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NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ADVENTURE
FEBRUARY 2009
A BRIEF TRIP TO PIRATE ISLAND — On a tiny speck of rock off the coast of Indonesia, a band of pirates is plotting the demise of the global economy. Armed with speedboats and swords, this new generation of swashbucklers is raiding unsuspecting ships on the high seas — and dares the world powers to stop them. National Geographic Adventure magazine publishes an exclusive excerpt from "Falling Off the Edge: Travels Through the Dark Heart of Globalization," (Bloomsbury USA, 2008), by Alex Perry, Time magazine's Africa bureau chief. "This isn't quite a war. There aren't enough deaths or battles in the cat-and-mouse games the world's pirates play with security forces in Asia and Africa, and the pirates are criminals, not revolutionaries. But pirates are also rebels. They are rivals to the state and society, as Cicero recognized two millennia ago when he defined pirates in Roman law as hostis humani generis — 'enemies of the human race.'" Page 50.
THE BEST ADVENTURE TRAVEL COMPANIES ON EARTH — When planning the adventure trip of a lifetime, one of the most important decisions you'll make is which travel company to go with. National Geographic Adventure's second annual rating of the top 55 adventure tour operators helps ensure that your next trip will be one to write home about. Divided into six categories by Global Travel Editor Costas Christ and writer Claire Martin, the outfitters are scored out of 100 according to quality of service, spirit of adventure, education, sustainability and client satisfaction. Below are the top three contenders in each category. PLUS: Find the trip of a lifetime with National Geographic Adventure's ultimate online travel-planning tool — a comprehensive Web database rating 200 of the best adventure tour operators out there. Visit ngadventure.com/ratings to see how all the outfitters surveyed by Adventure stack up. Page 75.
DO-IT-ALL
- Wildland Adventures: 97.17. New in '09: "Ethiopia: Travel Through a Land of Legends," 12 days, $2,595
- Mountain Travel Sobek: 96.66. New in '09: "Six Continent Whitewater Rafting Adventure," U.S., Ecuador, Spain, Kenya, India and Australia, 25 days, $8,495
- GAP Adventures: 96.66. New in '09: "Sicilian Volcano Trail," Italy, 8 days, $1,349
HIKING & TREKKING
- Sierra Club Outings: 96.73. New in '09: "Machu Picchu Ecolodge Trek," Peru, 11 days, $4,095
- KE Adventure Travel: 94.8. New in '09: "Lake Baikal Trekking Adventure," Siberia, 14 days, $3,715
- Country Walkers: 93.43. New in '09: "The Legendary Nile à la Carte," Egypt, 10 days, $6,598
BIKING
- Backroads: 93.73. New in '09: "Glacier and Canadian Rockies Biking: An Epic Rocky Mountain Experience," 9 days, $3,698
- VBT Bicycling Vacations: 92.47. New in '09: "Arizona: Sonoran Splendor," 7 days, $1,795
- Sacred Rides Mountain Bike Holidays: 92.17. New in '09: "South Pacific Singletrack: New Zealand," 13 days, $2,050
RIVER & SEA
- O.A.R.S.: 96.1. New in '09: "Rafting the Tambopata: Andes to Amazon in Peru," 16 days, $4,295
- ROW Adventures: 93.8. New in '09: "Brazilian Tapestry — Culture, Wildlife & Adventure," 12 days, $3,990
- Bio Bio Expeditions: 92.07. New in '09: "First Descent of the Drangme Chhu River," Bhutan, 15 days, $6,800
SAFARI
- Mark Thornton Safaris: 98.07. New in '09: "Tarangire Bush Walking Adventure," Tanzania, 13 days, $8,330
- Africa Adventure Consultants: 95.3. New in '09: "Zambia: Animals in Action," 8 days, $5,745
- Thomson Safaris: 93.8. New in '09: "Tanzania Discovery Safari," 14 days, $6,590
LUXURY
- &Beyond: 95.57. New in '09: "Where the Lions Roar: South African Adventure," 8 days, $4,168
- Butterfield & Robinson: 94.3. New in '09: "Dubai to Oman Walking," 9 days, $10,995
- Austin-Lehman Adventures: 94.23. New in '09: "Germany — Meandering Mosel Valley Biking Adventure," 6 days, $2,498
WILD ISLANDS '09: PICK YOUR PARADISE — Life's a breeze amid the trade winds: diving wrecks, biking volcanic craters and canyoning shampoo-ad-worthy waterfalls. The only hard part is choosing which tropical island escape to hit first. National Geographic Adventure provides the vitals on these 15 beguiling isles for its midwinter salute to tropical paradise: The Big Island, Hawaii; Pine Island Sound, Fla.; Catalina Island, Calif.; Bermuda; Martinique; Fernando de Noronha, Brazil; La Palma, Canary Islands; Kangaroo Island, Australia; Pohnpei, Caroline Islands, Federated States of Micronesia; Surin Islands, Thailand; Fiji; Grenada; Guam; Dominican Republic; and Raja Ampat Islands, Indonesia. Page 56.
FJORDS & FREESTYLE — Hiding inside the nooks and crannies of Norway's jagged coast are powdery slopes begging to be skied. The best way in? By boat, of course. Page 66.
* National Geographic Adventure experts are available for interviews. Contact Ethan Fried if you have questions, need additional information or would like to schedule an interview.
National Geographic Adventure, winner of four National Magazine Awards, is the fastest-growing magazine in the outdoor category and the ultimate guide to the adventure lifestyle. Published 10 times a year, with a rate base of 625,000, National Geographic Adventure has 2.4 million readers. It is available by subscription (800-NGS-LINE) and on newsstands in the United States ($4.99) and Canada ($6.99). Its editorial mission supports National Geographic's corporate global mission to inspire people to care about the planet. The magazine's Web site is www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure.
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Contacts:
Ethan Fried
202-857-7037
efried@ngs.org
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