reason. As Pyne explains, “This is not your mother’s chowder.” Unlike typical all-in-one-pot chowder, Pyne lets each piece of seafood shine. The haddock is smoked, the scallops are seared, the mussels are boiled and shelled, and it’s all presented on a dish with a dollop of grapefruit chutney. Velvety potato veloute is poured around the seafood tableside to complete the experience.

“The chutney gives it spice, sweetness, and a little bitterness at the finish that adds layers of flavor.”

2. Evan’s Fresh Seafoods in Dartmouth

Photo: Evan’s Fresh Seafoods & Restaurant/Facebook

If you’re craving a classic Atlantic seafood chowder while overlooking the sea, take a ride on the iconic ferry between Dartmouth and Halifax. The trip is a right of passage for travelers, and with so many breweries and brunch spots in Dartmouth, it’s well worth the trip even for people who are just meh about chowder. Yet even people just meh about chowder will find joy at Evan’s Fresh Seafoods. It’s located in the Dartmouth Ferry Terminal and offers a classic seafood chowder with generous pieces of Nova Scotia’s famous lobster.

Eat your bowl while people watching during the weekend farmer’s market. Or, take your chowder to go and eat beside the ocean for the complete seaside experience.

3. Charlene’s Bayside Cafe in Cape Breton Island

Charlene’s famous all-fish, no-filler chowder gets rave reviews because it’s pure seafood with no potatoes. Big chunks of lobster, scallops, and haddock simmer in a milky broth before being served with a flakey biscuit. Here, you’ll find homestyle cooking in a charming local diner environment — part of why it was featured on the Food Network’s You Gotta Eat Here. Fuel up on chowder then hike the Cape Breton highlands or take in a Celtic barn dance on the Bras d’Or Lakes.

4. Press Gang Cafe in Halifax

Photo: The Press Gang Restaurant & Oyster Bar/Facebook

Downtown Halifax is home to one of Nova Scotia’s most famous seafood restaurants: the Press Gang Cafe. It’s located in a historic stone building that dates back to 1759 and gets its name from the term for the group of men who forced other men into military service. Here, you’ll find a chowder made with a dill and sherry cream broth that’s loaded with fresh halibut, mussels, salmon, and yellowfin tuna. Down a few oysters beforehand as an appetizer, as the oyster bar has a rotating selection of fresh oysters on offer every day.


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Best citizen science trips

Lounging on the beach is a wonderful way to spend your vacations, but if your tan is already perfect and you’re looking to try out something more adventurous and educational, citizen science trips might just hit the spot.

Citizen science, which involves the general population in collaboration with established scientific projects, can be combined with travels for a one-of-a-kind experience. Like traveling in order to help with an archaeological dig, conducting citizen science mixes fun, personal development, activism, and new knowledge. Projects run the gamut from tracking endangered animals to documenting climate change to discovering unregistered celestial bodies. Adventures take place around the world. Some trips are pricey; others not are not so hard on the wallet. Here’s a list of citizen science projects you can participate in.

1. Work with marine mammals.

Photo: Alex Cimbal/Shutterstock

Various organizations need assistance tracking and documenting the behavior of wild humpback and minke whales, orcas, and other marine mammals. Expeditions take place from well-equipped ships and participants receive training from expert scientists with various specialties. Whale Science Voyage departs from Helsinki and is asea in the Antarctic when the animals are most active from February 27 to March 11, 2020. Prices range from $10,000 to $23,000 per person. Happywhale is less of an expedition project and more of a collective endeavor. Citizen scientists working near whales around the world sign up online to learn to take an identifying whale photo. Participants are notified whether the whale matches an individual already in the database — or whether it’s the first sighting. They can then track the status of the animals they’ve contributed to the ever-growing anthology of documented cetacea.

2. Take it to the poles.

Photo: Stu Shaw/Shutterstock

Citizen scientists who are passionate about exploring some of the farthest reaches of the planet, while documenting the areas most affected by climate change, will likely want to head to the poles. If you join the Polar Citizen Project, you might collect and analyze phytoplankton in austral summer in the Antarctic Peninsula to assist the University of San Diego’s Scripps Institute’s Fjord Phyto endeavor. It’s pretty involved, requiring pre-season training and post-expedition publication. Or you could conduct cloud observations through NASA’s GLOBE Program in those same frigid waters, contributing your notes using just a phone app.

3. Work with land animals.

Photo: Ondrej Prosicky/Shutterstock

With the Biosphere Expeditions research initiative, citizen scientists can volunteer to study lynx and other forest creatures in Transylvania, Romania; observe jungle cats, primates, and elephants in Malawi; or monitor the status of elusive wolves in Lower Saxony, Germany. Prices of participation range from about $1,600 for eight days of studying oryx in the desert of the United Arab Emirates up to more than $3,200 for trekking among the Big Five for 12 days in February and March in Kenya. Each expedition’s data generates a valid scientific publication that is released approximately six months to a year later, contributing replicable knowledge to the canon on the topic.

4. Monitor undersea health.

Photo: Damsea/Shutterstock

Some of the more popular citizen science projects take curious contributors under the sea. Science initiative leaders are experienced naturalists and college educators with various expertise. Participants can monitor coral reefs, swim with dolphins, or count endangered species in sites all over the world. For example, the Oceanic Society offers a snorkeling expedition coming up from May 3 to 10, 2020, monitoring the health of marine parks in Panama, both in Pacific and Caribbean waters. Participants will travel to Isla Uvas and Islas Secas, rarely visited Panamanian Pacific areas, to explore and monitor biodiversity. Group size is limited to 12 people and the cost is about $4,900.

5. Amazonian activism

Photo: Christian Vinces/Shutterstock

The Earthwatch Institute is esteemed and established — one of the best known and earliest citizen science groups. The organization’s philosophy is to use citizen science as a weapon to combat environmental issues. Earthwatch is known for taking participants to some of the less frequently visited places on the planet and conducting activistic research. For example, an upcoming trip about wildlife and ecosystems takes adults 18 and older on a riverboat cruise on Peru’s Samiria River, a tributary of the Amazon, for eight days (starts at $2,450). The goal is to help develop conservation strategies with the indigenous Yarapa people against illegal poachers and timber companies.

6. Gather data on plastic pollution.

Photo: olonphoto/Shutterstock

Well-known expedition travel company Lindblad Expeditions organizes citizen science trips via its BioBlitz program and had serious success with its 2018 Antarctica, South Georgia, and the Falklands expeditions for citizen scientists. In 2020, Linblad will put together a range of projects, including looking at microplastics off the Antarctic Peninsula, as well as humpbacks in Alaska and sharks in the South Pacific. Lindblad Expeditions’ citizen science projects will also take place in Antarctica, South Georgia, and the Falklands (departures on November 8 and 20, 2019 and February 16 and 17,2020). The trips are pricey, From $25,220 to $56,380 for 24 days.

7. Count and photograph sea turtles in Hawaii.

Photo: Shane Myers Photography/Shutterstock

Hawaiian hawkbill sea turtle sightings are incredibly rare, so the Hawaiian Hawkbill Conservation is always seeking snorkelers’ and divers’ photos of honu (the Hawaiian word for the turtles) to document all the remaining members of the species. Photographers will receive credit for their images in the catalog, which currently only features 200 individual animals. This isn’t an organized project per se, but rather an endeavor for any citizen scientist lucky enough to spot and document this unique and important creature. Remember, it’s illegal to chase or harass sea turtles in any way.


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