5 alternative safaris for active adventurers - Skyscanner News
5 alternative safaris for active adventurers - Skyscanner News |
| 5 alternative safaris for active adventurers - Skyscanner News Posted: 19 Aug 2019 09:06 AM PDT Thought safari holidays were all about heading to Africa in search of the Big Five? Not necessarily. These days, wildlife-watching expeditions can take you all around the globe from tropical wetlands to frozen tundra. Bust the stereotype with a trip to one of these five alternative safari destinations…  While the vast majority of Australia-bound travellers head straight to Sydney and other East Coast hotspots, the more intrepid take the road less travelled to the Northern Territory. Start off in Darwin and you'll find plenty of places offering safari tours into nearby Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses a wide variety of landscapes and experiences. Clamber your way up one of the dramatic sandstone escarpments that tower over the forested lowlands below. Then hike along secret gorges to find cool waterfall pools and ancient Aboriginal rock art; and go croc-spotting on a billabong cruise. There are more than 10,000 crocodiles here and the sight of a huge saltie sunning itself on a sandy bank just yards away is something you don't forget in a hurry. Stay: Melaleuca on Mitchell – Darwin YHA has a good location in the Esplanade area, an outdoor pool, and the choice of dorm accommodation or private rooms from around £31 a night.  For UK ornithologists used to spending much of their time trying to distinguish one small brown bird from another, twitching in Costa Rica comes as a revelation. The country is populated by all kinds of vividly plumaged birds that send jewel-bright shards of colour flashing across the sky. If you're not cut out for sitting quietly in a hide all day, the good news is that you could easily spot them while you're doing something more active. In Monteverde's cloud forests you can trek along treetop suspension bridges, whizz through the canopy on a zipline, climb up trees and rappel down waterfalls. At any moment you might come across a hummingbird or a toucan. Or even (everybody's top spot) a male quetzal, a little beauty of a bird from the top of its fluffy green head to the tip of its long, trailing tail. Stay: The much-loved Pension Santa Elena offers rustic accommodation at a range of price points (rooms from around £22 a night) and earns rave reviews for the friendliness of its staff.  Think safari and you generally think Jeep – but in the Pantanal, in Brazil, there's every chance you'll be boarding a boat or paddling a canoe for your daily excursions. Here, in the world's largest tropical wetlands, gliding quietly along the river channels is the best way to seek out resident wildlife such as caimans, capybaras, giant otters, tapirs and – the undisputed star of the show – jaguars. For your best chance of spotting these beautiful big cats prowling the banks in search of prey, travel during the dry season (June/July to September/October). Fly into Cuiaba and follow the Transpantaneira road south to Porto Jofre, where a cluster of riverside lodges offer the perfect base for explorations. Stay: Porto Jofre Pantanal (from around £187 per night) has en-suite bungalows, an outdoor pool and boats with guides to take you out on river safaris.  Forget khaki combats and lightweight safari jackets – packing for a polar bear safari in Churchill, Canada (aka polar-bear capital of the world) is more like packing for a ski trip. Yes, you could go in summer and stand a reasonable chance of spotting the great ice bears, but by far the best time to catch them is in the chilly winter months of October and November. They gather in their hundreds along the shoreline of Hudson Bay, waiting for the waters to freeze over so they can head out to their seal hunting grounds. While they wait they're easy to find: take a day-trip aboard a Tundra Buggy or Polar Rover (specially adapted vehicles raised high above the ground on huge wheels) and there's every chance of surprisingly close encounters. Polar bears' natural curiosity brings them right up to the vehicle, every bit as keen to check you out as you are to observe them. Stay: In peak season, IceBerg Inn, a few minutes' walk from Churchill train station, has rooms from around £143 per night.  Not sure you're quite cut out for a full-on, off-the-beaten-track, might-not-always-have-access-to-WiFi safari? No problem. Singapore has a safari-for-softies option where you're guaranteed close-up encounters with all kinds of wildlife without having to abandon your well-connected city base for more than a few hours. The hugely popular Night Safari, next door to Singapore Zoo, is the world's first safari park for nocturnal animals, so has the unusual opening hours of 7.15pm to midnight. Once inside, you can follow four walking trails through the grounds, which are designed to replicate different geographical regions from the Himalayan foothills to the jungles of south east Asia. Or, take the lazy route: if you don't mind a bit of a queue, you can jump aboard a tram for a 40-minute ride around the enclosures, spotting everything from clouded leopards and fishing cats to pangolins and possums along the way. Stay: If money's no object, book yourself in to Raffles, a Singapore icon that's newly reopened after a two-year, multi-million-pound refurbishment. If the budget's tight, try The Pod @ Beach Road Boutique Capsule Hotel, where small pod rooms start from around £37 a night. Inspired for your next expedition? Grab your binoculars and start scanning for the best flights below. All flight and prices mentioned in this article are estimates of the cheapest prices based on Skyscanner's flight search tools. These are subject to change and were correct at time of writing on 19 August 2019. |
| Cling on to summer holidays with these 10 things to do around Liverpool - The Guide Liverpool Posted: 19 Aug 2019 07:00 AM PDT  It might not look like it EVERY time you look out of the window, but summer's still here and, along with it, the chance to make the most of the school holidays.There's still loads of exciting things you can do before it's time to try on the new uniform and re-stock the stationery. So why not try any one of these great activities and make 'fun' the only item on the timetable while you still can?! Liverpool ONE's Summer of Champions
Forget using the lift or stairs, Liverpool ONE's giant Helter Skelter slide is at the shopping centre until September 8. The five-metre-high slide, which is 10.1 metres long, can take you from Upper South John Street to the lower level faster than you can say John Lewis (well almost). Or, for the more active, Liverpool ONE's Summer of Champions continues until September 1 with a schedule of free events on Chavasse Park, including netball, athletics, rugby, tennis, boccia and football, along with a special running track, winners' podiums and a long jump area.
Adding to the sporting mix is a Hexagol pod. Hexagol, a self-enclosed mobile arena, allows kids and adults of all ages to practice their football skills. With a range of games, the interactive arena includes illuminated targets and a unique tracking technology to help improve your accuracy, speed, passing and energy, it's also there until September 1. Knowsley Safari Ultimate Brick SafariKnowsley's usual inhabitants have got a little company until September 2 with more than 80 lifesize animal sculptures made from LEGO® Bricks and they'll be popping up on the park's Foot Safari. Search among its real meerkats, bushdogs, giraffes and more to find these LEGO® brick creations, and mark them off on your map as you go! It's taken around 6,200 hours and over one million bricks to build the colourful creatures which include a life-sized Bengal tiger, elephant, gorillas, lions and kangaroos – and more – with 271,739 of those bricks making up Earl Grey, a life-size Elephant! You can get up close to these amazing structures before continuing your family adventure with the real animals at Knowsley. Calderstones BeachSit back in your deckchair or get building those sandcastles at Calderstones Beach until September 1. Back again for another great year, the beach at Calderstones Park has got a huge sandpit, a fun fairground with rides for all ages, colourful characters and fab food and drink. It's open daily from 10.30pm until 5pm and there's also entertainment from Dr Dave! Entry and use of the deckchairs is free. Visit Southport for the dayThere's more to this sunny seaside resort than just its beach – although that's a good enough reason alone to pack your bucket and spade and head for the coastal gem. But you can also dive into Splash World and ride the fast flumes and water slides, or relax in the bubble spa or, if you're looking for more adventure, make a beeline for nearby Crosby Lakeside Adventure Centre which has watersports – including windsurfing, sailing and power boating – for all the adrenaline junkies. You could take your bikes and cycle along one of the specially-created routes, potter around the shops in Lord Street, go ten-pin bowling or catch a show at Southport Theatre. Chances are you won't be able to resist a trip to Southport Pleasureland and all the fun of the fair but, if you fancy filling your lungs with fresh air and enjoying fantastic views, then a walk along Southport's Grade II, 1,000-metre long pier – the second longest in the country – is a must. Albert Dock FootballFootball's coming home to the Albert Dock as part of its Summer on the Dock programme with its popular floating football pitch giving kids the chance to take part in football training sessions with profession coaches from the LFC Foundation and with football freestyler, Mr Silky Skills. Free hourly drop-in sessions are available daily between August 23 to 31, with no booking needed.
The schedule for sessions is: Friday 23 – Monday 26, 11.30am – 4.30pm: Football freestyling workshops and skills sessions with Mr Silky Skills Tuesday 27, 10am – 4pm: LFC Foundation Multi sports and Open Play Wednesday 28, 10am – 4pm: LFC Foundation Inclusion Showcase Thursday 29, 10am – 4pm: LFC Foundation Women and Girls sessions Friday 30th August, 10am – 4pm LFC Foundation Multi sports and Open play Saturday 31st August, 10am – 4pm LFC Foundation football skills and drills Liverpool Exhibition Centre: Indoor FunfairThe Liverpool Indoor Funfair is returning to the Exhibition Centre this summer between August 23 to September 1. It means fun whatever the weather with more than 20 attractions for all ages including family favourites the dodgems, the funhouse, ghost train, an inflatable play centre and more. There'll be prize games – and the ever-popular Nutella donuts will also be back! Tickets are £10 for riders (unlimited goes for three hours), and £2 for spectators. There are three sessions daily – 10-1pm, 2-5pm and 6-9pm* – but no 6-9pm session on both Sunday, August 25 and Sunday, September 1. And there is an Autism Friendly/Quiet Session for those with sensory needs, on Tuesday, August 27, between 10am-1pm. Liverpool MuseumsThe city's museums have got a sizzling programme of summer fun to entertain the whole family – and most of it is free! You can journey to the stars with World Museum's Daily Planetarium Show; see the sniffer dogs in action at the Merseyside Maritime Museum or get hands-on at the Museum of Liverpool's Little Liverpool gallery especially for children under the age of six. There's a full programme of events across all the museum venues here in Liverpool and Wirral. http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/events/summer-listings.aspx Beatles Story WorkshopsEvery Tuesday throughout August, The Beatles Story is running summer guitar workshops for children in its Discovery Zone. They are designed for 6-11 year-olds as a very first introduction to the guitar; how to hold it, learn about the different parts and what they do, how to tune a guitar and learn a few simple chords (using The Beatles as inspiration of course).
Places are limited to eight children per session, led by two members of the team who are expert guitar players and have loads of knowledge to pass on. Sessions will last 30 minutes and take place at The Beatles Story's Chill Out area from 10am-10.30am and 11am-11.30am. Guitars are provided and tickets for the workshops are FREE (including an accompanying adult) and must be claimed online here. Badge Making at The Tate LiverpoolGet inspired by artist Keith Haring in the Tate's hands-on family workshop. Keith Haring set up a pop-up shop in New York in 1986, where he sold t-shirts, badges and novelty items with his imagery. So in celebration of his genius, through the Tate's summer workshops artist Jim Medway is inviting families to design and create their own badges, and printed posters taking inspiration from its Keith Haring exhibition. Create your own badge between August 14-17 and August 21-23. Martin Mere – Bionic BugsNot too far from Ormskirk, there's a place where families can spend the day getting back to nature, whatever the weather. Martin Mere Wetland Centre is an oasis for wildlife and families alike, just a short journey from our bustling city. From little to large! Martin Mere is currently home to 6 GIANT Bionic Bugs which have been brought to life with sound and animatronics. See if you can spot them around the grounds. More info here. Get all of the latest news for Liverpool and beyond here.Got a story you would like to share with us? Email us info@theguideliverpool.com an |
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