Interesting Tours from our Travel Workshops

Over the years, I’ve taken the Great Escape Publishing writing and photography workshops to 20 different countries and 52 different cities.
And I’ve had a number of strange and exciting experiences along the way…
There was the time we took a toboggan down the side of the Great Wall of China…
And in Ecuador, I watched attendees line up to be whacked on the head with sage branches and have eggs rolled all over their bodies before getting fire blown in their faces at a shaman cleansing ceremony.
There were the mossy temples filled with monkeys in Bali’s Monkey Forest…
The time we stayed in huts while we visited with the Kuna Indians in Panama…
And the longest escalator in the world in Hong Kong, which we rode before we went out in to the streets to celebrate the Chinese New Year!!
And, of course, the times we photographed breath-taking events like the Yi Peng flying lantern festival in Thailand and Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. And our champagne safari in South Africa — that was pretty amazing, too.
I’ll be the first to admit it… I pick destinations for our travel writing and photography expeditions because they’re places I want to see. And I can honestly say they’ve provided me some of the best times of my life, traveling with like-minded folks like you.
Always with a camera or pen. Always up for adventure and trying new things.
Putting together tours is a fun, exciting — even addicting — way to fund your travels. And it can be very lucrative if you don’t have to pay for photography and writing instructors to come along.
How do you do it?
Here’s my trick: Make it unusual. Find things most tourists don’t do, and include them on the itinerary.
This is why we include a copy of our 110 of the World’s Strangest Tours and Cruises eBook in our Leading Tours for Fun and Profit program. Maybe you can use one of the tours profiled inside to create your own tour. Or maybe you simply want to use the ideas as inspiration.
Here’s a small sample of the tours you’ll find inside:
** 1. Night Vision Penguin Tour
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.
** 2. Jet Fighter Tour from Millionaires Concierge
Train in South Florida 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.
** 3. The NY Midnight Munchies Tour with Famous Fat Dave
With spots on NPR and interviews in Saveur, the Village 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 Fat 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 Borough Eating Tour, the Pickle Tickle Tour, and the Garlic Tour.
The world is teeming with niche tours like these — interesting and quirky ways to discover a destination. Include one in your own tour to spice it up a bit.
And they’re all proof-positive that you can create a tour around anything — cooking, skydiving, knitting, hunting, spying on penguins in the dark… you name it.
Give it a try this year and discover a new way to enrich your life while someone else pays for your vacation. More details, here.
[Editor’s Note: Learn more about opportunities to profit from your travels (and even from your own home) in our free online newsletter The Right Way to Travel.]