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Tailor-made: Where will we take you?

Are you after adventure or blissful beaches? Looking for massive mountains or towers of glass and steel? With Kumuka’s tailor-made holidays, anything is possible – the world is truly your playground. Venture’s done a little dreaming and here are some of our fantasy itineraries.

• Tikal (Guatemala)
  Enveloped by dense jungle, the ancient city of Tikal is one of the Mayan civilisation’s greatest sites. It was inhabited from the 6th century BC until the 10th century AD. The ceremonial heart of the site contains sublime temples and palaces, as well as several public squares.
• Palenque Mayan Ruins (Mexico)
  Flanked by delightfully lush jungle and the turquoise waterfalls at Agua Azul, these ruins are a perfect example of a classic Mayan sanctuary. Palenque reached its apex between AD500 and 700 and hosts elegant stonework and subtle sculpted reliefs with mythological themes.
• Monte Albán (Mexico)
  This site was occupied for over 1500 years by a succession of peoples: Olmecs, Zapotecs and Mixtecs. Here we’ll see pyramids, temples and tombs, as well as terraces, canals and dams. Amazingly, much of the site was carved straight out of a mountain.
• Chinchen Itza (Mexico)
  Over its 1000-year history, this sacred city was shaped by the Maya, Toltec and Iztec people. Their visions of the world and the universe still adorn the ruin’s stonewalls and monuments. It was one of the greatest Mayan centres on Yucatán peninsula.
• Teotihuacan (Mexico)
  Known as ‘the place where the gods were created’, these amazing ruins date from the 1st and 7th centuries AD. Best known for the sheer size of its monuments, especially the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl. The Teotihuacan was one of the most powerful cultural centres in Mesoamerica and extended its cultural and artistic influences well beyond its borders.

• Tsodilo Hills
  Hidden within these 800 million-year-old hills of quartzite schist are more than 5000 individual rock paintings at more than 400 different sites. Some date back more than 2000 years. The work of Bushmen (San), the art has deep mythological and religious value.
• Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR)
  Though waterless and featureless, the CKGR forms the heartland of the Kalahari. Besides being utterly fascinating for its vast tracks of nothingness, it boasts wildlife all year round.
• Makgadikgadi Pans
  Once the bed of a 140,000 square kilometre ancient sea, this seemingly monotonous landscape supports the enigmatic Kubu Island, which rises from the dust and bursts with baobab trees. Sections of the pans are carpeted with grass and support large herds of wildebeest and zebra, as well as attendant lion prides.
• Chobe National Park
  Famous for its 400-strong elephant herds, which are known to regularly swim across the Chobe River, this park is perfect for game drives or river safaris. Buffalo, lion and rare lechwe are among the hundreds of other animal species seen at Chobe.
• Kwando River and Linyanti Marshes
  We’d take to the Selinda Spillway in a canoe and spot buffalo, elephant, wildebeest, crocodile and numerous antelope species, before finishing our days with a walking safari.
• Okavango Delta
  An immense wetland consisting of lagoons, floodplains and innumerable islands, it’s home to copious amounts of wildlife. We’d spend our days skimming the water’s surface in mekoro (traditional dugout canoes) or on foot exploring for game.

• Bangkok
  Straddling the Chao Phraya River, Thailand’s capital city bursts with activity. We’d explore the Grand Palace, with its blinding golden stupas, before riding the public river taxis to check out the towering temple of Wat Arun. We’d also check out the nearby floating markets and start our feast on some green coconut curry.
• Ayutthaya
  The site of the Siamese capital between 1350 and 1767, Ayutthaya hosts some of the nation’s finest ruins. Although much of the site was destroyed by the Burmese at the end of the 18th century, there are prang (reliquary towers) and massive monasteries, which give an insight into the capital’s previous splendour.
• Chiang Mai
  Founded by King Mengrai as the capital of the Lannathai kingdom in 1296, Chiang Mai is now northern Thailand’s largest city. The original moat and some of the city walls still remain. Here we’ll tuck more seriously into the nation’s cuisine while attending a Thai cooking course. Next is a trip north by truck, and then elephant, to visit remote hill tribes.
• Phi Phi Island
  Most of us at Venture will finish our tailor-made holiday on Phi Phi Island, just off Thailand’s west coast. The beaches and emerald waters can’t be called anything less than sublime. We’ll soak up some sun, spend some time snorkelling and enjoy as much fresh pineapple as possible.
• Koh Pha Ngan
  Those at Venture who wanted some serious nightlife to go along with their beach exploits asked Kumuka to make their itineraries include this small island of the east coast instead of Phi Phi. They’re planning to take in Koh Pha Ngan’s legendary ‘full moon party’. They’ll meet up with the rest of the crew in Bangkok (probably looking worse for wear) before flying home.