Destinations | Insider Expeditions

Insider Expeditions has designed and delivered more than 500 educational travel programs across seven continents. Our current itineraries include customized trips in Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Bhutan, Bolivia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dubai, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Guatemala, Iceland, Ireland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Peru, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, across the United States of America, and Vietnam.

featuring

cuba

We travel to Cuba more than anywhere else on the planet, with consistently rave reviews for our innovative people-to-people programming and exceptional contacts in the country. We have the approval of the U.S. government to lead such customized, cultural exchanges, and work with the best local guides and institutional partners to deliver unparalleled programs. While we can tailor any trip, we have a particular focus on university alumni associations, young professionals, and museum and art groups.

Every single trip is different and customized directly to our clients needs. However, some of our programming options include:

Discovering Cuba’s sophisticated art traditions during visits with artists in their studios.
Feeling the complex rhythms of Cuban music, from son to rumba and jazz, and learning about these uniquely Cuban music styles through both performances and dance lessons.
Exploring World Heritage sites and learning about Cuba’s passion for preservation from the very leaders whose efforts are maintaining their architectural and natural heritage.
Meeting with both U.S and Cuban officials in Havana to discuss the evolving relationship between these two neighbors.

Please get in touch to design your customized trip to this Caribbean gem.

what our travelers say

“I’ve traveled to more than 30 countries in my life — this trip to Cuba easily made it into my top 3 favorite trips of all time.”

“This was one of my favorite international trips! The itinerary was thoughtful and fueled the imagination.”

“The Cuba trip was the most unique, fun, and educational experience I’ve had in years, and I would recommend it to anyone!”

bhutan

Perhaps best known for its chart-topping measure of Gross National Happiness, this Himalayan nation is home to dramatic landscapes, mystical temples, and fewer than one million people. Travelers will see firsthand how the world’s only official Buddhist country is one of the greenest and most sustainable countries on the planet. It is an exciting time to visit Bhutan, a country that, for now, remains somewhat frozen in time with relatively little western influence.

Every single trip is different and customized directly to our clients needs. However, some of our programming options include:

National Festivals. At each, you’ll see traditional religious and tantric dance performances and celebrate, pray, and receive blessings for the year ahead.
Spiritual Practice. Raise peace flags on the Dochula Pass, meet with Buddhist spiritual leaders, and take in the evening chants at historic temples.
Optional Extension to Nepal. In these four extra days of exploration, you’ll see Mount Everest from the air (if you dare), visit UNESCO World Heritage Sites, temples, and royal squares in Kathmandu, and learn about how this ancient country continues to rebuild and transform after the 2015 earthquake.

Please get in touch to design your customized trip to the peak of happiness.

chile total solar eclipse summer 2019

Marvel at rarely-aligned celestial bodies in conjunction with mind-blowing lectures on a Chilean odyssey.

Highlights of the trip include:

Astronomical Wonder On July 2, 2019, the new moon’s umbra will pass directly overhead for eclipse chasers, and in a moment of extreme rarity, the disc of the moon will cover the sun’s face for the sight of a lifetime.
Otherworldly Landscapes Imagine yourself amidst the regal Andes Mountains, the surreal Atacama Desert, and sipping award-winning vino on Chilean vineyards.
Leading Experts Feed your curiosity with private keynote presentations, lectures, and family-friendly activities.

Please get in touch to design your customized trip for this once in a lifetime experience.

iceland

Isolated for millennia, except for the most intrepid of travelers, Iceland’s tourism sector is recently booming, and for good reason. It is, quite literally, a country in the making: volcanoes, geysers, mud pots, and hot springs are constantly transforming the anomalous island, and glaciers and waterfalls churn the extraordinary landscape. And, in colder months, Iceland offers front-row seats to the ethereal aurora borealis. The recent economic boom following the island’s 2008–2011 financial crash make it a particularly fascinating time to visit the island.

Every single trip is different and customized directly to our clients needs. However, some of our programming options include:

Community and Culture. Engage in conversations on conservation in Iceland with a local nonprofit and sustainability experts living in the planet’s northernmost capital city. Learn why Iceland is one of the world’s most peaceful countries, including their role in international peace summits and how they inherited a piece of the Berlin Wall.
Eye-Popping Landscapes. Iceland is, quite literally, a country in the making, replete with volcanoes, geysers, mud pots, and hot springs. And, for our visit, Iceland offers front-row seats to the aurora borealis, which we’ll hunt for each night.
Viking Culture and Relaxation. Iceland’s history was forged by Vikings. On this trip, you’ll learn about their rich history and traditions, and enjoy Iceland’s famously good coffee and chocolate. Once your belly is full (fermented shark, anyone?), you’ll also melt away stress at blue hot springs, saunas, and steam rooms.

Please get in touch to design your customized trip to the Land of Fire and Ice.

morocco

Explore Morocco on an extraordinary African coast adventure! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to immerse yourself in this kaleidoscopic land, where the ocean meets the sand dunes as the past meets the present. Travelers will experience Morocco’s top highlights—the art, culture and natural beauty of this ageless kingdom in the Maghreb. Morocco’s history and interweaving of cultures across Europe, Africa and the Middle East makes it a perfect country for an immersive program covering the mosaic of sand, surf and sounds in the surrounding landscape.

Some of the options you could have on your trip include:

Ancient Medinas. Get lost in some of the oldest winding markets in the world.
Earthly Wonders. From glimmering oceans to the vast Sahara, and peaks of the High Atlas to the depths of Todra Gorge, Morocco’s topography will seem like a mirage.
Warm Maghreb Hospitality. Stay in charming riads—traditional guesthouses—and interact with locals over home-cooked tagines, baskets of dates, and steaming mint tea.
Dunes at Dusk. Ride camels into dramatic sandscapes and spend the night under clear, deep skies deciphering the constellations.

Please get in touch to design your customized African coast adventure.

peru

Explore the legendary Inca Trail with a great group—winding through snow-capped peaks, massive granite precipices, and the dense Amazon tropical jungle basin. Get ready to make lifelong friends while making unforgettable memories as we explore the best of Peru’s mysterious archeological treasures—Machu Picchu, the mysterious “Lost City of the Incas”—while sleeping under the stars on ancient royal estates.

Storied Trails. Weave colorful memories of snow-capped peaks, massive granite precipices, the dense Amazon tropical jungle basin, and architectural marvels of an extraordinary bygone empire.
Archeological Treasure. Take a scenic train to Aguas Calientes, also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo, then walk up an ancient staircase to the crown jewel of the Inca empire, standing proud high in the Andes.
Peruvian Cuisine. Dine on fresh ceviche, learn how to make frothy Peruvian pisco sours, and enjoy local cuisine in the mystical colonial town of Cusco.
Expert Storytellers. Be regaled with daily talks and tales of one of the world’s greatest civilizations by expert archeologists, historians, and locals during the trek through the Sacred Valley.

Please get in touch to design your customized South American outing.