Longitude 80

A great story about Taap's honey gatherers....not for the faint hearted.

Nepal's honey gatherers say fewer hives threaten tradition For generations, the Gurung community in Taap have scoured the steep Himalayan cliffs for honey. Now the generations-old craft is increasingly under threat as some experts say rising temperatures brought by climate change disrupt the growth of bees, the availability of their food and even pollinatio...

One of the best infinity pools at the border of northern Vietnam and China. Total peace and quiet with rice paddies everywhere!

Excited to see Bill Bensley’s Shinta Mani hotel group opening a new lodge in the remote area of Mustang in Nepal. Bill is one of my all time favourite hotel designers along with Adrian Zecka and this new lodge will see some beneficial impact for the region'e economy

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/new-zealand-gaelic-secret

Dunedin, one of New Zealand's best kept secret — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. The thing is, New Zealand has secret gems all over the place, areas less visited, out of “international tourist radar range” and the city where I live, Dunedin, is one of those secrets.

I knew that!

From exploring New Zealand's fiords by private charter to new private itineraries focused on Vietnam's new resorts and an amazing India "Big Cats" Safari combined with Bhutan, I finally sent out Craving for a Wander #3 newsletter to our travellers with awesome feedback. Next will be the catalogue, with 51 trips across Asia and the Pacific based on 25 years of guiding and 2 years of stranded at home during Covid....If anybody interested in getting copies, let me know...and get yourself a big bucket for that list!

Hard to know when China will re-open to international visitors, especially when you consider the Covid zero approach. One hopes maybe in 2023? Looking on at this pastoral scene near Lijiang in Yunnan province where farmers work in theor fields along one of the Yangtze's tributaries.

Proud dad holds his young daughter on her way to a Balinese dance class. So good to see Bali slowly opening up to tourism, the "island of the Gods" has been through a very hard time over the last 2 years.

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/klong-life

Exploring Bangkok canals — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Experience with Longitude 80 the Old Bangkok by boat, touring the canals (longs) and see how locals live and travel on the East side of the Chao Phraya river.

The very best of luck tonight at the Oscars to Jane and "The Power of the Dog"

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/new-zealand-is-slowly-opening-its-borders
A short interview with CNT as part of the Travel Specialists group on NZ borders re-opening in July to international tourism. There are restrictions but hopefully the door will open wider once we get past the Omicron wave.

New Zealand Is Slowly Opening Its Borders—And Americans Can Visit in July Slow and steady continues to be island nation's approach, as it targets a full reopening by October.

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/on-a-flag-and-a-prayer

Prayer flags in Bhutan — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Prayer flags have been an important part of Bhutanese tradition for centuries and can be mounted for happiness, longevity, luck or prosperity. In Bhutan, brightly colored prayer flags are very common. They come in blue, red, green, yellow and white, representing sky, fire, water, earth and air,

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/all-the-tea-in-china

Best tea in China — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. The combination of green tea, beautiful women and the lake made Hangzhou a definite prime spot for holidays and relaxation. The whole countryside is covered with hundreds of tea plantations, all extremely well cared for with tea bushes. Shanghainese will often come for a week end, walking along the

Sitting on the fence about international travel. This Sri Lanka grey langur and I get it. Maybe 2022 or 2023? Travel has re-started in several Asia countries including Thailand, Sri Lanka and Cambodia without any quarantine. Our itineraries now include all arrangements for pre-flight testing, all the paperwork, our guides and drivers are all double-vaxed and all the hotels we work with follow strict cleaning protocols and WHO standards.

has just announced the 24 hour mandatory quarantine on arrival is now a thing of the past as long as international travellers are fully vaccinated and have a 72 hour pre-flight negative test. So we now have the and Sri Lanka allowing no quarantine/ready to travel corridor.

A beautiful sunset over Koh Samui sees our business finally restarting, after almost 2 years. Thailand 7+& using two islands, Phuket and Koh Samui for a week in each location. No quarantine. And then you are free to explore the rest of the country! A lot of work done in making sure all Covid19 regulations are followed up, paper work done for our travellers so they don't have to worry and all our guides and drivers fully vaccinated. Hoping that 2022 sees a few more borders re-opening!!!

Our first travel corridor, a bespoke journey with hill tribes in northern Thailand, golfing in Phuket, then on to Sri Lanka exploring 6 Unesco Heritage Sites and close encounters with leopards and finishing with manta rays in the Maldives. All private, all exclusive, all taken care of...

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/myanmar-sun-block

Thanaka paste has been used by Burmese women, and children for for over 2000 years — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Over the course of my trips guiding and researching across Myanmar, I came across many faces, young and old, covered in this magical paste called Thanaka.

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/phuket-starts-over

Finally, enjoy a luxury holiday in Phuket now open to international tourists. — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Longitude 80 now offers private experiences on the island of Phuket for vaccinated international tourists. Stay in Covid-Free certified hotels and private villas and explore the island with vaccinated drivers and local guides.

As I read news of a new Delta + variant emerging in India, villa 46 at in awaits...patiently....

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/a-lot-of-bricks

The Jetavanaramaya in Sri Lanka once was the world's tallest stupa — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Approximately 93.3 million baked bricks were used in its construction; the engineering ingenuity behind the construction of the structure is a significant development in the history of Sri Lanka. It is estimated that Jetavanaramaya took 15 years to complete and would have required a skillful workfor

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/the-siam

One of the best hotels in Thailand, The Siam — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. The Siam was designed by Bill Bensley, one of my favourite hotel creatives, with a mix of black and white décor, large size rooms, a superb private house within the hotel and a fantastic atrium. Nothing beats having a coffee facing the river boat traffic in peace. Basically, the “boutique feel”...

Borders without quarantine are re-opening between NZ and Cook Islands and soon Niue. Would Singapore be the following? Gardens By The Bay are an interesting place to walk around early in the morning. The gigantic Marine Bay Sands is not my favourite hotel but definitely an awesome place for a drink at sunset on the rooftop bar Cé La Vi!

https://www.longitude80.com/travel-log/vietnamese-coconuts

What happens to all these coconut shells once we drank the juice and scraped the inside? — LONGITUDE 80 is a specialised Asia and Pacific bespoke travel design company, 2020 world best by Condé Nast Traveler. Many years ago during my first trip in Vietnam’s Mekong delta while looking for biking routes and exploring the whole area as the delta is a vital part for Vietnam’s economy I learned about the industry of coconut shells, an important raw material widely used for making charcoal.

Coming up in 2022

Great news finally, a first between two countries who have no community transmission, borders will re-open on April 19, no quarantine required at either end. A welcome sight for the NZ tourism industry who are so keen to see our Ozzie cozies come across the ditch! Unfortunately this will not make any changes for my company as all our travelers are from North America. But it’s a great start!!

After a few attempts, looks like this could be the first start for Asia.

So much development and new options for our Tibet itinerary, it will be so exciting to go back in 2022 with a photo expedition in mind.

Yep, I see a coffin and very few nails left...

China NPC: Beijing to overhaul Hong Kong electoral system Premier Li Keqiang warns the world not to interfere, as he addresses China's largest political meeting.