Outback Oz
Africa does not hold a monopoly when it comes to safaris. Australian holidays can easily incorporate a guided wilderness trip into the World Heritage Kakadu National Park. And the man to do it with is Sab Lord, born in Kakadu and raised among the Aboriginal communities who have granted Sab exclusive access to remote parts of their indigenous Arnhem Land homeland. His unique trips will help you understand both the amazing natural environment – home to saltwater crocs, sub monsoon rainforest, billabongs and escarpments – as well as the 10,000 year old culture of the local residents whose lives have little changed over the centuries.

The Ultimate Road Trip
The main artery that slices through the Kimberley in Australia’s northwest is the 400 mile track known as the Gibb River Road. Built in the 1960s to transport cattle and linking some of the region’s most awesome landscapes, including immense gorges and waterfalls, it is one of the most adventurous road trips anywhere on earth.  Mostly unsealed, you’ll need a 4WD and the spirit of Bear Grylls to tackle the Gibb on your own, although if you prefer not to self drive you can opt for a guided trip.

The Milford Track
Of New Zealand’s many remarkable trails – or ‘tramps’ as the Kiwis call them – the best known, and most loved by those who have done it, is the Milford Track in the deep south of South island. The 4/5 day trip is an unbeatable way to experience the country’s ‘end of the world’ landscapes, of deeply skewered fjords, remote lakes, dancing rivers, silent forests and sheer granite canyons. If you do it you’ll have no doubt why it’s been unofficially named the ‘finest walk in the world’.

Swim With Whale Sharks
Although little known compared with Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef, Ningaloo which stretches for 250 kms off the coast of Western Australia, is one of the longest fringing reefs on the planet. Lying close to the mostly deserted sandy shores, its best known inhabitant is the huge but harmless whale shark, the largest fish in the world, which can be 40 feet long and weigh as much as 20 tonnes. You can both dive and snorkel in their mighty company – at home between March to May they’ll be genuinely pleased to see you. Other Ningaloo encounters are likely to include giant manta rays, dolphins, turtles and giant schools of fish.

Bungy Jump
The bungy jump, leaping off a bridge or similar precipice attached to an elastic band, is the ultimate adrenaline rush. The sport was invented in Queenstown, NZ,  by AJ Hackett whose original site, the 43m leap off the Kawarau Bridge, is still on offer although aficionados would now consider it a mere bounce compared with the 143m nearby jump over the Nevis River. Queenstown is the adrenaline capital of the world, so if you don’t have the head for heights you can always bottle out with a spot of white water rafting, zorbing, jet boating, sky diving, giant ‘Tarzan’ swings or whatever else they’ve cooked up. Holidays to New Zealand would not be the same without a spot of Q-town terror!

Sleeping Under the Stars
Who needs a roof over their heads at night? Spend your Australian nights in a traditional bushman ‘swag’, with nothing but the incandescent Antipodean heavens above, including the Southern Cross. You can even make the experience highly stylish in the scenically gorgeous Blue Mountains, a two million acre UNESCO World Heritage Site, with guide Mark Tichner who takes guests by 4WD to his riverside camp, cooks and serves supper around the fire pit and makes up your swags on a double mattress on a raised wooden frame (so no creepy crawlies). There’s a simple private loo, bush shower and wash basin, with oil lamps all around, and your own fire.