Offering world-class tour excursions with a unique approach to travel for nearly 90 years, Tauck Tours newly aligns with a partner of similar stature, BBC Earth, known for its award-winning and breathtaking wildlife documentaries like Planet Earth and Frozen Planet.
The highly anticipated result of this exclusive union – aptly named Earth Journeys – connects you with likeminded travelers to seek out the wiles of the ice worlds and African plains alike, guided by experienced Tauck Directors. This year, Earth Journeys launches a series of one-of-a-kind adventure itineraries in Africa, Antarctica and Canada, with further excursions to exotic locales like the Galápagos Islands, South America and Alaska to be introduced in 2015.
Tauck’s privileged partnership with BBC Earth ensures the true exclusivity of these immersive experiences and guarantees the unique singularity of the journey on which you embark. Earth Journeys often allows the chance to utilize the same cutting edge technologies as BBC filmmakers such as motion-activated night cameras to capture nocturnal animals, long-range directional microphones to hear their calls and underwater pole cameras for up-close sea views. Paired with Tauck’s expertise in crafting intimate and personalized experiences, expect to delve deeper into the world’s most far-flung reaches of nature than in your wildest dreams.
MANITOBA: POLAR BEAR ADVENTURE
When you step off your charter flight, you’ll know you’ve hit earth’s northern frontier. Welcome to Churchill, Manitoba (population: 813), the polar bear capital of the world and one of the best viewing spots for the Northern Lights. Polar bears reign king in the inhospitable conditions of the North Pole, in great part due to conservation efforts. Yet, science has established that the polar ice caps are melting, threatening this majestic white creature’s survival. This six-day trip to Manitoba offers a firsthand look at efforts to protect these animals and propels you on to a journey of a lifetime. Visit isolated and quirky Churchill, located in the northern reaches of Canada at the juncture of the boreal forest to the south and the Arctic tundra to the north, where it’s not uncommon to spot pods of beluga whales.
Climb aboard a tundra vehicle and journey north for an up-close look at the polar bear migration. Then, garner tips from a wildlife photographer, who shares insights to capturing these creatures on film. Subarctic plains provide a clear view of the white snowy owl’s five-foot wingspan while you hunt for tracks of the white arctic fox, an incredibly adaptable animal that can survive temperatures dropping to -50 degrees. Another animal whose determination overcomes adverse conditions is the stalwart sled dog. A dog trainer provides you instruction before you climb aboard your own sled and experience the running burst of the pack as they speed across the Manitoba wilderness. At the end of your day, relax fireside at Lazy Bear Lodge, where you retreat to quintessential cabin-style comfort having discovered your inner explorer.
ANTARCTICA
Somewhere between the floating ice fjords and the glacial mountains, you’ll realize the beautiful desolation of Antarctica as it’s been experienced by great explorers. Trek through ice fields like Sir Ernest Shackleton, who journeyed through this mesmerizing landscape in the 19th century. This 13-day itinerary will take you to Antarctica via Buenos Aires, Argentina, to stunning Tierra del Fuego National Park, where you’ll get your first glimpse of glaciers aboard Le Soleal, a luxury yacht making several unforgettable stops in transit to the South Pole.
Spot whales, dolphins and petrels as you cruise the Drake Passage, named for Sir Francis Drake who explored these seas in the 1500s. As you turn south to the Antarctic Archipelago, cloudless blue skies and sunshine reflect off of ice floes surrounding you. Ogle the glacial wonderland unfolding around the ship before embarking on a shore excursion to a polar village populated by always-amusing penguins. Observe these social birds swimming in the icy waters, squat to study their nesting colonies, or rookeries, and listen to their lively calls as they stake claim over their young. Thermal imaging cameras reveal how these creatures of the cold conserve heat while specialized microphones used in BBC documentaries capture the sounds of animals in their native habitats. Sculptural icebergs of all shapes and sizes turn from blues to greens to whites as the light changes. A midnight show of the icy splendor is available since the sun doesn’t completely set at this time of year. An onboard ornithologist serves as your guide to these feathered friends while marine wildlife experts point out elephant seals and the tails of surfacing humpbacks. Your whale adventure continues with an exploration of an old whaling station near Neptune’s Bellows on Deception Island, where you can relax and soak in the inviting warmth of a geothermal spring.
KENYA & TANZANIA: A CLASSIC SAFARI
Toast a Champagne breakfast in the bush or soak in a hot tub while watching a herd of pachyderms amble past. It’s experiences such as these that reveal Africa’s wild splendor in tandem with unprecedented luxury. Begin your 13-day journey to Kenya & Tanzania at the base of Tanzania’s Mount Meru, a 14,977-foot active volcano that sits 43 miles east of Mount Kilimanjaro. Your five-star base is the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge that rims the massive Ngorongoro Crater, “Africa’s Garden of Eden.” The world’s largest unbroken caldera, this crater is a watercolor of greens, pinks and blues and home to over 30,000 animals, including elephants, cheetahs, wildebeests and the rare black rhino — a critically endangered species that number fewer than 5,000.
Elephants wander the grasslands as your open-air safari Jeep ventures through Kenya’s Amboseli National Park. Step into the huts of village elders in a Maasai village and immerse yourself in the lives of these fascinating nomadic people. A Maasai warrior shows you how to track a lion on foot, and the Maasai children greet you with open hearts and easy laughter.
From the storied Mount Kenya Safari Club, head out on a horseback safari or observe black rhino at Ol Pejeta Conservancy, home to the largest population of these endangered animals in East Africa. Nearby, Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary introduces you to a family of orphaned chimpanzees, many of which were rescued from Burundi after the war outbreak in the 1990s. Then, lift up in a hot air balloon for a bird’s eye view of the entire animal kingdom just as the sun rises over the savanna. Back on land, 1.5 million wildebeest, hundreds of thousands of zebra and gazelle make the arduous journey from the Serengeti, Tanzania, to the Maasai Mara in Kenya during the Great Migration. The memory of watching these animals move en masse will undoubtedly be something that will stay with you forever.
PRIVY TO THE PREHISTORIC
From July 17th to the 21st, Tauck and BBC Earth are offering a special family event called Walking With Dinosaurs: A Journey Through Time. From your base in Calgary, Canada, paleontologists provide insider takes on these mysterious creatures and offer behind-the-scenes stories of their lives and excavation. A world-renowned expert will show you how to identify various fossils on a dig, you’ll build a raptor at the Royal Tyrell Museum and you’ll venture on a fossil safari at Dinosaur Provincial Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tauck has planned several exclusive outings geared to families such as an exclusive nighttime tour of the Calgary Zoo. Ultimately, you and your children will build stronger family bonds for the future while unearthing a deeper understanding of the past.
BOTSWANA, SOUTH AFRICA & ZAMBIA
Gazelles surround you. You spot a dozen wildebeest and a herd of elephants. Only you’re not in a safari Jeep; you’re savoring a five-course gourmet dinner in an elegantly restored vintage 1920s steam train. A rail safari in Zambia begins this 12-day journey crisscrossing southern Africa, beginning at the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia and ending in the cosmopolitan city of Cape Town.
Before crossing the mile-wide Zambezi River to Botswana, head to a wildlife reserve that is raising the next generation of lion cubs to be reintroduced into the wild. Under careful supervision of the lion handlers, you can follow the adolescent lion cubs as they meander through the bush, close enough for a photo op together. By day, track animals on foot during a Walking Safari in the Kalahari Desert or enjoy a moonlight journey to spot elephants and zebras in their native habitats. During your sail to Seal Island, a small island off of Cape Town’s False Bay, thousands of fur seals draw the attention of hungry great white sharks, an encounter to capture with an underwater pole camera.
Wake to the thundering roar of Victoria Falls at the Royal Livingstone Hotel, the billowing sea spray sending multiple rainbows skyward. At the luxury safari camp Botswana’s Kwhai River Lodge, the bush is within your sight during a relaxing outdoor deep tissue massage. At Camp Kalahari, located in the arid salt plains that border the Kalahari Desert, sleep in a deluxe tented camp while infrared night cameras stay on the lookout for elephants walking through your camp as you dream of more wild encounters to come.
Paired with BBC Earth, Tauck adds to its repertoire of distinctive guided tours with Earth Journeys. With luxury accommodations, passionate tour directors and incomparable destinations, everything on a Tauck experience showcases a commitment to excellence and to curating an adventure specific to your tastes. BBC Earth’s exclusive partnership with Tauck provides an unmatched opportunity to savor all that the world has to offer.
