Seven wondrous world experiences

Travel company polls 50,000 for top trip list

Standing on a glacier, visiting the Galapagos Islands and watching tigers in India. These are just some of the 'Seven Wondrous Experiences of the World' revealed by adventure specialists Explore after surveying 50,000 travellers.

According to the British-based organisation, the very best travel involves experiences such as an encounter with a particular animal, a visit to a famous site at a particular time of day or a dramatic journey to a renowned location.

Explore’s Managing Director, Ashley Toft, said getting 50,000 votes in the poll is a sign that the British public take their travels seriously. "It’s an enormously tough job to produce a top seven from the world’s many travel experiences, but all these truly are trips of a lifetime."

The top seven 'experiences' are:
 
1. Visiting the Galapagos Islands

It’s official, says Explore. There’s nothing more incredible than touring Charles Darwin’s living laboratory of evolution. As well as history, this volcanic archipelago brims with unusual, endemic wildlife, much of which is wonderfully uninhibited by human presence.

2. Arriving at the Sun Gate after trekking the Inca Trail in Peru

Normally after a four-day hike and then some very steep steps, you’d be tired. But not at the Sun Gate, according to Explore. For the view in front of you is the lost city of Machu Picchu, drenched in the afternoon sun and spread out before you.  In fact, you’ll never have felt more energetic.

3. Seeing Gorillas in Uganda

Few wildlife experiences match locking eyes with a huge gorilla. Our closest relative, these rare primates are very tolerant, and can be observed at close quarters. You’ll have to hike through their ideal terrain, the dense Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, but it’ll be well worth it.

4. Sunrise at Angkor Wat

Lost and forgotten for over 500 years, Angkor Wat possesses a mystical grandeur, enhanced by its jungle setting. Astounding at any hour, says Explore, the temple complex is especially beautiful when illuminated by the rising sun, its water lilies opening up as dawn breaks.

5. Tiger viewing in India

Spotting a Bengal Tiger in India is not a regular occurrence, but it’s one worth waiting for.  An Asian icon, the striped cats in famous parks like Ranthambore are well used to humans, and quite willing to go about their daily hunting or parenting with observers fairly close by.

6. Dramatic approach to Petra

Best approach via the twisting siq (gorge) – be it on foot, by bike, on horseback or astride a camel – and Petra’s Treasury suddenly looms before you, dramatically carved into the multi-coloured sandstone mountainside.  This arrival at the city is always a case of awe at first sight.

7. Standing on a Glacier

Standing atop an ancient glacier and listening to the cascading water beneath your feet is about as close as it’s possible to get to nature. In Iceland, glacial moraine is typically surrounded by blue-veined icebergs and cracking frozen lakes, lending even more drama.

Some of experiences that made the long list but didn't quite make the top seven were:   Cruising on Ha Long Bay, sitting on Tikal Pyramid, sleeping under the stars on the Nile, viewing wildlife in the Bolivian Amazon, seeing the sunrise at the top of Mount Etna, camping in the Okavango Delta and trekking in the Atlas Mountains.

Visit Explore at www.explore.co.uk or call 0844 499 0901