Small-Group Tours for 12
If you love off-the-beaten-track experiences with more than a dash of style, then Spice Voyages might suit the luxury vagabond in you.
A Spice Voyage takes you beyond the ordinary, where your interests and my experience converge to create unique journeys hallmarked by authenticity, adventure and accommodation which thoughtfully reflects the location -
did I mention amazing locations ?
My next tours in Morocco are September & October 2022.
I'm presenting two NEW tour - Imperial Sea to Sahara - now with all 4 imperial cities, and extra nights in the Sahara & Casablanca, making it more leisurely with more 'time out' for you, and Morocco Memoirs especillay for art and literatre buffs.
In December 2021 an Art Retreat and Optional follow-on tour in Sri Lanka is planned - please contact me now for Early Bird Priority Bookings.
With only 12 travellers in our groups, places are limited. So if you'd like to receive the first news of any tour, please be in touch. Let's talk soon!
"If Not Now, Then When ?"
Has this ever been more true? If you yearn to trek with camels in the Sahara, escape to a painting retreat in in Bali, discover you inner author at a writing workshop or just chat with someone who loves feeling at home where ever she is, I hope you'll get in touch with me!
Here you'll find travel stories, creative writing, and all the details about my Small Group Tours to places that I have lived in and know well - India, Bali, Morocco and now, Sri Lanka, where I've spent the entre 'covid time'.
There's an old Arabic proverb from one of my favourite books 'Caravan of Dreams' by Idries Shah: "Much travel is needed before the raw man is ripened". ... it has such a visceral appeal - ripening … I can almost taste the gooey sweetness of sun-browned dates awaited with eagerness each October across the Sahara.
Inherent in its metaphor is that life is a journey; one which, like good fruit, can not be rushed into becoming its fullest self. It is the sense that the journey is worth taking, that the ripening is to be anticipated and ultimately savoured.
Travellers will understand this. I am a traveller. A collector, a bowerbird of the exquisite, ephemera and experiences.
So what do I do now?
After 20 years of owning an art gallery, I desperately wanted to be on the road again, and so for the last 5 years it seems like I've been working longer and harder than ever!
This year I've been 'caught out', albeit happily, here in Sri Lanka.
Almost non-stop travelling, researching locations for art retreats, small-group tours and other adventures to share, interspersed each winter with presenting Creative Living Retreats in Bali, where I bring artists, yogis and creative people together for week-long retreats of painting and textile design by the sea.
Find stories and news on my Spice Voyager blog and social media.
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What Can You Expect on a Spice Voyage?
We take our time. It's not usual to spend 3 nights in a place so that you can really explore and get the feel of it without becoming tired and scratchy.
Fabulous accommodation personally researched - sometimes that might mean 'the best there is ' in a remote location. But we'll always make up for a bit of roughing it with something pinch-me perfect later on.
Spice Voyages are designed around seasonal activities such as cultural festivals and arts events and I spend a lot of my time researching unique activities that will make your experience more personal.
You’ll have plenty of opportunities to meet and interact with local people from many walks of life, particularly artists, crafts people and cooks. Whether it's cooking with locals, street food walks, making a leather-bound journal with an artisan in Fes, evening concerts in Marrakech or playing elephant polo in Jaipur, I love making special events happen for you.
A small group provides a great balance between camaraderie and maintaining your sense of individual discovery and it’s a fantastic way to travel if you’re a single traveller. I often organise personal experiences simply not possible when travelling in large groups, or too quickly.
The key is flexibility and that’s only achievable with a group of no more than 12 (and usually means a window seat for everyone on luxury coaches), but I'll design a tour for any size group if you have a special request.
You are really well supported throughout your tour. In addition to your tour leader - that's me, there's a national escort, plus local experts, and additional staff as required.
I love maps and history, and you'll receive lots of material as we travel ... this is just one of my favourites - the C.1st Periplus of the Erthyrean Sea.
The rich cultures of the Salt, Spice and Silk Route countries have drawn traders and travellers for two millennia along the coasts of North Africa and India. These routes were collected together by ancient Roman geographers into compendia, or periplus,
I only have to look at this map to feel twitchy!
Looking forward to staying in touch,
