Shearwater Travel

22/01/2025

In the middle of the Indian Ocean, between the islands of Mauritius and Madagascar, lies the beguiling island of Réunion. With dramatic volcanic landscapes, excellent hiking, Créole culture, sandy beaches and lovely snorkelling, it is surprising that it has so few visitors from the UK. If you fancy a holiday somewhere a little different, where the sun shines year round, the food is a mixture of French and Créole and where there are activities aplenty, then take a look at our latest bulletin, featuring this lovely island.

In the middle of the Indian Ocean, somewhere between the islands of Mauritius and Madagascar, lies the beguiling island of Réunion. With dramatic volcanic landscapes, excellent hiking, Créole culture, sandy beaches and excellent snorkelling, it is surprising that it has so few visitors from the UK...

18/06/2024

If you love the outdoors, stunning landscapes, warmth and a bit of an adventure, then you should visit the Atacama Desert in Chile. My latest journal post covers my favourite things to see and do in this amazing destination. If you're interested in going there, then get in touch and I will help you plan a fabulous trip to the Atacama (and beyond).

A striking landscape with a backdrop of vast volcanoes in almost every direction and huge sand dunes, fascinating rock formations and enormous skies, the Atacama was one of the highlights of my three month trip to Latin America. Warm and sunny all year round with very little rainfall, sunsets and su...

11/06/2024

If you love island holidays, then take a look at our top five island getaways

https://shearwatertravel.co.uk/island-inspiration/

08/05/2024

Never mind the fly and flop holiday packages, here are five more compelling reasons to visit Lanzarote:

- Delicious wine made from Malvasia grapes grown in volcanic soil giving it a unique flavour.

- Characterful boutique hotels including the home of Cesar Manrique now a lovey little hotel set amongst vineyards.

- The otherworldly landscape of the Timanfaya national park and the walk across lava flow dotted with pale lichens to the summit of Caldera Blanca.

- See the influence of Cesar Manrique in the Jameos del Agua caves with curvy pool, bar seats built into the rocks and ferns cascading from the walls or his former home, Taro de Tahiche, possibly the nearest you’ll get to a James Bond villain's lair.

- Europe’s first underwater sculpture museum, Museo Atlantico, with its figures and sculptures by artist Jason deCaires Taylor, slowly being colonised by marine life.

https://shearwatertravel.co.uk/lanzarote/

29/04/2024

Where will your holiday money get you the most this summer?

The Post Office has just published its worldwide holiday cost barometer for 2024 revealing the cheapest and most expensive holiday destinations for Brits. They surveyed forty popular holiday destinations and looked at the prices of various "essential "holiday items including coffee, beer, cola, wine, water, suncream, insect repellent and a three course meal. Overall, Hoi An in Vietnam has come out as the cheapest place to holiday in 2024, something participants on this week’s Race Across the World (BBC1 and iPlayer) will be grateful for. Cape Town, South Africa and Mombasa, Kenya follow closely behind. The cheapest European resort is the Algarve in Portugal which has overtaken Bulgaria, Turkey and Cyprus. The most expensive resorts include New York, Costa Rica and some of the Caribbean islands (Antigua, Barbados and ST Lucia). Whilst the barometer makes for interesting reading, it shouldn't dictate where you take your holiday this year. The report doesn’t take into account the cost of reaching your destination, nor the cost of your accommodation. Nevertheless it's sometimes hard to work out how much spending money you need on holiday so looking at the report and picking a wallet friendly destination might help.

You can read the full report here

Find the best value travel destinations worldwide for 2024. The Post Office Holiday Money Report compares prices in 40 of the most popular resorts.

16/01/2024

I've just sent out Shearwater Travel's first bulletin of 2024 focussing on the very special islands of São Tomé and Príncipe. If you fancy going to this tropical paradise, as yet relatively undiscovered, with butterscotch yellow beaches, pristine rainforest, delicious food, lovely hotels and a sea teeming with marine life then read on

https://mailchi.mp/shearwatertravel/as-the-world-opens-up-again-10409437?fbclid=IwAR1IolBC0GU6gHYqEPfWpFbyXR41T7zKF2N_WQ8H0S4v5lj4TDH6hYzo_WU

If you fancy going somewhere so under the radar that your friends will have to look it up on a map, where the beaches are made of soft yellow sand, the rainforests pristine and the sea full of beautiful marine life from tropical fish to turtles and whales, then read on to learn more about São Tom...

16/08/2023

The sun may be shining today but if you fancy a trip this autumn or early winter to somewhere with reliably warm weather and sun then take a look at my latest bulletin. It features my top five recommendations for fabulous destinations for autumn and early winter sun, each less than seven hours flying time from the UK.

https://mailchi.mp/shearwatertravel/as-the-world-opens-up-again-10380177

Or get in touch with me at [email protected]

23/05/2023

Happy World Turtle Day! A day to raise awareness and promote welfare of turtles around the world. In February this year I was lucky enough to sit on the sand right next to a turtle laying her eggs on the beautiful island of Fernando De Noronha in Brazil. It was a totally magical experience. The effort required for the pregnant turtle to haul herself up the beach, find a safe spot, dig a hole in the sand to lay hundreds of eggs at a time and then cover up the nest completely using just her fins is immense. I was totally in awe but also a little sad as she dragged her way down the beach to the sea. She will never know her children and only a small percentage of the tiny hatchlings which make their way to the sea approximately 65 days later will ever make it to adulthood.

The good news is you don’t have to fly all the way to Brazil to see turtles laying their eggs and hatching. There are a number of turtle reserves a little closer to home, doing excellent work researching and protecting these fascinating creatures. Wanderlust Travel Magazine listed the ten best places to see turtles in its October 2022 issue. As well as Australia, Costa Rica, Borneo, Jamaica, Florida and the Maldives, Wanderlust included turtle projects in the Cape Verde islands (just a five hour flight away) and Oman, which has the largest turtle reserve in the Indian Ocean. My last bulletin covered Oman but you should know that the Cape Verde islands off the west coast of Africa have a lot more to offer than the white sand beaches and all inclusive hotels the country is known for. Visit some of the smaller islands in Cape Verde and you will see a whole other side to this island nation, from incredibly fertile valleys to Mars like landscapes, sandy beaches to volcanic craters, fantastic walking trails, delicious food and pretty much year round sunshine. And of course an opportunity for turtle (and whale) spotting. You can read more about Cape Verde here. http://shearwatertravel.co.uk/cape-verde/

18/05/2023

Oman Air now have a sale offering up to 20% off flights taken before 31 October 2023. October is the beginning of the best season for visiting Oman and although temperatures will be in the low 30s in some parts of Oman, temperatures in the beautiful Jebel Akhdar mountains will be in the mid 20s and there are some gorgeous hotels in the mountains. You need to book before the end of May and travel before the end of October to take advantage of this offer. If you're interested in travelling to Oman then please get in touch with [email protected] To find out more about what you should visit this lovely country read my recent bulletin https://mailchi.mp/.../as-the-world-opens-up-again-10367766

11/05/2023

I'm pleased to say that, back from my travels around South America, I have now restarted my monthly travel bulletins. This month's bulletin features Oman, an amazing destination, particularly for winter warmth and sun. Click here to read the bulletin https://mailchi.mp/shearwatertravel/as-the-world-opens-up-again-10367766
Or visit my website www.shearwatertravel.co.uk for ideas for holidays to Oman.