Some of our tours are quite intense, others more gently paced, but we assume in our Travels in Archaeology programme that you will want to make the most of your time away. However, we never forget that these are your holidays.
We do care deeply about the integrity of what you are told, and how you see the sites, but we hope you will enjoy yourself too! Everything has to be well organised, otherwise our complex progammes would not work, but we try to make sure that you are unaware of the logistics behind the scenes, so you can relax and have the holiday you deserve.
Travels in Archaeology tours are accompanied by people we call Tour Managers for want of a better description. The problem is that both words fail completely to describe the bonhomous, easy-going kind of people they are supposed to convey. Our Tour Managers are people we have discovered over the years and then trained in Andante’s way of travelling. They are botanists, linguists, geographers, ornithologists, archaeologists, teachers and many other things. Most work just a few times a year with us; year after year. They want you to have a great holiday, and will, in an unobtrusive and helpful manner, try their hardest to ensure that you do.
It’s just as difficult to explain how we choose your hotels. Whilst the orthodox route is through star ratings, we find these entirely unconsistent, and putting on value on things such as facilities we would never wish to use. If we had our way, Andante stars would be given for clean hotels with proud owners where everything works. We’d hand out more stars for helpful receptionists, good bedside lights, plentiful hot water and lots for good home cooking.
The location of the hotels matters too: in a town, we’d want to be near the centre, and in the country, we’d want good views. In these days of mass tourism, finding hotels with a sense of place is not always easy, but this is where our priorities lie. Sometimes the remote situation of a site means that the choice of hotels is limited and we just have to go with the best there is, but we do try to choose something authentic and with character (no jokes please...)
We have always believed that picnics add something special to a holiday, and (almost!) all our guests agree. Imagine walking off a site to be met with a spread of cheeses of the region, fresh local bread, big red tomatoes and pastries - these things rarely feature on hotel menus, but they make a perfect picnic. This can also be a time to try some different wines, beers or juices. Critically, they also save time if we are in a remote spot. Not all our picnics are full-blown alfresco meals, occasionally we may have to make do with a packed lunch or an impromptu snack. Whatever we choose will be the solution to providing you with the best use of your time, and is usually found enjoyable by our travellers.
We believe it is fun to eat out in restaurants sometimes too - it can ring the changes and offer an escape from international cuisine in the hotel dining rooms. Pan-fried puffin or grilled guinea pig are not to everyone’s taste, but if you are in Iceland or Peru, it’s part of the travellers’ experience to see that they’re on the menu at least!
Archaeological sites are by their nature frequently preserved in remote and lovely countryside, and home to wildlife and wild flowers. Every tour mysteriously seems to include at least one amateur ornithologist or botanist amongst the guests, and this can add another dimension to the holiday. And, of course, such settings are wonderful for photographers and artists.
We have had such fun on our tours over the years, and made many friends amongst our guests. We have shared experiences majestic, moving and mundane. A wonderful team of people has made this possible, and continues to do so. We hope that you will travel with us in 2011 too, and try one of our holidays for yourself.
