Why Choose an Escorted Escape

Owner of Travel Associates, Neil Playford, shares why you should consider booking an Escorted Escape for your next holiday.

Why choose an Escorted Escape?

Escorted Escapes make travel easy, fun and affordable. Travelling in a small group with like-minded people makes the whole experience more enjoyable and less stressful than trying to do it on your own. We have unique itineraries created by our experienced team to maximise the enjoyment of the destination you are visiting.

How are they run?

Every tour has an Australian-based host who travels with the group from start to finish. They are experienced travel professionals who ensure you have a great time. In addition to the tour host, there is always an in-country tour leader as well as specialist local guides at certain places of interest.

How many people do you take on each trip?

At Escorted Escapes we firmly believe that small group travel is the best way to maximise your holiday experience, so we will never take more than 20 people on any trip. On average, our trips run with between 14 and 18 people per departure.

What type of traveller does an Escorted Escape suit most?

The majority of our clients are very well travelled and aged 50 plus. They have typically been on previous trips to Europe and/or North America but are now looking for new destinations to enjoy. Due to the security and sociability offered in a small group travelling together, we get a lot of solo travellers too. We also pride ourselves on our slow paced itineraries, allowing you the time to fully immerse yourself in the destination.

What are the main benefits of an Escorted Escape?

The value for money we offer. For one inclusive price, we include return economy airfares from Brisbane, plus all of your visa and tipping costs. We even include return airport transfers between your home and Brisbane airport. However, our key selling point is the fully inclusive sightseeing that we offer. There are very few optional extras on our tours and the majority of our clients come home with a lot more money left than they expected.

What destinations do you offer on your Escorted Escapes?

We specialise in the hard to travel to and bucket list destinations. We have three wonderful yet completely different itineraries in Africa to choose from. We also offer a classic trip taking in the main highlights of South America as well as the ultimate bucket list destination of Antarctica. For Europe, we focus on the majestic scenery of Iceland, Norway and Finland in winter, including the famous Norwegian coastal cruise and extended opportunities to view the Northern Lights. We also offer a shorter trip to Japan in spring, timed to coincide with the bloom of the cherry blossoms. We now have a new trip to Russia and the Baltic states and are currently working on a new trip to Egypt and Jordan for 2020.

What do you love about hosting Escorted Escapes?

I was fortunate enough to host the inaugural Escorted Escape several years ago, which was a wonderfully relaxing cruise around the Mediterranean. Since then, I have hosted groups to Canada and Alaska, and more recently hosted our African Adventure and Essence of South America itineraries. Being a host on these amazing trips is so enjoyable. I have been able to share in some memorable travel moments with clients who I now consider friends. To see the look on our clients’ faces when they see snow for the first time in their life, or witness elephants walking through the place we are staying, or celebrate a milestone birthday at Machu Picchu reminds me why I love my job.

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