About Us
We do more than escort you to a country and show you round its history and culture. We also make sure that you engage with each country as it is today, experiencing contemporary society on all levels. In addition, we visit a selected project or charity in each destination and make a donation per head (included in the tour price) on behalf of the group.
Below are some articles and testimonials from our clients, and project details.
Articles
Testimonials
Projects
Articles
Catherine Docherty went on our golf tour to Argentina and Brazil in January 2010 and wrote a blog about her experiences on the way. Click on the link below to follow her adventures. http://katesouthamerica.blogspot.com/2010/01/off-to-sunny-south-america.html
China - A Taste of Optics in the Orient Click 'More' to read the rest of tour leader David Shannon's article on the Optometry Study Tour to China in April 2009.
Optometrist David Shannon takes away fond memories of China.
Dentist Marion Inerfield reminisces on a dental study tour to Argentina. To read the article, published in the The Probe magazine, click 'More'.
Peter Burke, a general surgeon practising in Victoria, Australia, was a lecturer on the History of Medicine Cruise in October 2009. Peter wrote the following article for Surgical News, the magazine of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.
'In the Steps of Florence Nightingale' by Elizabeth Pinder Click 'More' to read the rest of Elizabeth Pinder's article on the September 2008 Florence Nightingale tour in Istanbul in the Friends of Florence Nightingale Museum newsletter
'Traveller's Tales - Doctors at Sea' Click 'More' to read articles by participants on the History of Medicine Cruise October 2008 in the Australian Medical History Newsletter.
'The Mediterranean is scattered with traces of medicine's past. Sailing to these shores....' Click 'More' to read the rest of Jim Leavesley's article 'After Hours' on the History of Medicine 2008 cruise.
Testimonials
Persia - Historical and Contemporary 'Lavinia gave erudite talks and fascinating readings - she had obviously done much homework!' Liz Tothill, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009 'Good variety (of visits) - ancient and modern, gave excellent idea of the country 'then' and 'now'. Chance to meet Iranian people and talk (and listen). Nothing I would leave out. My first Jon Baines trip - a charming and interesting group, two excellent leaders in Lavinia (lovely readings) and Jill (always available and helpful), and of course Hossein. A country which has changed my (rather negative) preconceptions - fascinating, varied and above all, charming and friendly people who wanted to talk (openly) to us. Many conversations - even with few words - and photos taken. I look forward to reporting back to doubters...' A wonderful country, Iran 'A wonderful variety of different and exciting experiences.' Charlotte Elvey, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009 'The local people were delightful, especially girls at college who were eager to meet and greet us.' Pam Wearing, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009 'Hossein a superb guide, very knowledgeable and made the visits a great experience. Lavinia superb, marvellous insight and gave us pleasure to listen every time. (Both Jill and Lavinia ) were delightful companions with a good sense of humour.' Patricia Edwards, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009 'I enjoyed the variety and diversity. I liked that in some places we could wander alone. Lavinia and Jill were brilliant. We got all our lectures delivered with panache, wit and learning.' Annette Elliot, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009 'Supreme: Persepolis.' William Edwards, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009
Touched us all with its splendour and charm
With such friendly greetings,
So many warm meetings,
We take happy memories home from Iran
Camilla Pennant, Persia - Historical and Contemporary May 2009
Care of the Elderly and Palliative Care in South India '(The professional visits) to the villages were incredible...Jagannath Babu was an exceptionally good guide. Can't imagine a better one. He worked very hard with a brilliant attitude. He gave us good and unusual information about India and the places we visited. I had a wonderful unforgettable time.' Holly Mayhew, Palliative Care in South India Jan 2008 'Gilly Burn (tour leader) was amazing; fun, knowledgeable, her stories of India inspired me to go back. I will share the experience with colleagues and highly recommend it. For me it was the holiday experience of a lifetime.' Lindsay Kingett, Palliative Care in South India Jan 2008 '(The visits were) all very interesting and stimulating - especially the visit to the neighbourhood volunteer scheme - a definite highlight. All in all a most enjoyable and stimulating experience, thank you. Gilly and Babu were both absolutely excellent and made the trip.' Dr David Bird, Palliative Care in South India Jan 2008 'Hospital and hospice visits excellent - the community day in a 4WD in Calicut the highlight. Babu was excellent with extensive general knowledge - very professional and courteous and gave us wonderful insight into his country. Gilly was excellent - wonderful sense of humour, an inspirational person with lots of stories to put it all into perspective. Her past experiences in India - not only medical but cultural - gave us all a greater understanding of this unique country's diversity. You would not find a better tour leader if you tried!' Suzy Fenger, Palliative Care in South India, Jan 2008 'Gilly Burn was fantastic as a tour leader. Bright lovely lady with incredible knowledge of Palliative Care in India and lots of contacts. Her personality and enthusiasm got the group to gel very quickly and she, with our local guide, met our every request.' Robert Kingkit, Palliative Care in South India, Jan 2008
Therapy and Rehabilitation in South India
“The community based rehabilitation was a great experience, going into the village and seeing the volunteers.
In the Footsteps of Florence Nightingale - Istanbul 'Loved all the things we visited. It was incredible to see so much in such a short period. Alp (Tour Guide in Istanbul) was fantastic - very knowledgeable and extremely patient. Pleasant and has a vast knowledge of Turkish history - he's a gem. Alex was great also - very knowledgeable on Florence and very enthusiastic.' Sally Harlow, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'The boat trip on the Bosphorus was a delight. (The visits were) beyond expectation - including the historical sites in Istanbul and Florence Nightingale sites. Alp was A1 - he could not have given more freely and also Alex, of his knowledge, time, patience and all round expertise as a guide.' Joyce Harlow, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'The tour was extremely well organised and I for one felt very well looked after and assisted at every turn. I liked Alex, who is clearly a master of his subject, and found Alp an outstanding guide. The in-built flexibility to take account of the weather was invaluable: I appreciated that the last minute rescheduling cannot have been easy. Personally, I appreciated too, the thought which even went into the selection of the 'best' loos. All in all, I had a very enjoyable trip and send my thanks.' Joanna Malins, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 '(Alp was) an excellent guide and a mine of useful information who knew exactly what we wanted. Full marks for rearranging the visits to suit the weather (and the NATO generals). The combination of Alex and Alp produced inspirational and thoroughly worthwhile visits.' Leslie Povey, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'I particularly enjoyed the visit to the Seminiye Barracks, the Suleymaniye Library, and the Topkapi Palace Jewel Collection. In fact all the visits were varied and very good. Alp was an amazing fund of historical and local knowledge. He and Alex were a very good team. We enjoyed their company. I was amazed that we managed to see so much in such a short time. It was all fascinating, and the itinerary was well planned. We were so lucky to have Alex with us. He is so knowledgeable about Florence Nightingale.' Margaret Povey, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'The visits were very good. I particularly enjoyed the library, the Cistern, the Spice Bazaar and Scutari (of course!). It was great to be able to get access to the Barracks and the Museum. Alp and Alex were both extremely knowledgeable and charming. They were flexible and good tempered and looked after everyone well. We were very fortunate to have two such well informed guides.' Professor Joan Higgins, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'So much in such a short time, but not too much. (On the guides, Alp and Alex) - what more could we have asked for?! Knowledgeable, obliging, flexible, patient, humorous. Very pleased I came!' Jane McEldowney, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'A fabulous trip. Just as fascinating as Florence Nightingale was fascinating Istanbul. Thank you.' Pat Smedley, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'I appreciated how well the tourist traps were avoided and the opportunity to visit some less well known places.' Participant, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 '(Visiting) the Barracks meant a lot. To be able to walk in the footsteps of Florence was very impressive.' Kristy Peavey, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008 'Alp was a wonderful guide, his knowledge on all aspects was exceptional. He was very organised, which I found extremely helpful. I have known Alex for about 10 years, so knew he would be an excellent tour leader. He is very kind and caring and looked after us all, checking that everything was going well and we had no problems. We all felt that we were in safe hands! He is a very competent lecturer and of course his knowledge of the life and times of Florence Nightingale is exceptional. We all enjoyed the experience of visiting Scutari with him.' Molly Jennings, In the Steps of Florence Nightingale, Sept 2008
Cuba: Medicine and Society 'Thank you so much for arranging such a good tour with an excellent leader. It was full of wonders and delight.' Hilary Armitage, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb-March 2009 'Anne was an excellent tour leader, who managed to keep the group together! It was a great treat to go on such an interesting, well organised and varied trip!' Flavia Leslie, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb-March 2009 'Ludwig and Maria (National Guides) were real 'gems'. Both were extremely helpful and supportive and had a brilliant sense of humour! Ludwig was brilliant - very knowledgable, an excellent source of information. Anne McAllister (UK Tour Guide) was excellent, very supportive! Had all situations under control...and so much fun to be with! Altogether we had such a marvellous time - we are already thinking about doing it all again next year!' Dr Susanne Buttner and Martin Murphy, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb-March 2009 'This has been our first Jon Baines trip and we have thoroughly enjoyed it. Excellent balance between specialist visits and general tourism and all to a very high standard. We really appreciated the extras on this tour - eg Dr Guevara, Professor Orestes del Castillo and the doctors we talked to. Organisation and hotels to a very high standard.' Dr Marian and Dr Colin Kenyon, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb-March 2009 'When I read the brochure for this trip, I knew it was going to be the perfect combination of professional visits and tourism. I had been waiting to find such a trip for several years. I was not disappointed. It really was perfect from start to finish. It couldn't have been better.' Professor Joan Higgins, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb 2008 'The last night - Buena Vista Social Club - was fantastic. The best last night I have ever had on any trip!' Jennifer Hurstfield, Cuba: Medicine and Society Feb 2008 'Cuba was lovely, music excellent, the polyclinic, local GP and eco tour were wonderful.' Dr Tony Rowlinson, Cuba: Medicine and Society, Feb 2008
Vietnam and Cambodia: Culture and Society 'Visits were many and varied and all extremely interesting and memorable. Impossible to choose a favourite - each impressive in their own way, whether the tranquility of Halong Ba, or the magnficent temples of Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm. An amazing trip - looking back at my photos it's hard to believe we covered so much.' Jill Haran, Vietnam and Cambodia: Culture and Society, Jan-Feb 2009 'What an absolutely brilliant trip - each day was amazing and I had such a wonderful time. Aidan was magnificent - his insider knowledge of Vietnam and his ability to speak the language obviously helped.' Annie Dixon, Vietnam and Cambodia: Culture and Society, Jan-Feb 2009 'The food is unique to the area, and delicious. Fresh fish is plentiful and herbs are included in greater quantities and variety than other cuisines in the area. Most of the restaurants we visited were local and small with specialty dishes. Do not travel with the hope of losing weight!' Heather Bouchier Hayes, Vietnam and Cambodia: Culture and Society, Jan-Feb 2009
History of Medicine Cruise ‘The shore excursions were all very interesting and well thought out with good preparation and very helpful specialist lecturers. The Sevastopol day was a wonderful experience.’ Joan Towers, History of Medicine cruise, September 2008 ‘Sue Weir was simply wonderful at organising us all, being helpful as well as extremely knowledgeable.’ Dorothy Vollum, History of Medicine cruise, September 2008 ‘The lectures were first class and the short papers from volunteers were very good.’ Gordon Chambers, History of Medicine cruise, September 2008
The Golden Road to Samarkand 'I will never forget the evening visit to the Registan in Samarkand; it was magical. The old town of Khiva with its living history was wonderful.' Irene Taylor, The Golden Road to Samarkand, September 2007 'Breakfasts were excellent, and I enjoyed lunches and dinners and the home cooking at the village house.' Yasmin Meghani, The Golden Road to Samarkand, September 2007
Namibia: Landscapes, Wildlife and Cultures 'A really great trip – Namibia is definitely the place to visit.' Dr Jean McMillan, Namibia: Landscapes, Wildlife and Cultures, February 2008 'The ultimate experience - Namibia’s amazing landscape, a land of contrasts, variety in their cultures. Meeting local people, tribes and bushmen. Biodiversity and natural history – magical. Indeed an African extravaganza, the country left me wanting more.' Sheila Bettridge, Namibia: Landscapes, Wildlife and Cultures, February 2008 'One spectacular visit after another – Fish River Canyon, the ghost diamond town, the Namib desert, the boat trip from Walvis Bay, the game at Etosha.' Leslie Baxter, Namibia: Landscapes, Wildlife and Cultures, February 2008 'We were pleasantly surprised at the high quality of food and service.' Ron and Betty Hoy, Namibia: Landscapes, Wildlife and Cultures, February 2008
Syria and Jordan: Historical and Contemporary 'I was very impressed by the choice of places and how balanced this choice was. I was blown away by the richness of Syria's past.' Annette Elliot, Syria and Jordan, October 2008 'A wonderful set of visits - thank you to Lavinia for her superb talks.' Liz Tothill, Syria and Jordan, October 2008 'All the visits were fascinating and worthwhile.' Jess Hegarty and Michale Balaam, Syria and Jordan, October 2008 'Lavinia's talks were excellent: engaging, entertaining and also thought provoking. Hussein (the national guide) was outstanding.' Elizabeth Mowbray, Syria and Jordan, October 2008 'The trip was well planned, the guides were excellent, the sites were beautiful - a wonderful visit.' Eric and Gae Andreae, Syria and Jordan, November 2007 'My hopes of the depth and insight Lavinia would give were more than fulfilled as she shared our encounters with the different places, peoples and faiths.' Charlotte Elvey, Syria and Jordan, November 2007 'This excellent trip was greatly enhanced by the quality of the speakers.' B.G. Holiday, Syria and Jordan, November 2007
Projects
Vietnam - The Christina Noble Children’s Foundation
The Christina Noble Children’s Foundation (CNCF) was founded in 1991 and has since established over 60 projects in Saigon and the surrounding provinces, assisting over 200,000 of the country’s poorest and most vulnerable children. CNCF is involved in numerous activities including medical care, education and educational facilities, well drilling, revolving loan programmes, emergency assistance to children and their families, and shelters for street children. On each tour to Vietnam, the tour group visits the project and makes a donation on behalf of the group.
Jordan - The Holy Land School for the Deaf
The Holy Land School for the Deaf in Salt, Jordan aims to prepare its pupils for the rigours of life outside and concentrates on vocational training as well as providing a comprehensive curriculum. Students receive training in vocations such as carpentry, blacksmithing, needlework and auto-repair in addition to a basic household skills program. The school also provides hearing services for those who have no health insurance and cannot cover the costs of private medical treatment. In addition the school has a blind-deaf unit and a sign language unit. Each of our tours visits the school and makes a donation per head on behalf of the tour group on site.
Uzbekistan - Ballet School Fouété
With the fall of the USSR, many Soviet cultural traditions became neglected by the newly created Central Asian republics. One of these traditions was ballet, which in Uzbekistan almost died out completely. Fortunately schools such as the Ballet School Fouété are helping to revive this art form. The school is run in the formal Soviet style and caters to children from all walks of life aged from four to eight years old. The school struggles with funding and also finds it very difficult to come by items such as good ballet shoes, so we make a donation of such items when we visit the school to watch a short performance.
Vidya Sagar is a multi-disciplinary centre where speech and occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and education are taught using a holistic approach to children and young adults suffering from cerebral palsy. The primary aim of Vidya Sagar (formerly known as the Spastic Society of India) is to empower the disabled to become independent, go out into the community and lead a better quality of life as they often suffer from being marginalized both by society and their family. Facilities such as the Employment Education Centre train adults for work in the outside world. Vidya Sagar also concentrates on involving the families and has been successful in training and motivating parents to treat the child as they would treat a normal, able-bodied child with their Home Management Program.
South India - The Belaku Trust
The Belaku Trust works in villages in rural Karnataka, serving poor and marginalised households, with an emphasis on women and children. They promote health and development, achieving this through research, community-based interventions and collaboration with existing service providers. The ultimate aim is that their work will help people to help themselves. Our tours to southern India meet with the Belaku Trust and accompany their workers on their community rounds.
Ecuador - The Galapagos Conservation Trust
The London-based Galapagos Conservation Trust (GCT) actively works to contribute to the successful management of the Galapagos ecosystem and to raise awareness of, and funds for, the conservation needs of Galapagos. The GCT is the primary source of information and comment in the UK on conservation in the Galapagos Islands. It believes that well managed tourism, where the local population of Galapagos benefits, is an important source of income for Ecuador. JBT pays a year's subscription for each participant on a Galapagos tour.
Cuba - Music Fund for Cuba .
One of the Music Fund for Cuba’s more ambitious projects is the restoration of the Miramar Community Theatre in Havana: Project Teatro Miramar. This theatre, a Havana landmark, will play a very important role in the local community - providing a much needed cultural centre for all ages, but especially for children and young people. JBT makes a donation per head to the Music Fund on behalf of every tour we take to Cuba, as well as visiting Project Teatro Miramar in Havana.