Favorite places to visit in North America Lee Nicholson, our Director of Operations in North America shares the places he likes to spend time visiting. The Grand Canyon, USA Without doubt one of Mother Nature’s greatest natural wonders, the Grand Canyon has long captivated every visitor who has looked into its abyss. In fact, nothing can prepare you for the moment you set eyes on its awesome magnitude. The world’s largest gorge reaches an average depth of one vertical mile (1.6 km) exposing two billion years of the Earth’s history in layers of colourful sediment and minerals. Simply a unique and everlasting experience. Canyon Rambler - 8 Day Tour Canyon Parks - 15 Day Tour Yellowstone National Park, USA Established as the world’s first National Park in 1872, Yellowstone has captured the imagination of artists, hikers and nature lovers alike. It is an extraordinary natural paradise with unrivalled beauty, and one that is difficult to comprehend unless experienced firsthand. There's nowhere else you can find such a huge variety of geysers, boiling hot springs and other geothermal features (more than the rest of the world combined) and none more famous than Old Faithful. Dense alpine forests, rugged landscapes, meandering rivers, impressive waterfalls, and mountain peaks mirrored in crystal clear lakes, make up the rest of the park along with some very impressive wildlife. Yellowstone & The Grand Tetons - 8 Day Tour California Treasures & Yellowstone - 14 Day Tour Banff National Park, Canada Nowhere else in Canada can you get such stunning landscapes as you will see at Banff National Park. Picture snowcapped mountain ranges reflected in turquoise blue mountain lakes and you’re half way there. Ice-fields, glacier fed rivers, and dense coniferous forests make this a truly beautiful place to get away from it all and enjoy first class hiking and endless fresh air. The Best of The Rockies - 7 Day Tour Rocky Mountain Explorer - 14 Day Tour Denali National Park, Alaska, USA Home to Mt. McKinley, the tallest mountain in North America, the Denali National Park is a natural gem for glaciated, tundra landscapes and an abundance of wildlife. In summer, the glacier fed rivers meander through flower studded green pastures offering excellent hiking options along the park’s many trails. Alternatively, the park authorities operate a well organised shuttle program providing access to even the remotest parts of this incredible wilderness. Alaska National Parks - 10 Day Tour Alaska & Yukon Wilderness - 21 Day Tour Vancouver, Canada Consistently nominated as one of the most desirable cities in the world to live in, Vancouver has an understandable reputation for being green, friendly, liberal, active and multi-cultural. Beautifully set on the Pacific Coast with the Coast Mountains providing a gorgeous backdrop, there are numerous hiking options. In fact, there is no need to even leave the city as it is home to Stanley Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world. Great restaurants, an unrivalled café culture, superb shopping and easy to use public transportation make this an ideal place to spend a few days. Hiking Vancouver Island - 7 Day Tour Rockies & Pacific Islands - 20 Day Tour San Francisco, USA One of the great cities of the world, just the thought of it conjures up so many images; Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Prison, Giant Redwood trees, and the famous Street Cars. And one of the greatest attractions is the people who live there, well known for their liberal and bohemian outlook on life and friendliness to visitors. Yosemite & California Explorer - 7 Day Tour Grand Western Adventure - 16 Day Tour Washington State, USA One of the world’s up-and-coming adventure playgrounds, Washington State has so much variety and so many environments, wildlife and natural wonders. The list is endless; Mt. St. Helens, Olympic National Park, The Cascade Mountains, San Juan Islands, Mt. Rainier, City of Seattle, the Pacific Coastline, and so much more. Seattle & The Pacific Northwest - 7 Day Tour Pacific Adventure - 14 Day Tour Yukon Territory, Canada The last frontier of North America where husky dogs howl and gold still flows in its rivers. Home to the Inuit, Inuvialuit, and several other northern First Nations people, the Yukon is a larger-than-life experience bringing together magnificent national parks, authentic and historic gold rush towns, and an untamed wilderness that is hard to match. The Rockies to The Arctic Circle - 21 Day Tour Alaska & Yukon Wilderness - 21 Day Tour Take a look at all our tours in North America here. So what are you waiting for? Venture a little further. Go to www.kumuka.com and discover the 'real' world. back to top

A When you are booking your holiday it is important to speak to knowledgeable people. A good travel agent can really make a difference to your holiday.

Meet Jenna Winter – Team Leader, Timaru Flight Centre NZ

Having travelled extensively across Europe, North America, Asia, Australia and the Pacific, Jenna is a true people person, declaring that friends and family are her absolute world. She also loves good food and wine. It seems fitting for someone with such credentials to be the face of Flight Centre in Timaru. Grateful for her travel experiences to date, Jenna loves to meet new people every day and help them make their dreams come true in her vocation as travel agent. She has sent many a happy passenger on tour with Kumuka.

In her own words:

What makes you recommend Kumuka? I love that every client that sits down in front of me is a Kumuka client. Kumuka cater for absolutely everything and everyone. For example, in Africa there are camping style tours with cooks included or participation tours where everyone cooks, or for the soft adventurer, more up market lodge safaris.

What do you like most about dealing with Kumuka? The fact that everyone that works there is so passionate about the product. A big point of difference Kumuka have, is that whenever a booking is made Ruth our sales rep personally emails us thanking us for the booking. I know that Kumuka really appreciate every booking and really look after my customers.

What do you like most about the Kumuka product? There are no hidden costs - what you see is what you get. Also with the dollar going up and down like a yo-yo as of late, I love that Kumuka have their price promise, unlike competitors who have been surcharging their tours due to fuel and currency fluctuations.

If you were to go on a Kumuka trip tomorrow what would it be and why? I am actually going to do the Serengeti Crater and Zanzibar tour. I’m really looking forward to the Ngorongoro crater and seeing the amazing wildlife that Kenya and Tanzania have.

What is your favourite destination? I love Italy as a country as I love food and wine, Tuscany in particular is my favourite.

Flight Centre is the place to work be cause... We are a company that is passionate about our customers and our people. Flight Centre develops people from Consultants to Future Team Leaders to Team Leaders, right through to Nation Leaders. Flight Centre works hard to help every single staff member strive toward a bright future. Not many companies will have their Team Leader Conference in Fiji year after year, or put on a fantastic national ball and global ball during the middle of a recession with guest speakers like Lance Armstrong, Sir Richard Branson and Sir Bob Geldof. Flight Centre is more than just a company and it becomes more than just a job. The relationships that are formed in our areas are lifelong.

Any quirky habits? Every time I fly, I tap the outside of an aeroplane 3 times before walking on board, and I jiggle constantly and jiggling drives my mumma crazy!

If you could invite 2 famous people to take travelling with you, who would they be? I would take Leonardo Da Vinci and Bono from U2. Da Vinci so he could explain to me exactly why his creations are what they are as there are so many hidden myths about his paintings. Bono as he’s passionate about life and humanity. Not only that, but he could serenade me with his amazing musical talents.

Want Jenna to handle your Kumuka tour booking? Contact her by email or phone: +64 3 6881226

back to top

Enjoying hiking and sitting by campfires in the Rockies

Angela experiences 7 days in the Rockies!

This time last year I was making the very tough decision of where my next holiday would be. I wanted to do something active and was tossing up between a cycling tour in Vietnam and a hiking tour in the Rockies. Not being an overly fit person, I decided the hiking tour might be slightly less strenuous and so I set off to Calgary to join my tour group for a seven day adventure to see “The Best of the Rockies”!

On tour we visited Banff, Yoho and Jasper National Parks and boy were they stunning! The snow-capped mountains and turquoise blue lakes – not to mention the wildlife and the greenery we were surrounded by…

And then there were the nights we spent around the campfire looking at the stars and listening to the burning logs on the fire. For me this was the best of the Rockies - to relax after an active day of hiking and sightseeing by taking in the fresh air and eating, drinking and chatting by the warmth of the fire.

It was exhausting, and I did discover that I am even less fit than I had originally thought, but it was worth every huff and puff that went into it!

So that was 2009. This year I’m thinking I might attempt that cycling tour for a different experience altogether – better get my training shoes on!

Thanks Kumuka - See you again soon!
Angela

Angela travelled on Kumuka’s The Best of the Rockies tour in Canada last year.

back to top

It's back! Kumuka's Travel Photography Competition 2010.

Send in your favourite travel shots from Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Europe, Latin America, The Middle East or the North America for your chance to have your images displayed on the Kumuka Worldwide Photo Gallery Wall and win one of three fantastic prizes.

The categories for entries into the Travel Photography Competition are as follows:

1.) Kumuka Travellers and Families

2.) Landscapes, Landmarks and Wildlife

3.) People and Culture

The Prizes:
1st Southern Star tour of Africa >
2nd Oases and Pharaohs tour of Egypt >
3rd Reef & Rainforest Tour of Central America >

The closing date for entries into the Travel Photo Competition will be 01 September 2010 and the prize draw will take place on 01 October 2010. Please see the website for more information >

Good luck and happy snapping!

back to top    

Stop Press

Kumuka’s new VENTURE magazine!

Order your copy of Kumuka’s new Venture Magazine!

With heaps of interesting articles on tours in the Middle East, life on the Mekong Delta, family tours in Africa, “must-see” attractions in Europe and lots more – it’s not only a good read, but an inspiration for your future travels!

Whether you’re interested in cold places, hot places, high places, dry places, or just simply want to see something different, Venture will stimulate your senses and give you ideas for your next adventure.

Join our growing worldwide family of adventurers. To make sure you never miss an issue, go to www.venturemag.net and sign up to receive future issues! Read Venture online here.

Have fun dreaming about your next trip!

back to top    

Let’s face it, real time is Tweet!

Whether you are booked to travel with Kumuka or thinking about your next adventure, there is no better way to keep in touch with Kumuka and its fans than via real time channels.

On Kumuka’s Facebook Fan page you can meet other travellers, discuss destinations and trips with past clients, share photos and stories, keep up to date with the latest product releases and discount offerings from Kumuka and enter competitions to win your next adventure.

Twitter offers breaking news from Kumuka as it happens, exclusive discounts, new product ideas and developments and a platform for your ideas to come to Kumuka instantly and be shared with our followers.

back to top  

Once you have travelled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.

Pat Conroy - bestselling author of several acclaimed novels

back to top