60-Days Of Adventure With World's Leading Luxury Active Travel Company

Forbes

2 days ago

Cyclists on a Butterfield & Robinson trip through France's Burgundy, one of the world's top bike—and ... More wine—destinations.
In 1966 George Butterfield had the idea to start leading escorted bicycle tours to Europe, and in doing so, he pioneered a new segment in the travel industry, luxury guided active travel vacations. Six decades later there are dozens of companies offering high-end hiking and biking vacations, but Butterfield & Robinson, or B&R as its many fans know it, remains the pinnacle of the industry, known for great guides, great service, great food, using the best hotels, and as such has one of the highest repeat customer rates in travel. Now Butterfield & Robinson is celebrating its upcoming 60th anniversary in a very special way, and you can join the fun and enjoy 60 days of great adventures with the world's leading luxury active travel tour operator.
The first cycling vacation I ever went on was in Tuscany with B&R, and I loved the trip so much that it changed the entire focus of the way I travel and made my life much more active. Since then, I've been on many cycling, hiking and multi-sport trips around the globe, with many different companies, but B&R remains the gold standard and I have had the pleasure of experiencing them several times, from Italy and France to Morocco and Japan. The trips have been very different, but all had one thing in common, consistent excellence, and this quality can be found at every level of their operations, from the hotels they choose to the special meals they plan throughout, and the VIP experiences along the way, such as visits to wineries and galleries not otherwise open to the public, tours of museums and attractions during hours when they should be closed, adding the best local specialty tour guides to augment the highly trained guides leading trips, all the details.
Even their bicycles are first rate, and unlike many companies that rent around the world, they own transport and manage their own huge fleet of custom-made, high-end bicycles, stored in accessible depots worldwide. Performance carbon fiber road bikes are light, with traditional dropped bars, versatile gearing, and hydraulic disc brakes. Upright touring bikes (hybrids) have straight handlebars for a more relaxed posture, but similar versatile gearing and disc brakes. Hybrid style e-bikes (electric motor assist) are available on almost all trips, and they even have high-performance carbon e-road bikes from leading manufacturer Wilier, something very few outfitters offer, on European trips.
The world-famous hot air balloon trips over Turkiye's Cappadocia are as stunning as they look, but ... More just one of many highlights on this epic journey.
On all of trips I've joined, I've had time to chat extensively with other guests, and the vast majority had traveled with B&R before, usually multiple times, often more than a dozen trips, and many simply would not think of using anyone else. As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. All of this stems from the excellent trip planning and logistics, and a stunning 11 different full-time B&R in-house trip planners were named to Conde Nast Traveler's 2025 list of the world's Top Travel Specialists, which includes the finest travel agents around. These eleven specialize regionally in their areas of expertise, from emerging regions such as Slovenia, Georgia and Romania to specific highly popular spots, such as Italy's Lakes and Veneto regions. In every case, the high-quality trips begin with a deep local knowledge of food, sights, roads, towns and accommodations. While I typically do scheduled group or self-guided trips, B&R also does around half of its business for private, bespoke journeys, and these same expert trip planners are ready to assist travelers looking beyond the catalog.
Food is a very important part of any Butterfield & Robinson trip, but this one is extra special, ... More with multiple cooking demos.
They also just made the annual list of Travel + Leisure Magazine's World's Best Tour Operators list—again, they've done it many times—for 2024. On the list of 15, they took fourth, and this includes all sorts of tour operators, not just active travel (first and second place were a safari-style company and exploration cruise line). In the three decades or so since I discovered them, the company has grown immensely, pushing into new areas such as African safaris, snowy winter adventures and bike trips based on chartered boats, in addition to gold standards such as biking through Burgundy or Tuscany and hiking the Amalfi Coast. In these ultra-popular regions, because they have been at it longer than any of their competitors, they often have longstanding relationships, and sometimes exclusive relationships, with the best accommodations, wineries and other special spots.
To celebrate the upcoming 2026 milestone, the company is offering an Around The World in 60 Days 60th birthday collection, six trips combined to span four continents, that can be done in its entirety or as any of the half dozen very special segments. They have basically combined a cherry picked 'Best Of' collection from their massive global inventory and pieced them together so you can have a once-in-a-lifetime two month long active luxury vacation.
The chateaus, villages and vineyards of Burgundy are a big stop on this adventure.
Each of the six itineraries is an experiential deep dive of immersive cultural moments, unforgettable active excursions, the most stunning sights and indulgent cuisine. Here is where you can go:
The adventure begins in the culinary epicenter of Mexico, Oaxaca, with an exploration of Zapotec culture and a stay in the exclusive Casa Silencio, a first of its kind property that combines a luxury boutique resort with ultra-premium mezcal distillery and focus on spirt education and tastings. There's hiking, cycling, visits to caves and exploring the ancient hilltop ruins of Monte Alban and its many pyramid structures. There's a guided market visit to famed Tlacolula Market, and of course, the moles and gourmet foods Oaxaca is world famous for, in the finest local restaurants, private dinners and cooking demos.
Hike to the hilltop ruins of Monte Alban, outside Oaxaca.
The next stop is Cambodia and Vietnam, where guests stay on one of the world's most acclaimed river cruise ships, the Aqua Mekong, a moving base that sails the Mekong River, while participants cycle alongside peaceful canals, and visit temples, local farms, floating markets and local communities. Then guests return to dry land for one of the world's most visually stunning resorts, the Four Seasons Nam Hai Hoi An, at a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There is of course a cooking class, and one highlight that illustrates the B&R approach is experiencing local cuisine through a private dinner at the home of a chef who runs one of Hoi An's most renowned restaurants. Other travelers make reservations to eat at his place months in advance, but you are a guest in his home.
Cruising the Mekong River on ultra-luxury ship the Aqua Mekong.
India is already a stop on many travelers' 'Bucket List,' and this focus on the Rajasthan region includes a stay in a restored Royal Palace turned luxury hotel, a visit to the Suján Jawai leopard sanctuary to see what most safari-goers consider the most beautiful of the great cats, and outings to local crafts workshops. Visit the Blue City of Jodhpur and the stunning Lake City of Udaipur, all with expert guides. In B&R fashion there is a nighttime candle lit visit to the dramatic and iconic Mehrangarth Fort—off-limits to other tourists—in Jodphur. I recently wrote about why now is the time to visit India and all its many splendors here at Forbes, so read more here.
The iconic City Palace in India's "Lake City" of Udaipur
Morocco is another red-hot destination of the moment, and the first 'exotic' destination B&R expanded to after Western Europe, making them the longest running active travel company covering this destination, with tons of experience. I was lucky enough to recently travel to Morocco on a cycling and hiking trip with B&R and wrote about why they are so uniquely advantageous for this particular destination in detail here at Forbes.
The sights, colors and landscapes of Morocco have to be seen in person to be appreciated
For example, in terms of local connections, on their trips to Marrakech they use the city's most famous guide, who has led royalty, celebrities, astronauts and U.S Presidents, but is otherwise retried and guides for no one else. Guests will get a great mix of landscape between the must-see desert, where they use a camp far superior to the ones most tour operators send guests to, and hike the Atlas Mountains with another of the nation's top local guides. Lodging includes Sir Richard Branson's stunning Kasbah Tamadot, and the jaw dropping Royal Mansour Casablanca, owned by Morocco's King, who pulls no punches.
istanbul is one of the world's great tourism cities.
Turkiye comprises the next leg, starting in Turkiye's exotic capital of Istanbul, one of the world's most interesting cities. After touring the city with experts, highlights include one of the most photographed tourist activities on earth, a hot air balloon ride over the other-worldly landscape and stunning rock formations Cappadocia (I've been and it is as awesome as it looks) Then, depart from the beach resort of Dalaman on the Turquoise Coast on a luxury ship to cruise the Turkish and Greek Coasts, swimming in crustal clear grottoes, visiting ruins, archeological sites and pristine islands. Some of these are ancient Greek Hellenic sites now in Turkiye, for a mix of cultures. When not on the boat, lodging is in top spots like the Peninsula Istanbul and one of the most luxurious of the famous and unique 'cave hotels' in Cappadocia.
The 60-day itinerary goes to Mexico, Cambodia and Vietnam, India, Morocco and Turkiye, but fittingly, the epic journey concludes in Burgundy, where founder George Butterfield has a home. Burgundy has long been the base of its European operations and the company's home away from its Toronto headquarters. Wherever you go with B&R you feel like a VIP insider. but this is taken to the next level in Burgundy, where they have been living and operating for more than half a century, with exclusive visits to friends and family the team has known for decades, including boutique winemakers, plus spectacular farm to table cuisine.
Or as B&R puts it, 'For our 60th party, we're pulling out all the stops: from scenic rides over our favorite vine-covered hills to exclusive sips of rare vintages and meals befitting Burgundian royalty. Pedal through picture-perfect villages, picnic among vineyards, and barrel-taste at exclusive domaines. With château stays, cellar secrets, and plenty of surprises (no spoilers, but you may want to practice pronouncing 'Sacre Bleu!'), this isn't just Burgundy. It's our pièce de résistance.'
A luxury safari-style visit to India's top leopard sanctuary is one of the many surprises awaiting ... More participants on this trip.
Any luxury active travel trip with Butterfield & Robinson is a special vacation, but this 60-day epic is once-in-a-lifetime, and runs March 21st to May 21st, 2026, with pricing starting from $85,170 per person. The individual legs are typically 7-9 days and run about $8,000 to $21,000 per person with India and Morocco being the priciest.