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Take the path less travelled

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YellowWood Adventures

We specialise in small group & tailor-made cultural & hiking tours to undiscovered, authentic destinations – always taking the path less travelled.

We sustainably support communities and ecosystems, using local guides, partnering with local charities, and planting 15 trees for every client who travels with us.

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, ... and I—I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference." – from The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Featured Tours

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Featured Countries

The Canary Islands

Georgia & Armenia

Northern Spain

Bhutan

Japan

Oman
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Proudly the travellers' travel company

A wonderful experience in Uzbekistan - YellowWood does small group tours and has great guides and drivers - they always listen to the visitors and will adapt the tour accordingly. This was my 4th tour with them and totally recommend.

chb - Uzbekistan

An amazing holiday! The Canary Islands are stunning, and YellowWood and our guides were a great way to see them. A great itinerary, lovely hotels, great food, beautiful walks, knowledgeable and friendly guides. I can heartily recommend YellowWood Adventures!

Matthew Lemin - Canary Islands

Great adventure! Well organised, guides were engaging, friendly and fun. Loved gentle hikes in the Picos de Europa. Learned so much about the culture and people of Northern Spain. Small group of travellers..couldn't get any better!

Diane - Northern Spain

Oman deserves all the superlatives it gets -magnificent scenery, safe, friendly environment, welcoming and engaging people. YellowWood delivers a winner on this trip! Kudos to all. Everything worked and worked well.

Ken - Oman

Our family of 4 (including two teenage kids) had a fantastic adventure in Kyrgyzstan organised by YellowWood Adventures. Absolutely loved the country, the views and the people especially, who were super friendly.

Tony Corrigan - Kyrgyzstan

Travelling with YellowWood is a true adventure. Their expertly crafted itineraries get under the skin of a destination, escaping the tourist trail and really getting to the heart and soul of a place and its people.

Sarah Marshall - Ethiopia

I had a wonderful trip to Ladakh with YellowWood Adventures. Extraordinary scenery and wonderful monasteries, lovely walking but extremely hot! Rigzen, our guide was extremely knowledgeable with endless information about the culture and Buddhism.

Wendy Osorio - Ladakh, Northern India

A really well put together tour. The two countries are surprisingly different with their own culture and cuisine, despite being next door to one another. A different guide in each country but both great with a smooth handover at the border.

Helmut - Georgia & Armenia

What an adventure - second to none.

As I was in Mongolia for 10 days with a YellowWood group for the spectacular eagle festival I decided to extend my journey to include a trip to stay with the Reindeer herders in the north west province and I’m so glad I did!

Diane Smillie - Mongolia

I have been to a lot of places around the world but this is the first time I have been on such an Adventure. This was so well thought out and balanced each day. The guide team was the most organised, patient ,and made sure I achieved my potential.

Christine Dadd - Uganda

I never dreamed that I would one day see the legendary Silk Road cities of Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva. But thanks to the good people of YellowWood I just did! What an amazing adventure. Sam, Brittany, and Rachael were so helpful throughout.

slarson - Uzbekistan

Had a fantastic time in Bhutan with YellowWood Adventures. It was a small group so we could be flexible with the itinerary. The local partner, guide and driver were wonderful and really went out of their way to make it a great experience.

Ellie - Bhutan

Sam (Yellow Wood MD) organized and led a tour for two others and I to climb Toubkal in Morocco. It was a superb trip and I highly recommend YellowWood. Each step was perfectly arranged. Felt safe, well organised and a super adventure.

Thomas Winfield - Morocco

Slovenia is a combination of the best parts of Alpine and Mediterranean Europe. Mountains, lakes, churches, history, gorgeous scenery and tranquil but compact so no long travel days. And did we mention the wine?! Our trip was personalised to our needs

Nicola - Slovenia

Thanks so much YellowWood Adventures! We had such a brilliant time. The perfect trip with lots of adventure and lots of time to relax too!! One of our best holidays ever! We can’t wait for our next trip.

Catherine - Lapland

Our recent trip to Oman with Yellow Wood was all we expected. Our guide was professional and had to make some last minute adaptations to schedule due to the weather, but none the less was keen that it didn't affect our expectations or enjoyment.

Fran Kenden - Oman

I really enjoyed my 14 days in Western Uganda trip. It had an excellent mix of wildlife, culture and geography. The mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, golden monkeys and safari hikes and drives were amazing. It was a very good itinerary.

Jeremy Balsdon - Uganda

Experience of a lifetime. This is the kind of trip where booking through a company like YellowWood makes perfect sense. We wouldn’t have achieved anything like the experience we had without the knowledge and expertise of YellowWood.

Will - Mongolia

I felt so comfortable and safe with YellowWood Adventures. Bhutan is such an enchanting place, and they make sure you see, learn and enjoy every second of it! The guides were very welcoming the same as every single person who received us.

Antonella Torri - Bhutan

YellowWood planned an excellent hiking camping and culture trip covering 2200 kms over the mountains the desert and the beaches around Muscat in Oman. The highlight was ‘ canyoning ‘ down and back up the Wadi Bani Khalid to a stunning group of water falls and pools.

James Lawson - Oman

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Journal

The Undiscovered Canary Islands - YellowWood travel podcast

5 Autumn & Winter escapes on the path less travelled

Bhutan - the happiest place on earth
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Wax & Gold: Journeys in Ethiopia & other roads less travelled

Author and YellowWood founder Sam McManus has collated 15-years' worth of adventure travel writing in Ethiopia, Japan, Bolivia, Egypt, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Mongolia, Lebanon, Oman & Costa Rica.

This collection of travel stories revolves around a central solo journey exploring the mountains of Ethiopia over a three-month period, which led to the founding of YellowWood Adventures.

The most prized form of Ethiopian Amharic prose and poetry, loosely translated as ‘wax and gold’ ሰምና ወርቅ [sam-enna warq], is meticulously comprised with a focus on the duality of its meanings. The surface meaning, the wax, must be stripped away to reveal the hidden core of gold underneath.

Ethiopia as a country also encourages you to look deeper within yourself, to fully understand and appreciate a deeply rich spiritual significance, that often resonates beneath simple or plain exteriors...

Click on your location to order your copy today: United Kingdom - USA - Germany - France - Spain - Italy - Canada - Australia - Japan

For UK clients also available at: Waterstones

Grading

To help you choose the right adventure for you, we have given each itinerary a grading that relates to the level of Walking / Trekking you will experience during the trip. This grading can be found on the Yellow map on the adventure page of the website.


All of our trips involve a level of general activity so are designed for people who are in good health, enjoy the outdoors, and have a taste for adventure and some level of fitness. As will be clear from our destinations, the climate (and altitude) may be different to that which you are used to, so please take this into consideration when choosing the most suitable holiday.


Please read our Adventure Itinerary & Essential Information for more information and don't hesitate to contact us if you would like to chat through whether you have found a suitable adventure for you.

Grade 1-3: Entry Level

You need to be in good physical health to enjoy your active holiday, but you don’t need to be an experienced hiker. These itineraries offer a mix of sightseeing and easier walking for around 2-4hrs a day, with the emphasis on sights and cultural experiences. 

Walks will be well marked or on defined pathways, and often around sites of interest. The expected amount of descent/ascent will depend on the landscapes of the destination, but will not exceed 400m/day, and will often be much less. Walks are at low altitude (below 3000m). 

You will not be required to carry more than a day sack with water and essentials. Ensure you are aware of the weather conditions likely in the destination you are visiting and have a pair of comfortable and worn in walking shoes/boots.

Grades 4-6: Intermediate

You need to have a good level of fitness and be a regular walker for these adventures, with ideally some trekking experience. You can expect to be walking for 3-6 hours per day, not including rest stops, normally on good trail paths but with some uneven surfaces at times. 

You will not be required to carry more than a day sack. You may be walking in more challenging temperatures. You will generally be walking at low altitude (below 3000m) but may walk at altitudes up to 4000m. The amount of ascent could be up to 800m in a day but will frequently be less. You may walk on consecutive days.

Ensure you are aware of the weather conditions likely in the destination you are visiting and have suitable clothing for this adventure.

Grades 7-9: Challenging

You need to have a good level of fitness with previous experience of trekking. Extra training before your trip will ensure that you get the most out of your adventure. Areas will be remote and terrain uneven. 

Expect to walk for 5 – 8 hours a day, not including breaks, with some very steep ascents and descents. You will be walking at altitude (over 3000m but not higher than 5000m).

Ensure you are aware of the weather conditions likely in the destination you are visiting and have suitable equipment/clothing for this adventure (see the packing list for your adventure).

Please check individual itineraries for details of what you will need to be carrying with you.

Get in touch

CLICK HERE to schedule a call online with YellowWood Founder Sam McManus.

Or call us directly 24/7 on:

+44 207 846 0197
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