International Travel News

Far Horizons

November 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

The Panama Highlands

By Randy Keck

(Third of four parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4).

The Highlands

The Chiriqui Highlands of southwestern Panama, with elevation ranging from 3,500 to 6,000 feet, are indeed a special haven of nature’s splendor.

A place of respite and generosity to humans, the natural world of the highlands is verdant and abundant in its offerings of rainforests, cloudforests, clear streams and rivers, wild flora and colorful bird life. With its ample rainfall and a...

October 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Touring from Panama City

By Randy Keck

(Second of four parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4).

Many visitors to Panama, having settled into their hotel on arrival in Panama City, do not pack their bags again until they are ready to depart for home. On an exploration of Panama in May ’06 as a guest of the tour operator Panama Jones, I had the opportunity to experience a full range of day-touring opportunities available from Panama City.

In my 13-day visit I took in all of the day excursions contained in...

August 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Adventure at Tranquilo Bay Resort

By Randy Keck

(First of four parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4).

It was my great pleasure to be the beneficiary of experiencing the reality of Tranquilo Bay Resort in May of this year. Located centrally within the 68-island archipelago of Bocas del Toro off the Caribbean coast of northern Panama, this resort has, in terms of its development, an immediate past history that proves that truth can be harder to imagine than fiction.

For nearly two weeks, I experienced the varied...

July 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Chilean Riviera for a week or a season

By Randy Keck

Ocean bluff seascapes, the sweet scent of stately and abundant pines and cypress, ice plant carpeted slopes and recreational amenities galore —_welcome to the Monterey/Carmel of South America, the Chilean Riviera.

In a visit to Chile in April ’06, I had the opportunity as a guest of Chilean Special Journeys to experience some of the best of the Chilean Riviera ocean playground at the gate-guarded Marbella Resort, located on the bluffs above and overlooking the...

June 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Small group travel — who’s in charge?

By Randy Keck

In this edition of “Under the Microscope,” I will examine an important aspect of the greatly increasing trend toward small-group travel. In terms of who is in charge of leading groups, including solving any problems encountered along the way, how are these groups operated on the ground by tour companies?

Compare a recent issue of ITN with one from five years ago and the trend of more tour operators’ offering options for traveling in small groups is clear. This is in...

April 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

China adventure: Chongqing, Xi’an and Beijing

By Randy Keck

by Randy Keck (Third of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3)

The final portion of my journey to China in October-November 2005 commenced upon disembarking in Chongqing after completing our 5-day/4-night Yangtze River Three Gorges cruise.

Our local guide, Daniel, advised we were now in the land of spicy, fiery cooking, short-tempered locals and China’s hottest summers as well as a city in which it is generally acknowledged that women are formally in charge of the...

March 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

China adventure: The Yangtze River and the Three Gorges

By Randy Keck

(Second of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3)

The second stage of our China journey commenced in the bustling port town of Yichang, where, after dinner at a local restaurant, we boarded the MS Victoria Star, one of the 5-star cruise ships in the American-managed Victoria Cruises fleet used by my host, Value World Tours, and other operators.

Our 4-night/5-day, 410-mile upstream cruise of the amazing Yangtze River from Yichang to Chongqing would prove to be a relaxing,...

February 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

China adventure, Shanghai surprises and beyond

By Randy Keck

by Randy Keck (First of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3)

Since I had done some advance research, it is a fact that I had expected a lot from my initial exposure to Shanghai on my first visit to China, in November 2005. It is also a fact that my expectations were exceeded on numerous fronts.

My 15-day journey, as a guest of Value World Tours, began with three days in Shanghai, the huge (population 13 million), booming, progressive shining star of China’s...

Randy Keck has been a Contributing Editor for ITN since 1983, when he started writing a column titled "Oceania," which later became "Far Horizons." Randy and his wife, Gail, have owned and operated the travel company ASI Tours since the 1980s and have conducted group tours to Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific islands and Southern Africa. Today, they still operate tours to Australia. Randy also continues to work actively as a tour director for other companies, leading groups primarily to Australia and Cuba. He also remains involved in multiple facets of the tourism industry, including consulting.