Luxury Adventure Travel

A trek on horseback to visit the tsaatan(reindeer herders) in Mongolia. Witnessing (or participating) in a courtship ritual on horseback in Kyrgyzstan, game viewing on horseback around the Okavango Delta or pantaneiro excursions around the Pantanal Wild Wet, staying at private lodges accessible by private charter. Luxury and adventure being a combination that Urbane Nomads does particularly well, we're offering quite a variety of adventure-themed travel on our pages, ranging from horseback safaris in Africa to a trip to Mongolia, combining the themes of horseback riding, hunting and falconry, dubbed as the 'Most Luxurious Trip in the World'.

Have us arrange for you polo tours in Argentina, combining the three P's- galloping through the pampas of South America, polo in Buenos Aires and Cordoba and trekking through the forests of Patagonia. You'll be staying in charming, luxury estancias, most with their own polo pros with impressive handicaps and illustrious backgrounds in polo.

Alternatively, witness the resurgence (or reconstruction) of polo in Mongolia within the comforts of your luxury ger(yurts) in a remote part of Mongolia. Whether you intend to participate or not, in this polo game unfettered by Western rules (as the Mongolians during the Genghis Khan era must have played it, we can only imagine). The idea of the wild, remote corners of Mongolia, done in as much luxury as possible (think caviar and high-thread count sheets) , literally in the middle of nowhere, defines Urbane Nomads' idea of luxury adventure travel.

On the subject of no-rules polo, travel to Pakistan, making your way through the scenic mountain-top-and-lake views of Chitral to the mystical Shandur Pass- the highest polo grounds in the world hosting an annual polo tournament with equally fabled roots.

Whilst horseback riding trips feature greatly in our mix of luxury adventure trips, Urbane Nomads also offers a wide array of interesting adventure options- from ziplining through the forests of Laos, paragliding with raptors in Nepal to kite-skiing in Antarctica. Sometimes adventure is defined not only in terms of the activities during the trip but also in the destinations- this can range from a trip on a luxury vessel to the mysterious and much-lored Asmat tribes in Papua New Guinea to travelling through Northern Pakistan, visiting the equally lored Kalash people in Kafiristan, famous for their place as 'The Other' in Pakistan- fairy worshippers in a country almost homogenously Muslim, with features that have some speculating that the Kalash are in fact descendants of Alexander the Great's army.

These adventure trips are conducted with various levels of luxury- but always in a manner and level of luxury that is unprecedented and unexpected for the places that we're travelling to.

For exotic, non-traditional locations, try skiing in the mountains of Dizin outside Tehran, sample the excellent apres-ski in the skiing towns outside Beirut or try heli-skiing in the Himalayas. These are not the luxury ski lodges in more established skiing destinations. Instead, you'll be sampling the legendary apres-ski of Lebanese skiing towns after a day of skiing and the virgin powder of Tehran's little-explored slopes.

Diving Lake Khuvsgul in Mongolia, finding some of the best surfs in a remote island in Indonesia (where headhunting was practiced till recently and where the elaborate funerary rites and surprisingly untouched culture has been the focus of the likes of National Geographic), sailing on the idyllic seas of Kep-sur-mer in Cambodia or surfing along the Cantabrian sea- are more ideas and trips that Urbane Nomads has sussed out for our luxury adventure trips. The intrepid traveler looking for a bit of luxury would not be disappointed as Urbane Nomads works with like-minded independent hoteliers who'd set up luxury lodges in the unlikeliest corners.

Raft down the rapids in the Himalayas, through Nepal and Bhutan. Or take a leisurely rafting trip through the Burmese Himalayas of Putao- your instructors will possibly be the first rafting instructors in Myanmar! You will similarly be based in a luxury lodge (one of our all-time favourites!) designed by Jean Michel Gathy of Aman Resorts' fame.

Helicopter safaris in Kenya, balloon safaris taking you to the mystical ruins of Bagan and the iconic Inle Lake of Shan State in Myanmar, the Serengeti and Cappadocia in Turkey- airborne travel. Heli-safaris possibly representing the peak of luxury in safari travel, Urbane Nomads would have you travelling to Lake Turkana (of Constant Gardener fame and one of THE places epitomizing remoteness in Africa) within the day or whisking you off for spectacular sundowners overlooking the Rift Valley, all the while being based in the most luxurious safari camps and lodges that have placed Africa firmly on the luxury adventure travel circuit.

You might have tried falconeering in Dubai or even in the minority Kazakh areas in Mongolia but to take flight with raptors in the air as they guide you through the thermals that keep you aloft- only in the Himalayas.

Or try your hand at kite-skiing, one of the most extreme sports around, in Antarctica, one of the most extreme places on earth. The luxury here comes in the form of travel via private jet (to an airport intriguingly listed as 'Unknown International Airport on the destination board), a private chef in one of the most remote corners on earth and the luxury of private access and an unforgettable experience- whilst hordes of tourists have visited Antarctica through day trips whilst being based in the comforts of their cruise ships, we at Urbane Nomads believe in taking it one step further by having our guests actually sleeping on Antarctica itself, waking up ,(weather permitting) to the rays of the sun piercing a beautifully carved igloo. Never has adventure travel sounded as intriguing or as luxurious...