Wiser World Travel – Sustainable World Travel

Walk your way through the richness of Vienna and Prague. Be enveloped by music and experience the enjoyment of walking at a pace that allows travelers to listen, see, admire, hear and savor the culture, history and wonderful nature discoveries that are typically missed within the normal speed of everyday life.

Highlights:

• Walk through centuries and styles in Prague, the “Mother of Cities,” one of the most beautiful cities in the world
• Visit Prague’s Gothic Powder Tower, Charles Bridge and the Romanesque Tower, Renaissance Royal Summer Palace, Classicist Estate Theatre, Baroque Lesser Quarter, Neo-Renaissance National Theater and Rudolfinum, Art Nouveau Municipal House
• The enthralling Prague Spring Music Festival
• Exclusive private concerts
• Vienna: City of Johann Strauss, Franz Schubert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Gustav Mahler
• Picturesque walks through unspoiled countryside and medieval towns

Unique Aspects: Unusual combination of easy day walks through countryside and historical towns with evening operas and concerts. During the day we will enjoy our legs and eyes; the evenings, our ears; and the whole day, our spirit!

Accommodations: Comfortable local hotels, usually 4*

Duration: 10 days

Best time to go: April – October

Sustainable Elements:

• Transportation in Prague and Vienna on foot or local transport, ensuring minimum impact
• Walking activity most days
• Meals provided by small, family, or locally-owned operators
• Local guides
• Support of local economy

Cost: For personal pricing to meet your budget needs, please e-mail Wiser World Travel, or call 303-443-0604, USA toll free 1-877-743-0604.

Barcelona, Madrid and Bilbao hide impressive art treasures that you will discover with the help of a local guide. Gaudí, Picasso, the charming Kingdom of Castile, Gothic quarters, and works of Ghery or Calatrava amidst the vineyards landscape of La Rioja are just some of the highlights. We will travel by train and bus, experiencing the local life and discovering new landscapes.

Highlights:

• The architecture of Gaudí in Barcelona
• Wine and art in La Rioja, Alavesa
• The ‘Golden Triangle of Art’ in Madrid
  – Prado Museum featuring pre-20th century art
  – Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia featuring 20th century art
  – Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, historical through contemporary art
• Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao: Changing the way people think about museums
• Walk the vineyards landscape
• Experience an authentic meal with your own cooking! Join an optional cooking lesson

Unique Aspects: In addition to participating in urban experiences, you will discover
lost places, undiscovered by most tourists (i.e. wine hamlets in La Rioja)

Accommodations: 3 and 4 * rated small, family run hotels in the city center and charming non-chain accommodations.

Duration: 8 nights, 9 days

Best time to go: May, June, September and October

Sustainable Elements:

• Locally owned accommodations and restaurants
• Local guides
• Small group size to minimize environmental impact
• Wine cellars with sustainable production

Cost: For personal pricing to meet your budget needs, please e-mail Wiser World Travel, or call 303-443-0604, USA toll free 1-877-743-0604.

Entering a desert encampment after sunset, you see only the glowing Berber tents carpeted with kilims (tapestry-woven carpets). Cumin-scented stew simmers over a campfire. And away from the native singers and the circle of light, the sky is simply amazing. Not until a morning breeze stirs your tent’s flap that you see in full light how stunning your desert setting is. Morocco is full of surprises and this is just one of the many we share with you. Colossal Saharan dunes. Cool cedar-forested mountains. Narrow gorges with ribbon-like oases. And the Kasbah? It’s the word for fortress, and a restored one from the Middle Ages is actually one of our hotels. The marvelous news is that, for all its surprises, Morocco also delivers everything you expect. We take in the vivid, noisy markets and warm hospitality from a culture accustomed to the diversity of Berber, Arab, Jewish, African and Mediterranean influences. You may also be surprised to know that the climate is moderate; this is the coolest and most welcoming of the African nations.

Highlights:

• A guided tour of the maze-like medina in Fes
• A camel safari with the Blue Men to the 1,000-foot sand dunes of Merzouga
• A private luxury encampment in the Sahara
• Walking in the 900-foot deep Todra Gorge
• Exploring historic Ait Ben Haddou on the caravan route outside Ouarzazate
• Cocktails and a lavish dinner in one of Marrakesh’s finest private mansions

Unique Aspects: Picture yourself strolling the crest of colossal sand dunes, rambling lush pathways in a river gorge, and exploring a Kasbah.

Accommodations: 2 nights in Fes at the 5-star Palais Jamai; 1 night in Erfoud at Kasbah Hotel Xaluca Maadid, a restored medieval fortress; 1 night at a luxury Berber encampment; 2 nights in Ouarzazate at Le Berbere Palace, considered the best hotel in the desert; 2 nights in Marrakesh at Le Meridien N’Fis, set amid 10 beautifully landscaped acres.

Duration: 9 days/ 8 nights

Best time to go: : The Moroccan climate is very temperate in the late spring and early fall. During the fall and winter months, evening temperatures can be quite cool. Trips are offered January, March, May, September, November, and December.

Sustainable Elements:

• Local communities are supported by only hiring local guides. Our local guides like Jalil and Saida lead a team of experts who introduce you to villagers and craftspeople, take you off the beaten tourist path, and make your vacation extraordinary. They include camel guides and dune rover drivers, local villagers and experts such as Ali, a Berber tribesman who speaks six languages and has a PhD in Cultural Anthropology.
• Learn about the Berbers at the home of Berber friends who welcome us into their home for tea, fresh almonds, and local pastries.

Cost: For personal pricing to meet your budget needs, please e-mail Wiser World Travel, or call 303-443-0604, USA toll free 1-877-743-0604.

Quintessential Tuscan landscape with rolling hills and cypress trees along the road, a patchwork of vineyards, orchards, pastures and fields, isolated farm houses, open space, little creeks and Umbrian landscape are intimate with local architecture that is in harmony with nature. The many hamlets set on hills, monasteries and castles, and the marvelous hill towns with narrow lanes and stones tell us their history. Lovely walks combined with great food and interesting visits will make your trip a memorable one!

Highlights:

• The story of olive oil – Umbria features one of the best olive oils. Meet local producers, learn about production, and if you like, taste the varieties
• Sagrantino wine tasting – Visit a winery, have lunch there and taste fabulous Sagrantino, a powerful red wine
• Montepulciano wine tasting – Enjoy the Tuscan gem
• Truffle hunt – Join a local truffle farmer and his dogs on the search for the precious tuber
• Pecorino tasting – Pecorino cheese is one of Tuscany’s best products. Taste it in all its varieties and return home knowing what to look for!
• The Basilica of St. Francis – Have a tour of the basilica of Assisi with one of the resident Franciscan friars
• Gregorian chants – During one of our walks pop in at the Abbey of Sant’Antimo and experience Gregorian chants sung by resident monks

Unique Aspects: Everyone has been to Italy but hardly anyone has seen it our way. Not visiting but living the country is what we do. Off the beaten track, discovering the beauties of a still unknown country, and getting in touch with locals are important as well as being part of the of the local life style.

Accommodations: Tuscany – hotel downtown in Pienza at walking distance from the centre with spacious rooms, excellent breakfast and daily dinner with wine included. Umbria – restored local farm estate in local architecture, family run and great location with beautiful views.

Duration: 13 days; 6 nights Tuscany, 6 nights Umbria

Best time to go: Spring and fall

Sustainable Elements:

• Accommodations recycle and use local produce
• Local guides
• All meals and visits involve only local providers with local produce
• Means of transportation is limited to necessary transfers; walking is zero pollution
• All money spent on this trip will stay with local companies
• Small groups reduce impact and allow personal approach

Cost: For personal pricing to meet your budget needs, please e-mail Wiser World Travel, or call 303-443-0604, USA toll free 1-877-743-0604.

Sail as the mariners did over 100 years ago–but do so in luxury and style! This is a very special itinerary and a 4 star experience of a lifetime. Enjoy the uniqueness of sailing at sea and the highlights at Ports of Call.

Highlights

• Start and end your journey in historic Athens, Greece
• Tour the world famous archeological site Ephesus in Kusadasi, Turkey
• Visit the site where St. John wrote the Book of Revelations
• Visit a monastery built into the face of an enormous cliff in Amorgos, Greece
• Be spoiled with amazing cuisine!
• Enjoy complimentary water skiing, wake boarding, kayaking, windsurfing, Sun Fish sailing, snorkeling. Scuba diving may be available for an additional fee.

Ports of Call:

Day 1: Athens, Greece
Day 2: At sea
Day 3: Camlimani, Turkey (am), Kusadasi, Turkey (pm)
Day 4: Patmos, Greece
Day 5: Amorgos, Greece
Day 6: Mykonos, Greece
Day 7: Monemvasia, Greece
Day 8: Athens, Greece

Unique Aspects

Your entire vacation will be done on a true sailing ship propelled by the wind. This 4-masted clipper ship will smoothly and quietly sail to many amazing islands and ports. While onboard you will be able to climb to the crow’s nest, lie over the water in large cargo nets at the bow of the ship, and even try your hand at steering the ship! Or you can just relax and take in the beautiful sites…This is a true private yacht experience not to be missed.

Accommodations

Guests will be staying in the beautiful staterooms on the Star Clipper. This 360 foot yacht is one of the largest sailing ships in the world. Its accommodations are beautiful – varnished dark woods, polished brass, and beautiful views.

Duration

Seven nights

Best Time to Go

May through June

Sustainable Elements

• It is a sailing ship that uses the wind to propel itself.
• Electric motors are used as backup if necessary to propel the ship.
• Reverse osmosis used for fresh water production.
• Local entertainers are employed to perform.
• The ship supports local restaurants and businesses.
• All local tour companies are used for our excursions.

Cost

Please contact e-mail Wiser World Travel, or call 303-443-0604, USA toll free 1-877-743-0604.