Guide to Going Off the Grid in Style | Travel + Leisure




Guide to Going Off the Grid in Style

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Hotels

Amanresorts’ fifth Amankora Bumthang lodge, in Bhutan, opened in October 2007 (800/477-9180; amanresorts.com; doubles from $700).

The Ananda in the Himalayas spa and hotel is located near Rishikesh, India, in the foothills of the Himalayas (91-1378/ 227-500; anandaspa.com; doubles from $2,794 for three nights, including meals).

The newest Explora hotel, Posada de Mike Rapu, on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), opened in December 2007 (866/750-6699; explora.com; doubles from $3,588 for three nights, including all meals and activities). The 10-day Travesía tour to the Salar de Uyuni salt flats starts at $5,240 per person, double, and includes all transportation, meals, and activities.

Outfitters

Abercrombie & Kent, the world’s largest luxury outfitter, has itineraries on all seven continents that include cruises, train journeys, and tailor-made trips by private jet—as well as safaris, their original specialty, in both southern and eastern Africa (800/554-7016; abercrombiekent.com).

Geographic Expeditions began as an adventure outfitter, but has incorporated cushier stops into its excursions. The Australian outback trips stop at Barossa Valley wineries and include transfers by private plane (800/777-8183; geoex.com).

Latin Excursions has helped raise the travel profile of South America with high-end cruises on the Amazon and in the Galápagos, as well as bespoke itineraries in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Among its newest offerings is a 14-day trip to Brazil’s northeast, where the beaches have long been more dazzling than the accommodations. Land Rovers and private houses that have been outfitted to the standards of their clients help ease the way (866/626-3750; latinexcursions.com; from $5,000 per person, double).

For travelers not wishing to schedule their trip to Namibia’s Skeleton Coast around the dates set by an outfitter, Mountain Travel Sobek relaunched its Private Adventures this past October. Travelers can choose from 54 itineraries in 33 countries. There is a premium for privacy, however. A 14-day group trip to Annapurna, in the Himalayas, booked as a Private Adventure starts at $3,495, versus $2,295 per person, double (888/687-6235; mtsobek.com).

Off the Beaten Path, based in Bozeman, Montana, specializes in itineraries to destinations throughout North and South America (as well as New Zealand, where it offers a two-week backcountry hiking trip on a half-dozen dates each year). Like the other outfitters listed here, customized trips—arranging for a yacht to explore the more remote stretches of the Alaska coastline, a tailored itinerary exploring the biospheres and ruins of the Yucatán by day, with nights spent in restored haciendas—complement their catalogue of set itineraries (800/445-2995; offthebeatenpath.com).

Operating in 16 countries in Asia, Remote Lands also creates custom trips with a private jet option. Prices vary depending on the itinerary, but usually range from $1,000 per person per day, including some meals but not airfare to and from the United States (646/415-8092; remotelands.com).

Operating since 1972, Uncharted Outposts selects properties in Africa, South America, Australia, and New Zealand—it currently works with more than 200, from safari lodges to island resorts—and also organizes individual itineraries (888/995-0909; unchartedoutposts.com).

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