The Great Silk Road adventure

with Benedict Allen

SEE THE FABLED TRADING ROUTE, TRAVELLING FROM CHINA TO IRAN, WITH A SPECIAL GUEST APPEARANCE FROM ADVENTURER BENEDICT ALLEN

Four countries, thousands of miles and 33 days: this is one of the most remarkable tours you can undertake. And the rewards for those who join it are suitably immense: magnificent landscapes, fabulous cities and extraordinarily beautiful architecture. It’s a journey along one of the most important thoroughfares in history, connecting continents and plied by merchants and travellers from Marco Polo onwards. With guest appearances from the intrepid Benedict Allen and Jonny Bealby, founder of Wild Frontiers and a Silk Road veteran, plus a foreign correspondent, your travels will include a rich variety of fascinating viewpoints. And there will be no danger of roughing it like the traders of yesteryear. Staying in comfortable hotels throughout, you will leave the logistics in the capable hands of Wild Frontiers, allowing you to discover why this remains, as our

guide says, the “greatest travel route of all time”.

HIGHLIGHTS Talks from our experts

Before travelling to Asia, you’ll have the chance to hear from Jonny Bealby, founder of Wild Frontiers, who will share his first-hand knowledge of the Silk Road. Having travelled the route on horseback and written a book about the experience – Silk

Dreams, Troubled Road, which was also turned into a documentary on the Discovery Channel – he is well placed to give an introduction to the region. You will also get an insight into working as a foreign correspondent in China and hear about the extraordinary travels of Benedict Allen as he joins you in. ⊲

UNESCO World Heritage Sites

In just over a month of travelling, you will have the chance to explore ten World Heritage Sites, ranging from the Great Wall of China to the royal ruins of Persepolis in Iran and the Terracotta Army in Xi’an.

Trading past

You will get a sense of the huge importance of the Great Silk Road as a trading route, stopping at key former staging points such as Dunhuang – the last stop before the desert – and visiting vibrant bazaars in Kashgar, Tehran and more.

Fascinating cities

Many of the cities that grew around the Great Silk Road accumulated fabulous riches, which you’ll trace in the architecture, museums and galleries you discover en route. Stops include the ghost city of Jiaohe and beautiful Samarkand in Uzbekistan.

Magnificent landscapes

Take in the majestic environment of the route once plied by merchants. At the otherworldly Crescent Moon Lake, you can climb to the top of the dunes for spectacular views of the spring hidden among the sands and take in the sunset.