Intrepid Travel to explore Middle East’s female culture
Intrepid Travel has developed women-only trips to Morocco, Iran and Jordan for the first time to explore the female culture in the Middle East.
Three new tours have been put together to offer an insight into female communities in the Middle Eastern countries, from the general customs, traditions and daily lives of women to the challenges they face in a male dominated culture.
The ‘limited-edition’ tours went on sale on International Women’s Day (March 8). They are: Morocco: Women’s Expedition, from £620; eight day Jordan: Women’s Expedition, from £1,225; and Iran: Women’s Expedition, from £2,005.
The Morocco tour visits Marrackech, meeting Berber families in their own homes and seeing how an artist co-operative is empowering female rug-weavers in small villages, and experiencing a traditional hammam with local women.
In Jordan, clients will learn the ancient art of Henna with traditional Bedouin ladies, take tea at a ladies-only beach at the Dead Sea and learn the art of Arabic cooking in a local home.
The Iran tour featurs a trip to an Iranian beauty salon, a female-only park and a yoga class as well as a remote homestay with the Qashqai people and a meeting with young female entrepreneurs.
The itineraries are guided by female tour leaders and will include meetings with a range of different women in the community – young, old, religious, conservative and liberal – to encompass a variety of viewpoints.
Jenny Gray, regional product manager, Middle East and Africa, said trips would have all the hallmarks of a classic Intrepid trip but with an added focus on female travel and empowerment.
She added: “While Intrepid Travel believes in inclusiveness at all levels of our company, these female-led, women-only expeditions offer a socially responsible and culturally sensitive way for travellers to access female-only establishments, experiences and customs in these traditionally conservative countries.”
In India, Intrepid Travel has already achieved a 50/50 gender split in its intake of new tour leaders through social media campaigns, proactive advertising and education. It now has 11 female tour leaders in the country.
