SPECIAL SEARCHES – archive (please be aware that these are archive queries, so some of the links and references may be out-of-date)

<< Retrun to current Special Searches

REQUEST:
I want to go to Venice for 4 - 7 days. I don't want to go on my own but haven't travelled on my own before. I am a 35 year old female. Any suggestions of how to go about doing this? Tracey – Yorkshire, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
This was a tricky onem most of teh courses and workshops we've found are weekends or 2/3 days at most and we've only managed to find one trip that fits your request for a longer course.
[Now please go to our skating for more details and links]

REQUEST:
I'm a figure skating fan and would like to attend the 'World Figure Skating Championships'. Do you know of any travel agents who organise such trips? Skating fan – London, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
So far we haven't been able to find you any UK tour operators offering what you want, but we suggest you take a look at some north American companies: Silver Blade Tours, Downhill Riders Ski and Travel Co and Dash Tours can all offer ticket and accommodation packages to the event (now added to our skating section). All you need to do then is add in a flight to Washington D.C.
[Now please go to our skating for more details and links]

REQUEST:
We are looking for a hen weekend in Spain for 13 girls. Price 150 to 200 gbp. Please help you are our only hope! Chalky – England, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Great Weekends have hen weekends to Barcelona and Malaga, prices starting around the £250 mark (you will be lucky to get much for less than that I'm afraid). You might also consider approaching Senior Stag about their trips to Barcelona; they are really aiming at stag weekends, but might consider doing a hen trip too. They are offering apartment based trips which should help keep the costs down.
[Now please go to our stag/hen section for more details and links]

REQUEST:
I'd love to go on a trip to see penguins in their natural habitat, preferably Antarctica. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated. Oskie – Surrey, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Try Adventure Network International who have a 15 day 'Emperor Penguin Photo Safari' in Antarctica. It's a bit pricey, but worth a look, if only for all the penguin info and the penguin slide show. We would also recommend talking to Footloose Adventure Travel who can offer trips that include penguin watching; they suggest: "Antarctica, Punta Arenas in Southern Chile, The Galapagos Islands, Capetown, New Zealand and South Eastern Australia. We can do trips to all these places, depends which sort of penguins you wish to see." They can offer off the shelf trips or tailor make one just for you.
    Also on our lists are Birdquest who have an 'Antarctica, the Falklands and South Georgia' cruise on offer, Ornitholidays who also have Antarctic cruises, and Wildwings also with cruises and other birdwatching trips. Finally, if you don't mind trying US companies, there are several offering Antarctic trips including TravelWild Expeditions and Voyagers International.
[Now please go to our birdwatching section for more details and links]

REQUEST:
We are keen cyclists currently living in New Zealand and are due to come back to Scotland to get married. I am trying to figure out if it would be possible for us to hire a tandem or other novelty bike for the trip from the church to the reception. A bit of a challenge as I am 5 foot 2 and Nick is 6 foot 2!! Just wondered if you could help! Al – Scotland; but currently living in New Zealand

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Not strictly a holiday query, but how could we resist your plea! Try these addresses:
http://www.tandem-club.org.uk/tandemhire.html and http://www.scotland-info.co.uk/cycle.htm. We trust you have the honeymoon sorted out by now, but if not take a look at our wedding and honeymoon pages. Hope the wedding goes well!

REQUEST:
Me and a few of my friends fancy going on a murder mystery weekend but don't want to travel too far, do you know of any in Wales? Myfanwy – Dolgellau, Wales

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Unfortunately for you there seems to be more going on in south Wales than in the north; both Murder on The Menu and Jarvis Hotels have weekends in Cardiff and Jarvis Hotels have a weekend just over the bridge in Bristol too. The closest one to you seems to be Plas Dinas, just south of Caernarfon, in Gwynedd.
[Now please go to our murder mystery section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
Hi, my name is Gareth and I was wondering if you could help me. Me and a couple of friends were thinking about travelling to Canada and trying to get jobs working at a ski/snowboarding resort is there any more information you could possibly send me on this subject? Gareth – UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
We can recommend a very good book on the subject which should answer most of your queries. Working in Ski Resorts: Europe and North America is a complete guide to every aspect of working in ski resorts with advice on how to get a whole variety of jobs and which includes listings of employers. The guide includes details of nearly all resorts worldwide. Save up to 20% on the GB £ price via the link below:
Working in Ski Resorts: Europe and North... Check price in GB£
Working in Ski Resorts: Europe and North... Check price in US$
Good luck! I wish I could join you (editor).

REQUEST:
I am interested in finding out more about a "Romany Caravan" holiday within the UK. These holidays are quite popular throughout Ireland but not readily advertised in the UK. Curious of Gloucestershire – Gloucestershire, England

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
There are three possibilities for you to look at, all now added to the horse-drawn section of the site, they are: White Horse Gypsy Caravans who run tours in Wiltshire. Ellesmere Riding Centre who run holidays and short breaks in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales. And Equitana Horse Drawn Holidays who are based in the New Forest, Hampshire; this one looks inviting and if you are new to the activity the attraction of a network of "under 40 mph roads and gravel tracks through the Forest" sounds good. You will follow a selected route but experienced drivers can elect to follow their own.
[Now please go to our horse-drawn section section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
I am looking for a small barge cruise in France where the participants guide the barge. Hawkeye – South Carolina, USA

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
We liked the look of Rive de France who have over 170 boats to choose from, in 8 different areas of France, their webiste is very informative and easy to navigate. Another French company, Locaboat Plaisance, have an interesting range of boats that the company build themselves. Their 'virtual visit' gives you a 360 degree view of an interior to give you a better idea of what it's like. Burgundy-canal.com have both self drive and hotel barges, but only in the Burgundy area. Finally, as you are from the USA, you might be interested in a US company, The Barge Connection, who have self drive boats and also a number of very interesting sounding canal boat/barge theme breaks as well.
[Now please go to our canal/barge cruises section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
I went on a safari in Kenya 9 years ago and loved it – I would now like to take my daughter (five next summer) on a safari but most tour operators have an over 12 age restriction and I can't find anyone who specialises in children's safaris. tartan cat – Glasgow, Scotland, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
We recommend contacting Footloose Adventure Travel, they have a huge amount of experience of Africa and have contacts with a number of safari companies who can offer what you want. They suggested: "there are two easy ways to enjoy a safari with children – join a special family group or have a trip tailor made for you. There are a few specialist companies that organise small groups safaris lasting about two weeks. The groups are usually four or five families with children of all ages. The itineraries include places and activities suitable for children of all ages but are the genuine article. They will usually also have a slower pace and a more flexible timetable. The tailor made option is good for those who have less time or want something more specific. The itinerary can be a 'grown-up' one adjusted to suit your particular needs. There are now a number of lodges in Kenya where have have special children's clubs with activities ranging from bush tracking and bush craft to cultural discovery activities with local children."
    Also on our lists are Rainbow Tours, who offer a two week family holiday (taking children under 12) combining game viewing in Kruger Park and Swaziland with time on the beach. Dragoman who have family safaris in East Africa for children over 8 and Island Safari who have a programme that "includes hotels and Safari Lodges where children are not only allowed, but are warmly welcomed" (but be warned their website is not easy to navigate!).
    Finally you could try a South African company, go2africa.com who also have an interesting article "Travel Tips for taking your family on safari".
[Now try our wildlife/nature section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
Do you have any info. on murder mystery weekends, in the Chicagoland area? Kris Sears – USA

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
We suggest Murdermystery.com for a weekend in the Chicagoland area. But there is more choice if you are prepared to travel. Still in Illinois are Hidden Lake Bed and Breakfast and The Oaks and just over in Michigan you could try Marsh Ridge. All of these are linked from our Mystery and Puzzle section. [Click here to go there now.]

REQUEST:
I would like to arrange a short photographic expedition/safari for my husband as a birthday treat to go to Antarctica, do you know of any companies specialising in this? ~~~~h shah – Surrey, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
There are quite a lot of companies offering trips to Antarctica, most are cruises and most focus on wildlife – try Wildwings or Ornitholidays in the newly updated cruises section. The Clipper Cruise Line uses some interesting vessels, including Icebreakers. There are a few operators offering tours dedicated to photography, look at Wildlife Worldwide and Voyagers International both in cruises.
     As you are based in the UK, the majority of companies we have suggested are UK based, but if you aren't restricted to UK companies the trips Heritage Expeditions (New Zealand) Ltd. offer look very good and include historical cruises following routes taken by the famous Antarctic explorers.
     One company, Adventure Network International, can fly you out. They offer some incredible trips, as well as photo safaris and general cruises, the really adventurous can ski to the pole or even run the first ever Antarctic marathon! They also have some very useful photographic information and tips on their pages about their 'Emperor Penguin Photo Safari'.
[Now try our cruises, photographic and wildlife/nature sections for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
We tried out a friends tandem the other weekend and really enjoyed riding it together. We would now like to find some tandem cycling holidays in Britain or Europe, can you help? Richard and Fiona – Hertfordshire, UK

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Two companies offer specific tandem tours, Wildcat Bike Tours (but watch out, the site was a slow to load when we looked at it) and Erickson Cycle Tours. Between them they have trips to Scotland, Spain, France, Italy and Switzerland which might suit you.
    Many of the companies in our cycling section will be happy to take tandem riders on some of their road tours too, but you will have to check with each company to find out which ones. Some, like Hooked on Cycling and Breton Bikes will also hire out tandems if you don't have a tandem of your own.
   Thanks for your enquiry, we felt it worth adding a new 'tandem biking' category to the cycling section after our research. It's not a long list at the moment – unless any of our readers out there can add other suggestions – if you can then please email us with the details!
[Now please go to our cycling section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
Do you have any sewing-related trips, cruises or tours? Thanks. Beth

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
Beth, we've located one sewing cruise for you. Specialty Tours offer all sorts of theme cruises including one to Alaska that has a sewing theme. It starts in Vancouver and offers opportunities to view fantastic arctic scenery as well as sewing and quilting instruction.
    On dry land there are a variety of trips and courses to choose from. If you are into needlepoint (cross stitch) then we were very impressed with the look of Anna Pearsons Needlepont courses, she runs courses in the UK and the USA. Other Needlepoint possibilities are from Creative Stitches in Jersey, Madra Dubh in Ireland or Great Escapes in the UK.
    In the USA, The Sewing Arts and Sew Many Options Tours offer sewing courses and textile tours, and Country Heritage Tours are the people to go to for quilting trips and courses in the US and Spain. Embroidery is another sewing option and many of the companies listed above also do this, or you could try Island Embroidery Holidays for some embroidery instruction based in the fantastic setting of a Scottish Island.
[Now please go to our textiles section for more details and links.]

REQUEST:
Where can I go for a short, ideally weekend break to learn how to ballroom dance? In the South of England ideally! iz – London, England

TRAVEL-QUEST REPLY:
We suggest you take a look at Dance Holiday Breaks, Holiday and Dance, Langstone Cliff Hotel, Victoria Hotel and Modern Sequence Dancing all of whom have ballroom dancing holidays and weekends in the South of England at a variety of venues and on a variety of dates. You might also try KingsHill Holidays, but there is not much information on their website so you will need to write or speak to them to clarify what is available. Links to these sites are available in our dance section.
    If you fancied going further afield then try some of the other sites listed. These cover other areas of the UK as well as locations all over the World. Dance Holidays in particular have a very extensive list of places to choose from.
[Now please go to our dance section for more details and links.]