Dear Reader,
I’ve wandered into a number of strange places in my travels...
There was the cricket circus in China where crickets were trained to jump through hoops and ride Ferris wheels...
In Dubai I watched a contest which pitted one spitting camel against another. (Truth be told, it was more like a vomiting contest. It turns out camels are more likely to mix spit with vomit to threaten whatever is bothering them than they are to spit plain saliva.)...
And then in London, of all places, I ran into a dung-spitting contest, in which participants competed by spitting animal dung for distance (I’d heard of this in Africa -- but never imagined it in high-society London).
As I’m sure you’ve discovered, sometimes the most memorable travel stories spring from the most unusual experiences. Often they’re accidental. But there’s nothing wrong with planning for the strange and curious, either...
It was with that in mind, in fact, that we put our latest e-book together: “110 of the World’s Strangest Tours and Cruises.”
Here are three of them:
** 1. Night Vision Penguin Tour - Penguins.org.au
Phillip Island, Australia, is home to the world’s smallest penguin species, the Little Penguin, or Fairy Penguin. With the “Ultimate Penguin Experience” tour, you'll head down to the beach in the evening to watch them waddle up onto shore and head back to their sand dunes. Once night falls, you’ll be able to spy on the little penguins with night vision goggles.
Location: Phillip Island, Australia
Price: Adults: $49
Includes: Rain clothes, mat for sitting in the sand, night vision goggles
** 2. Jet Fighter Tour - Millionairesconcierge.com
Train for half a day, then take a flight in a real jet fighter, going at over 500 miles per hour. Add a dinner at a private island to your day’s itinerary, if you’d like.
Location: South Florida
Price: Contact for details
** 3. The NY Midnight Munchies Tour with Famous Fat Dave - FamousFatDave.com
With spots on NPR and interviews in Saveur, Voice, and Budget Travel, Famous Fat Dave’s New York food tours are creating a stir. One of them, the “Midnight Munchies Tour,” takes you through New York to the best “real New York” late-night food. On a typical Midnight Munchies tour, you’ll taste Famous Dave’s favorite Hot Bagel, Cuban Sandwich, Korean BBQ, Falafel, Biryani, Raw Oysters, Chimichurri, Pizza, Egg Cream, Taquito, Broccoli Rabe, and Hamburger. Other tours with Famous Fat Dave include the Five Boroughs Eating Tour, the Pickle Tour, the Phallic Foods Tour (for bachelorette parties), and the Garlic Tour.
Location: New York City
Price: $400 for 4 people over 4 hours
Includes: Food, soft drinks, gas, parking
The world is teeming with niche tours like these -- interesting and quirky ways to discover a destination. And they’re all proof-positive that you can create a tour around anything -- cooking, skydiving, knitting, hunting, spying on penguins in the night... you name it.
Plus, going on unusual niche tours can make great story fodder for your travel articles. Write about your trip and you can sell your story to places like this week's featured publication, which pays $300 for stories: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/2009/03/specialtytravel.php
The publication (like many others) pays for photos, too, so be sure to think about taking some saleable shots on your next trip. If you're not sure if your shots are saleable, you can send them to one of our professional photographers for a personalized critique, here:
http://www.unlimitedphotocritiques.com
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