Low Season Traveller Insider Guides

With a population of just 132,000, Stavanger in Southern Norway feels more like a small and intimate town rather than a city.  With a rich history of fishing and canning, Stavanger changed when they found major oil reserves in the North Sea in 1969.  Today it has a burgeoning energy sector and a wealth it could only have dreamed about in the 40’s and 50’s. I recently spoke to Gunhilde Vevik who’s the Public Relations Manager at Region Stavanger, to discover more about the wealth of options open to low season travellers in her city. 

The Seychelles are a group of 115 islands located in the middle of the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa, and have an unbelievable range of natural riches and biodiversity which are completely unique in the world.  Made up of 41 granitic islands as well as over 70 low-lying coralline cays, atolls and reef islands, The Seychelles also has the two UNESCO World Heritage sites of Aldebra (which is known as The Galapagos of the Indian Ocean) and the Valee Du Mai which is like a real life Jurassic Park.  The Seychelles offer something which you simply can’t find anywhere else on earth. In this episode Bernadete Willemin from The Seychelles Tourism Board talks tells us about the islands and how the Seychelles Government balances the protection of their natural riches whilst still providing a first class tourism offering.

This week the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships start in Kosice, the most charming city in the whole of Slovakia.  I caught up recently with the delightful Mirka Hnatkova from Kosice Region Tourism to learn more about this historic city in Eastern Europe as well as what the ice hockey fans can expect in the coming weeks.

Okinawa Prefecture consists of a group of 113 tropical islands in the Pacific Ocean located midway between Japan and Taiwan.  Formerly known as the ancient Ryukyu Kingdom, Okinawa has a distinctly different feel culturally from the rest of Japan.  I caught up with my friends in Okinawa to learn more about this unique and wonderful destination.

In this Earth Day Special episode of Low Season Traveller Insider Guides, we speak with Johan Helgusun of Visit Faroe Islands to learn more about how these small islands in the North Atlantic are protecting and preserving their natural assets amid increased tourism.  A great example in local/visitor collaboration and a responsible approach to tourism development. Find out more at www.visitfaroeislands.com

Travel often conjures ideas of "getting away from it all" and "escaping" from daily life.  Well, there's not many places further from the UK that you can live out your desert island dreams than the fabulous Fijian islands.  Offering a choice of 333 tropical islands in the South Pacific and a heartfelt welcome from people who have a genuinely warm and friendly outlook, Fiji is often viewed as the perfect desert island experience. 

Nestled between the two giants of India and China, the tiny Kingdom of Bhutan covers an area of only 38,000 sqkm, a population of 800,000 and only 250,000 annual visitors.  It leads the world in responsible tourism, has a wealth of natural and cultural riches and is also home to the world's most content people as they measure Gross National Happiness ahead of GDP.  We learnt so much about Bhutan as we spoke with Mr Tenzin Yeshi of Himalayan Travel Experts.

Nestled in the Southern Mediterranean, Malta has the sunniest climate in Europe, has a richness of cultural and history which is easily a rival for Rome, Venice, Barcelona etc and yet, it still retains it's small nation charm with the added bonus of being one of the most progressive and fun destinations you can visit. If you think you know Malta, have a listen to this and you will be amazed!

One of the oldest states in the USA, South Carolina has it all. Year round climate, gorgeous beaches, lively music scene, Victorian architecture, over 100 golf courses and the most utterly charming locals imaginable. I met up with the South Carolina tourism team at ITB Berlin recently and we got along famously! Enjoy!

Bavaria's 2nd largest city has so much to offer for low season travellers and as it's a convention city, the summer months of July and August are low season with the hotel and flight prices to match! Ryanair fly direct from Stanstead from as little as £36 return and superb accommodation is available from £60-£100 a night. For families, why not try a break to Playmobil FunPark as a great low cost alternative to the other famous theme parks? All this and more in today's podcast...Enjoy!

Bruce Haxton had been travelling and living in Thailand for many years after having run tourism businesses in the region for well over a decade, when he happened upon the idea of talking his Thai friend into lending him his Tuk Tuk so Bruce could get out and explore more of Thailand.  What happened next, literally changed his life.  Bruce enjoyed such a positive experience, whereby his interactions with the locals were heightened every time he turned up to a new village in his Tuk Tuk. When he returned from this trip, he was so overawed with the experience, he decided to set up a new company so that others could experience Northern Thailand in a more authentic way just as he had done. I caught up with Bruce to find out more about Northern Thailand and why it’s best experienced from a Tuk Tuk in the Low Season…

Myanmar is often overlooked by UK travellers venturing to Southeast Asia, but for those who visit, it's often a life changing experience. In this episode we speak to Edwin Briels who visited the country 20 years ago and was so enamoured by the experience, he has lived there ever since.  Here, Edwin shares with us what makes Myanmar so unique and why the low season (or "green season") is absolutely the best time to visit. Photo's and all links mentioned by Edwin can be found here: http://lowseasontraveller.com/magical-myanmar/

In this second episode with WTACH CEO, Chris Flynn, we try to identify the reasons to be optimistic as we discuss the merits and failings of tourism growth in terms of Seasonality, Tourism Diversification and the impacts of the Cruise industry.

In this first part of 2 episodes, we speak with Chris Flynn, The Founder and CEO of The World Tourism Association of Culture and Heritage about how he got into the travel industry, what the implications of another 500m tourists worldwide will be on our most unique cultural attractions and how this is impacting every destination in the world.  With some frankly incredible insights on the travel industry, we learn the extent of the damage done to our destinations as well as the huge positive opportunities which are available here if we can truly grasp the situation.

The Northern Territory of Australia is often overlooked by travellers from the UK with only 5% of UK visitors to Australia last year vising the territory.  In this episode we caught up with Tourism NT's Regional Manager for the UK, Fleur Sainsbury, as she talked us through exactly what the other 95% of us are missing out on: Croc encounters, the world's oldest living culture, Uluru, Kakadu, Sunset night markets on the beach... You are going to want to go once you've heard this! 

In this second episode of Low Season Traveller Insider Guides, I catch up with my good friend, Deb Collins from Visit Belfast and talk to her about how much has changed in Belfast over recent years as well as find out her local top tips for a brilliant winter getaway in Belfast. Hope you enjoy and are inspired to take a break in Belfast.  They'll give you the warmest welcome in the Winter! All of Deb's recommendations will be featured on all our social channels throughout the week as we bring you the Top 7 Icons of Belfast every day as well as 7 Restaurants, 7 Bars and 7 Hotels.  Follow us on: facebook.com/lowseasontraveller Instagram.com/lowseasontraveller Twitter.com/Ged_Brown  Linkedin.com/company/lowseasontraveller  

In this first episode of Low Season Traveller Insider Guides, we speak with Miguel Angel Perez, the Brand Manager for Turismo Valencia, about why Valencia is such a great low season destination and he also shares some of his top tips on getting the most our of your visit. We talk about the City of Arts and Sciences, The River Turia Park, The Holy Grail, Torres de Serranos (city gates), Michelin starred restaurants, the annual Flamingo migration, Horchata (sweet and delicious), Agua de Valencia, Paella (no chorizo!) and skydiving! I hope you enjoy this, my first podcast, and if you do, please like, comment and subscribe and tell your friends and family about it.  We'll be featuring a different destination every week to learn why we should travel there in the low seasons. Thanks a million for taking the time - I appreciate it more than you can imagine! Keep in touch and drop me a line if you have any suggestions or recommendations. Oh, and A Very Happy and Healthy New Year 2019 to you - hope its a cracker! Ged