NICHE TOURISM:YOU'RE UNLIKELY to find Basra or Kabul in most lists of tourist hot spots. But one UK company is offering travellers the chance to visit two of the world's most war-torn destinations, with guided trips to Iraq and Afghanistan beginning this month.
The Iraq tour, which costs £2,300 (€2,575) for nine days, plus flights, takes in Saddam’s palaces, the national museum in Baghdad and the ancient city of Irbil.
The trip to Afghanistan costs £2,350 (€2,630) and includes visits to Kabul, Herat and Peshawar, with the choice of beginning or ending in Iran or Pakistan.
It may be the ultimate in adventure travel, but who goes to Baghdad on holiday? Geoff Hann of Hinterland Travel, the company behind the tours, says he emphasises the cultural aspect of his trips to deter “Rambo types”, and has attracted a wide range of people.
He adds that he caters mostly for older or retired people who are looking for a more adventurous experience, although ages on the Afghanistan trip range from 32 to 83.
Tourists get a the chance to visit some of the world’s oldest cultural and archaeological sites, and although accommodation is basic in places, the experience takes in everything from burnt-out tanks to Buddhist temples, according to Hann.
The trips involve numerous safety precautions, he says, but tourists know the risks when they sign up. “Iraq is relatively safe at present, but nothing is really safe ever. We have a security man with us when we travel, and we can drum up police and militia if we need to. In Iraq there are thousands of checkpoints on every road.
“There are some hot spots we avoid. For example, in Basra and Baghdad we don’t get to markets and bazaars any more – which is a shame . . . There are certain routes, such as Kabul to Kandahar, which we don’t take. Even troops can’t take that route,” says Hann.
“We travel anonymously and don’t stay long in one place. Occasionally, we get scares, when we are stopped and are not quite sure by who, but on the whole we don’t expect any problems.”
hinterlandtravel.com
