Our Flightie Shayleigh recently went on an Intrepid Trip to Brazil as an independent traveller and came back a believer in guided tours. We’ll let her tell you why:
As someone who has always been an independent traveler, I’ll be the first to admit that the guided tour experience I got from Intrepid blew my mind! Easily the biggest benefit was that all the logistics were taken care of by someone other than myself, and given that I have had countless experiences standing in the middle of a city and twirling around with my eyes closed to determine the most likely direction of my destination, I could really appreciate the ease with which we moved from place to place whether on foot, by plane, or by bus.
No less significant was the knowledge brought to the table by our fabulous guides. We had one consistent tour leader throughout our trip who was born and raised in Brazil, so she knew a wide variety of interesting tidbits about the country. In addition, we picked up local guides in Iguassu Falls, the Pantanal, and Rio who were each experts in their own destination. For someone like me who knew absolutely nothing about the country before going there, you couldn’t put a price on how valuable it was to travel with someone who could really take you into the heart of a place and show you things you would never have seen and tell you things you would never have known on your own.
As if the overall experience of the guided tour wasn’t good enough, I can barely put in to words how awesome the excursions were! To start, we were taken to the beautiful Iguassu Falls on both the Argentinian and Brazilian sides during our first few days in Brazil. As unforgettable as this was, I think that my favorite excursions occurred once we arrived in the Pantanal. We were barely off the bus for an hour before we climbed into the back of a truck and went piranha fishing! It was something I would never have thought to do, but it was one of my favorite experiences in Brazil, especially when a cayman climbed on shore about three feet from me, snatched one of our piranhas, tossed it into the air, and caught it in his sharp teeth. Seeing toucans flying over the river on our boat safari, watching monkeys swing through the trees while on horseback, and being chased by angry bees while walking through the jungle were not too bad either! And I honestly can’t even begin to describe how awesome it was to go to a school of samba while in Rio and watch the dancers get ready for Carnival.
The only thing left to say is obrigado and saúde to Intrepid! (thank you and cheers in Portuguese)
Thinking about a trip next trip to Brazil? Shayleigh would be happy to answer your questions and can be contacted by e-mail,or calling 1-866-420-4311. Shayleigh Pendlebury is an International Travel Consultant at Flight Centre Green Village in Vernon, BC.