Best of 2024

2024 saw Experience South West Tours go from strength to strength and the number of touring dates delivered pushed through the 100 barrier in only our second fully independent year as an operator.
A real mix of itineraries delivered for overseas agents, single day tours for guests at regional hotels and bespoke multi-day tour plans for direct booking guests.
In all, some 26K miles covered across the South West and all its counties of Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset as well as frequent trips in the big city, London and even a fair few visits back into old England within the Cotswolds area also.
My guests have thoroughly enjoyed all regions and areas we have immersed ourselves in an toured throughout. It is always fascinating to learn from where they have travelled from across the world and this year I managed to tick off a few new "countries of origin" as it were...
Everywhere from the West and East coast USA, as far down as the Carolina's, Tennessee and Texas and an equal distance away in the north as Washington State, North Dakota and Maine. Many, many more from the States in all directions and my new touring ticked off countries included, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Tasmania too!
All lovely people who enjoyed "little old England" and its history, characterful locations and charms.
I find it very humbling that so many people from around the world wish to visit the UK and in particular the South West peninsula. It never disappoints.
One service that I provide, free of charge, which is always greatly appreciated is a photographic documentation and capturing of your time with ESW Tours. One of my hobbies, and side lines, is landscape photography and I am confident in knowing my way around a camera as well as capturing a scene well. With several National Photographic competition commended awards and many magazine features over the years, I always like to bring a camera everywhere, not just the mobile phone one either!
So, it makes sense that this attribute is put to good use and my guests always hugely appreciate a folder and selection of tour photos upon returning home in their emails. A file sharing service allows the transfer and the collections of labelled and ordered images, sometimes in multi day format for those longer tours, are then shared with their friends and even photo trip books are compiled as a memento of their time with me in the area. I guess it doubles up as cross ocean advertising too!

So, 2025, what will you bring? With over 50 days already booked in the diary and a real selection of itinerary plans unfolding, I am hoping it will rival last year for time out on tours as well as the host of fantastic company I had along the way, and journey of course.
With interest in the new Experience Travel themed sector of the global movement market and the even newer buzz word and tag of #setjetting (film, tv and novel adaptation location visitation) and with these, I have already reacted and created specific tours for these, one for Devon and another for Cornwall. Captain Ross Poldark and Doc Martin (met them both by the way!) do still draw the crowds and with many new great West Country set dramas and feature films due to for release, one that I am particularly looking forward to is the movie, The Salt Path ,I am sure they will inspire many more days of immersion in pastures new.
I look forward to meeting new tour guests as well as revisiting ones for further adventures. 
Always an advocate of cream first and if you ever tour with me, you'll learn all about that too.
Maybe one for a future blog...
Warm regards, 
​Mark

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