Hidden Places Travel

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Hidden Places Travel

Hidden Places is a boutique travel company that takes you on adventures to the world's most spectacular and lesser-known places. License Number 58042.
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Hidden Places is a boutique travel company that takes you on unique small-group expeditions to spectacular destinations around the world, including Croatia, Laos, Vietnam, Galapagos and East Africa. We leave a positive footprint by funding conservation and community development with our Adventures for a Cause. We are a fully licensed tour operator and travel agent registered with Consumer Protection BC.

11/19/2024

Our latest private group donated 60 bicycles to KIDS in Cambodia. See our blog post for more information.

Hidden Places Travel Guests donate Bicycles to Cambodian kids in need.

11/02/2024

Nine months before last May’s Japan Walking, Culture and Cuisine trip, I badly broke my foot, and required surgery. I was warned it would be a year before I was back to normal activities. So you can imagine my delight when I happily managed to hike every step of the way. The whole trip was a sheer delight - mindful, joyful, full of lovely surprises. We’ll be back next year, in May and October. Come with us - it’s the most amazing way to experience Japan!

11/01/2024

From our latest Hidden Places newsletter:

‘We love to walk. On mountain trails above our village in Catalonia; along the beaches of Victoria, our home base in Canada; in cities; and across wild landscapes in remote places. Invariably our spirits are lifted and we feel inspired and connected to the world around us - such a simple exercise brings huge rewards.

So it’s little wonder that over the years we’ve developed walking trips in some very special places. Now more than ever, a walking adventure can offer a refreshing antidote to challenging times. The rhythm of breath and footsteps, the slow unfurling of landscapes and cultures, these all help us find calm and a greater perspective. ‘

This photo was taken a few years ago in Morocco, when Dag and I were hiking and exploring near Trafraoute, in the Anti-Atlas Mountains. A wild landscape for sure!

10/30/2024

Exploring the World on Foot - https://mailchi.mp/hiddenplaces/exploring-the-world-on-foot
Our latest newsletter.

07/18/2024

Join Us in the Arctic!
See Our Latest Newsletter here.

07/04/2024

This was a Walking, Culture and Cuisine trip, and oh, the cuisine! It’s going to take a few posts to give even a taste (sorry) of the amazing food we had in Japan. Here’s the menu for our welcome dinner. It seemed a bit overwhelming at first, but everything was so delicate and fine. The best of ingredients, treated with such respect and care, presented so artfully. I’m
only showing a few of the courses, including the shabu shabu, a hotpot of vegetables and beef (beyond tender and cut ultra thin so it cooks in seconds). A chef came to give us a quick demo.

06/30/2024

Our fourth day of walking in the Kiso Valley was along the most beautiful and best preserved part of the Nakasendo Trail. I kept thinking about all the people who had walked here long before us, as far back as the early 1600s - shoguns and samurai, messengers and merchants, pilgrims, and traders - making their way from Edo (Tokyo) to Kyoto. I imagined them, like us, admiring the waterfalls, resting in the forest shade, marvelling at the green vistas. Gratefully arriving at one of the little ‘post towns’ and stopping for food, for shelter. I’ll soon be sharing lots of pictures of our amazing meals on this trip, but for now I must mention the vegetarian lunch we had on this day, in the equivalent of a small roadside cafe. My photo shows the central dish - vegetables grown by the owners of the cafe in their garden, or foraged by them on the nearby mountainsides. Burdock, butter bur, wasabi leaf, squash, fiddlehead, peas and more….It was simple, exquisite, delicious. And then there was matcha ice cream!

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06/25/2024

Day 3 on the Nakasendo Trail, in glorious sunshine! We walked for 14 km through forests, green valleys, and also sweet villages where a barber ran out to introduce us to his cat, and a lady told us about her trip to Canada. There were lots of bear signs, but no sign of bears! Our destination was O-Tsumago, a totally original little settlement. Home for the night, a small inn run by a farming family who fed us with rice they had grown, fish they had raised and vegetables they had foraged. Brilliant.

06/16/2024

Day Three of our Japan: Walking, Culture and Cuisine Trip.
We travelled by train to the Kiso Valley, to spend several days walking a section of the ancient Nakasendo Trail which runs between Edo (now Tokyo) and Kyoto. Alang it are ‘post towns’, small villagers where during the Edo period (1603 to 1868) travellers used to rest and overnight on the 500 km trail. The first leg of our journey was very short; we got off a couple of stops before the post town of Narai, and walked, in the rain, to this gorgeous settlement. On the way we visited a family run lacquer factory set behind an atsmopheric garden, broke a rule while crossing a wooden bridge, visited a Shinto shrine, and finally settled into our minshuku, a traditional family run inn. After changing into the yukata left for us in our tatami mat rooms, we gathered for a stunning dinner. Food shots to follow!

05/06/2024

Tokyo! Everyone has arrived safely, we’ll be meeting our guide in a few hours, then it’s lift off!

05/04/2024

On my way to for our new trip!
Stay tuned for stories and pics.

05/01/2024

NO SINGLE SUPPLEMENTS for select Arctic expeditions … and US $ 2500 air credit! Join us!

04/22/2024

Cultural Adventure in Japan this coming October! - https://mailchi.mp/hiddenplaces/cultural-adventure-in-japan-this-coming-october
See more about this trip in our latest newsletter!

03/10/2024

Introducing the Arctic! - https://mailchi.mp/hiddenplaces/introducing-the-arctic

02/28/2024

What's on your Bucket List? https://mailchi.mp/hiddenplaces/tell-us-whats-on-your-bucket-list

02/22/2024

There’s nowhere quite like the backwaters of Kerala. And the best way to explore them is by kayak. We developed this trip way back, we have deep connections in the area, and the entire experience is a delight.
Contact us for information on scheduled and private departures. Join us for an enchanted adventure!

02/15/2024

We're proud to partner with Aurora Expeditions who have launched their second purpose-built expedition ship.

This is "Introducing the Sylvia Earle" by Aurora Expeditions on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

11/13/2023

Antarctica News Flash - https://mailchi.mp/hiddenplaces/antarctica-news-flash

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Suite 313, 599 Pandora Avenue
Victoria, BC
V8W1N5

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Videos

During our first day in Tokyo, in the grounds of the Zojoji Buddhist Temple, we met Jizo, a revered deity who we would encounter throughout our trip. Our guide Akko explained that Jizo is a bodhisattva, a compassionate being who has chosen to delay his own enlightenment in order to help others. He is seen as a protector of travellers, farmers and most especially small children, including mizuko, who died before or shortly after birth. In the grounds of Zojoji Temple, there are over a thousand small statues of Jizo, many of them places there for mizuko, to help release them from a state of limbo and reach the cycle of rebirth. People offer pinwheels to Jizo statues as a symbol of the playful and carefree nature of childhood. It is believed that the spinning motion of the pinwheels represents the constant cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, and that Jizo helps guide the souls of deceased children through this cycle. There are around 1,300 Jizo statues at Zojoji, concentrated in rows in a single area. Many are dressed in red hats and bibs, others are allowed to weather and grow moss. I got a sense of kindliness from them, so it was no surprise when Akko told us that Jizo is known for being a patient and kind deity. #hiddenplacesadventures #hiddenplacesjapan @insidehiddenplaces #exploringjapan🇯🇵 #spiritualjapan

Even in less peaceful moments, the Kerala Backwaters are always interesting - especially when experienced by kayak! #keralakayakingcultureandcuisine #keralakayaking #adventuresbykayak #kayakadventuresworldwide

Check out the early morning sounds of Kerala’s backwaters!There is no better way to explore this lush paradise than by kayak. We’ve been running trips here for many years and we’ve never stopped being enchanted by the people, the landscapes, the culture, the cuisine. Contact us for more details!

Only in Antarctica!

We're taking bookings for Antarctica trips for this season (November 2021 to March 2022) and the following seasons. Places are filling fast, and when you see this video you'll understand why!

That’s one happy elephant, in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. And a thrilling late afternoon encounter for us. #africa #botswana #botswanaelephants #okavangodeltabotswana #elephantsofafrica #africasafaris #botswanasafaris

Nothing like a lovely dust bath to start the day. #africa #namibia #desertelephants #namibiandesert #namibiasafari #africaadventures #getclosetonature @ehranamibia @elephantswithoutborders

We walk #milesforelephants to help protect these remarkable beings. Check the link in our bio for information on next February’s trek in Kenya. #africa #kenya #savetheelephants🐘 #africanelephantsofinstagram #elephantfamilies #walkforelephants #saveelephantsworld @spaceforgiants @elephantswithoutborders @elephantvoices @savetheelephants @wildaidafrica @biglifeafrica

Sit still for a while in #antarctica and watch the penguins waddle by....pure magic. #greatwhitecontinent #tripofalifetime #antarcticadventure #everythingpenguin #wildlifeadventures #wayoutthere #wildlifevideos

Sail check time.

Lovely morning swim. #lovethiscoast #wildswim #morningbliss #hellobc #coldwaterswimming #naturalhigh

The most perfect morning swim, with swallows flitting by, gentle warming sunshine, clear silky water and only a tiny breeze. #lovethiscoast #hellobc #wildswim #coldwaterswimming #morningbliss #naturalhigh @jonideboni

Timeless in Rajasthan: this farmer is using a centuries-old method to pull water from a well (check out the little buckets attached to the wheel) and divert it to his fields. #rajasthan #india #traditionalfarming #oldways #irrigationsystem #theindiaroute #instaindia #bullocks #waterwheel #rurallife #rurallifestyle #travelfar #travelfarandwide #offthebeatentrack #travelindiagram #iloveindia #exploreindia #hiddenplacestravel #hiddenplacesadventures #kerala #tripextension

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Our Story

We call them hidden places. Places on the fringe of the world, or simply a few steps off the beaten path. Places where magic happens: watching a snow leopard creep with muscular grace over a Himalayan pass; gliding in kayaks between iridescent green islands in Southern India; cycling to a sacred Bodhi tree in Sri Lanka, where we are blessed by a monk.

As adventure travel photographers and writers we used to find these places by accident. Now we find them on purpose – and we bring others with us.

Want to come along? (And if you can’t join us, we can create a special private trip – just for you.)