We're having a look back at some of our favourite travels from last year - Karen headed to the USA, visiting New York, Miami and Las Vegas, on an action-packed trip. Here's a quick look at the highlights of her visit State-side . . . . The Big Apple ​ I've been to various parts of the States before, but this was my first trip to New York - it's one of those cities that's so well known on TV and in films that you kind of feel that you know it already, so it did feel like I was on a movie set at times - or at least in an episode of Friends!  I chose to stay close to Penn station as I was taking the train to my next destination - the Wyndham New Yorker is in such a handy location, plus I love the Art Deco feel of the place. I used the hop-on hop-off buses quite a bit - what a great way to get around and to take in all the main sights - plus I took a cruise out towards the Statue of Liberty, which was fab! There's so much to see and do that you could g...

A driving holiday is a superb way to really get to know a destination, and many countries are well suited to this style of holiday. Darren shares some of his favourites. The USA is one of the most popular self-drive destinations and there are a myriad of routes and itineraries you can consider, from the theme parks and beaches of Florida, the volcanoes and coastline of the Hawaiian Islands or the classic Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles. One of the most popular itineraries combines the states of Nevada and California, taking in Las Vegas, San Francisco and LA, plus a host of other locations in between. From Vegas it’s only a short drive to the Grand Canyon, albeit in the wrong direction, while the route through to San Francisco will take you via Death Valley and Yosemite National Parks. Then follow the Californian coast south to LA, stopping in the likes of Monterey, Carmel and Santa Barbara en route. If you want to combine your transport and your accommodation, then hiri...

Mark was in India in October last year and spent a week exploring the sights of the famous 'Golden Triangle' of the North, and a few days discovering the charms of laid-back Kerala in the South. Here's why it was his somewhat unexpected top trip of 2016 . . . . Exploring India's Historic North I visited two sides of India in October in two different ways, combined in to one trip. The first part of my trip was a group tour of the classic sights of the 'Golden Triangle ' - Delhi, Agra and Jaipur - which was arranged by our friends at G Adventures, who run amazing escorted tours with an adventurous streak. I then said goodbye to my group of fellow G Adventurers and headed to Kerala to spend a few days exploring the beaches, backwaters and history of this charming area, in the company of the fabulous folks at Kerala Travel Centre. Being an independent company ourselves we love working with other independent companies around the world. In all honesty ...

Bangkok, Siem Reap and Hua Hin  A superb three-centre itinerary combining cities, history and relaxation, taking in vibrant Bangkok, the incredible Temples of Angkor in Cambodia, and relaxing Hua Hin to finish. This is one of our favourite holidays at Escape Worldwide. Mark has been to all three destinations to feel free to give him a call! ITINERARY Day 1 - UK to Bangkok Fly from Heathrow to Bangkok, arriving the following day. Departures from other UK airports are also available, please ask for details. Day 2 - Bangkok On arrival, you’ll be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel, the handily located Park Plaza Bangkok Soi 18 for a three night stay. Our holidays to Thailand are extremely flexible so if you’d prefer a shorter or longer stay just ask! Days 3-4 - Bangkok Spend the next few days exploring chaotic Bangkok . Check out the temples, markets, restaurants and nightlife of this wonderful city. Day 5 - Bangkok to Siem Reap Transfer back to ...

Mark, one of our Japan rail fans, gives his suggestions of how to spend his time on a trip to Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo – feel free to speak to Mark to discuss your own travel plans. “With two nights in Osaka, three nights in Kyoto and three nights in Tokyo and a rail pass included, this is how I’d spend my time in Japan! Day 1 – UK to Osaka Fly from Heathrow to Osaka Kansai Airport, arriving next day. Departures from Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow and other UK airports are also available. Day 2 – Osaka On arrival in to Kansai airport, I would head straight for the Japan Railways (JR) Ticket Office, located just outside the main terminal building, in the station complex. Here, you can collect your JR Pass for your week’s train travel around Japan – don’t actually activate the Pass today, the helpful staff will arrange this to happen on day 4 as you will make the most of the 7 days this way (there’s no need to extend to a 14 day pass!) You’ll also be able to make seat reservation...

The Thai island of Koh Samui is a real tropical paradise, with beautiful beaches and a stunning interior, quality hotels, excellent food and cold beer - not surprisingly, it's one of our favourite parts of Thailand! Stunning beaches of Koh Samui, Thailand WELCOME TO KOH SAMUI Just off the southern coast of Thailand and around an hours flight from Bangkok is the island of Koh Samui, a relaxed tropical paradise that offers everything from peaceful secluded beaches to late night nightlife, traditional temples to superb shopping, and a host more besides. Koh Samui makes the perfect destination for a beach holiday or can be included in to a multi centre holiday to Thailand or beyond. Around the Island Tour Discover the beauty of Samui by exploring the island - there's only one main road so it's very easy! Take in Big Buddha Beach and the nearby Wat Plai Laem, beautiful Na Muang Waterfalls, the famous rocks of Hin Ta and Hin Yai, ...

At Escape Worldwide we travel to Bangkok frequently, to get to know this fast-paced city as well as possible, Darren visited Bangkok last month and stayed at the Rembrandt Hotel, Mark was at the Dusit Thani recently and Karen stayed at the Royal Orchid Sheraton on her last trip. DAY 1 - MORNING Start your visit to Bangkok by hopping on the Skytrain and travelling down to Taksin Station on the Silom line - the Skytrain is by far the best way to get around, and an all-day pass will cost you around £2, which is worth it for the air conditioning alone!  At Taksin station, walk towards the river and hop on one of the public boats that ply the waters of the Chao Phraya - it's a great way to see the city from a different angle, and at around 20p for the trip to Chang Pier, it's a bargain too! From Chang pier it's a few minutes walk to the  Grand Palace  and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, which is Bangkok's...

We're celebrating our 10th birthday at  Escape Worldwide , and looking back at 10 years of globetrotting in the name of bringing you great holidays - at least that's our excuse! We're having a look at our personal top 10 favourite travel experiences of the last 10 years. Mark gets far too close to a cheetah!  "It’s an early start this morning for a game drive from our home on the Masai Mara , the Mara Serena. We've been on safari for four days now and I'm getting in to the swing of things, with early starts to see the wildlife first thing in the morning when its all quite active, before the daytime temperatures start to rise and the big cats head for a snooze.  After a quick coffee we’re leaving the lodge at 6am, but it’s not long before the excitement starts. Within a few miles of the lodge we’ve already seen a herd of around 30 elephants crossing the plains, and a pack of the somewhat ungainly looking bat-eared foxes, but there...

Hi all, Just a real quick note, as a Kuoni Specialist Agent in the UK we have been given some great holiday deals flying with Etihad Airway, check em out: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/offers/Kuoni%20and%20Etihad%20Exclusive.pdf Cheers Darren Escape Worldwide - Home of Long Haul Holidays http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk

Hi All, Some great offers and holidays ideas for you this week: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/newsletter/offers/Jul11a2.html I was in Thailand the week before last and spent time in Phuket and Khao Lak  and had a great time. Technically it's rainy season there, but in 11 nights we have 3 showers, two of those were in the evening so didn't effect our sunbathing...sorry I mean work! I stayed at the Kata Thani Hotel  in Phuket which was fantastic, on an amazing beach with a choice of swimming pools, bars and restaurants. The hotel is on Kata Noi beach with a couple of shops and restaurants just outside the hotel, and the resort of Kata is only about a 10 minute walk, though it is up hill! Patong is the main resort in Phuket and well worth a night out, it's made, tons of bars, night markets, restaurants, shops, the place doesn't stop, though I was surprised how lovely the beach was for such a busy area! Khao Lak   was my next stop, about 3 hou...

Hi everyone, On our newsletter this week we focused on triple centre holidays, check it out: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/newsletter/offers/Apr11b2.html Again Escape Worldwide staff have visited the places featured and a couple of my favourites have to be: SRI LANKA from £1139 pp KANDY, SIGIRIYA & BEACH Explore one of our favourite destinations - start in cultural Kandy before continuing to the historical areas around Sigiriya. Finally, hit the beach for some relaxation. Why not include your own Private Car + Driver for only an extra £58 per person! Check out the details: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/sri2.PDF More great holidays to Sri Lanka can be found at: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/ind/destin/sriT4.shtml THAILAND from £1145 pp BANGKOK, PATTAYA & PHUKET        A great mix of lively and relaxing - vibrant Bangkok, lively Pattaya and the peaceful beaches of north Phuket, all in one amazing tr...

Here at Escape Worldwide  we love the Maldives and have all visited the place a number of times. Check out our photo tour around this stunning destination! We've taken all the photo's, yep it's a hard job! Check out how you to can visit paradise: http://www.indianoceanescapes.co.uk/ Happy travelling Darren Escape Worldwide - We've Been, We Know, Just Call! http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/

On a recent flight, Darren got a bit bored and wrote the following blog: 'Sitting on the way to Rio, killing time, I started to look back at the different airlines I had flown with and started to think, what makes a good airline. Is it the seat pitch, the food, the cabin crew, the in-flight entertainment? Personally a bit of all of these! Take the airline I am flying with at the time of writing this blog, on paper the seat pitch isn't great, only 31”, the food was OK, and the movies Ok, though a little dated and no movie on demand, which I am beginning to realise is a big plus! No the flight is pleasant largely due to the cabin crew. The jolly Scot who seems only to happy to constantly give me drinks and the smiley steward who seems to be happy to be in the job. So in a nutshell, BA seems pretty OK! So is it just the cabin crew that make for a good flight? Umh, not always, take a Malaysian flight I was on, for example the seat pitch great, movies on demand, food good, cab...

On a safari in Kenya , Mark had a very memorable encounter: 'It’s an early start this morning for a game drive from our home on the Masai Mara, the Mara Serena . After a quick coffee we’re leaving the lodge at 6am, but it’s not long before the excitement starts. Within a few miles of the lodge we’ve already seen a herd of around 30 elephants crossing the plains, and a pack of the somewhat ungainly looking bat-eared foxes, but we’ve just spent the last few minutes watching a cheetah with two cubs, and we’re the only people for miles around! The cheetah is perched on a small hillock with the cubs, using the raised ground as a vantage point as the sun comes up over the Mara. After a few minutes of us staring at her, and her assessing us, the cheetah comes down from the hillock and heads in our direction. She decides to use our vehicle as a lookout, and jumps on the spare tyre on the back to get a better view of the area, popping her head over the roof of the vehicle – we’re all p...

Hi all, This week we have some FAB special offers and holiday ideas, check em out: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/newsletter/offers/Mar11d2.html For starters we have a great offer to the 4*+ Calabash Hotel in Grenada, have a look at the details: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/carib3.PDF 7 nts B&B at the 4*+ Calabash Hotel  - from £1375 per person Or how about Christmas in Kenya , 5nts Safari  followed by 5nts in Mombasa  from only £2189 per person, See the details: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/saf3.PDF How about a bargain to Egypt  - 7nts Nile Cruise  followed by 7nts relaxing on the Red Sea  from only £899 per person and that on an All Inclusive basis as well! More details at http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/egypt10.PDF Finally, Maldives , only £912 per person staying at the 5* Kurumba in the Maldives , amazing value!  http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/mle6.PDF W...

Escape Worldwide was awarded Agent of the Month by one of our key suppliers, Travel2. Here's Darren receiving our certificate and bottle of champagne! Well done to all the team at Escape Worldwide! Darren http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/

Hi, Introducing http://www.escortedtouring.co.uk/ - new from Escape Worldwide! Our newest website brings you the best escorted tours around the world, from the Americas to the Far East, with everything from historic and cultural tours to wildlife safaris. All itineraries are accompanied by a guide - some meet you in the UK - and most are flexible enough to include a beach stay or other areas afterwards. Here's a few of our favourites . . . Grand Indochina Tour Accompanied from the UK, this tour combines the best of Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, a truly fascinating part of the world. 15 nights from £3445 per person DOWNLOAD DETAILS INDOCHINA TOURS ___________________________ Ceylon Tour (Sri lanka) Our most popular tour of Sri Lanka takes in Kandy, the historical north and the beautiful south, with flexible beach options. 14 nights from £1199 per person DOWNLOAD DETAILS SRI LANKA TOURS ___________________________ Cheetah Safari A superb 7-...

Hi All, Check out some great holiday ideas and offers we have this week: http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/newsletter/offers/Mar11b2.html Makadi Bay - Palace Family Star Probably one of the best value options this week is to the Red Sea in Egypt with some amazing kids price....only £399 per child , even in school holidays! Have a look if you don't believe me - http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/prices/offers/egypt9.PDF We've got plenty of other offers so why note check out the newsletter....or go to http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/ for more great family holiday ideas! Happy travelling Darren Escape Worldwide - Home of great holidays

Hi All, Bit of travel news for you: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12610317 Thomas Cook are imposing an additional fuel charge, upto £40 per person for long-haul flights. Not all airlines are so check before you book with anyone as some may just try to add on £40 as this is in the news! Happy travelling Darren http://www.escapeworldwide.co.uk/

Hi fellow travellers, This week we have some great holiday offers: Longhaul Holiday Offers This week explore South Africa by fly-drive, go cheetah-spotting on the Masai Mara, party and chill in Thailand or be pampered in Oman - superb holidays across the Globe, all at excellent prices and fully ATOL-protected. Call us on 020 8989 0970 or e-mail us at info@escapeworldwide.co.uk for more details today. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KENYA SAFARI from £1575 MASAI MARA + MOMBASA A one-off special offer saving £150 per couple on the superb 7-night 5* Cheetah Safari, departing 29 April, complete with free Hippo Pool breakfast on the Masai Mara. Combine it with the beaches of Mombasa or Zanzibar, or just do the safari itself. CHEETAH SAFARI   - 7 -  FB -  £1575 pp + INDIAN OC RES MOMBASA 7+7  - HB -  £1845 pp + ROYAL ZANZIBAR RESORT 7+7 -  AI -  £2075 pp See more details at: http://...