Our Difference
Southern Exposure Tours – we offer experiences of a lifetime for active over 50’s.
Why choose SET? Our clients are active over 50’s travellers who love authentic small group experiences. Our small group tours as “tours for people who don’t do tours” and we liken them to feeling like you’re travelling with a bunch of friends, rather than on a small group tour. You won’t be herded from one museum or cathedral to the next, or barraged with hundreds of facts and figures. But you will learn about fascinating ancient cultures, people and wildlife in a relaxed and informal way. Just like a true holiday should be. We often overnight in villages rather than cities, and try to show you a less touristed, more local version of the countries we visit. Just like we would if we were showing our own friends and family the best of our favourite places. Though of course we wouldn’t dream of having you miss what we think are “must see” highlights, like Macchu Pichu or Buenos Aires!
We are as excited as you are about every trip we undertake. We let our fun spirit shine through, without ever being pushy or over bearing. Our experienced and professionally trained team are there with you from the time you plan a trip, right through to the time we touch back down at home. At all stages, our team and your tour leader are available to share their expertise and guide your experience. Throw the curliest destination questions at us; we are there to answer them for you! Some of our tours have local tour leaders along with expert guides for visiting sites. Others, like our Signature Tours, have a SET tour leader who is special part of our small team.
No matter if you are a seasoned adventurer or a first time explorer – we garnish your trip with the little things that make all the difference. Time on the ground and local experience has gifted our guides with an indispensable cache of knowledge about all the stops on our trips.
For example, we know that in some parts of South America it is ultra important to acclimatise to the altitude. We’ll stay an extra couple of days at mid altitude in a fabulous setting, so you can experience this amazing destination at 100%. Or we’ll help you make the most of your tourist dollars in areas where the exchange rates are confusing.
As ‘Authentic Experience Specialists’ we don’t stay in 5 star all inclusive resorts, as it just isn’t our style. However, we do include most activities and excursions, some highlight dinners and interesting local experiences. No hidden expenses will be sprung upon you on arrival and we also throw in a lot of fun and laughs at no extra cost!
When you travel with Southern Exposure Tours, you get to experience our wonderful, unique network of local people at each of our destinations. We have crafted, moulded and nurtured these relationships over 20+ years to make sure they are an intrinsic part of your experience. There is simply nothing more important than having access to the best people, the best experience and the trusted local knowledge that really makes a difference to your holiday. The shining highlights many of our customers remark on, are the fabulous people they meet along the way and the special friendships and memories that arise.
We pride ourselves on personally selected, locally owned accommodation that authentically reflects the regions visited. Some of our unique accommodation won’t have star ratings, for example home-stays in Cuba, Amazon Lodges or European B&B’s. But they will be full of character, cosy, comfortable, clean and have welcoming hosts. Most nights are on a twin share basis, but due to the nature of our travels, accommodation varies, with some multi-share nights in national park lodges for example. This will be clearly stated in the trip information. Pre & post tour accommodation can be reserved in advance.
Single Supplements: You can choose to share with someone of the same sex or ask for a single supplement. If we can’t find you a roommate and you are forced into a single room, you’ll need to pay the supplement. In some cases, if there are an odd number of singles all wanting to share you won’t be charged, but the single room will be rotated amongst all of you throughout the tour. There may be some areas where a single is not possible, like the homestay on Lake Titicaca, the Refugios in Torres del Paine National Park, or Ger camps in Mongolia.
While on tour, our goal is to offer you as much variety as possible while meeting the local people. Our unique style of travel means that we will be using some private mini vans, the odd local public bus, taxis, trains, various boats, motorised & dug-out canoes and aircraft. Optional excursions may use other forms of transport, for example even horses or mountain bikes. All transport is included in the tour price unless on optional excursions.
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