Sometimes, a week of vacation just isn’t enough, and travelers who can spare the time for a longer getaway have plenty of choices: Travel companies today are increasingly offering itineraries that span three weeks or more.
Down Under Answers, for example, has a 22-day tour of New Zealand that starts in Christchurch and includes visits to Queenstown, Auckland and Stewart Island in the country’s far south. Prices begin at $8,825 a person inclusive of accommodations, tours and most meals. Departure dates are available throughout the year.
More than twice as long is the 47-day Great Silk Road Adventure from Wild Frontiers; the trip takes a major branch of the Silk Road from Beijing to Istanbul. Departs Sept. 11, 2017; £10,000 a person is all inclusive except for flights.
Those who want to mix a land trip with a cruise can consider the 23-Day Alaska and Canadian Rockies Tour from John Hall’s Alaska. During the 16-day land portion, travelers take in the landscape of the Canadian Rockies from a luxury motorbus and also tour Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Then there’s a seven-day Royal Caribbean cruise where they can see the majestic Hubbard Glacier. Travelers can join the waiting list for a tour in 2018. Prices start at $8,100 a person.
Europe is part of the mix too. On the private three-week Adventure and Romance Tour of Italy and Greece, travelers take a moonlit gondola ride in Venice, explore the seaside terraced villages of Cinque Terre and relax on the beaches in Santorini. Prices are from $6,600 a person inclusive of some meals.
These extended getaways aren’t just for retirees and the deep-pocketed, said Susan Sparks, a travel adviser at Points of Interest Travel in Aspen, Colo. “Even younger people can take longer breaks because it’s so easy today to work when you’re on the road,” she said. “Also, while there are plenty of high-end multiweek trips, there are as many affordable options too.”