National Geographic Traveller UK 09.2022_downmagaz.net_compressed

My partner has a fear of what various noises mean. replicate the seminar sessions These are followed by a — either by watching videos or flying. Are there any courses dedicated ‘experience flight’ as a group via teleconference, to put that knowledge into sometimes with the chance to to help overcome this? practice. Some programmes ask a pilot questions. Courses run by either a offer a ground-only option, psychologist or an airline are which might be enough for British Airways’ Flying with popular options; before the those with only a mild fear of Confidence programme, from pandemic, courses were run flying. Some of the courses do £149, starts this autumn. It by British Airways, EasyJet and both parts on the same day, also includes online courses Virgin Atlantic at various UK while others are over two days, from £80 for 30 days’ access. airports. These programmes which people with a stronger EasyJet’s Fearless Flyer courses are only just restarting, so you fear may find more helpful this autumn start at £219. There may find availability limited. because they can concentrate are also online, video courses on the seminars without from £89, with 30 days’ access. In-person courses are usually worrying about a flight later flyingwithconfidence.com in two parts. Firstly, group that day. Online courses largely fearless-flyer.com seminar sessions on the ground cover technical information, JOHN WALTON including how planes fly and Can you recommend a luxury is a stylish, secluded haven, £400, minimum stay of three What happens if I urgently need sensitively perched in an nights. hudnallshideout.co.uk treehouse, with a sustainable ancient oak. All come with to renew my passport? king-sized beds and hot tubs, For a family-friendly The Passport Office is currently focus, for a long weekend? while The Woodsman’s also treehouse, head to Rufus’s advising travellers to allow up 10 At Mallinson’s Woodland has a sauna and outdoor ‘tree Roost on the Baxby Manor weeks for standard applications Retreat in Dorset, there shower’. From £990 for two estate north of York. It sleeps to be processed, due to the are three plush treehouses nights. mallinson.co.uk up to six in three treetop ‘unprecedented levels of demand’ lovingly crafted by owner rooms, and between two reported in the run-up to summer. Guy Mallinson and his team If you’re a couple looking turrets there’s a large veranda But if you can’t wait, there are two using local timber that’s a for exclusivity, The Hudnalls with a log-fired pizza oven. ways of receiving an emergency by-product of sustainable Hideout is a large, solar- The kids will be thrilled when passport, both of which are easier woodland management. Dazzle powered treehouse in ancient they discover the hidden if you’re physically in the UK. The Treehouse has a camouflage Wye Valley woodland. There’s doorway under the stairs that easiest and fastest is via the Online design inspired by patterns a bioethanol fireplace, and a reveals a wooden slide to a Premium service, which costs £177 used to conceal First World War food hamper packed with local secret room. From £1,450 for for a standard adult passport. ships; Pinwheel is in a clearing produce. Massages and yoga three nights. baxbymanor.co.uk Apply and pay online, and you’ll between a ring of mature oak can also be arranged. From then book an appointment at a trees; and The Woodsman’s RICHARD HAMMOND passport office — the earliest slots offered are two days from when you apply. At the appointment, you’ll need to produce both your old passport and an additional piece of identification, although someone can do this on your behalf if they have a signed and dated letter from you. You’ll collect the new passport at this appointment. Alternatively, the Fast Track service takes a week and a standard adult passport costs £142. Collect a paper application from the post office (this part can’t be done online) and then book and pay for an appointment online. Once this has been booked, complete the form and take it to the appointment, along with all required documents, including two identical photos. The passport will then be sent to your home address. If you’ve already applied for a passport through the usual, non-urgent service and haven’t yet received it, don’t pay extra for an urgent one — you won’t be refunded and won’t get a passport any earlier. For more information, visit gov.uk C O N N O R M C G OV E R N SEPTEMBER 2022 151

TR AVEL TALK THE INFO UK cities TO CELEBR ATE THE CRE ATION OF EIGHT NEW CITIES, WE LOOK AT SOME OF THE UK’S URBAN CENTRES AND THE STORIES BEHIND THEM Six towns across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were granted city status 2 Dunfermline 4 A LT H O U G H as part of the O N LY G R ANTED Queen’s Platinum 1 Doncaster CIT Y STATUS THIS YEAR, Jubilee celebrations Traditionally, English towns COLCHESTER IS required an Anglican cathedral REGARDED AS earlier this year. Bangor 3 to acquire city status. But this BRITAIN ’S ‘FIRST Douglas on the Isle 56 CIT Y’. IT WAS Colchester hasn’t been the case since FOUNDED BY THE of Man and Stanley Wrexham Birmingham was the first ROMANS IN AD town to achieve it without a 49 AND NAMED in the Falkland cathedral, in 1889. The city’s St CAMULODUNUM Milton Keynes Philip’s Church was awarded cathedral status in 1905 Islands were also given the honour ABOUT 75% OF THE SHEFFIELD WAS NAMED 4,500 BUILDINGS IN THE UK’S GREENEST EDINBURGH’S OLD AND CITY IN A 2021 STUDY NEW TOWNS ARE LISTED BY NAT WEST, DUE TO — THE HIGHEST NUMBER ITS 22,000 ACRES OF OF LISTED BUILDINGS GREEN SPACE AND OUTSIDE LONDON REL ATIVELY LOW Bath is one of the only cities ENERGY CONSUMPTION in the world to be recognised PER RESIDENT as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in its entirety. Inscribed Rochester in Kent was granted in 1987, it was selected for its city status in 1227, but the Roman and Georgian heritage and innovative urban planning, formation of Medway Council in 1998 — which amalgamated which sought to achieve several local councils — saw it picturesque views and forms lose its status after 771 years 76 Standout cities in numbers 130 IMAGES: GETTY; WORDS: CONNOR MCGOVERN the number of cities in 104,270 1955 1,800 the number of the UK, including the new roundabouts in Milton additions and excluding the area, in sq ft, of the year Cardiff was the approximate Keynes, one of the UK’s Liverpool Cathedral, the proclaimed capital of population of St Davids, overseas territories largest in the UK and fifth Wales, 50 years after Pembrokeshire, the UK’s new cities for 2022 being granted city status largest in Europe smallest city Sources: bathworldheritage.org.uk city-of-rochester.org.uk commonslibrary.parliament.uk destinationmiltonkeynes.co.uk ed.ac.uk natwestgroup.com whc.unesco.org visitcolchester.com 152 NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

TR AVEL TALK HOT TOPIC WHY HAS HIRING A CAR BECOME SO COMPLIC ATED? Recently, travellers have been arriving at their destination to find vehicles at exorbitant prices — or unavailable altogether. We look at what’s happening and how to get around it For decades, car rental has been one of the simplest and most dependable aspects of booking a trip. In France, Italy, Spain and the US, a family-sized vehicle was readily available at £50 or less per day in the years shortly before the pandemic, even in peak summer months. But as many prospective travellers are finding this year, rates have increased two- or three-fold. At some destinations in August, findings were even more bleak: cars were sold out entirely. So, what’s gone wrong — and what can you do about it? How expensive is car rental? sold cars off in their hundreds of If you pick up your vehicle at a AT A GL ANCE In popular holiday spots such as thousands. Hertz Global Holdings, city-centre location rather than the Palma, Pisa and Paris, a daily rental which includes the Dollar, Thrifty airport, you’ll avoid the commission TAKE THE TR AIN of £100 is about the best you can and Firefly brands, sold more than charged to the car rental firms Places like the Algarve or hope for this summer. In the US 200,000 cars — about one-third of by the airport. For example, a California have good coastal states of California and Florida, its pre-pandemic fleet — in 2020. short-notice rental at San Francisco railways with affordable basic rates are lower — typically airport with Enterprise costs £90 for fares. Faro to Lagos costs around £60 a day — but additional Once mass travel resumed, the smallest vehicle, compared with €7.50 (£6.50), while LA to costs, including insurance and toll customers returned in large £67 at downtown Oakland, across San Diego is $44 (£36) — less payments, push prices higher. numbers, partly because travellers the Bay — easily accessible in 43 if you book ahead. felt better protected from Covid-19 minutes from the airport by train. Closer to home, rental rates in a rental vehicle than on public AVOID PEAK SEASON in Ireland are at unprecedented transport. Companies struggled to Rental may be cheaper if you Consider travelling from levels. At Dublin airport, the meet the demand. In addition, the sign up for a loyalty scheme or use September onwards. A car cheapest one-week, pay-on-arrival worldwide shortage of microchips your airline frequent-flyer status. costing £1,000 for a week hire at Avis for early August is over stifled car production, leading Booking an Avis vehicle through from Avis at Dublin airport £1,000 for a tiny Kia Picanto. The companies such as Hertz to say it the British Airways Executive Club, on 6 August is 79% cheaper firm also has a Tesla electric vehicle couldn’t guarantee being able to for example, gives a second driver if you book a month later. available for £2,595, or over £15 per purchase sufficient numbers of new as an automatic entitlement. hour. Before the pandemic, rates vehicles at competitive prices. CONSIDER A PACKAGE for small cars here were as low as How long will this last? While Buying a flight and a rental £15 per week. How can I avoid exorbitant fees? previous supply shortages haven’t car as part of a fly-drive As with hotel rooms, committing been so extreme, they show the package means the provider What’s gone wrong? In 2019, in advance generally saves money. way forward: when the industry is fully responsible. If the ferocious competition kept That Dublin airport rate of over makes excessive profits one outbound flight is cancelled rates down and availability high. £1,000 for a tiny car for a week falls year, companies tend to ramp up and no replacement is But from early 2020 onwards, by one-sixth, to £842, if you pay capacity the following year, and available, you’re entitled to a the Covid-19 crisis saw demand upfront, although it does bring prices eventually revert to sensible full refund within two weeks. collapse. Instead of expanding extra risk if you need to cancel. levels. S I M O N C A L D E R their fleets ahead of the summer SEPTEMBER 2022 153 peak, rental firms were left with parking lots filled with billions of pounds’ worth of rapidly depreciating vehicles that no one wanted to hire. Inevitably, they

| PAID CONTENT FOR VISIT LEEUWARDEN LEEUWARDEN Top three festivals Dive into the cultural deep end of the Netherlands, with a feast of film, art, music, storytelling and light in Leeuwarden, Friesland’s canal-woven, festival-loving capital Explore the North festival A msterdam gets all the fuss, NOORDELIJK FILM FESTIVAL but just a couple of hours The pull of the north is irresistible at this north, Leeuwarden is still winter film festival held in November. riding high on the wave of Zooming in on the cinematic landscapes of being European Capital of Culture 2018. countries from the Netherlands to the UK, With a clutch of outstanding museums Scandinavia, Iceland and the Baltics, the and winter festivals that innovate, programme reels out an incredible line-up enlighten and turn the spotlight on of feature films and documentaries, from emerging artists, filmmakers, poets and art-house to environmental, film noir to musicians, the under-the-radar capital thriller. And with talks, competitions and of Friesland moves to its own unique and live music, there’s plenty happening beyond progressive cultural beat. the big screen, too. noordelijkfilmfestival.nl EXPLORE THE NORTH DECEMBERLICHT PLAN YOUR TRIP IMAGES: JANTINA TALSMA; LIEUWE TERPSTRA Fizzing with creative talent from Friesland As Leeuwarden gets into full festive swing, and beyond, this festival brings music, the city sparkles with more than just the For more information, go to literature, theatre and language to the fore usual Christmas lights. This avant-garde visitleeuwarden.com in late November. Expect one-of-a-kind festival shines a light on the Friesland performances, from folk rock to electro capital with eye-catching projections that and classical music, as well as audiovisual illuminate in every sense of the word. Expect installations, poetry readings, children’s poems projected onto the side of buildings, shows and o eat plays. Venues include monuments ablaze with inspirational unexpected locations all over Leeuwarden: quotes and facades turned into film screens. previous years included an old soapworks, Follow the light trail through the historic the ceramics museum cellar and the local centre from late December to early January. historical society. explore-the-north.nl decemberlicht.frl

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IN THE NEXT ISSUE IMAGE: GETTY TOKYO Famous for its subcultures and neon-lit nightlife, the Japanese capital is home to numerous neighbourhoods buzzing with character. From gourmet sushi in Ginza to pop culture in Harajuku, we discover the city’s most fascinating enclaves PLU S BELIZE, ECUADOR, KENT, LITHUANIA , LOCH LOMOND, NEW YORK, PRAGUE, TENERIFE, TORONTO, TRONDHEIM & MORE OCTOBER ISSUE ON SALE 1 SEPTEMBER 2022 FOR MORE INFOR M ATION ON OUR SUB SCRIPTION OFFER, SEE PAGE 155 156 NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

| PAID CONTENT FOR PURE MICHIGAN AND VISIT DETROIT DISCOVER MICHIGAN From lakeshore to city Whether you’re looking for city style, iconic towns or lakes that feel like oceans, the diversity of Michigan’s two peninsulas are sure to impress. Words: Brian Thacker V isit the Midwest state of THE LOWER PENINSULA Clockwise from above: Turnip Rock on Lake Huron; Michigan, set in the heart of the CITIES AND SPORTS Detroit sunrise; Downtown Mackinac Island Great Lakes region, and you’ll The centrepiece of the Lower Peninsula is find two unique peninsulas to undeniably the vibrant city of Detroit. Here, PLAN YOUR TRIP explore, divided by the five-mile-long local artists have no limits, visitors can trace Mackinac suspension bridge. the city’s great history through cars and There are direct daily flights from London music, and gastronomes can devour a Coney Heathrow to Detroit, as well as many one- THE UPPER PENINSULA hot dog in the afternoon and then dine in stop options from the UK and Ireland. For RUGGED AND REMOTE award-winning, farm-to-fork restaurants more information, visit bon-voyage.co.uk With 1,700 miles of freshwater shoreline, in the evening. Adventure lovers needn’t quaint rural towns and an interior full of travel far to soak up the scenery of the forests, waterfalls and wildlife, the Upper Pinckney-Potawatomi Trail, or go kayaking Peninsula is as wonderfully unspoiled as one and standup paddleboarding on the Detroit can get in America. Visit car-free Mackinac River. Indeed, visitors to the Lower Peninsula Island — where it feels as though time has will find more than just Detroit. Towns such stopped completely — and Tahquamenon as Traverse City, Holland and Grand Rapids Falls, dubbed ‘the Root Beer Falls’ due to — known as the beer capital of the US their distinctive brown hue, derived from — promise hours of exploration, fantastic the mineral content of the surrounding soil. fine wines and delicious local produce. IMAGES: GETTY; ROCHE PHOTO SEE MORE ONLINE AT NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

G A L Á PAG O S E VO L U T I O N A RY EXPERIENCES THE NEW HER M ANDAD M ARINE RESERVE I S THE L ATEST CON SERVATION INITIATIVE TO BRING VITAL PROTEC TION TO THE PRI STINE WATERS OF THE GAL ÁPAGOS ISL ANDS. WORDS: M ARK STR AT TON It’s night aboard the Santa Cruz overfishing — a threat to both were Ecuadorians (who just pay a Then, in 2020, the 300-strong IMAGE: GETTY II and the Pacific Ocean thrashes conservation efforts and tourism $6/£4.90 entry fee), revenues fell, trawler fleet began fishing with endemic Galápagos sharks. — prompted the Ecuadorian affecting funding. intensively, clocking up 73,000 Using our ship’s lights, we watch government to expand the existing hours in one month alone. It the creatures below hunt flying marine reserve. This year, in Other challenges facing the fished heavily for squid, a key food fish with quicksilver agility, some January it created the 23,000sq Galápagos include intensifying El source for many Galapagueños of the hapless prey crashing mile Hermandad Marine Reserve. Niño episodes triggered by global species, but also pulled out into our vessel’s hull, around ocean warming. This natural migratory hammerhead sharks which sea lions wait for an easy “The Galápagos Islands are one phenomenon becalms the usually and manta rays. The presence meal. A huge green turtle pops of the best-kept national parks in strong equatorial trade winds that of the Chinese fleet caused up unawares amid the melee, the world,” says Roque Sevilla. As push warm water westwards away consternation amid Galapagueño before swiftly returning to the chairman of Metropolitan Touring, from the Galápagos, allowing fishermen, who complained their depths. Such is the Galápagos’s Ecuador’s first carbon-neutral upwelling cold currents to own catches were down. scintillating theatre. tour operator, he was one of the deliver rich phytoplankton into primary movers behind the new the food web. During an El Niño More safeguarding was The Galápagos Islands (a reserve. “Just think of an African event, nutrient productivity in needed. “Fish don’t understand national park since 1959) can national park with a dozen vehicles warmer water drops dramatically, whether they’re swimming in a thank large upwellings of cold surrounding a lion,” he says. “Here, triggering starvation among key safe reserve or not,” says Gustavo currents for their staggering only one boat at a time can enter marine species. Manrique, Ecuador’s minister marine biodiversity; water that a landing point on an island, and of the environment. The new ushers in a rich soup of nutrients, groups are limited to 16 per guide.” In addition, certain invasive Hermandad reserve — a vast area, helping to support a food web species introduced by humans, the size of Sri Lanka, extending that contains abundant marine Roque says tourism has been a such as fruit flies and rats, have north of the previous GMR and terrestrial wildlife — a large positive force for the Galápagos: pushed a number of creatures — will create a migration corridor proportion of which is found funding conservation, providing to the brink. One of Darwin’s from the Galápagos to the Cocos nowhere else on Earth. It was 80% of the islands’ economy, evolutionary miracles, the Islands National Park in Costa this uniqueness that the British and jobs for born-and-bred mangrove finch, is near extinction Rica. All fishing will be banned naturalist Charles Darwin Galapagueños. Tourism is well due to the accidental introduction in 50% of the reserve, with only observed soon after stepping controlled, he believes. “There’s of the sinister-sounding avian Galapagueño fishermen allowed to ashore on San Cristóbal Island a de facto limit to the number of vampire fly in the 1960s. operate in the other half, although in 1859, setting him on a path to visitors who can sail here, with longline fishing (which doesn’t publishing On the Origin of Species, a fixed 1,690 berths on all ships In June 2020, a new threat discriminate between target which outlined his groundbreaking per day, and this quota hasn’t loomed: a fleet of 300 Chinese fish and vulnerable species) is theories on evolution. changed since 1998,” he says. trawlers had assembled just outside banned. Hermandad forms part of Likewise, human migrations the GMR. a groundbreaking multinational Fast forward to 2020, and some onto the islands are strictly agreement with Costa Rica, of those charismatic creatures controlled. Visitors currently New reserves Panama and Colombia, which have — including the sharks I encounter pay a $100 (£81) fee to enter the similar ocean reserves totalling under our ship — are being netted Galápagos National Park, which The writing had been on the wall. 193,000sq miles, to expand the by a huge Chinese fishing fleet not funds its activities. Its director, In 2017, the Fu Yuan Yu Leng 999 existing Eastern Tropical Pacific far outside the Galápagos Marine Danny Rueda-Cordova, says this was seized after straying inside Marine Corridor. Reserve (GMR), a 53,000sq mile may be increased to refocus on the GMR. This ‘nanny ship’ (a protected marine habitat created low-number/high-yield tourism. refrigeration vessel) was carrying “The marine corridor between in 1998. With Galápagos marine He says visitor numbers fell from 300 tonnes of illegally caught Ecuadorian and Costa Rican wildlife already subject to food a record 270,000 in 2019 to half species, including 7,639 sharks. waters creates a safe migration shortages during intensifying that in 2021 at the peak of the Twenty crew members were jailed for important endangered El Niño events, such industrial pandemic. Because most of them and the vessel was confiscated by species,” say Gustavo Manrique. Ecuador after the non-payment of a $6.1m (£5m) fine. 158 NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

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G A L Á PAG O S IMAGE: GETTY FIVE MORE “It’s a critical step in protecting Barragán, science director at the “Since their boats left, the fish some 3,000 marine Galápagos Charles Darwin Research Station seem more numerous.” Marine Protected species, of which 20% are on Santa Cruz Island, is certain it Areas (MPAs) endemic.” Marine reserves also will be beneficial. “This corridor Marcia Garate, a local travel encourage sustainable fishing ensures species will be protected agent, also supports the creation ROSS SEA REGION and tourism. during migration to the Galápagos, of Hermandad. “The reserve is The world’s largest MPA which will contribute to the local good for us because we don’t want borders Antarctica, “A shark’s net worth to our economy through sustainable to lose our grouper and tuna as spanning 618,000sq miles. economy if it lives 20 years fishing and wildlife tourism”. animals such as sea lions need It administers ‘no-take’ and is $1.5m. But a dead one, $137 them. Tourists won’t come if we sustainable fishing zones for meat. It creates business Ecuador’s minister for tourism, lose our wildlife.” and is home to 30% of the around ecological tourism,” says Niels Olsen, says his government world’s Adélie penguins Manrique. Modern technology, he has a vested interest in ensuring And come, tourists do; a trip and a third of its Antarctic says, will make enforcement and the reserve is a success. “Tourists to these islands represents the petrels. mfat.govt.nz monitoring easier and cheaper. will not come if they think we’re wildlife experience of a lifetime. “We can use drones, satellites not working towards conserving There are two ways to experience PITCAIRN ISLANDS and small, fast enforcement and protecting the islands.” the archipelago: either on a cruise Covering a colossal boats,” he explains. ship or as part of a day trip on a 322,000sq miles, the Pitcairn When I visited, public opinion boat. Cruises typically range from Islands MPA extends south Ecuador is now using about the new reserve seemed five to 11 days and include a stop east from the Pitcairn technology that can detect ‘dark positive on Santa Cruz Island, at Santa Cruz, with some focusing Islands. The 47 inhabitants vessels’ (ships with their tracking where much of the Galápagos’s on the western islands, including of the only inhabited island, systems turned off). As for 25,000-strong population lives, Isabela, with its penguins and Pitcairn, are descendants of funding, The country is carrying mainly in the town of Puerto flightless cormorants. Others take the mutinous HMS Bounty out ‘debt for nature’ swaps, Ayora. It’s a tourism hub of hotels, in the eastern group, including crew. Commercial activities restructuring their national debts bars, restaurants and souvenir San Cristobal, home to red- are forbidden in its waters, owed to donor nations in return emporiums, where sea lions doze footed boobies. Longer voyages, home to sharks and for conservation investment. on public benches and pelicans meanwhile, will cover both areas. cetaceans. visitpitcairn.pn “We negotiate as a poor country, harangue fishermen for scraps. Cruises include twice-daily land but the new global richness is excursions with snorkelling, while ASCENSION ISLAND biodiversity,” says Manrique. “Our fish rotate between liveaboard cruise vessels focus Right out in the mid- feeding grounds outside the on scuba diving. The budget- Atlantic, this MPA surrounds Tourism’s role reserve. Our fishermen were conscious can find accommodation the giant undersea volcano saying their catch was down when on Santa Cruz and head out on boat of Ascension Island, a It’s too early to access the impact the Chinese boats were here,” says day trips or island-hop. 172,000sq-mile home of the new reserve. But María-José local merchant, Mercy Sancan. for marlin and significant green turtle populations. ascension.gov.ac SOUTH GEORGIA AND THE SOUTH SANDWICH ISLANDS Spanning 479,000sq miles of sub-Antarctic waters, this MPA supports blue whales and penguins; fishing is outlawed in a quarter of its waters. gov.gs PAPAHĀNAUMOKUĀKEA Home to coral atolls that protect endemics including Hawaiian monk seals, this 579,000sq-mile reserve in the North Pacific also hosts key native cultural sites. papahanaumokuakea.gov Previous page: Pinnacle Rock on Bartolomé Island, overlooking Santiago Island Above: Sea turtle and reef fish off Darwin Island SEPTEMBER 202 2 161

G A L Á PAG O S Left: Marine iguana and red rock crabs, Santa Cruz island My experience at sea saw me heavy on visitors. But from the conservation,” says Carolina HOW TO DO IT IMAGE: GETTY spending six nights exploring the smallest actions and decisions, Proaño-Castro, executive Hurtigruten Expeditions has eastern islands on board Santa personal responsibility can count director of Fundación Futuro, an 11-day expedition cruise Cruz II, Hurtigruten’s debut towards making the Galápagos a the nonprofit organisation to the Galápagos Islands Galápagos cruise, which uses a sustainable destination. “Every that’s helped Metropolitan on a full-board basis. It Metropolitan Touring vessel that tourist must reflect on how to Touring work towards becoming includes three nights at Casa hosts up to 90 guests. lower their carbon footprint,” says carbon neutral. All aspects of its Gangotena hotel in Quito, Gustavo Manrique. “Sure, you can Galápagos cruises are examined all transfers and flights, a During shore visits with the eat salmon flown in from Chile, for carbon efficiency, from using cultural tour of Quito and ship’s naturalists, we encounter or instead choose local fish, like anti-corrosive paint to deter a nature tour of Cotopaxi playful sea lions on the Mosquera brujo [scorpion fish], fished in these crustacean build-up on ships, National Park, from £7,595 sand bar and spend time with the waters, so money stays local.” thus improving fuel efficiency, per person, based on two land iguanas basking by cactus to giving guests reusable metal sharing. hurtigruten.co.uk trees on tiny Santa Fé Island, Such simple actions as water bottles. the only place in the world these reusing a water bottle, avoiding MORE INFORMATION iguanas exist. Birding highlights single-use plastic and taking Guests pay a levy calculated A double room at Mashpi are many: nesting colonies of non-recyclable waste off the at $16 (£13) per tonne of Lodge, a cloud forest hotel frigate birds on North Seymour islands when departing should carbon, which funds a tangible in mainland Ecuador costs Island, the males with expanded, be part of the modern traveller’s conservation initiative: the from £1,074 per night, cherry-red crops, and a Nazca toolkit. But what about the bigger conservation of a 6,670-acre including shared transfers booby with fluffy, snowball-white picture? For example, how to reserve at Mashpi Lodge in and all meals, guided chicks on Española Island. And mitigate air travel’s effect on Ecuador’s Chocó-Andino cloud activities and excursions sublime snorkelling experiences the climate, which is critical to forest area. The levy is also being within the reserve. include the chance to swim for fragile ecosystems such as those used to help establish a biological mashpilodge.com 20 minutes at a time with a giant in play on the Galápagos Islands. corridor in the Chocó-Andino by Metropolitan Touring. Galápagos green turtles and The reality is we probably need buying up more forest to conserve, metropolitan-touring.com whitetip reef sharks. On Santa to fly less, yet tourism to the enabling landowners to follow LATAM Airlines. Cruz, we visit a Giant Tortoise Galápagos is critical to funding its more sustainable practices. latamairlines.com Restoration Initiative to learn conservation. Charles Darwin how the creature’s diversity “Just as Galápagos sharks Research Station. across different islands informed Metropolitan Touring is a need a migration corridor to darwinfoundation.org Darwin’s theories on evolution. carbon-neutral operator in avoid being fished, connectivity Fundación Futuro. the region.“Our core value is the key to climate change fundacionfuturo.org.ec The responsibility to protect is to take action against our adaptivity all over the world,” says these hallowed shores can weigh carbon footprint and finance Proaño-Castro. 162 NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

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| PAID CONTENT FOR DUBROVNIK AND NERET VA COUNT Y TOURI ST BOARD A GUIDE TO KORČULA Croatia’s paradise island On the tiny island of Korčula, terracotta rooftops and cobbled streets meet sheltered coves and deserted forest trails K orčula spent several centuries eateries serving authentic local fare From top: Croatian islands as seen under Venetian rule, when ships — try Žrnovski makaruni (handmade pasta from the air; boats moored by jetty in sailing east would moor up there unique to Korčula) accompanied by a hearty for repairs and supplies. A maze of slow cooked beef stew . the village of Lumbarda on Korčula cobbled alleys converge on the main square, where you can see the splendid 15th-century When it comes to beaches, Vela Przina, IMAGES: GETTY cathedral, the loggia and noble residences with its warm shallow waters, is especially with carved stone portals, all reminiscent of popular with families. For something La Serenissima. Explorer Marco Polo is said more secluded, head for the tiny scattered to have been born here, and his supposed islets of the Korčula Archipelago, served family home lies in the historic centre. by taxi boats from the palm-lined seafront While in town, don’t miss a performance promenade in Korčula Town. of the Moreška, a jubilent medieval sword dance and a proud local tradition. From Korčula Town, regular shuttle-boats also run to Orebić on the Pelješac peninsula, By day, wine-lovers might cycle into home to Trstenica pebble beach. Much- Korčula’s fertile interior to visit family- loved by gourmets, Pelješac is famed for run wineries. Head for the village of its fresh oysters and full-bodied red wines. Lumbarda to learn more about Grk, a grape Summer 2022 will see the opening of the often attributed to early Greek settlers, or new Pelješac Bridge, connecting Brijesta on Smokvica to sample Pošip, made from a the peninsular to Komarna on the mainland, grape indigenous to the island. En route, making Korčula all the more accessible, too. you’ll find several rustic agrotourism For more information, go to visitdubrovnik.hr

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| PAID CONTENT FOR SWAROVSKI OPTIK THREE TIPS GET THE KIT IMAGES: GETTY; SWAROVSKI OPTIK Wildlife spotting Swarovski Optik manufactures high-precision, long-range optical instruments designed to The UK has no shortage of destinations for a wildlife- bring everyone closer to nature. Compact and focused trip. Increase your chances of sightings with these lightweight, their CL Companion binocular is an ideal option for travelling. It can be connected to tips for three different habitats. Words: James Fair a phone with the VPA variable phone adapter, allowing users to capture unique wildlife images. 1 EXPLORE WOODLANDS AT DUSK For more information, visit swarovskioptik.com Wildlife is often hard to spot in woodlands — it could be high in the canopy, or hidden by foliage. Yet, as many species that live in these habitats, including beavers, otters, bats and owls, are crepuscular, visiting at dawn or, better still, dusk can increase your chances. Look for trails in the grass that deer or badgers might use, then find a hide where you can quietly sit. Swarovski Optik’s CL Companion binocular will help you zoom in on the details, with an exceptional optical performance and wide field of view to enhance your viewing experience. 2 PICK THE RIGHT SEASON TO VISIT GRASSLANDS Grasslands require you to either concentrate on what’s nearby or search the distance, depending on the season. In spring and summer, keep your eyes peeled for insects and other small animals, having a camera (or phone) to hand as a way of getting images for later identification. Winter and early spring, in contrast, would be a good time to take out your binoculars and search for mammals such as hares and deer, especially as there will be less vegetation to provide cover — twitching ears can give both away. 3 LOOK OUT FOR SPECIFIC SPECIES IN WETLANDS Wetlands are best visited in the late autumn, winter and early spring, when they provide sanctuary to ducks, geese and waders that have fled colder, northern climates. Find a hide where you can sit and watch over a lake or marshy area. Your challenge here is sorting through the sheer number of birds that gather in these hotspots: various species of duck will be hard to miss, but for more of a challenge, look for birds such as snipe or bitterns skulking at the edges or in the reeds.

GET IN TOUCH INBOX DID YOU LOVE ONE OF OUR FEATURES? HAS A STORY INSPIRED AN ADVENTURE? LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK OF THE MAGAZINE AND THE STAR LET TER WILL WIN THE INCREDIBLE PRIZE BELOW. Get in touch [email protected] Have a query about STAR LETTER The Venice Simplon-Orient- subscriptions? Express making its way through Train of thought Get in touch at the Brenner Pass, Austria natgeotraveller@ I was delighted to add more spectacular subscription.co.uk European railway journeys to my must-do list Going green or call 01858 438787 after reading your ‘Rail Renaissance’ feature (Smart Traveller, June 2022). It brought back I like the way National Geographic Traveller WIN memories of regularly catching the sleeper (UK) puts plenty of green and sustainable train between Paddington and Penzance content in the magazine without it feeling too A camping during my 10 years of living in London, and overwhelming. It was interesting to read the bundle also a memorable trip between Bergen and review of Richard Hammond’s new book The from Vango Oslo. As comfortable as the cabin was, seeing Green Traveller (Smart Traveller, June 2022). worth £165! a full moon reflected off Norway’s crystal- Some very simple and authentic sustainable clear, super-still lakes was incomparable tips every traveller can try are to eat local, shop Set off on an adventure and made going to sleep very unappealing. local and travel local. Every penny you spend with this duo from outdoor with local people can make a real difference to specialists Vango. The BECKY COLLEY them and their families. DAV I D SA R K A R dome-style Tay 300 tent IMAGE: DAVID NOTON PHOTOGRAPHY sleeps up to three people Distant memories and is one of the brand’s best for festivals and Jamie Lafferty’s feature on Chile’s Lake camping trips. Also included District (Jul/Aug 2022) brought back my own is the Zenith 200 sleeping memories of the region. My visit was to the bag, made with recycled area south of Pucón, taking in the Huilo-Huilo Polair Z Eco fabric. It comes Biological Reserve. The waterfalls along the with insulated zip baffles Fuy River are spectacular while the perfect and a 3D hood to retain reflections of Mocho-Choshuenco volcano heat. vango.co.uk in Panguipulli Lake are a photographer’s dream. An excellent base is the waterfront city of Valdivia, where sea lions attend the fish market alongside the local traders. Thank you for featuring a beautiful area of a remarkable country. DA M I E N WA L M S L E Y SEPTEMBER 2022 169

PHOTOGRAPHY COLOMBIA HOW I GOT THE SHOT PHOTOGRAPHER KAROLINA WIERCIGROCH’S SHOOT FOR THE SEPTEMBER 2021 ISSUE EXPLORED COLOMBIA’S COFFEE INDUSTRY IN THE VERDANT ZONA CAFETER A . SHE TAKES US BEHIND THE SCENES Tell us about this image. While in Salamina, a town in the north of the coffee region I went to Cafe El Polo for my morning caffeine fix before a busy day of shooting. The man drinking coffee against the deep emerald wall looked so picturesque that I asked if I could photograph him. He was happy to pose and I was so excited that I forgot to ask for his name! He told me that this cafe was a regular hangout spot for him and his friends. How did you achieve the shot? I shot this portrait using my mirrorless Fujifilm X-T3 and a Fujinon XF 35mm F/1.4. This is definitely my favourite lens and my go-to set for a quick stroll around town, when I can leave the rest of my kit at the hotel. I usually travel with a spare camera body, a Profoto A1 speedlight with some accessories and a couple of lenses — Fujinon XF 16mm F/2.8 and a Fujinon 16-80mm F/4, though I usually end up using the 35mm for almost everything: portraits, food, landscapes. I love how lightweight and inconspicuous the camera is. It allows me to blend in; I prefer not to intimidate people with a massive lens. What were the challenges at play? The cafe was a little dark, so I raised my ISO to 800 and took a quick sequence of around 10 to 15 shots, with the gentleman looking into the camera first, then taking a sip of his coffee. I’m really happy the shot turned out to be so atmospheric, with some light coming in from the open door to the left and all the small details building the mood: the texture of the suede hat, the floral pattern on the porcelain cup, the stripes of the shirt catching the play of light and shade. Hopefully the viewer feels invited to join in for a morning brew. What advice would you give someone starting out in travel photography? Start by finding stories that interest you and try to tell them through photos. With today’s image banks full of photos from virtually every place on the planet, what sets you apart is your photography style and the unique way you view the world. View the full shoot and interview online at nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel karolina-wiercigroch.com @karolina_wiercigroch I PITCH YOUR PICTURES TO US AT PHOTOGR APHY@NATGEOTR AVELLER .CO.UK 170 NATIONALGEOGR APHIC .CO.UK/ TR AVEL

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