2014 was an incredible travel year for ArcticTropic. We explored Myanmar ( Burma), European Russia,Siberia,Mongolia,China,Japan,British Colombia,Canada,Singapore,Philippines and Panama. Here’s 184 clips in 11 minutes. This version is natural sound,a musical version will be uploaded soon.

Japan does not normally conjure images of adventure, but ArcticTropic stopped in for several days to be totally immersed in this vibrant modern/ancient culture.

Tokyo is always the City of the Future.

Gundam ! Japan s the world’s merchandising capital.

Food choices not found elsewhere.

In vibrant Shinjuku ,where we stayed.

The best neon anywhere.

Our flight trajectory did not take us over North Korea even though we were in a Chinese plane. We passed about 50 miles south of that path.

Mongolia – with only 2.5 million people in 600,000 spare miles is the most sparsely populated country on Earth. The center of the Asian Continent is an empty spot on the globe !

Night Market Dining.

At Summer Palace.

Mao Zedong’s Car at Military Museum.

Summer Palace

Local Party Officials

Rush Hour.

Beijing Zoo.

Beijing Zoo.

Hong Kong from the Top of Victoria Peak.  Some of the buildings are as tall as the mountain.

Looking East to Causeway Bay.

THe view from the 118th floor bar at the Ritz Carlton Hong Kong – the world’s highest hotel . The bar is at an elevation of 484 meters – 1573 feet .

Delicious shrimp curry for dinner.

Japan is,understandably, undergoing the worst threat to tourism since World War II. Few people will vist in 2011 and some areas might never be visited again until 2211.  ArcticTropic would like to remind travelers that Hokkaido and other adventure areas remain untouched by the nuclear cloud. Tokyo itself is relatively unaffected as of now. Here are some snapshots taken way back in late 1988.

Akasaka  market.

Prayer – much needed these days.

Riverside lunch.

On April 3rd I will return to China , for the first time in a  little over a year. This time, the focus will will on South China, entering from Hong Kong and finishing in Shanghai.

After a short flight from Miami to Newark, I will board Continental Flight 99 – the 9th longest flight in the world. Flying time is 15 hours and 50 minutes for the 8055 mile / 12980 km distance. Leaving at 3:45 in the afternoon,  the 777-200ER  will fly northwest over New York State, Quebec, Hudson’s Bay,Baffin Land , and across the Arctic icecap within about 200 miles of the North Pole. Continuing in the same direction, due south, the plane will travel over Siberia,Manchuria and East China, before landing at 7:45 the NEXT night.Because the northern Arctic is in 24 hour daylight by April, all but the last hour or two of the flight should be  sunny – hopefully with few clouds – to enable aerial shots and videos.

ArcticTropic will be meeting with many South China adventure travel providers. If you would like to meet with us between April 4th to 14th please email  – travel@arctictropic.com

Newark is also home to the world’s longest flight – to Singapore – 9535 miles/15345 km at 18 hours 50 minutes !

A word from a sponsor …………

All Points East has been offering exciting small group and family adventure holidays to South East Asia for over 10 years.  Whilst we recognise there are ‘must see places,’ we also realise that the modern day traveller has a desire to uncover each country’s best kept secrets – off the beaten track.

With exciting itineraries to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Yunnan, Malaysia, Borneo and Sri Lanka, All Points East has a proven philosophy – to provide small group tours that ensure genuine interaction with local people.

Winners of the 2010 Tourism Authority of Thailand Green Award, we have a commitment to local communities and to ensuring that our tours have respect for the people and places we visit.

As much as possible we stay in smaller, locally run hotels and guest houses, eat in local restaurants and use local style transport.  Guides and agencies used are considered friends rather than business contacts.  In keeping with our commitment to the communities we visit, our group sizes are usually a maximum of 10, very occasionally 12.

If this style of travel is for you and you want to get to know the real South East Asia, we would love to show it to you.

Marketplaces are always a fascinating place to learn about local populations. Here in Vladivostok,Primorye the meat is fresh from the farm. ArcticTropic will have many locations throughout the Russian Far East – a vast land of adventure.

On the Indian Ocean beaches of Puri, this village is comprised of fishing families.You could call this place “Poor But Happy” ArcticTropic soon will offer hundreds of adventure destinations throughout India.