Meet Our Expert Tour Leaders

Our experienced Tour Leaders will bring the history and culture of your destination to life, as well as ensure the smooth and safe operation of all aspects your trip. All of our Leaders possess an amazing breadth of knowledge and love of travel; their expert guidance is a critical element of all of our tours. Below are biographies of just a few of our Tour Leaders: simply the best in the business.

Acelle Garipova

Education: Bachelor of Arts in World Literature at Tashkent State University.
Languages: Russian, Uzbek, Uighur, English, some Italian and French.
Countries Visited: Italy, Belgium, France, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, UAE, Turkey, the former Yugoslavia.
Tours Led: The Five Stans, Egypt.
Info: Acelle has been guiding and leading tours in her native Uzbekistan for over six years as an English- and Russian-speaking guide.
Favourite Destination: Bukhara, Uzbekistan - for its architectural variety and fascinating history. Florence, Italy for its museums, wonderful pace of life, and gelato!; and the Turquoise Coast of Turkey, especially when sailing on a gulet(traditional Turkish boat).

ANDRES FERNANDEZ

Education: Communication and Psychology.
Languages: English, Spanish and French.
Tours Led: Costa Rica and Panama.
Favourite Destination: I love travelling in Central America. The natural history is astounding, all the birds, mammals, flora and fauna! As a certified diver and avid sportsman, the area offers many opportunities for diving, kayaking and rafting.

ANN CURRAN

Tours Led: Ireland
Info: Born and raised in County Kerry, Ireland, Ann grew up surrounded by traditional Gaelic culture and is, herself, fluent in Gaelic. She worked in a variety of careers before finding a calling as a trip leader specializing in cultural journeys/hiking adventures throughout Ireland, a vocation in which she has excelled for many years since. Ann is an extremely warm-hearted, joyful person with an infectious enthusiasm for all things Irish. She also invests a great deal of her time in voluntary organizations, most notably in outdoor programs for kids.

CHRIS TRIPODI

Education: Bachelor of Science. Music Management. Photography.
Languages: English, y un poquito de Español.
Countries Visited: Has travelled to over 85 countries spanning all corners of the globe. From Belize to Brunei, from Egypt to El Salvador, from Morocco to Mongolia, India to Italy.
Tours Led: Mongolia, Morocco, Croatia & Montenegro, Scandinavia, Italy, Spain, Peru, Brazil, Greece, Turkey, Bolivia, Ecuador, Russia, India, Nepal, Tibet, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Info: Journeyed through 66 countries during a two-year adventure across the six continents that aren't covered by snow for the entire year.
Favourite Destination: The next one.

CLAUDE MORENCY

Education: Human Geography and Anthropology.
Languages: English, French and Spanish.
Tours Led: Spain, Mexico, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Morocco, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius, Ethiopia, Reunion, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Gabon.
Favourite Destination: Indochina—the diversity of landscapes and cultures. From the mountain tribes of Laos to the Khmer civilization... with the great Vietnamese cuisine as a bonus!

DAMON CICCOZZI

Education: Tourism Management, CSIA (Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance) Lvl 3 Ski Instructor/Coach, Political Science.
Languages: English, French and Spanish.
Countries Visited: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Nepal, Hong Kong, Australia, Egypt, Jordan, Greece, Italy, Sweden, all over Western Europe and North America.
Tours Led: Cuba, France, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Switzerland, Baltic States, Albania, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Moldova, Peru, Bolivia, Australia and New Zealand.
Favourite Destination: Australia for its unparalleled natural beauty, cosmopolitan cities and an ever changing national fabric and Vietnam for its raw intensity, history, sights, sounds, and flavours that overwhelm the senses.

DIEGO VIDAL

Education: National Tour Guiding and Tourism Management; Naturalist Guide with a mention in Taxonomy and Ornithology; Exchange Student in Senior Year at Saint Fulgence College in Quebec, Canada.
Languages: Spanish, English and French.
Tours Led: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia.
Favourite Destination: Ecuador because of the amazing variety of landscapes, people, weather, fauna and flora; Peru and Bolivia for their colourful markets, ancient history and the majesty of the Andes.

ERIN HOWELL

Education: Bachelor of Commerce in Economics. Further studies in Interior Design, and Greek and Roman Mythology.
Languages: English, French and a dash of Spanish.
Countries Visited: Southeast Asia, Europe and Australasia, including Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Greece and Australia.
Tours Led: Australia, Spain, Greece, Italy, Cuba, South Korea, Singapore, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Favourite Destination: Any place you find me having a good laugh, and any place I have never been. That said, sitting outside a café in Rome, eating some deliciously cheesy pasta and drinking a glass of wine while listening to the hustle and bustle of passers-by will never get old to me. But don't get me wrong, I will climb Uluru faster than you!

INDERJEET SINGH

Education: Bachelor of Commerce; Mountaineering Course from IMF (Indian Mountaineering Foundation).
Languages: English, German, Hindi, Punjabi, Kashmiri, Nepali.
Tours Led: Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Darjeeling, Garhwal and Kumaon, Bombay, Goa and South India.
Favourite Destination: Spiti Valey in Himachal Pradesh and Sunrise in Tiger Hill in Darjeeling.

JAMES KAGGIA

Education: Tour Guiding and Tourism Management.
Languages: English, Swahili and Kikuyu.
Tours Led: Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania including Zanzibar and Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Info: James has been working in tourism in East Africa region for over ten years both in the office and in the field.
Favourite Destination: Just like the name Serengeti means in the maa language of the Maasai, the plains are truly endless. Its quite a feat to get there, but worth all the trouble!

JONATHAN HODGSON

Education: BA in Psychology at McGill University; MBA at the University of British Columbia.
Languages: English; conversational French; improving Spanish, German, Russian, and Laotian. And a decent Scottish accent.
Tours Led: I have led tours in over 60 countries over the last 7 years in all the continents except for Antarctica. Have to work on that one next!
Favourite Destination: Where to begin? Each place has something that makes it a special destination. A few that spring to mind: Kaieteur Falls in Guyana; the snow-covered mountains of Ladakh, India; camel trekking in the Moroccan Sahara; and sipping tea in a chaikhana of the old town of Bukhara, Uzbekistan.

LAURA RUDDERFORTH

Education: English Literature, Art History, Education and PADI Instructor.
Languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian, some Tagalog, Thai, Turkish and Mandarin.
Tours Led: Iceland, Greece, Switzerland, Gulf States, Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Madagascar, Adriatic, Malta, Turkey, Scotland, Chile, Myanmar (Burma), Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Italy, Spain, Thailand, Tibet, Brazil, Argentina and Chile.
Favourite Destination: The Philippines for the fascinating underwater landscapes and life, Sicily for the abundance of delicious cuisine and wealth of antiquity, everywhere on Rapa Nui.

LINDSAY MACKENZIE

Education: BA Geography and Political Science.
Languages: English and some Spanish, French and Italian.
Tours Led: Italy, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, Romania, Bulgaria, Australia, New Zealand, Jordan, Iran, Brazil, Egypt, Slovenia, Greece and Cuba.
Info: Born and raised in Whistler, B.C., but has lived in Switzerland, South Africa and Costa Rica.
Favourite Destination: Iran for the unbelievable warmth of the people. Italy and the Adriatic for an unsurpassed combination of sun, sea, art, history and great food and wine.

LORNA LISSNER

Education: Ongoing.
Languages: English and some Spanish.
Tours Led: Adriatic, Caucasus, South America, Middle East, Europe, North Africa and Ethiopia.
Info: Lorna has been with Adventures Abroad for 10 years, interspersing work in the office as a Destination Specialist with numerous stints on the road as a Tour Leader.
Favourite Destination: I love to travel anywhere that is off the beaten trail...Yemen, Columbia, Ladakh and Ethiopia have been a few of my favourites of my recent travels. Drinking butter tea with newly made friends in Ladakh or learning new ways to set a sail in Turkey make this job one of the best you could dream of.

MARTIN CHARLTON

Education: Bachelor's Degree in Geography; further studies in Archaeology & Anthropology.
Languages: English and some French and Spanish.
Tours Led: Over the past 19 years I have led over 175 tours through nearly 90 countries. Everywhere from Albania to Papua New Guinea, Madagascar to Saudi Arabia and Rwanda to Kosovo.
Favourite Destination: My love of travel and infectious enthusiasm for different cultures has taken me to over 115 countries. The further off the beaten path, the better. For a favourite: perhaps South Georgia Island, Isfahan in Iran, or Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic. World's best city = Istanbul!

ONDREJ STREJCEK

Education: Music and History.
Languages: English, Czech, Slovak, Russian; some German, Polish, Italian, and Spanish.
Tours Led: Poland, Austria, Ukraine, Moldova, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Russia and Baltic States.
Favourite Destination: Czech Republic-rapidly developing but still very cultural and historical.

PABLO GONZALEZ

Education: Tourism business at Technological University of Quito.
Languages: Spanish, English and German.
Tours Led: Nicaragua, El Salvador, Ecuador, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, GuatemalaPeru and Bolivia
Favourite Destination: Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Strasbourg in France, but I have a special interest and attraction for Peru and Bolivia since I began travelling to these countries.

Peter Barathan

Education: Business and Sports Management.
Languages: English, some French and passable Tok Pisin.
Countries Visited: Extensive travel through over 60 countries, ranging from New Zealand and Philippines to South Africa and Papua New Guinea.
Tours Led: Caucasus, Albania, the Balkans, the Mediterranean, Adriatic, Southern Africa, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.
Favourite Destination: There is no place on earth like Papua New Guinea; breathtaking sites combined with a fascinating culture, and amazing people. Anywhere in the Middle East; delicious food, friendly and hospitable people, a place you can never get bored. Singapore, best food in the business.

SERRA HUGHES

Education: Middle Eastern and Islamic History and English Literature.
Languages: English and Mandarin.
Tours Led: India, Greece, China, Silk Road, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Malaysia, Gulf States, Israel/Jordan and Egypt.
Favourite Destination: Tej honey wine in Lalibela, Ethiopia; the vast, supernatural beauty of Wadi Rum, Jordan; sailing down the Nile on a felucca; the jaw-dropping futuristic skylines of Hong Kong and Shanghai.....and whatever/wherever is next!

STEPHEN SCROGINGS

Education: Visual Arts and Sociology.
Languages: English and Japanese
Tours Led: Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
Favourite Destination: I am fascinated by the art and culture of Asia, and in particular Japan. The far north of Japan is one of the region's most intriguing areas.

SUBASH TAMANG

Education: Bachelor of Arts (Geography and Economics).
Languages: Nepali , Hindi and English.
Tours Led: Darjeeling, Sikkim, Bhutan, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Tibet, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Kumoan and Rajasthan.
Favourite Destination: Watching the sunrise over the Kanchenjunga from Tonglu in Darjeeling, especially the first rays touching the mountain.

TRIZA MUSYOKA

Education: Tour Guiding and Tourism Management.
Languages: English, Swahili and Kamba.
Tours Led: Kenya, Tanzania including Zanzibar and Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Info: I have been working in tourism in the East Africa region for over 18 years both in the office and in the field.
Favourite Destination: Ngorongoro Crater: offering the most spectacular views any safari traveller could hope for.

VICTOR ROMAGNOLI

Education: History and English Literature.
Languages: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Turkish, German, Arabic and Greek.
Tours Led: On all seven continents.
Favourite Destination: The next tour I lead, wherever that may be. Who knows what interesting people I might meet on the tour and what fascinating experiences we may have along the way.

Yasemin Reis

Education: Social Anthropology and Cultural Studies
Languages: English,Turkish
Tours Led: Yasemin has been guiding tours through East and West Turkey since 1997.
Info: Also a translator, Yasemin has worked for Discovery Channel Turkey, Nippon TV and several film festivals. She has published several articles presenting an anthropological look at the confluences of medicine, medical culture, history, myth, religion and art, in Asklepios: Journal of Medical Culture, Plan B Publications, Istanbul.

YVETTE HAAKMEESTER

Education: MA Classical History and Archaeology
Tours Led: Turkey, Greece, Italy, Malta, Tunisia, Libya, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, Croatia, Spain, Slovenia, Ethiopia, Mali and Burkina Faso.
Info: She has been leading tours for 15 years. Her area of expertise is the countries of the Mediterranean basin. She has a particular fascination for the imprint of ancient cultures on modern ones (culture, religion, cuisine, music, architecture, etc.) She has resided in Turkey, Greece and currently in Hammamet, Tunisia.

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