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Our specialty… | |||
 We love Southeast Asia. We adore its rich diversity in cuisines -- from vibrant Thai curries to refreshing Vietnamese salads; from comforting Chinese stocks to a wealth of seafood. Its people are among the friendliest on earth -- witness the broad, almost Cheshire-cat smiles of Burmese and Lao children. And value for money, you can't match the quality of hotels, restaurants and exquisite crafts: from silk to silver, lacquer to gemstones. This is a part of the world where the US dollar still goes a long way… |
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Our philosophy… | |||
| Discover a country's culture first through its foods. Let us introduce you to an authentic world of local flavors, not homogenized tastes geared for tourists. Naturally, we include artisan crafts, historical sites, and local specialists. |
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Our tours… | |||
| Globetrotting Gourmet® appeals to food lovers first and foremost. We look at the food in its many guises, from farming to marketing to hawker food and restaurant fare alike. with cooking classes just one part of the full recipe. Each and every food tour is unique, resulting from the fact that we host only a couple a year. Our small-group tour experience is restricted to 16 maximum, but often as small as eight. |
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| Robert and Morrison personally visit each country prior to organizing day-by-day itineraries, and we specifically select all locations, hotels, events and menus. We do not farm this work off to intermediary travel wholesalers. All group tours are personally hosted by Robert and Morrison, and we include a local translator or guide when appropriate. We can assure you, our tours are not like the standard group tour. | ||||
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Donations… | |||
| As a way of thanking local communities for hosting us in their countries and villages, we specifically designate a charitable organization or needy person to receive a portion of our proceeds. In the past, we have donated computer equipment to an impoverished school in rural Thailand, sponsored a year's culinary scholarship in Cambodia, and purchased an essential motorbike for a guide in Laos. Other donations include seed money to teach sustainable agricultural practices in Thailand's impoverished Isan region, plus designated grants in the same area to encourage at-risk children to stay in school. We've allocated future donations to protect the endangered giant Mekong catfish, and feeding the hungry in a Rangoon monastery. |
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Flights… | |||
| Globetrotting Gourmet® food tours do not include overseas airfare, This should be purchased in your home country, along with travel insurance. Many of our participants cash in mileage points for travel, or better yet, use points to upgrade. As we consider ourselves impartial advisors, please feel free to ask us for airline advise, or for travel agency referrals. Travel insurance should be purchased in your home country, and we require it prior to your registration. |
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Our Hotels… | |||
| We pride ourselves in the level of our accommodation, because we feel that if you are experiencing the authentic culture by day, participants will crave the comforts of home by night. The hotels we choose are 5 star, luxury boutique, or best available in the town we are staying. (We also use central or convenient location as a deciding guide, as well.). |
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Our Clientele… | |||
| We've found over the years that food people are perfect travelers -- they open themselves to the authentic experiences, while still being very sensitive to the local cultures. Perhaps not surprisingly, most of our groups keep in contact with one another long after the original tour, and we have many repeat customers as a result. |
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| A typical make up includes travel writers and food editors, dietitians and chefs, and amateur cooks with a passion in the kitchen. Spouses and friends regularly accompany, and we find a special satisfaction in enticing them as well! About a third of the participants come alone. (We occasionally have people who inquire about sharing, so please let us know if that is of interest.) We attract a world-wide group, primarily from North America, and also including Australians and Europeans, which makes the group interaction even more rewarding. read past comments from members..... | ||||
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Classes… | |||
| Cooking classes play only one role in our trips. We look at the food in its many guises, from farming to marketing to street food and restaurant fare alike. What we've discovered is that if you just attend a bunch of cooking classes when you travel, you return home with a vague, confused memory of what each distinct dish tasted like. Consequently, we schedule the tours as if researching a new cookbook. The best way to learn a foreign recipe is to eat it first, and then see how it is made, not vice versa. We investigate regional dishes, find local restaurants and hawker stands where these same dishes are sold, plus visit markets to identify the ingredients. |
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How to Pay… | |||
| All prices are based on land-package only. Prices do not include external airfares to and from our designated hub city. From past experience, many of our members like purchasing their flight tickets separately, as it allows them stop-over privileges, and also to use their air points for tickets or upgrading. |
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| Prices are quoted on direct deposit to our holding account in Sydney, Australia and is non-commissionable. We will provide bank deposit details upon request. CLICK HERE Overseas credit card payments incur an approximate 7% surcharge, which reflects both the banks' charges plus the foreign poor exchange rate imposed by them. (We do apologize for this in advance; it is beyond our control.) | ||||
| Typically, US customers paying by credit card will have their US dollar rate converted and charged into Australian dollars at the daily official rate. However, American banks then add a conversion surcharge on top of this, when it is billed back into US dollars. This means that we cannot guarantee the exact US dollar price you will be charged. These bank surcharges and artificial exchange rates are beyond our control, and consequently we strongly advise all payments by bank direct deposit. | ||||
| Australian customers will be charged separately, quoted in Australian dollars. A 3%-5% credit card surcharge applies. There is no surcharge for direct deposit payments. | ||||
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Our contract… | |||
| Place your deposit now to confirm your place on the next Globetrotting Gourmet® food tour, as well as to lock in the current price. Final payment is due in full by 60 days prior to the tour commencement date. Full Details CLICK HERE. |
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| Please fill in your registration form and fax back to us. CLICK HERE. We will require a signed copy of the final page for our records, although this can be given to us when we meet on the first day of the tour. | ||||
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Prior to the tour… | |||
| Once your deposit is received, we will email you pre-tour package information, which highlights important visa, health and travel information. This should be read immediately.. |
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On arrival… | |||
| You will be met personally at the airport by our designated representative. Specific details will be provided in the pre-tour information packet. Upon checking in at the hotel, you will be given a bound day-by-day itinerary, along with tentative times for all activities. |
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| Further Information… |
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| Contact our website www.asianfoodtours.com for scheduled day-by-day itineraries and payment information. | ||||
Please get back to us by return email, to let us know your travel plans. And thanks for your interest! We guarantee that it will be a great trip, with fun people. |
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| Cheers, Robert & Morrison |
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